“There will always be a frontier where there is an open mind and a willing hand.” —Charles F. Kettering
There are times when we read in a newspaper or see on TV products or services being promoted that are “rip offs” of an idea we previously had. Our initial reaction is, “That’s my idea!”
I remember being in a book store years ago and being fascinated by the number of books that dealt with vocabulary expansion. There were 10 to 12 books on the subject and most of the titles began with “How To…”
A creative spark ignited in my brain. Why not produce a Word-A-Day Calendar? There would be 365 tear off pages and each page would contain a word, its definition, part of speech, etymology, a pronunciation guide, usage in a sentence and a synonym. Using my Word-A-Day Calendar, people could easily learn 365 new words in only one year.
I took my idea to a printer to get an estimate for printing and production. I liked the idea of putting ink on paper and the potential profit projection. But, somewhere in the experience the creative spark fizzled. Maybe I didn’t have enough money to make a production run, or I failed to devise a marketing or distribution plan. I may have questioned the buying market for the product. But the real reason for not capitalizing on my idea was that I limited myself by what I believed was possible. I did not break the bonds of my self-imposed limited success. I did not see thousands of people buying my Word Calendar.
Several years later, much to my surprise, I discovered someone had “stolen” my idea. There in the same book store where I had my “Ah Ha” moment, I saw “my” Word Calendar. Someone was successful by following through on their idea. I failed to move my idea from incubation to development to market because I did not believe it possible.
Success is often limited by what a person believes is possible. Opening yourself to creative thinking—thinking outside the box—is one way to break the bonds of self-imposed limited success.
Creative ideas are not the result of luck, as many people believe them to be. They are the product of an active human brain. Sometimes ideas do seem to come out of the blue, but certainly they do come more frequently when you’re searching for them.
Creative thinking is like acknowledging, while the accepted belief is that the earth is flat, you go ahead and ask Queen Isabella for three ships; you know Newton’s Law of Gravity and yet you begin the countdown: “10, 9, 8…” and you rocket beyond earth’s gravity.
Creativity thinking isn’t deterred by reality. While the medical world was saying, “Men will never run a mile in less than four minutes,” British medial student Roger Bannister was lacing up his running shoes. Someone wrote, “Had Thomas Edison used accepted thinking he would have developed a larger candle, not the light bulb.”
There are several principles about ideas: We all have them. They quickly vanish, unless captured on paper and most of the time we do nothing with them. Don’t let your million dollar idea get away. Hogdacious Hogs don’t let “reasoning” or other peoples’ negative comments talk them out of taking action on an idea. Once you have evaluated an idea and determine it has merit, act upon it. Hogs convert ideas into action.
Hog Thought: A Short Pencil Is Better Than A Long Memory
You should always carry a note pad and pencil with you. When an idea strikes you capture it on paper. Solutions to problems often imitate lightning; they strike quickly and are quickly gone. Don’t trust your memory. Daymon Aiken has said, “Ideas are flighty things. That which now seems perfectly clear may later get away from you. Make a habit of jotting down ideas as they occur to you. Although many of them will not work out they may suggest other thought.”
Hog Quote: “The ability to convert ideas to things is the secret of outward success.” —Henry Ward Beecher.
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