Making Ideas Happen: A Young Inventor's Guide

[Misr]

Hello again,
missed this forum really

first before posting my question I have to thank you for helping me with physics and maths problems and discussing physical topics in a really good way,
I got the full mark in the physics exam and now I've chosen to join the faculty of medicine

Well,again Samar(me) is back to discuss a different kind of problems other than physics and maths,,its all about making ideas happen

everyday we hear about young inventors and scientists who are really creative and make great ideas into really cool inventions
those small inventors are aged 19..20 ,may be younger ...some high school students even are inventors and think in a very organized and creative way
how they do so?How they are able to think this way?how can I become like them?What is the difference between them and me?What is the source of their information ?I don't think their ideas are only based on the subjects they study at school or college..?and how do they organize their time between their studies and their creative projects and ideas?Are they super intelligent and I'm stupid so I shouldn't think to become like them?What they do to be so?What is the point I couldn't get in all of this?
but when I remember Thomas Edison's Famous quotation "genius is 99% perspiration and 1% inspiration" I feel may be I can do it one day...but what is the way to this 99percent?
I feel hopeless when I see those people who are always younger than me doing great projects and making ideas happen...and I even don't understand what they are talking about!
I seem really idiot and naive talking in this way I know

So world,listen please,how about me?huh?Am I so stupid?If I'm asking about making ideas happen ,I don't even own those creative ideas , which I really think they are faraway from my poorly-organized mind...I can't imagine,I don't have this wide imagination...
I'm very frustrated really ,,see how I'm so traditional..I study hard , keep the information in my mind , write them down on exam paper and after that,it's all over I forget everything I learned,,I don't have a creative way to deal with the information
, I want to be creative but I want to someone tell me the way n put me on the right track
I'm now 18 and Haven't achieved anything worthy
I want to be creative and make great inventions,,,that's all
I need some one to tell me how
you'll make my day,if you can help
Thanks for reading my words

 

[chiro]

Hey Misr.

Don't get so wound up: you're only 18!

The best advice I can give you relates to what Edison said about the 99%, but the key is to focus of key things and become as good as you can in those: don't try everything.

The other thing is that you should always suck up everything you can: if you have the fortune of meeting someone that has been there already, show them some gratitude and let them know you are keen to go on the same sort of journey.

Pay attention all the time: always look what is right in front of you. It may sound funny, but the opportunities come when you are paying attention and see something that is right in front of you, but the difference is that you are paying attention and thinking about this sort of thing all the time.

Also only do something you truly believe in: if you try and do something that you don't believe in, you will fall apart quickly or go mad along the way. If your heart is not in it, find something else and don't be ashamed that this is the case if it is the case.

The other thing: forget about all the recognition, glamour, prestige and all that BS: if you want all of that become a politician, don't become an inventor or an entrepreneur.

Finally it's important to remember this: creativity is relative and has a reference point.

People think of creativity as this kind of "instantaneous spark" that just happens like the whole "Einstein moment" as if Einstein just "suddenly" created his theories.

Creativity is not like that: it is a process that is refined and it has reference points. There are jumps and leaps don't get me wrong: but a lot of it builds up on other things and it does so cumulatively so don't think that all this creativity just happens like they say in the story books.

With creativity, the best thing is to pay attention, keep thinking, and keep working hard.

Learn from the best (you have the internet nowadays, so the playing field is a lot more level in terms of accessing information), work hard, do something that you believe in, pay attention, listen to people, and don't think about all the prestige, social status BS.

Surround yourselves with the kinds of people you admire and want to be like: humans do this intuitively and it's a good thing to keep in mind. Remember that although you might be an amateur at the start, you will have something to offer soon enough and keep the ideas and the contributions flowing with your fellow people. Share your ideas and get feedback: the feedback gives you a reference point and that's good even if the feedback isn't as useful as you'd like it to be.

The last thing I want to say is this: get used to failing. Remember that it's OK to screw up and that things don't come straight away. This is one of the things about the 99%: it's constantly having to mentally deal with failure.

The way to do this: don't think too much about it. As long as you learn and you progress in the smartest way that you can think of, then that's the main thing.

Good luck and hang in there!

 

[Choppy]

You may get some better responses if you make more of an attempt to write properly. I understand English isn't everyone's first language, but if you want some real advice, try to figure out what specific questions you would like answered and write them out.

That said, one thing to keep in mind is don't worry too much about comparing yourself to others. Everyone is subject to a different set of initial conditions. These young kids who accomplish great things often have a particular set of circumstances line up that the rest of us don't. Sometimes they have parents who are professors. Sometimes it's just a case of having the finacial means to pursue an idea that most people don't. Sometimes they just happen to pursue an idea that worked.

Look at Mark Zuckererg for example. How many other students have started up a website and made absolutely zilch off of it? His was extremely successful. What made the difference?

Well for one, he's the son of a psychiatrist and a dentist. His parents had the means to hire a tutor to teach him how to program when he was a teenager. Further, it seems he was a in a very safe position from to take risks. If he went to Harvard, and failed out because he spent his nights improving a website, it's not like he'd have been out on the street. The Bank of Doctor Mom and Dad was there to back him up.

My parents managed to scrape to together enough money to buy me a used desktop PC six months prior to starting university. I had one computer prior to that. As a kid I learned BASIC on a Commodore 64 where the only way to save your program was to press play on a cassette tape. I learned by checking a book out of the library on my own. I only had so much time to spend on this because my parents preferred that I "go outside like normal kids."

This isn't a knock at Zuckerburg. I'm sure the guy's a genius. He wouldn't have gotten where he was without a lot of hard work and intellectual horsepower. But I am saying that not everyone can be him. So you shouldn't beat yourself up when you graduate university and you don't have a multi-billion dollar social networking company.

Something you can do though, to "make ideas happen" is to start reading. Read the autoiographies of people you admire and learn what opportunities they took advantage of to get where they are. Read beyond prescribed class material. And then go out and make a bunch of mistakes.

 

[Misr]

first of all I'd like to thank you all for your great posts :)

The other thing is that you should always suck up everything you can: if you have the fortune of meeting someone that has been there already, show them some gratitude and let them know you are keen to go on the same sort of journey.

it's hard,I don't think I'm that lucky

Also only do something you truly believe in: if you try and do something that you don't believe in, you will fall apart quickly or go mad along the way. If your heart is not in it, find something else and don't be ashamed that this is the case if it is the case.

when I start studying in university after few day I'm sure I'll find a certain subject I'm interested in..

The other thing: forget about all the recognition, glamour, prestige and all that BS: if you want all of that become a politician, don't become an inventor or an entrepreneur.

true true...I asked myself this question several times to make sure that I'm not looking for prestige or so...but noooo I'm not looking for prestige n I'm sure about that

With creativity, the best thing is to pay attention, keep thinking, and keep working hard.

Yeah I can do this

You may get some better responses if you make more of an attempt to write properly. I understand English isn't everyone's first language, but if you want some real advice, try to figure out what specific questions you would like answered and write them out.

Okay,II'm having great responses already but I'll sum up what I need to know
1-how can I progress from knowledge to understanding to creativity?
as for me It's all about knowledge, I keep the information inside my head , write it on exam paper then forget all about it,,I don't want to deal with the information and subjects I study superficially like that..

2-How can I have my own inventions as a result of this creative thinking?I want to add something

3-what do you think of using mind-mapping?

I hope It's a bit clearer now

That said, one thing to keep in mind is don't worry too much about comparing yourself to others. Everyone is subject to a different set of initial conditions. These young kids who accomplish great things often have a particular set of circumstances line up that the rest of us don't. Sometimes they have parents who are professors. Sometimes it's just a case of having the finacial means to pursue an idea that most people don't. Sometimes they just happen to pursue an idea that worked.

my father told me that :(

My parents managed to scrape to together enough money to buy me a used desktop PC six months prior to starting university. I had one computer prior to that. As a kid I learned BASIC on a Commodore 64 where the only way to save your program was to press play on a cassette tape. I learned by checking a book out of the library on my own. I only had so much time to spend on this because my parents preferred that I "go outside like normal kids."

I'm sure you'll achieve your goals one day,it's not all about money

This isn't a knock at Zuckerburg. I'm sure the guy's a genius. He wouldn't have gotten where he was without a lot of hard work and intellectual horsepower. But I am saying that not everyone can be him. So you shouldn't beat yourself up when you graduate university and you don't have a multi-billion dollar social networking company.

I don't agree with you here , there's not actually a genius and there's not a stupid guy..
this is according to Edison,,sometimes we need somebody to put us on the track and tell us we can do it..I know I can do it but still don't know how
programming is not that hard I once had a background about it ..actually ,when I was 13 I was interested in programming n I taught myself a little about visual basic and some web languages...I learned a lot but I wasn't concentrating in this,,,but it seems to me that it's your field ..just stop being disappointed ..start some simple websites with your colleagues and one day you can develop one great idea if you are willing to do so
I feel that from what you've written that you are asking the same question I'm asking ..

Something you can do though, to "make ideas happen" is to start reading. Read the autoiographies of people you admire and learn what opportunities they took advantage of to get where they are. Read beyond prescribed class material. And then go out and make a bunch of mistakes.

that's the greatest advice of all , I don't read

by the way..I found this website while surfing the web but it's really big nI don't know where to start
the99percent.com

tell me If there's another thing I need to know

thanks

 

[{Tarek}]

Samar,
Your questions moved me. That’s because I don't feel easy when I read about those young people who have done a lot at very young age, and compare myself with them. But no! I still have hope that the path I have undertaken will pay off some day. I am trusting my creator.
As for your questions, there is a ‘secret’ word that you have to keep in mind. It is motivation. Simply find the thing which motivates you most, and spend your time on it. There is a difference between when you sit down and say: Samar, let me think of a new invention, and when you feel the urge of some problem, and have a big desire to find a solution for it. It may be that what distinguishes you from others is the things which motivate you more. If you excel in these things, you will be satisfied with yourself. Motivation develops by acquiring new information, so it is indeed very important to read. For example when you read and know about the statistics of people who die out of cancer, you may be motivated to find a new cure, and so on. Reading is also the bread for new ideas. So when you read about currently available cures of cancer, you may discover that one of them can be refined for a better effectiveness,.. etc.
In theoretical sciences, there is another source for creativity. This is the inherent desire for consistency found in every human being. If you try to learn a topic and find gaps in your mental picture of it, or things which don’t fit consistently with each other, you will try to fill these gaps yourself. That’s how many wonderful theories were discovered. For this, you ought to keep a high standard of ‘fitness’ and consistency for yourself.

In college, surround yourself with motivated people, and I wish you all success in the faculty of Medicine.

 

[Misr]

As for your questions, there is a ‘secret’ word that you have to keep in mind. It is motivation

true story...Actually I don't feel very motivated, we have begun studing for about 3 weeks and I'm doing very well becoz I'm feeling very lazy,desperate and hopeless

As for your questions, there is a ‘secret’ word that you have to keep in mind. It is motivation

thanks so much Mr.Tareq,your post means a lot to me