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We all know that “necessity is the mother of invention.”
Many entrepreneurs and small businesses start with an invention or idea. Protecting that invention or idea with a patent can be important, but it doesn’t guarantee success.
So what is the mother of success? Failure.
The difference between a great idea that succeeds and a great idea that fails is the tenacity of the person behind it. Why? Because, at first, the only one who sees the “greatness” in an idea is the one who created it.
No matter what, persuading someone to part with his money in exchange for that idea is going to be a tough sell. So when most people try to sell their invention and are rejected, they give up.
Don’t give up.
If you run into rejection, take comfort in the fact that you’re in good company. Many of the most successful ideas, such as Post-it notes, Liquid Paper and even the movie “Star Wars,” started out as failures.
In the case of Post-it notes, it took years of persuasion inside 3M to get this product on the market. There was just no interest. Today there is probably not a business that doesn’t use them. Post-it notes failed long before they succeeded.
Similarly, Liquid Paper, invented by a secretary interested in correcting typing mistakes, failed to catch on right away. Only after years of hard work and word of mouth did it gain in popularity – another example of failure before success.
The story behind “Star Wars” is almost as remarkable as the movie itself. At the time of its making, there was little faith in its success. No one wanted to show the film, so it was bundled with another movie, “The Other Side of Midnight,” just so theaters would order it.
In fact, the film “Damnation Alley” (anyone ever hear of that movie?) was supposed to be Fox’s sci-fi hit that year, not “Star Wars.” Of course we all know what eventually happened.
The point is that when starting something new, you must accept that it will take time to catch on, no matter how great of an idea it is. In other words, accept that you will be told “no” – probably many times.
If you persevere, however, your probability of success will increase. Keep in mind that if it were easy, I wouldn’t be writing this article. I’d be in the Bahamas.
