Q & A- Who Do I Trust?

One common question I have received over and over is " How do I know whom I can trust with my Big Idea?"

The text book answer to this question is to protect yourself at all times, demand non disclosure agreements before talking and chronicle and commemorate every conversation you have about your big idea. Like most things they teach you in school though the reality is quite different. In practice, there really isn’t anyway to fully protect yourself from someone taking your idea and doing something with it, nor will it be easy to get any one of any real business substance to sign an NDA just to discuss your idea and you can chronicle and commemorate all you want but if you don’t have the money and lawyers to go after the people who steal from you, it really is irrelevant. So I really have to tackle this question from the perspective of the word trust.

Trust is a common theme in our lives and unfortunately the longer one lives, it seems that more jaded one gets and trust becomes harder and harder for most.
After having both good and bad things happen to me over my business life my conclusion is that "bad" people do bad things and if they are in your life they will do their damage no matter how much you try to protect yourself. So how do you know whom to invite into your journey... my answer is instinct and research.

It amazes me how many people do not use the tools around us. I encourage you to spend some time researching the people you reach out to. A person’s past is a very good predictor of their future. It’s not hard to find out what people do in their lives, the Internet and social networking has really opened up a ton of resources. People who have good intentions and fly straight have examples after examples of "doing right or good" in their lives.

Can some con artist fake it... Yes... and for those cleaver devils even some of the smartest people get taken... But if your belief is somewhat like mine that everything both good and bad happen for a reason and that is to prepare you for the wonderful things ahead than you will inevitably move forward regardless of your trust issues, knowing that it will all work out in the end.

Trust me, many bad things have come my way and nearly knocked the wind out of everyone around me. I have many journals filled with heart-wrenching things that people have done in business and in life as I had to "learn as I go" in the journey to success. My "instincts" have gotten very good and when something doesn’t feel right no matter what the facts say I follow my gut... I suggest that others do the same.

My thought on when the bad things happen is simple. Make sure you take everything out of the experience and suck out every last lesson so that "the world" doesn't throw it back to you to learn again.

When I sit and chat with people as I speak and teach across the country It amazes me how many "lesson" keep coming someone’s way ... bigger and louder until they GET IT, learn and make the life corrections needed. Once again confirming we are all in more control of our lives then we give credit.

As Donny said on one of the shows we did together (not a direct quote) ... You have to put it out there and move forward with your life and what you want out of it and not get hung up on what others will or will not do since you have NO control over others. I live my life " trying to do good" and have found that in the long haul "good" comes back. The "bad" is there only to remind me how great "good" feels :)


Amilya Antonetti will be addressing this and dozens more of your questions about your Big Idea in person at her keynote address during Lucky Napkin Live, March 20th 2008. To learn more about it and to purchase tickets click here:
http://www.luckynapkinlive.com