Inventing Lesson #1 Learned

So, after all this time, I was finally able to talk to someone actually experienced in the field of inventing and bringing products to market, and notice I put product*s*, as in plural. You see, each product can require a different approach, each inventor may work better with one approach over another - there isn't only one way to do this is what I have learned over the past 2 years.

Yes, I am still waiting for my provisional patent application, and as of April 7, 2009, it has been 2 years since I embarked upon this journey with my current product. It is the item I had chosen to be my first to take through the invention process and to take to market, as there are others.

I am not comfortable sharing the details of how it is a highly regarded professional could drag this process out to the 2-year mark, or get one up on me as has been shared with me, but I will share that is partly due to blurring the lines between friendship and professionals. Had those lines not been blurred, I would have presented more questions, in an annoying manner even, and pressed harder to get what I am paying for - an actual provisional patent application - at least a year ago.

My advice is to avoid friend referrals. I am not saying to not see the same attorney a relative or friend has dealt with in their endeavors, rather to avoid befriending and working with an attorney who is simply a friend of a friend. I feel it is too easy to blur those lines. Both parties, I dare to predict, can feel the same. I'm sure my attorney has felt she needed to do a little more for me than usual, or rather offer more advice free of charge, than she might others. Yet, I'm just plain ol' inexperienced me, so what do I know about how long this should take?

However, it has been 2 years, and while I may be low on a priority list, it has been too long. I found out today, thanks to the inventor I mention above, Mark Reyland, that it normally takes anywhere from 6 weeks to max 3 months. Needless to say, Monday brings about a whole new me in getting this application in my hands. Thanks Mark!

If you are interested in learning some reliable steps involved in the invention process, visit Mark's blog! Love it!

Fair voting on ideas....

I watch The Big Idea with Donny Deutsch whenever I am able to. They have a new segment where they challenge 3 people to pitch their ideas in 30 seconds that we, as consumers, fellow inventors, family, friends, coworkers, neighbors, etc. can vote on as being the best of the 3 ideas.

One of the things that bothers me with running contests in this manner, is that one factor in particular can skew what may be the true results.

We see it all the time - Vote for me here (link provided), and some do so for online contacts even. Some people have more friends, family members, coworkers, neighbors, etc. than others who would vote just to support you, not necessarily your idea. How do you vote when asked to?



Due to these reasons, let's try to give the participants of this "contest" some fair feedback, a fair vote! I call upon all of us, complete strangers, to vote on which idea we feel is best!

I do not know any of these contestants. I was just really irked by one of the past votes held here. I compared all 3 ideas, and reviewed them for practicality purposes, and the most impractical idea, in MY opinion, was winning! How could this be? Do people not see how completely impractical that item was/is compared to the others?!

Come back after reviewing their contestants! Let's talk about WHY you feel one product idea should win over the others! In the process, we can learn about the current state of consumer thought processes and attitudes!

View contestants here! http://www.cnbc.com/id/27049065