The Value of an Idea

An excerpt from "Intangible Assets" by Angela K. Mack

(con't from page 2)

Idea generators have always been exploited by greedy and jealous people in power. Songwriters struggle to make money for their musical ideas due to greedy and illegal downloads on the Internet. This exploitation is not new. Various websites of mine have been hacked repeatedly. We discovered in one of the instances, a man from Romania hacked into the forums section and was trying to steal private information from others. Hackers from China breaking into websites and stealing information have been in the news recently. Someone recently stole original photos from our historical website, ParamountsHome and credited herself as taking them!

From the beginning of time, that desire to steal from another’s hard work and favor has been present. Whether you are spiritual or not, consider the early biblical story of Cain and Abel. Regardless of whether you think it is true, it is a great story that conveys the greed, stealing, and murder over something that was coveted. Cain killed his brother because he coveted the favoritism that Abel had with his father. Abel was an innocent victim killed by someone close to him that wanted to steal from him, was jealous of him, and ultimately killed him.

Without getting too political, I would also like to mention that wars have historically occurred when those in position of power become greedy. The innocent are the ones who suffer.

My inspiration for this book also stemmed from a passion. There are many things that will be outlined in the chapters that I am passionate about. These are all valuable and deserve to be recognized as such in a material world. I have come to the actualization that I am created as an idea maker. I am proud of who I am. I am passionate to stand up for myself against greedy people. I am anxious to hold onto my ideas as valued treasures and to release them as I see fit.

Time for Change

I am calling forth change in how ideas and idea makers are valued. Everything begins with an idea. Ideas come about because of dissatisfaction and passion. They are birthed through the brainstorming process of a concerned individual.

Consider the mothers who birth children and give them up for adoption. Both the birth mother and the adoptive mother are equally important. I see birth mothers as a prototype of idea makers. They birth a child. They carry the child the farthest they are able; until birth. But, for whatever reason, they need or want someone to take over from there. That gifted person is called the adoptive mother. My husband is actually adopted and has hung a poem on his wall for years called “Legacy of an Adopted Child” (author unknown). The poem relates, “The first gave you life, and the second taught you to live in it….”

In order to value idea makers more, I would like to better explain them.

Idea Makers vs Executors of Ideas

Idea makers carry a unique entrepreneurial or visionary spirit. They have special problem solving and intuitive skills that fuel their idea making process. Like the birth mother, idea makers give life. They often spend a great deal of time problem solving, researching, observing, piecing together, brainstorming, evaluating, etc. Idea makers such as Thomas Edison, Abraham Lincoln, the Wright Brothers, Benjamin Franklin, and Dr. Seuss have experienced what all idea makers do. That is failure. But each failed attempt is a learning experience and the idea becomes better refined with each failure. That refining process can often take quite a bit of time. And time equals money, right? I have often wondered why money is spent on medical research but not so much on ideas that better our world in which we live in.

Idea makers use one of the greatest intangible assets that exists and that is TIME. A lot of the time spent is time thinking. There are occupations that get paid for their time thinking. Journalists are a great example. They spend time gathering story ideas and researching what is going on in their field of interest. They spend time interviewing subjects for quotes and more research. They don’t always use all of the material that they glean. The end product is edited several times over by both the journalist and the editor. Journalists weave their observations, intuitions, research, interviews and writings in the form of a story or article that they have researched would be of interest to the readers. Much of the time spent as a journalist is time spent thinking. A journalist gets paid for their thinking time.

Idea makers also need to present their ideas in a way that sells. The process of creatively marketing an idea takes a great deal of time. Often times, connections and networking relationships need to be developed which is time consuming. Idea makers are generally extremely good at coming up with good ideas but need assistance in implementing them. In fact, I have found that idea makers are often void of the skills to execute their ideas effectively. This is where the ball is passed to the executors or the managers of an idea.

Continued to article page 4 »

About the Author | More by Angela Mack
Angela K. Mack is the Marketing Director and a Performing Arts Instructor at the North Shore Academy of the Arts. She enjoys composing music and writing articles and interviews in her spare time at creativeconnectionarts.com. She has spearheaded a revival of Paramount Records with her award-winning music history website. Her passion for spirituality, creativity, the arts, and race relations fuel many of her creative endeavors.

08/21/08