30 Day- Idea to Product [Week 1]

Well, it is the end of week one and I will have to say that I have accomplished more and less than I expected. As I mentioned in my fist post I have already selected the idea that I want to pursue during this 30 day challenge but in hindsight I realize maybe I should have started with with a clean slate.

Why do I say that, well here is my thinking, I have been playing with ideas and evaluating them seriously for the past 6 months. Over the course of that time I realized something very important.

Here it is:

Lesson #1 – There is no Magic formula for selecting a successful product idea.

This may be obvious to some and less obvious to others but based on my experience it is one of the first Rules I would would add to my list. Though the Inventor’s Digest list seems to capture key areas to move you in the right direction the reality still exists that one could complete the entire list and still not end up with a successful product. So what is the answer?

“So I disagree with the followers of Marx and those of Adam Smith: the reason free markets work is because they allow people to be LUCKY, thanks to aggressive trial and error, not by giving rewards or “incentives” for skill. The strategy is, then to TINKER as much as possible and try to collect as many Black Swan opportunities as you can.”

(Emphasis Added)

-Nassim Nicholas Taleb

Quote from The Black Swan

The key is to take action, to try and to make mistakes, then try again. Rinse and Repeat. I know this sounds a bit of an over simplification but this is the reality. You may be the lucky one that hits your first idea out of the park and to you congratulations. For everyone else, it is a process, a process that rewards the work, rewards the sacrifice and pays those that stay the course.

That being said, this also assumes that you are on the correct path that you have selected the correct idea and that there is an opportunity at the end of the trail.



Two Steps to Launch a Product:

1. Research- Market, Patent, Other
2. Visit a Business Expert.

(Excerpt from How to License your Million Dollar Idea.)

As an engineer and designer, these steps are not the steps I would naturally take. Here is the list I would make if I were to right my list:

1. Create a Design, Create Drawings, Create a Prototype
2. Protect the IDEA at All costs
3. Determine the materials, Estimate Costs
4. Research- Market, Patent, Other
5. Find a Manufacturer, etc.

Can you see the problem with my original list? As I review my previous approach, I realize that this loop is one that is easy to get caught in, and difficult to get off. So as I take on this new project, I am changing my perspective towards my previous methods. I am shedding my engineering approach and transitioning to sales person, stay tuned to see how it goes.  But first will share with you my process associated with Step #1 : Research.

Tagged as: Black Swan, Books, Harvey Reese, How to license your million dollar idea, Idea to Product Launch, Ideas, Invention, Patent, Product, Rinse and Repeat, tinker