672. Everyone Has a Million-Dollar Idea—Why Most People Let Theirs Die

Hi, I'm Jacqueline Snyder and this is the Product Boss podcast. I've helped launch and grow thousands of product based businesses, even one of my own. And over the last 20 years, I've seen behind the scenes of businesses just like yours. Whether they are makers, manufacturers, artists, or food and beverage businesses. I have spent so many hours studying it all. I've discovered what makes them successful, what mistakes they could have avoided, how did they turn their ideas into a successful business, and what are the strategies that they have used to make more sales and be discovered by more customers. And this is what this show is all about. Whether you're just starting out or you're looking to become a million dollar product boss, I'm here to give you the permission to chase your dreams, no matter how big or small. All you need is the right mindset, a little courage, strategy and support, and. And you too can be the next million dollar product boss. Let's do this. Oh my goodness. Friends, if you are anything like me, you probably spend more time running errands than running your business. Am I right? Like, everything needs something, we got to run around. And I knew that this was like a major issue for me back in the day, which is why I decided to get help where I could. And I decided to let Instacart handle all of my grocery shopping. So I no longer had to worry about running all the errands and having to run out and get more almond milk for my lattes. Rather, I was like, you know what, we're just going to let Instacart handle that. So I want you to imagine skipping the store and getting back to designing packaging, orders, making, or maybe actually taking a break, even a nap. Remember those? Okay, so with Instacart, you can get groceries and essentials delivered in as fast as an hour so you can focus on growing your business without sacrificing a meal. Plus, less stress and more focus. And here's a tip. I've actually used Instacart before to order gifts from my daughter's friend's birthday parties because I haven't had time to run out and get presents. And I've been able to get the packaging like the gift bag and the gift like hello Sephora, delivered to my house while I was in the middle of coaching sessions so that I could have the present right. It's like having a personal assistant without having a personal assistant. So if you want to do what I do and get the help where you can, you can try it. Now, if you head to the productboss.com Instacart hey there, product bosses and welcome back to the Product Boss podcast. I'm Jaclyn Snyder, your host and this show is where we help you take your product ideas and turn it into real income. Right? You are physical, product based business owners. Maybe it's a side hustle or maybe it's just an idea. And what I want to talk about today is something that every single one of you has experienced. That one product idea, right? You're walking around, maybe you're in your house, maybe you're shopping, I don't know, you're on a trip and all of a sudden an idea pops into your head and it makes you think, wow, this could be huge. And then you just let it go, right? Is that right? Maybe you've had five of those ideas, maybe you've had 10. I know that I've had. I know that I always come up with ideas like over my life. And there's certain ones that I keep in the back of my mind, like one day and there's other ones. I'm like, meh, that's fine. I mean, I actually recently was in Hawaii and way in the day when I was in fashion school and I thought about bathing suits and I used to think like, you know, I didn't always want to be in a bikini. It wasn't always comfortable with my body. And I used to think, I wish that there was like a one piece or cover up that I could wear that I could tan through so I could still get the tan but not actually show my body. Right. That was always an idea I had. And I kept trying to think through, like the materials I would use and all that. Guys, I was in Hawaii, Waikiki, and there was a shop and it was literally my idea. I was like, hold on. I made my kids stop. I told my husband was like, we are going in. I tried one of the Vaughn because I was like, this was my idea like 20 years ago that all of a sudden I'm seeing in a shop and they're done really cute. And I'm looking at them, I'm like, this is nuts. This was my idea. But listen, none of us really, truly probably have completely original ideas. There's so many people in this world, but the difference is the people who take action. I'll give you one other example. My brother, when he was in college, called me up from college, okay? He was like a party kid, frat kid, whatever. So it was really weird. So he had a dog, a lab, and he calls me up and he goes, jacqueline, how do I sew? And I was like, what do you mean, how do I se. And he's like, I've got an idea. His dog. Our dog. It was our childhood dog. Our dog Harry would always shed as a lab. And he's like, I hate the shedding. I wish I could just put him in, like a jumper or a onesie that covered up all his hair. So he would shed, like, inside of this onesie and not all over the couches. So instead of covering the couches, he wanted to cover the dog. So that kid went out and bought a sewing machine. I don't know, like Joanne's fabrics. Calling me and my mom at night and asking us how to sew, which, let me tell you, is not an easy thing to teach someone via phone. I don't even think. We had FaceTime. And he put together, and I was talking to him about the difference between knits and wovens, and he put together a onesie for his dog and sent it to us. And we all thought he was completely out of his mind. Ridiculous. Okay. And then cut to some years later, and he's like, so remember my college roommate? And we're like, yeah. He's like, so remember that idea that I had of making that onesie? And we're like, how could we ever forget his friend? You can think whatever you want of this, but his friend took that idea, actually followed through on it, got on Shark Tank, got sponsored, and has a huge company now. Yes, my brother did confront him and say, hey, dude, that was my idea. But that guy's like, well, you didn't do anything with it. And he did it. Okay, so no hard feelings. My brother's doing great. But it's just that difference between you have the idea, you tell someone, but the difference is, is that you're not alone. Everyone has that million dollar idea. It's just, who are the people who take action? And why do most people let their idea just die and then years later go, I had that idea. If only I had done with that. Let's not live in regret. So most people let things die because they've got a fear, a fear of actually different. Maybe they start to overthink it. And I think one of the biggest ones is they just don't know where to start. But today we're going to break through. That sound good? All right, so by the end of this episode, you're going to understand why the right time will never exist. You will know the exact reason most product ideas never make it to market. And you're going to have one clear next step so your idea doesn't end up in the graveyard of great ideas. I don't want you having that regret and looking back. So before we dive in, I did want to tell you that I have a freebie for you. It is a step by step guide of turning your big ideas into a business. So I've got you, my friends. All you have to do is head to the product boss, the productboss.com dream. Or you can click the link in the show notes and grab my dream business blueprint. This is going to be your roadmap to getting started the right way. And maybe you've gotten started, but you're actually not sure that you did get started the right way. Same thing. Go ahead and grab that dream business blueprint. All right, let's get into it. So how many times have you thought, I love this idea, but I'll wait until I have more money or I have more time or the market is better, I feel ready or I need everything set up to make sure this happens. Well, spoiler alert. The moment is never going to come. And I have worked with thousands and thousands of product based entrepreneurs. I mean, I've, I say I've started 999 more product businesses than most people because as a one on one consultant, that's what people came to me with. They came to me with an idea and I was the architect, the person who helped them figure out how to bring that idea to market and how to make that idea fit the market. And this is what I'll tell you from all the people that I've worked with or worked with down the line, the thing that they have all said once they finally launched is I wish I had done this sooner. So the only difference between people who launch and the people who stay stuck is that one group stops and they're waiting for the perfect moment or the right conditions and then the other ones will take action anyway. So if you're waiting for a sign, this episode is it because if not now, then when, right? And I don't want you to spiral, right? I don't want you to be like, I don't know where to start. And that's why I have that dream business blueprint, because I want to give you that. How do I start? What do I need to do? What steps do I need to go through? So make sure you grab that. So let's now talk about why most people let their ideas go. I think it's fear. I think the biggest reason Is fear. We all have fear, right? Fear of failure, fear of wasting money, fear of not getting it right. My husband recently told me, do you know the two fears that babies are born with? The only two fears that a human being is born into this world with is the fear of loud noises and the fear of falling. That's it. Babies don't have fears of anything else. They're not worried about failing. They're just getting up and learning to walk, falling down and getting up. If they were afraid of failing, they would never learn to walk, right? They don't have a fear of wasting time. Time is irrelevant to them. They don't have fear of, of. They don't even have fear of, of abandonment. They don't even believe that to be true. They don't even believe that they are going to get kicked out of the tribe. Right? That's like a deep, deep fear where people want to feel enoughness and, and stay. They don't even have that. They're just afraid of loud noises. Makes sense. And falling makes sense. So why do we have these fears of failure or fear of wasting money or fear of not getting it right? That stuff is, is something that we've learned along the way. We might have even, as Mel Abraham says, been caught, not taught. So I want to remind you of that and I want to also remind you that every successful entrepreneur started exactly where you are now, right? Sarah Blakely, the founder of Spanx, she had zero experience in fashion. She just had an idea and $5,000 and was selling fax machines while she was trying to make this business work. Or how about Jamie Kern Lima? She built it cosmetics into a billion dollar brand. She was rejected for years and years before finally breaking through. I mean, in her book and Believe it, she writes about how they were literally out of money. Out of money, but they had to keep going. So that is the difference. They kept going. They had their idea and they kept going and they got really creative, really scrappy. There are things that they sacrificed or things that they invested in. There were all sorts of things. But the deal is that the world is not missing great ideas. You know this and I know this. The world is actually missing people brave enough to act on them. And those of us that are brave enough to act on them are the ones that stand, see the return, the fruits of our labor. We cross that bridge into a life that's miraculous and unexpected and different and beautiful and amazing and all the things that we were meant to come to this world with. So if you have an idea that you can't stop thinking about. I want you to ask yourself, what's stopping you from it, right? What's stopping you from just seeing where this idea is going to go? Hey, friends. Okay, so I don't know if you're anything like me, but sometimes it feels like my self care routine is slipping through the cracks. Because when I'm juggling and wearing all the hats in my business and doing all the things, I mean, the last thing I have to do is like really fulfill that self care routine that my daughter's talking about. She's like, mom. So listen, so when it comes to running a successful business, you can't really pour from an empty cup. And a lot of times that self care is like one of the first things to get yourself recalibrated. So that's why I want you to meet Glossy. Now Glossy is my favorite daily beauty supplement designed to transform your skin and gut health from the inside out. And I'm actually an investor in this business because I so believe in this idea of science backed ingredients for digestion and skin hydration. And Glossy makes it really easy to look and feel your best without that whole 10 step routine in the mirror. The thing I don't actually have time for, all I have to do is simply mix the stick into my water and I'm good to go. So if you want to try this, because I so believe in this business, I think it's amazing. It's done so many wonders for my skin and my gut, which are two things that I need help with. And you want to simplify your wellness and your beauty. All you have to do is click in the show notes and you can use the code Jaclyn Snyder. So it's my full name. Use the code Jacqueline Snider and I'm hooking you up with 15% off your order. So cheers to glowing skin and a thriving business. Hey friends, are you unsure of what to say on social media or what to even send in your weekly emails? Well, what if creating content could be easy? Would you be looking for for a shortcut to creating consistent content? Yes, consistent content. Because you know consistency is key. Well, let me tell you, you are not alone when you feel like you're struggling on what to post or what to write in emails. And we know that you have that product part of your business down. But as you're listening to this podcast, you probably already know that to get more people to your products, to buy your products, you need to create great content. Oh no, I see, I keep saying content and that's the dreaded C word. And we can't tell you how many product bosses tell us that they want to create great content for their audience and their customers, but they don't know what to say, or they are so busy they can't find the time, or they really, really, really don't want to be the face of their brand. Well, no worries, because that's exactly why we created a year of content. It is your shortcut to creating consistent content that resonates with your audience and brings more loyal customers who can't wait to buy your products. If you want to see how easy this is and how easy it is to create content for your audience and your customers, head to www.yearofcontent.com so I want to reframe the fear. Instead of thinking, what if I fail? Could you ask yourself, what if this works? And instead of thinking what if no one buys it? Could you think, what if this is the thing that actually changes my life? Because the real risk is not failing, my friend. It's doing nothing. It's doing nothing. So I want you to take that first small step today. I want you to ask yourself, I want you to reframe the fear, whatever that thought is that's coming up for you. Ask yourself a different question. I would go with curiosity. Curiosity is something. What if this does work? What if this all works, works out? What if I try it this way? The curiosity takes us from fear into action. And that's what I want you to think about. So you know, you might also be moving into, I don't know, people. Will people actually buy this product? I've got this idea, but will they actually buy it? Okay, well let's let you in on a little secret. I know this is going to be like mind blowing to you for a sec, but people don't buy things that they need every single day. Right? They don't. It's not, I need this thing because if money and the cost of things, the price of things, it doesn't matter either a lot of times. Because if money was the real problem, nobody would be walking around with a thousand dollar iPhones, phones in their pockets that are a thousand bucks and then upgrading them every year to two years. People will find the money for things that make their life easier, bring them joy and solve a real frustration. Truthfully, people will spend their money on things that move them from pain to joy, move them anything that can move them away from pain. And you might be thinking, well I don't have that idea. You do everything that we buy moves us away from a certain feeling and somewhere el. Whether it's a couch, whether it's a T shirt, whether it's a necklace, whether it's face cream, a muffin or a brownie, inventive product, a car, it does not have to. The problem that you believe that it needs to solve is not actually what it needs to solve. Why do people who love candles own a gazillion candles? Why do people who wear jewelry, maybe like, for me, I love necklaces, so why do I own a bunch of necklaces and a bunch of bracelets? I like them, I find them, they make me feel a certain way when I wear them and when I buy them. And I'm going to keep doing it. It didn't have to solve anything. I don't need necklaces, I don't need bracelets, but I want them. And when I purchase them and when I wear them, I have joy brought to me. I feel a certain way when I'm wearing them. So the real question isn't going to be will people buy this? It's going to be how do I position my product? So people see it as something that they want or need or desire or solves a problem. And I mean, that's what I help my students do every single day, right? That's what my students do inside of Product Boss Academy. They learn how to take this idea, make it, turn it into a brand, and then sell it online, because that is exactly what it is. We have to figure out how to come up with the idea, how to turn it into a brand, which means it's more than just your product and then how to sell it. And that's exactly what we do in there. And that's exactly what I want you to start to think about as you have these ideas. So the concept here is, and I wanted to share with you really quick, I actually just got off a call with a student of mine that I worked with way, way back in the day where they were just an Etsy seller. And I say just because they were just selling on Etsy and they were hand making and hand carving this product out of wood and selling it. And when they had come to me back in the day, they were just on the cusp of a leap in their business. They starting to get real attention and they were moving from handmade to more of a manufactured product so they could start to sell it at scale. And in working with me, they took this idea and they, they are not, they have, they're, they're not More special than any of us. Meaning it's not like they have like some massive business degree or massive connections or anything, that they have their own superpowers and they're creative and they're inventors and they're amazing, but they don't. It's, it's not like they're, I don't know, they're best friends with, you know, the head of Macy's department stores and that's how got into a store or something. Right. That's. There's not that. They're just people like you and I with a family. And in that first year of working with them, they took this handmade product from Etsy and made a million dollars in that very first year. That very first year. And now they're going to be on Shark Tank. And I've had three of my students in the last year be on Shark Tank. And I've been able to watch from the behind the scenes be ready to get them going. Right? So there's the Shark Tank ideas, and they don't all happen immediately and overnight and there's work that goes into it, but. And they've made millions of dollars. I also have people who sell jewelry, handmade jewelry, and have made a million dollars. People who make stickers and coloring books and pens and they've made a million dollars. Candle companies, million dollars. Face creams, million dollars. So whether or not you want to have a million dollar business, that's not the real question. I think the question is how do you take the idea that you're having, which could be a million dollar idea. So let's just let it breathe that life, let's just let it have that million dollar idea feeling and you get to choose how big you want to get it, right? Maybe it's you just want an extra a hundred thousand dollars as a side hustle, which is what I did in my business my first year. I took an $11 product, I made a hundred thousand dollars from it in my first year of business. As a side hustle that is life changing and. Or it turns into a million dollar idea, a $10 million idea, a half million dollar idea, whatever the number is that makes sense for you and your family and your lifestyle. But we are all sitting on the concept of that million dollar idea. And the difference between you listening to this podcast and downloading that freebie Dre business blueprint, right? Just click on the link in the show notes or go to the productboss.com dream. The difference between you and everybody else is that they will never Take action and you will. The other thing I want you to remember is the perfect time will never exist. So waiting is what's going to keep people stuck. But you're not going to wait. We know this. Action takers are money makers. We gotta start to take action. And the only real risk that you're facing here right now, truthfully, is doing nothing. Because I've given you two examples in my own family, and I'm sure you have your own, because someone else will launch a version of your idea if you don't. You will see it eventually in the future. So here's your homework for this. For this podcast episode. I want you to take one small step today in the direction that you want to go. Be listening to this and jotting down an idea. It could be taking your next action. It can be downloading the Dream Business blueprint. That's going to be your roadmap. That's going to be your first action step. That's your green light to finally stop waiting and start building. Because the only difference between you and the other people that make it happen is that they took the first step and then they took the next step. And now, my friends, so will you. So I hope that this episode resonated with you. Make sure to grab that freebie and share this with anyone that needs to hear this. This is a really great episode that if you know someone that always has ideas and they have not taken action yet, share this episode with them. This might be that little message from the universe that pings them to finally take their next small step towards what's on the other side, to turn fear into action. And I'm so excited to go along on this journey with you. All right, my friends, until the next one.