Two Invention Rules
Rules were made to be broken, right? Read on and see if you feel like breaking or keeping these two invention rules.
How does one make the inventing process easier? Why does one invent? Wherein does the benefit of the invention lie?
Invention is not some magical gift imparted to a few illuminated ones. I will admit, however, that there are some individuals like Edison, Franklin, and da Vinci that were head and shoulders above the pack and that all the rest of us are standing on the shoulders of these invention giants. While we can’t all be the invention greats, we can follow two rules that will help us make a great invention.
Here are two invention rules that will help make inventing easy for you. At the very least, they will give you a better chance in your invention endeavor.
Invention Rules #1 of 2:
Invention is simply fixing a problem. Next time you have a frustration in your life at something, see this as the spark that drives that inventor spirit, and be thankful for it. Now think through the solution to that frustration that you are having, and hey, presto! My friend, you are an inventor.
Of course you have to consider the reach of your idea. The bearded, left-handed bee keeper who invents a product that makes his life easier but his product has no value to clean-shaven, right-handed bee keepers, let alone all the non-beekeepers in the world, is unlikely to be a commercial success and the investment to develop could never be economically viable. While the niche market is definitely something to cater to, the niche in this instance is almost non-existent.
Invention Rules #2 of 2:
Invent what you know. I like motorcycles, mountain biking, and playing the guitar. I have five children, so kids’ fun is another thing I am pretty aware of. A red flag comes up when I come up with an invention for fishermen or for the aerospace industry. I simply don’t know much about these. The chances are much higher that a) my idea either already exists or 2) my idea would make little sense to a person that resides in that specialty area of interest.
So get to it! You are the expert in your world, and from time to time you get frustrated at something that simply does not work. Sounds like the powder keg for an invention explosion to me.
You are now armed with the two most important invention rules. Go invent something!!!
Want more reading? The United States Patent and Trademark Office makes for some great reading in their “USPTO Publishes Proposed Rules Governing First-Inventor-to-File” article.