Where Do Ideas Come From?

It seems to me that humans are never satisfied with where they’re at in life. They’re always comparing their lives to someone else’s; wanting more and more money to buy the things they want, but don’t necessarily need. Why can’t they just realize how fortunate they are to have all the things they have, such as friends, family, a good job?

Take me for instance. I get up early in the morning, go for a walk, have some breakfast, curl up for a nap, go for a ride in the car and do some errands, play outside, stretch out for another nap, eat some dinner, maybe run around with a shoe, have a nice, relaxing belly rub, go to bed, and then do it all over again the next day. Now that’s contentment!

On the other paw, I mean hand, if you take a look at the development and growth that has happened in this world over time, it was achieved because someone needed something better or more efficient. Dissatisfaction makes us strive for improvement. Or, in my family’s case, dissatisfaction has made us work extra hard as we attempt to reach independence and financial control over our own lives.

So, where does that great idea come from? In the case of CoolZips, a division of IBeOn LLC, my humans created IBeOn in 2004 while they found themselves questioning and pondering life. “Where are we going? What are we doing?”

Human Lauren shouted out, "IBeOn! I be on the beach. I be on the slopes. I be on the road to creating something great." From there, IBeOn was formed and the Altman family – Human Rick, Human Lauren, and Human Hannah began jotting down fun ideas on a quest to living happily ever after.

Hip to the Skippy™ is a favorite family saying. To be Hip to the Skippy, one simply needs to feel the love and connect with the moment. Feeling quite Hip to the Skippy on one cold winter day, Lauren came up with the idea of making a zipper on Rick's sweater look a little more fun. "I'm thinking of making some zipper pulls, maybe using some beads or charms. What do you guys think?" Rick said, "Oh yeah, that sounds cool.” Seven year-old Hannah said, "I want to do it too.” I, of course, was standing close by praying for a snack, but I did show overall enthusiasm for the idea.

At that moment it was time to think of a name for our zipper pulls. Lauren and Rick each called out a few ideas, but it was Hannah who said, "I know, let's call it CoolZips." "Hmm," said Rick and Lauren, and while Lauren was still in “hmm” mode, Rick quickly ran upstairs and secured the domain name CoolZips.com. The next day we ventured out to the bead and craft shops and created our prototype. CoolZips® zipper pulls was born.

Anyone can come up with a great idea, but to see it through to fruition, you must take joy in the entire process, even when you feel that the rollercoaster ride won’t stop for you to catch your breath.

Remember that great fun, cool design, and function is what your idea should be all about.