Hey! That was my idea!
Did you know that I was cursed? I am. Here’s why:
I have the brain of an inventor. I come up with new ideas and new ways to do things fairly often. I sketch out drawings and diagrams and get all excited that I’ve come up with something that will make a difference. And then once I’ve gotten myself worked into the proper state of Delusional Grandeur, I do some research into my idea only to find that the exact same thing (or something close enough) that I was thinking about has already been thought of, built and marketed. Often less than a few months prior to my ideas.
EVERY. STINKING. TIME.
And each time I go through the same feelings of jealousy, remorse, anger, ineptitude, depression and a loss of some of my self-confidence. I feel betrayed somehow by persons or entities unknown when I see my ideas selling in a magazine or on a TV infomercial or web site. Not because someone necessarily stole my ideas (which I’m pretty sure has actually happened once or twice) but because they beat me to it. And then the creative portions of my brain go into hibernation for a while.
EVERY. STINKING. TIME.
There is no cure for this affliction and nothing can be done except perhaps some serious therapy. There’s no reason I couldn’t have gone ahead with my idea on most occasions and possibly even ended up with a superior product than what was already available. But unfortunately, I give up like a spoiled child. If I can’t be the first person to come to market with the idea then I don’t want to be involved. The last thing I want to be seen as is a “Me Too” inventor or designer.
So I do the mental equivalent of curling up into the fetal position and suck on my inner child’s thumb. Because it’s always going to be easier to give up and accept defeat without starting than it is to attempt anything for real and fail.
Tags: failure, inventions
Rant | cybrpunk | 
March 3, 2008 2:46 pm | 
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