Stephen Key | Page 3

Co-Founder of inventRight; Author of One Simple Idea Series at inventRight

Stephen Key is an inventor, IP strategist, author, speaker and co-founder of inventRight, LLC, a Glenbrook, Nevada-based company that helps inventors design, patent and license their ideas for new products.

More From Stephen Key

Online Presence

How LinkedIn Has Helped Kill Cold Calling Once and for All

LinkedIn's messaging feature allows others to get to know you first, on their own terms, which is preferable to pretty much everyone.

Building a Business

How One Woman’s Mission to Preserve Her Mother’s Mobility Lead to a Great Invention

Read how novice inventor Lesli Jenkins Wang got the conservative medical industry to accept her Free2GoRollator late last year.

Building a Business

10 Tips to Become Happier and More Productive Working From Home

Working remotely can be extremely rewarding, but there are some tricks to it.

Building a Business

What It’s Like When You Finally See Your Idea-Turned-Product on Store Shelves

For makers, inventors and dreamers, it's the ultimate high when you see with your own eyes that "you've finally arrived."

Thought Leaders

The 10-Step Routine Guaranteed to Prepare You For Your Next Big Event

Haircut? Check. Business cards? Check. The right frame of mind? That's the really important one.

Building a Business

Create the Strongest Patent Possible With These 5 Tips

Your patent attorney is your next best friend -- but only if you put in the hard work first.

Marketing

8 Reasons Why It’s Tough to Get Your Small-Brand Product Into Big-Box Stores

Chain stores favor big-brand products over new no-name inventions. Here are some things to keep in mind when pitching to Walmart or Home Depot.

Building a Business

11 Ways to Get the Most Out of Working With a Coach

Picking up new skills is an essential part of being a successful entrepreneur. A coach can help -- but you have to put in the work.

Thought Leaders

How Long Should You Push Before Giving Up?

A successful entrepreneur reflects on how naivety kept him going forward although things were really rough.

Thought Leaders

Should You Quit Your Day Job and Jump Into Entrepreneurship?

How do you balance the comfort and safety of a paycheck with the dream of building something all your own.

Building a Business

Protecting an Idea Is Easy. Selling an Idea Is Hard.

I received great advice from my patent attorney after freaking out about one of my big ideas.

Building a Business

Developing a ‘Cool’ Product Is Only Half of a Successful Business

What sets apart products that succeed from those that don't? Creating cool products that people will want is not enough, not by a long shot.

Building a Business

The 4 Big Changes to Open Innovation During the Last 4 Years

It's easier than ever before to get your ideas licensed by bigger companies.

Thought Leaders

Entrepreneurs Don’t Overthink Things. They Make a Decision and Go With It.

Becoming an entrepreneur means accepting that you might fail. At some point, you've got to shut off your brain, and make a move.

Thought Leaders

Entrepreneurs Who Embody These 9 Practices Will Gain Loyalty

It doesn't matter what kind of person you're trying to get to work with you. If you conduct yourself in the right way, people will want to invest their time, energy and money into helping you.

Building a Business

Becoming an Entrepreneur Takes Courage, But Marrying One Is Even Braver

Going into your business for yourself is stressful not just for you, but to the person closest to you. Here are four tips to make it work.

Thought Leaders

7 Ways to Excel at Asking for Advice From Experts

Experts want to help, but they'll be much more willing to offer you a hand if you follow these tips.

Building a Business

The Real Reason Companies Are Looking for Your Product Ideas

Open innovation is flourishing because creative people want to work for themselves. It's as simple as that.

Building a Business

The Simple Way to Vet a Potential Business Partner

It's amazing that people seem to spend more time reading reviews of a restaurant they're considering going to for lunch than looking into the companies and people they're considering working with.

Building a Business

A 3-Step Formula to Success — Really

You must fine-tune your ability to acutely break down a problem and come up with an efficient solution.

Thought Leaders

11 Truths About Being an Entrepreneur

Starting and building your own business is not easy. Nothing worth the effort ever is.

Marketing

What Does It Take to Get Your Product on QVC?

The head of a company that hooks up inventors with the popular shopping channel dishes on how inventors can show off their products to millions.

Building a Business

9 Ways to Negotiate a Contract Like a Boss

Finding common ground is an emotionally fraught process. But you have to keep the relationship positive. These are the people you're going to be working with if the contract ends up being signed.

Building a Business

Don’t Go With Your Gut. Let the Market Tell You What It Needs.

Here are seven suggestions to get the valuable insight you need to make your business idea a likelier success.

Building a Business

The Secret to Connecting With Your Audience

There's one thing you can do that will rally your customers, colleagues and even competitors.

Thought Leaders

The No. 1 Reason You Should Hire a Family Member

Sure, plenty of things can go wrong, but just as many things can and will go right.

Building a Business

Want to Test Your Product Idea? Join the Makers.

Bringing your goods to a Maker Faire will grant you a creative audience that will test your designs. This worked wonders for the creator of a rubber band shotgun.