Ideas for Free

Problem: Some people get paranoid about iodine deficiency and they use less salt.

Solution: Sell “super iodized” salt with twice the iodine.

Some people get paranoid about iodine deficiency. Iodine deficiency is the leading, preventable cause of mental retardation: even a mild iodine deficiency can drop a child by 10 or 15 IQ points. Iodine deficiency causes drawfism, cretinism, and other not fun issues. Combating this problem, $1.50 worth of postatium iodate is added to each ton of salt. Still, many people omit salt from home cooking.

There is a niche for “super iodized salt”. Note that “double iodized salt” exists: it is iodine plus some iron. A full strategy might have various fortified salts and salt substitutes available to a niche health market.

See also: New York Times report on efforts to iodize salt

Problem: Sweets are the easiest small treats for children. Candy is available at every retailer and comes in convenient bulk packages.

Solution: Toys should be the easiest small treat for children. Small toys can be found in the bottom of breakfast cereal and Crackerjacks boxes or from coin operated machines at the front of grocery stores. There is a market for jars of 25 or 100 individually wrapped small toys.

There are a lot of times where we want a supply of toys for small children: party treats, Halloween treats, rewards for good behavior, and a wide variety of bribes. The only substitute good I have found are stickers, which are a poor substitute. Having a recognizable yet unique treat would be worth about $0.50 per toy. I believe the toys could be manufactured and distributed for well under $0.25 per toy.

These small toys could include bouncing balls, small cars, little bendable dolls, brain-teasers, plastics parts that click together, and more. To be effective, one would need about forty different toys per line, and have different lines for ages under 3, 3-5, 5-8, and 8+. As the line expanded, the toys could also target small niches: educational toys (Brain Toys), religious toys for various markets, outdoor toys, restaurant toys, gender specific toys, and various level of super toys (at a small additional cost).

The packaging should be cheap. While one could go with the standard egg found in coin operated dispensers or KinderEggs, one could also go with the cheaper paper blister packing of M&Ms. I expect that batches of either 25 for consumer sales or 100 for point of resale displays would be about right.

The business model would be to buy about forty different toys per line from Chineese manufacturers, have them packaged in China, then sell them through wholesalers (if you can get them), toy catalog sales, party stores, and more.

What’s the catch? There is no barrier to entry: the idea isn’t patentable; branding probably won’t keep out competitors; there are many suppliers; packaging isn’t unique; there are many channels and outlets with unique requirements; and lots of niche markets to encourage micro-competitors. On the plus side, consumers really don’t need expensive advertising or education about the product. There should be pent-up demand.

A great one or two person job for someone with low expenses or appropriate experience. I would like to buy some.

Lewis Carroll’s queen sometimes believed ten impossible things before breakfast. I have my list of a dozen impossible things before bed. Some of these are habits, some are time commitments, and some are maintenance to stem the the onrushing tide of life. How many do you lust after?

1. Only one refined carbohydrate item per day.
This is only a single item per day that has sugar or white grains as a main ingredient. That means cereal for breakfast OR a mocha OR a brownie OR a muffin OR ice cream. My diet would be overrun with fruits, green things and protein.

2. Thirty minutes of serious exercise.
Ah sweat, my old nemesis. I need to get my cardio up from a fast walk, lifting weights, or helping random strangers move to a new apartment. Stretching is good, when preceded or postceded by sweating.

3. Three difficult phone calls.
There are always phone calls I find difficult to make and easy to delay. These can be hiring contractors, dealing with vendors that are needlessly obtuse, or working through some paperwork snarl on the phone.

4. One blog entry.
A good blog entry, like this one, usually takes some thought and some work. Most of my blog entries are about new ideas and require coming up with stories, a drawing, and some business details. Formulating a basic idea is easy; dragging the words and pictures out in the right order takes effort.

5. No video games the entire day.
Annoyingly, I find that one quick game is nearly impossible to avoid. Also two. Also three.

6. Clean out inbox and desk.
I follow David Allen’s flow-chart from “Getting Things Done”, sometimes. I would like all physical and electronic inflows be unclogged and either completed or transformed into an orderly project. It hasn’t happened yet, so it belongs on the impossible list.

7. One thirty minute microproject.
Creating a small project of very limited scope and completing it every day feels impossible, but accomplishing it will feel magical. These projects could range from “Hello World” in a new language to disassembling a robot. Learning what I can accomplish in a short time is valuable in itself.

8. One full page of notes about what I learned.
Every day I read and research. Having a page of organized notes at the end of the day would be great. It would be grand to be able to review my knowledge, know my references, and have key facts at my beck and call.

9. Record of everyone I meet.
Just a note, a name, an entry, a reminder of the people that I meet.

10. Clean sink and laundry buckets.
The bane of keeping my physical house in order. If these are done, all else will follow.

11. Twenty minutes of spiritual reading.
It could be the traditional spiritual book, or poetry, or anything to feed my soul. Comic books do not count.

12. One good joyous time.
A good day includes a nice long laughing break, a joyous rumpus with my son, or a moment of zen. Joy is necessary to success.