So you have a brilliant idea for a product that you think could make you rich and really change the world in a positive way. You’ve had assurance from everyone you’ve asked that this is indeed a great idea and something people would use, and you know that you’d be much happier escaping the rat race and becoming a self-employed entrepreneur. And yet you aren’t one yet. And your product idea remains just that: an idea. So what’s going wrong? Why haven’t you made the leap yet? There are a number of common reasons and things that commonly hold people back, let’s take a look at some of those and then get to work dismissing them so you can stop procrastinating and get started on turning your dream into a reality…

Problem 1: The How

The first problem that most people will face in this situation is that they don’t have any idea how to take their idea and turn it into something real. This is coupled with the assumption that it must be incredibly difficult to do, and that it is probably outside of your capabilities to do it. Best just forget that idea and leave it to the big corporations right? Well actually the truth is that if you tried, you’d probably find that the whole process of taking an idea and turning it into a product is much easier and simpler than you expected. All it really requires is for you to do some research online to find the right people to help you. First get intellectual property protection if you can and you think you need it or getting some NDAs drafted. Then find the people who can help you to do what you’re setting out to do. This will often mean starting by creating a prototype and then approaching manufacturers. That sounds tough? Well actually you can avoid all those issues from preventing you by outsourcing the processes. Use a prototyping agency to turn your ideas into prototypes that manufacturers will understand, then find a manufacturing agent/contractor to help you find someone who can take that product and make a million copies of it for you. If you can’t find these resources yourself online, try signing up to an inventors’ club or picking up an industry magazine. Still unsure? Just pick up the phone and call a manufacturer or manufacturing agent – they’ll want your business so they’ll probably talk you through the entire process from start to finish. This is the one step you need to take to get on track. So can you take it?

Problem 2: The Practicality

So if you can use the internet and pick up a phone you can get your idea manufactured. It’s that simple: this is not a valid argument. So what’s next? Perhaps you will say that you can’t afford to invest all your time and money in an idea that you aren’t sure will work, or that you have too many people relying on you. Maybe you think that now isn’t a good time – you’ll do it soon when things have picked up for you. This I’m afraid is nonsense. There is never a good time to take a huge gamble. The perfect opportunity will never present itself. Thus you may as well do it right now. Sure that might seem like a big gamble, perhaps a little reckless even, but then ask yourself what the alternative is: to work 9-5 in a job you find boring for the rest of your life? Now surely that’s much more of a daunting prospect. How can the worst case scenario be worse than that? And there are ways to make it more practical. You can always keep your job and do this as a hobby for instance. Team up with someone else to share the burden and the risk. Or start with a small order of products so you aren’t investing too much. There are always options…

Problem 3: The Fear

So the contract manufacturing is not the problem, nor is your circumstances. So what’s really stopping you? It’s the fear of course. What it comes down to is that you’re too afraid to do it – otherwise you would have already. I can’t help you wave a magic wand to make that go away, but if you imagine the worst case scenario you’ll probably find that it’s not really all that bad. Sometimes you’ve just got to take a leap. And won’t life be more exciting when you do?

About the Author:

This guest post is written by Gregory Fisher; he is the Founder of Berkeley Sourcing Group. He started BSG eight years ago after realizing the need for efficient processes and coordination between manufacturing firms located in the United States and factories in China.