Six Tips on Inventing

From Alan Adler, inventor of the Aeropress and the Aerobie flying ring courtesy of Priceonomics.

1. Learn all you can about the science behind your invention.
2. Scrupulously study the existing state of your idea by looking at current products and patents.
3. Be willing to try things even if you aren't too confident they’ll work. Sometimes you’ll get lucky.
4. Try to be objective about the value of your invention. People get carried away with the thrill of inventing and waste good money pursuing something that doesn’t work any better than what’s already out there.
5. You don’t need a patent in order to sell an invention. A patent is not a business license; it’s a permission to be the sole maker of product (even this is limited to 20 years).
6. Tenacity is vital.