When I first watched American Inventor, I thought to myself, “Yet another reality TV…” I was not impressed.
Honestly speaking, I had no intention whatsoever to watch the program. It just happened I was sitting in front of the TV and…
I was glued to the show, one of the few that can have that impact on me.
(I have to confess that I am not a TV addict though)
But if you haven’t watched the show, this is what it’s all about:
The “inventors” need to do a presentation on their invention in front of the judges (4 of them from different backgrounds). At the end of the presentation, the judges will either say “Yes” or “No” to the invention.
They compete with each other to proceed to the next stage.
Of course, as you may have guessed, more “No’s” than “Yeses.”
Some inventions are damn funny and creative. Imagine one fellow invented a mobile toilet. It looks exactly like a raincoat and you can bring it along and do your business wherever you go. Yuchs!
And the prize money is one million dollars.
But I digress…back to the point I wanted to share with you.
The thing that attracted me was the spirit shown by the participants.
Each and every one of them is VERY convinced that they have the invention of the year.
They sacrificed many things in order to create the invention and participate in the show.
Most of them sacrificed more than one thing for their dream.
It’s always a touching moment for me when the judges asked them what inspired them to invent and what sacrifices they have made to come to this far.
You name it: money (most of them broke), time (most of the spent years to perfect the invention), family, marriage and one of them even sacrificed his kidney!
Throughout the years, I’ve met people who told me they wanted to be successful. But when they need to really get their hands dirty, they either give up (stay status quo) or give excuses.
Out of a sudden, everything seems to be more than their dream. They use thousands of excuses to convince themselves that they can’t do it.
Of course, it’s not easy to get out of our comfort zone unless you have an undying desire. Just like what the American Inventor participants have.
What about you?
Ask yourself this, “What have I done to achieve my dream? Have I done enough?”
Have fun,
Abel Cheng
P.S.: This is one of the top 30 inventions from American Inventor currently on sale.
