Dear LPG,

I have often heard it said that older people think too much and in some cases I would agree, but I also think that it all depends on what you are actually thinking about.  All too often we get really upset by memories and regrets from way back in our pasts, especially when we have lots of time to dwell on them, but there is a solution.  The secret is to sink yourself into a project, and that is something that I have also heard said many times. 

I think that the year we have just lived through, for many people, will have appeared to have been the longest year of their lives, even though no one year is any longer than any other in reality, it has been really hard for some just because of all that extra thinking time we have had.

When we get older, I think that people tend to think more and there is often a bit of reminiscing involved when you get your grey matter going.  The important thing is to keep the memories positive and not negative. 

I was thinking about an idea that I had years ago which could even be called an invention. At the time it first came to me, I was a hard-working family man with no time to develop such stuff, but I had all the time in the world last year.

It has been a while since I had my inventive idea but when it first came to me, I told a friend at work about it and he was quietly impressed, but he also told me something else.  If I tell people about it, someone is sure to jump in there before me and get all the possible financial glory.  The secret is to keep your invention a secret until you have made sure that it is officially yours.

It is not an easy or cheap business, but you must speculate to accumulate as they say. The internet has lots of information as ever about working out if yours is a good idea and then making sure that no one else gets the credit before you.  One answer could well be making it legal by applying for a patent.

I am not telling you what mine is, but I bet that I am not the only reader who has had an idea worth resurrecting now that we have the time.  I thought it might be a good idea to share a little information that I have learnt about how to protect your idea legally. 

I always think that if we are going to spend lots of time thinking, some of that effort has to be productive and if inventing is your thing, why just stop at thinking about the possibilities?  We are all different, but a bit of inventive thought could be just what you need to keep you thinking positively.  It has often been said that ‘Mighty oaks from little acorns grow’, your idea might just be that acorn.

 LI. Forest Hill.

Although he tells that much of the advice is American, LI shares some of the basic lessons he has learnt online…

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