thoughts & notes ON IP AND BUSINESS

What are "Intellectual Property Rights"?

Intellectual property (IP) refers to the property rights attached to creations of your mind. In other words, it refers to your...

The Pathology of Brilliance

Think back to a time in your childhood or at university, or perhaps in a career situation, where you did something creative or special. ...

Here's what I learned this week...

OK, I know you're probably at work and shouldn't be reading this right now, but it's been a hectic week, and I've had a great time...

If you don't want to be an entrepreneur, do this instead

Not everyone needs to be, or should feel compelled to be, an entrepreneur. But if you don't want to work for yourself, make sure you net

Deep Work

UPDATE: Shortly after this post, I was taken to hospital and had an emergency appendix removal… THIS is going to be the year of deep work...

Patent Advice You Can Use Immediately

The most useful, yet boring, patent advice you will read. Ever. Patenting is essentially a multi-step process, with the first two steps...

How To Trademark Your Brand

Let me tell you the story of how Volkswagen lost the rights to the most prestigious brand in the world. In 1998, Rolls Royce, the famous...

How To Patent

The first step is to decide whether you want to patent your idea at all. You always have three options: Patent It Keep it secret Publish...

How to Find White Space When Inventing

The first step you need to take when embarking on a new venture is to see whether there is anything exactly like your idea out there....

The "Inventoring" vs "Entrepreneurial" Mindset

Here are a few tips to help your idea go somewhere. These are guidelines to ensure you don’t become that grumpy old guy/gal who blames...

CAREL SMIT