But before we dig into the solutions what is brain crack? In my opinion brain crack is know by several terms,  being in your own head, “wannabepreneur“, risk adverse…and a variety of other terms.  Brian crack can be broken down to it’s simplest form to be holding ideas in your head without putting them into action.  This holding of the ideas creating some sense of comfort or progression, while in essence creating nothing more than a false sense of productivity.  This is what fellow blogger zefrank has to say about brain crack (Warning: The video contains some NSFW language at the 1:30 mark, but the first 1:30 makes it worth a watch.)  Thanks for the song Ze.

Because with out the next step of some physical action the loop of great, world changing ideas continue to be puffed up into the greatest ideas the world has never seen.   This idea holding thoughts can be of several types, planning to exercise, planning to change jobs, planning to turn a new idea into a product, etc.  All of these things are not bad activities the problem stems from the planning activities continuing on a perpetual basis.  Each time we let ourselves get wrapped up in just  the planning activities they do not lead us to the next stages (generally the riskier ones).  And it is these loops that I would like to address.

5-S teps to Kick a Brain-Crack Addiction:

1) Get it ALL Out…and Down!

As simple as this step sounds this provides the the required brain cleanse allowing you to empty your thoughts completely of all the various ideas, tasks or hurdles.  This step basically provides two basic functions, one is to clean and capture.  The first part, Clean, allows your mind to be empty subsequently allowing more focus and a further ability to handle new challenges and to accept new opportunities.  This step out of all the steps should be the simplest due to the sheer fact that there is very little personal risk involved, unlike the remaining 4 steps.  So now that we have got it all out, lets take a look at the next step.

2) Take Action!
One of my favorite quotes by Tom Peters is:

Ready Fire Aim

I love this quote for so many reasons but mostly for the simplicity, as you dig down however there are several lessons to be learned.   First, be ready, which to me means to be prepared. More specifically, whatever your path, prepare for success, stay up to date in your industry, keep your skill currents and know as much as you can about the path your are about to embark on.  For example, I am working on releasing a new kids toy, so I am in the process of becoming an expert on the toy industry and what it takes to bring a toy to the market. But that is my path, for you it might be to lose weight, or to change a bad habit, learn everything you can about those paths, it will help you in the next step which is to Fire. Though fire might sound like an easy step it is having to fire without ever aiming that takes the guts and preparation. The other interesting part of this process is that people often get stuck at this point in a type of analysis paralysis.  Trying too hard to workout every detail and every possible scenario, this is where the process seems to get hung up for most of us.  We wait for every possible bit of info, so that we do not make any “mistakes”.  In reality however, or lack of action is exactly is the source of all of the problems.  I am not suggesting that we run out and try to fly, what I am saying if you want to fly, build some wings, strap them on and jump! (maybe not off of a bridge, but the roof or better yet the deck…the important part is to JUMP).

3) One Small Step…

The other key to success is after you make that first jump to continue to push forward, one small step at a time.  Just like the lunar landing, preparation is key, planning is important but once you jump (blast off in a rocket), your job is still not finished until you take that first step out of the lunar lander.  Though the jump can be one of the most anxious moments, for others the first step can induce similar reactions causing people to reconsider or hesitate.  As you can imagine hesitation at this point induces failure!  But if you do take that first step now you have options, options to make new choices and to make course corrections which push you closer and closer to your goal.

4) Put it on a Shelf, or in a Box!

It is possible that after you have put it all on the line that your project or self improvement will not proceed to the desired results, that is just a fact of life.  It is possible to do everything right and still not find success, does that mean you quit?  Of course not!  So what do you do next?  The next step, like with the first step, you need to finalize the project.   It is important to finalize the project so that you can focus your attention on the next project unimpeded by the results, failures or successes, of the previous ones.  This step like the initial step helps keep our mind empty of baggage and focused on moving forward.  The other important part of this step is to celebrate our successes and to honor our defeats and the lessons learned.   I personally review examples of each to help me jump start new projects.

5) Rinse and Repeat

With a few successes  under your belt you have to keep pushing.  Building on small or large successes and being vigilant to incorporate successful tools and experiences into each new project.  We have all heard of one hit wonders or people who’s results do not last.  The primary reasons for this lack of success is abandoning the things that made them successful in the first place.  Do not let that happen to you, find your focus, stay the course, make adjustments as necessary and enjoy the ride.

One Last Note: Why do we stay addicted?

One of the main reasons we stay addicted to brain crack is that we enjoy playing with ideas and just that action makes us feel like we are doing something to change our situation. Let me be blunt, because I have had to have this same blunt conversation with myself, until your ideas are out of your head they are useless.  Unless you share your ideas, talents or take action on your plans they are useless, get out, talk with people, make plans, take action and keep me posted on your results!

1) What problem are you solving?
Often this is a very simple definition to create, on that is at the genesis of your product.  Though the initial definition may be almost self explanatory, this is a point to pause and dig deeper.  Why, you ask,  I already have a definition, I have already solved the problem.  Well, the primary reason for digging deeper on all of these questions is to get to the real answer, instead of superficial answers which do not lie at the heart of the problem and as such do not truly address the solution.  The other important part of challenging the problem-solution statement is to challenge the assumptions that the relationship is founded on.

Albert Einstein
“We can’t solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.”

This is an important first step, as engineers, inventors and the like we all have a tenancy to become myopic when the solution comes into view.  Though this is inevitable, it is important to understand the range of these definitions and to challenge the limits of this assumptions and how broadly we can apply them to our target audience, also known as our costumer.

2)What is your competitive advantage? What is your angle?
Another important aspect of solving problems is how have other products ideas solved the problem.  Again, there will be obvious competitors, unless you are very lucky and have come up with a totally unique idea.  But again, here is an opportunity to exercise a bit of caution.  Though on the surface it appears that your solution may be unique, more than likely it is not completely unique and and you must work to understand where the distinction lie.

One way to start this process is to define what attributes your idea needs to be workable.  This is a list of characteristics which your idea require to make it effective at solving the problem.  As you make this list continue to refine your understanding of how the product or idea will be used and why this approach is better than those approaches that currently exist.

It is also important to get out and look in new places to find potential competitive products.  It is common to use the internet or just “Google it”.  That being said, there are other sources which are very fruitful research sources.

There is no single source to look for ideas or competitive products, in essence this is part of the process of “testing” your idea.  Taking this fresh, newly conceived idea and exposing it to the light of reality and the real competitive landscape  is all part of the process.  All ideas are perfect, in our minds, the key is to release them, slowly, methodically testing them against the real demands of the customer.

3) Who is your costumer?
This is where things get interesting, so often we convince ourselves our ideas are viable and interesting, with a single point test.  We ask ourselves simple questions like, “would I buy this widget, this machine or this service?” inevitably the answer comes back “Hell Yes!  Which does not sunrise anyone, does it? Of course not, but often times this is as far as many new inventors get before claiming their new idea a striking success.  Some brave souls, go as far as to consult a group of experts, also know as friends, family, etc.  Not that these people might occasionally provide some useful input or guidance, it is not realistic to consider these any form of market research.  So the question remains, how do you define your customer and how do you know that you have viable idea on your hands.

The key is to step outside of the mind frame you had when you created the idea and look at your idea with a fresh perspective.  This means casting off not only your personal biases, but also all of the other things that slant your perspective.  Try and be as unbiased as possible.  One way to try and better define this customer is to create your perfect customer, here are a few suggestions: Where do they buy your product?  How old is your perfect customer, marital status, kids?  Try to dig into the details of this persons life, if it is a household product, what else do they have in the cupboard right next to yours, etc.

4)What will they Actually pay?

In reality this is the final question and actually all the questions that we have answered previously support this question.  In essence if you have done your homework in the above areas this question will become simpler to answer.  There is another component which does enter into the equations however and that is the price.  Based on the previous work, we have found our niche, identified a usefulness that someone would be interested in, defined that person, which might also include some understanding of their spending habits but that does not give us a price.  The price is basically made up of two halves of an equations.  The first half is simple, what does your product cost?  You have your manufacturing costs, marketing cost, etc. that makes up the “cost” of your product.  But there is another variable, your margin, how much above that cost can you go.  Too high and people won’t purchase your product and too low you will run your new business into the ground.  There is basically a sweet spot which lie at the cross roads of those two paths, that is where you need to place your product.  If this crossroads matches the costumers perception of the actual value you have a winner, you have not found that point, there will be pressure to make adjustments to compensate.  Though these compensations are necessary, it is also time to be careful,  These adjustments can have profound impact on the customers perception and can have far reaching consequences.

5) Do you have the resources available to make this happen?

This is where the rubber hits the road, the point at which you push all of your chips to black and spin the wheel to see if your idea can make it.  I think one of the real keys for early stage inventors is to no go ‘all’ in too soon or with too much fervor.  If you have done your research, done the work up front, then it will be a much easier step to make.  But regardless of how much work, how many plans have been laid you have to push in at some point.  If you do not take that risk you will never know.
As one of my favorites sages so aptly stated,

“Do or Do Not, there is no Try!”, Yoda,

and in a sense his advice can be applied to invention and to innovation.  No amount of planning, or preparation guarantees success and too a certain degree, not knowing what is or is not possible can be a huge assistance in removing the mental barriers that others might possess.  The key is to ACT, to do your homework but not to become paralyzed by the process, you must keep moving forward.  If you have a unique idea, you will know you are on the right path.  If you find your self stuck in this step, you may be addicted to brain crack, if so jump over to 5 steps to kick brain crack additction.