Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Let's Start Cookin With Crisco! How to Add Meat and Potatoes to Your Idea

"Are you ready to flesh out your idea?"
"Yes."
"Good...I'm glad you're on board. Now, lets get this baby cookin."


Let's talk about Substance, Form and Color, and how to make the idea into something we can see with our own eyes and handle with our little sticky fingers.

All new and related products are made from something. What will yours be made of? What kind of shape will it be and what color will it be? When we begin to mold the material into a shape or form and give it color, the matrix begins to stretch on ad infinitum. Here is a list of possible materials you can use to make your product.

C

Plastic
Metal
Ceramic or Glass
Rubber
Cloth
Wood
Paper
Stone

Now, we are going to throw a little color into our mix.


D

Red
Blue
Green
Yellow
Orange
Violet
Black
White


Okay, so black and white are neutrals or absences of color. Nevertheless, we still call them colors, so we’ll leave them in. Common shapes are used for many products and related products. Click on the Geometric Shapes link in the upper left corner.

These shapes are common to all of us but they are not really eye catching. There is another alternative that people seldom think about. What about making a product or related product using uncommon shapes or symbols—even, numbers and letters? For example, take the capital letter A. (For this exercise I want you to open up a Microsoft word blank document and type a capital letter (A) using an Arial font and then enlarge it to 72) Now, what common product or tool currently meets, or almost matches the configuration of the letter A?

Can you see a ladder or a nutcracker? Look closely. Of course, you can. What about the letter D? (Use a Tahoma font this time.)

Now, if I were to stand the letter D on its flat side and add measurement lines around the arc I’d have a protractor. As far as your imagination goes, the ideas for using letters—or numbers for that matter—is limitless because of the wide range of fonts available for use. I used an Arial Font for the letter A in the first example, and I used the Tahoma font for the letter D because other fonts are serif fonts and include a small line or stroke to finish off the top or bottom of the letter. But include them also when you’re thinking about an idea. You never know what your mind will create when you look at any number or letter for a period of time.
In addition, keep in mind that I only used two letters with two different fonts. Letters and numbers come in a myriad of fonts. They also come in every language under the sun and all of them can be manipulated in one way or another to give a new form to a product. Yes, the entire alphabet of any language can be flipped—turned upside down—or inverted in some manner to give shape to a product. Think outside the box.
This brings us to another thing to keep in mind about ideas. Learn to think globally. Think about your sisters in other cultures. Learn as much as you can about your Arab sister, your Indian sisters, etc. What do they need? What kind of products are they currently using? How would or could you make their life a little easier. Think ‘Wholeness.’

Now, we come back to the matrix of ideas. We’ll keep this matrix in groups of five for greater visual clarity. The end result of manipulating the matrix is to produce the MI, the Manifested Idea which will take the form of any product, new product, information product, media product or offered service.




A---------+---------B---------+----C---------+------D--------- = MI

Food-------+------Taste------+---Plastic-----+----Red-----=New Product
Clothing---+------Touch------+---Paper-------+--Blue--------=Related Product
Shelter-----+------See---------+----Wood------+-Yellow-------=Info
Relationship--+---Smell-------+---Rubber------+--Green--------=Media
Information----+--Hear-------+--Cloth--------+--Orange---------- =Service






Thus, I could start my thinking in column (A) because I'm thinking about an article of clothing. But I want this piece of clothing to have a distinct smell to it (B) and I want it made out of plastic (C) and I want it to be yellow (D)
A person who plays with the matrix in this way can easily create a yellow article of clothing made from plastic that smells like bananas. Why not? Thousands of products are scented these days.
For instance,the person or persons who cashed in on the edible panties craze simply use two components from group (A) clothing and food, to engage the senses on all levels (taste, touch, sight and smell)(B) to create a grand novelty item. They weren't functional and they didn't have to be--functionality wasn't part of the plan in their creation. They were created simply as a novelty for fun and perhaps would add a little spice to someone's relationship. Oh...there's that word again: relationship. So, the creators of edible panties actually took three things from our needs list(group A) Food, (although they weren't meant to be totally consumed)Clothing and Relationships. See, I told you--nothing is etched in stone.

Juggle the matrix!

See how this works? Don’t forget that new ideas for products and services can be created to benefit people, animals, plants and any other life form on the planet. In the above example, a scented article of clothing could have been made just as easily for a pet dog or cat as it could for a person. Again, learn to think outside the box. Source wants you to live an abundant life. That means abundance is part of your God-given inheritance. You already know that there is enough money to go around for everybody. Don't let the media scare you into believing that times are too hard. Somewhere, at this very moment, someone is making lots of money off their simple invention in spite of the fact that the naysayers told them the idea would never work and that times were too risky to try to start a business. You and your sisters can pave the way for a better life yourselves, your family and the world at large . You came into this physical reality to experience joy--that's your purpose--to live a life of joy. Joy is a part of the journey no matter what obstacles you face or go through. This is your moment.

Monday, April 12, 2010

Show 'em' your Underalls! How to Stretch Your Idea Into Long Money

Maybe you're too young to remember those popular Underalls commercials of the 1980's. Underalls were not the first stockings ever invented nor were they the first heavily marketed pantyhose for women. There were the unforgettable Leggs commercials of the 70's and 80's,coupled with the No Nonsense line--and who could forget that 'Gentlemen Prefer Hanes?' Yes the pantyhose business was booming and everybody had their hand in the pie. But the creators of Underalls get my nod for being the first to truly create a memorable commercial that used the combination of a existing product(a pair of pantyhose)and added another existing product (panties) to sell women on the idea that they were getting two products in one. But the product had purpose: to get rid of the dreaded unwanted pantie line. We might even call their creation a new product. You and your team might come up with a new product or even a related product that enhances something already on the market.

The ideas you receive from Source may fall within any of these well-known categories. Pay close attention to them. They are the critical part in the matrix of the idea. The completion or the end of the idea will take on one or more of these forms.


New Product
A Related Product
Information
Media
Services



Remember, a new product is not really a new product per se, but rather a new way of merging existing materials into a new form or structure—an alchemical exploration. Thus, a new product is really a continuum of an existing product or a combination of parts from various existing products. Seen from this perspective, all products and services are really related products and related services. Nevertheless we will look at the big five as they are. A new product will be something you've never seen before. A related product will simply be a product that can be used in conjunction with another product or to supplement a product.

For instance, one company creates tape and another company creates a tape dispenser; one company sells prescription drugs and another company sells a nonprescription supplemental drug. Information of any kind may be sold online, in a bookstore, magazine rack or through a seminar. You can create a new media form or add your ideas to any of these existing mediums: television, radio, audio, books, podcasts, video hosting services, video games, web pages, etc. Services can be provided for just about anything.

Now, let’s take a look at the foundation for the matrix of the idea.

A-------------+-----------B-------------------------=

Food---------------------Taste--------------------A New Product
Clothing-----------------Touch-------------------A Related Product
Shelter-------------------See----------------------Information
Relationship------------Smell--------------------Media
Information-------------Hear---------------------Services



When you look at this simple formula, don’t get locked into the idea that anything is set in stone. In other words, don’t try to add A (food) + B (taste) to get a new product). The order or grouping within any category has absolutely nothing to do with anything. Instead, juggle the matrix. Million dollar ideas are hidden within unorthodox combinations of the matrix.




Think…

How can I combine the sense of hearing with the need for clothing to create a service that provides information?

Think…

How can I combine the need for relationship with the sense of smell to create a new or related product?


This may appear to mind boggling at first, but you’re forgetting the most important thing: The ideas are already there. When thinking about a product or service keep these things in mind:

There are no right or wrong combinations
Your imagination is unlimited
The Source wants this co-creative process just as much as you do
Ideas are free of charge
The most important thing is to have fun.

Thursday, April 8, 2010

Don't Get Impatient...Your Help Is On The Way! How to Allow Your Divine Mastermind Connections

Before I go on to step 3 in the matrix for creating million dollar ideas, I wanted to stop here and speak briefly about something that may concern many women who have never worked together with other women and also for the lone woman who wants to find others to mastermind with, but hasn't the slightest clue of how to go about it. My first piece of advice is this: Don't Get Your Panties In a Wad! (I once heard a well known female motivational speaker use this phrase, so I'm not speaking as some kind of neanderthal.) Nevertheless, I mean exactly what I say. Don't worry about how you are going to find others who will work with you. The universe has a way of bringing people together in the most unexpected ways.
One of the best ways to illustrate what I'm talking about is this quote from marketing and business strategy coach, Nancy Matthews, who left this wonderful message on her Facebook page. Here it is:

"Today walk with the awareness that the next person you meet could be "The One" - the one to bring a smile to your face, new business, the exact solution you were looking for, a new relationship and life long friend. Today let's treat those we meet "As If" they are that important - because they are."

She couldn't be more right.

As I stated earlier, Source (God, or Universal Mind, if you prefer) has a way of bringing people together and creating the environmental circumstance for your divine connections to take place. This means that it's not up to you to try to force things to happen. If you try to make things happen, you are going to quickly find out that trying to force what you want to happen will only prolong your desire because strength or force always builds up resistance or counter-force to whatever you want. That's the reason you should settle down and get into a spirit or attitude of gratitude and allowance. This doesn't mean to sit on your butt and do nothing. It simply means to work toward your goal with joy, believing that what you want--your intention--has already set things in motion. Learn to read the omens around you and look for those little signs that let you know that the universe is trying to tell you something. If you are an author, you'll love this story.
As many of you may know, Paulo Coelho's, The Alchemist has been one of the greatest inspirational books of all time. I had never heard of the book until my editor, Magdalene Pagratis, suggested that I read it a couple of years ago. I called Maggie one day when I was feeling down in the dumps. I was having myself a pity party over my lack of book sales. She listened quietly as I grumbled and complained about all the effort I had put into my books with only minimal results to show for it. When I was finished with my belly-aching she asked,” Have you ever read, The Alchemist?” I told her that I had never even heard of the book, and then I asked her for the author’s name because I would see if my local library had a copy for checkout.
The very next night when I got to work, I check my interoffice mailbox to see what kind of work my boss had left me to do. Inside, among memos and handouts, was a book a co-worker had left for me. The post-it note stuck to the book cover said that she knew I like to read books of a spiritual nature and that this particular book was going to be thrown away with all the other ones she never bothered to read.
As you might have guessed, it was a copy of The Alchemist. I knew this was no coincidence. My editor lives in Quebec, my co-worker, Bonnie, and I, live in Indianapolis. What do you think the odds would be that two women who have no knowledge of each other and who live almost a thousand miles apart, would want to get a particular book into my hands--and all within twenty-four hours. Because the timing of the events and the object in question(a single particular book) is so precise--the theory of coincidences has been shattered in the face of certainty. Carl Jung simply called this synchronicity. Needless to say,I dove straight into the book to find out what message the universe had for me.
I read the book first by myself, and then I read it along with my wife. I read it one final time by myself again—this time jotting down some of the key concepts in the book as I understood them. I had no idea that two years later I would deviate from writing non-fiction to release my first work of fiction based upon some of the principle I learned in The Alchemist. Perhaps, this is what the universe had in mind all along. But it's safe to say that none of us at the time had any idea that this was how things were going to work out. These two women didn't know that they were instrumental in helping me take my dream to the next level. And I never fail to try to help them whenever possible.
I have always been surrounded by wonderful women--women like my good friends Lily Finch of Alchemenergy, and Dorothy Lafrinere of womensselfesteem.com. I consider women like these my mentors. I hope that the remaining blogs will help create more relationships that will help us all fulfill our destiny. I will continue with step 3 of the matrix in the next blog.

Monday, April 5, 2010

Go Get Your Money, Girlfriend! : Step 2 for Creating Million Dollar Ideas

STEP 2: Product Appeal

Catering to the Five Senses


Now that we have talked a little about needs, we need to talk about product appeal and how this dynamic ties in to meeting our basic needs. Whatever the idea given you, it must somehow appeal to any one or any combination of our five senses. All perception begins with the senses. We perceive internally as well as externally. For instance, our internal perception (proprioception) lets us know when we are tired or hungry. This means our physiology often dictates what we need and when we need it. Thus, an idea for a product or service is given by the Source and then given to men and women who will create something to meet the need. A tired body needs a bed to rest in, but the bed may take the form of any product for resting such as a hide-a-way bed, a waterbed, a futon, a hammock, air mattress or any other form of bedding that will make resting comfortable. A hotel along the interstate provides a good service combining the product (bed) and the place for the road weary traveler.

Our external perception or exeroception comes through our ability to see, hear, feel, smell and taste. Without these senses we would not be able to tell anything about our outside world. Thus, all products must appeal in some way to any one or any combination of our senses. Our senses help put flavor into our ideas. That is, the product must look good to us, feel good to us, taste good to us, sound good to us, smell good to us or provide us with some type of critical information or knowledge before we’ll buy it. Using the senses is the second step in the matrix of creating million ideas. When we added our knowledge of what appeals to our senses with our basic needs our matrix begins to take on form. We started our matrix with group (A)

A

Needs
Food
Clothing
Shelter
Relationship
Information

Now, let's throw in B

B
Senses
Taste
Touch
Sight
Smell
Hearing






A--------+---------- B

Food--------------------Taste
Clothing----------------Touch
Shelter------------------See
Relationship------------Smell
Information-------------Hear


Step 3 is coming up shortly.

Thursday, April 1, 2010

How to Create Million Dollar Ideas With No Money Down! Use the Matrix!

The Matrix of Ideas

How to Create Wealth by Meeting the Needs of Humanity


Make no mistake about it; you will be given ideas to create wealth because this was an intention put forth by Source before you ever gained consciousness in this physical reality. If you don’t believe me take a look at your situation right now. Where are your friends and family members right now? Are they sitting there with you as you read this blog? Probably not. Why not? Because this blog and the book, Holistic Business Success for Women, is a physical manifestation of an idea intentionally sent forth into this physical reality specifically for women who the Source intended to receive it.

Also, my purpose, intention and desire to see women fulfill their purpose and destiny by bringing forth a creative expression of themselves is a vibrational match to your own desire to fulfill your own purpose and destiny. In addition, the timing and need for this blog is in direct alignment with the intention of our Source. So, as far as you and I are concerned, we are engage in a synergistic activity. There’s no doubt in my mind that you and your group will bring forth something that I will take pleasure in, either directly or indirectly. That is to say, you and your group may bring forth a new cosmetic for women. I might not wear it, but I most certainly will enjoy looking at the woman who does. There’s always a need for something, and meeting needs, which is the first part of the matrix, is our primary objective, our focus. Needs and ideas are eternally linked. That is to say, without a need, an idea for a product or service to meet that need never comes into consciousness. And without an idea, which turns into a manifested product or service, a need cannot be fulfilled. Learn to sleep, eat and drink the following five basic needs. Repeated them over and over again if you have to. I'm sure that someone can add to this list, but were working in groups of five. There is a fourth supplemental group which can be added to our matrix but that will come a little later. I'm sure that someone else could probably come up with another addition to the list, but you'll find that any addition can be drawn from any one of the five existing needs in our list. For now, all I want you to think about is the 'Big Five.'

A
Food
Clothing
Shelter
Relationship
Information

People usually think of the first three as being the foundational needs of every human being but nothing is further from the truth. People usually think in this limited way because they are only thinking in terms of what keeps the body safe. This is narrow-minded thinking. Without relationship and the need to exchange some kind of information all is meaningless. Could you imagine having every thing you could ever dream of and not have any other human to talk to and enjoy these things with you? I think not. You need relationship as much as you need food and water. The secret to the success of the internet lies within its’ ability to merge the dynamic of relationship and information into a myriad of websites designed to connect people and facilitate relationship. This is something to keep in mind when you get an idea for something to sell online.
So, start with the notion of how to meet any one of these five basic needs. This is the foundation of the Matrix of Ideas; learn them, and learn them well. The second step is coming up.