“IDEAS are the beginning point of all fortune.”  – Napoleon Hill

Ideas are a dime a dozen. They only have the power to benefit you and others when you ACT on your ideas and turn them into reality.

I’m speaking from experience. I’ll always remember a BIG idea I failed to act on, to my regret.
When I moved to Hawaii in the early 80’s, I signed up for the Rough Water Swim, held off Waikiki Beach every Labor Day.

I had been a competitive swimmer, so the 2.4 mile distance was do-able, as long as I prepped.

Tom and Andrew were 1 and 2 at the time, so I no longer had the luxury of getting in my miles at Ala Moana Beach Park. I had to “make do” with the tiny apartment pool at our Waikiki high-rise.

It was an “exercise in frustration” because the pool was so small.

Stroke, stroke, turn.

Stroke, stroke, turn.

It took all the fun out of swimming and I started skipping workouts.

I woke up one night (there’s a reason we often have ideas in the middle of the night. See Chapter 6 of my IDEAprener book) and wondered:

“Why not design a SWIM LEASH and tie myself to a pool ladder and churn away to my heart’s content without having to turn every few seconds?”

I thought, “If this works, I can get lost in that athletic reverie, that blissful zone state, where my mind switches to automatic pilot and I’m no longer thinking of the stitch in my side or the ache in my arms because I’m one with what I’m doing.”

I constructed a prototype that consisted of a belt made of Neoprene from a wetsuit, a couple of D rings, and a length of water-proof boat rope.

I waited until no one was around, climbed into the pool, tied myself to the ladder, and started swimming. It worked!

In fact, it worked with every stroke, including my favorite, backstroke.
I loved gazing up at the sky and the birds passing by, and letting my mind wander.

I was so fired up, I went to an “invention convention,” where I promptly got overwhelmed. Several experts agreed it was viable, but I’d have to file patents, contract with manufacturers, pay for materials, hire a team, etc. etc. etc.

Bummer.

Who had the time, money, know-how or committed focus to do all that?

I reluctantly concluded I wasn’t in a position to pursue this and put the project on the shelf (literally and figuratively).

I’ve always regretted not sticking with it.

Especially a few years later when I was flying to a speaking engagement, pulled out a copy of SkyMall, started leafing through the pages, and there was my invention.

It wasn’t called SWIM LEASH (I still have that domain to this day), but it was basically the same idea.

If only…