Lonnie Johnson
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Now I’m proud of the brother for doing his thing and really being a creative cat in the first place. But, let’s analyze something didn’t he invent the super soaker and it sold over 1 billion and yet he still needs millions to back his billion dollar idea AGAIN!
This is what I mean by you owning your own stuff as this guy here had a billion dollar idea sold it for pennies on the dollar so he can get a lab. Now he has another billion dollar idea and guess what he’s looking to get put on again for pennies on the dollar.
Now if he would’ve asked for 1 dollar on every super soaker sold this guy would have more than enough money to fund his own genius. No matter what the brother had enough to lose it and still survive so I can’t knock the hustle at all.
Take this example as inspiration as to why you need to own everything you create. If he would’ve just gave the rights to sell to Mattel he would’ve been reaping a couple billion today. But, instead we are watching a video of a genius who is smart enough to create a billion dollar idea but not smart enough to keep the billions!
Rule: Don’t want to be a genius so much that you leave billions on the table or give it to someone else for millions.
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OK, I get the first time he went to the big money sharks to get the super soaker out. But now, he has a winning track record to keep the majority of his money from his new project. With ownership, he would clear more cash even if the new product does a tenth of what the super soaker does. But products he is are GAME CHANGERS. No disrespect to Mr. Lonnie Johnson, keep doin’ your thing. Most people take their billion dollar ideas to the grave. Which equals no bread at all. I wonder if he would go to black community to fund his project would we do it. I know I would be first in line to invest. I WANT IN!!! I going to look into that RIGHT NOW!!! Why would he not sell private individuals shares to fund this w/o going public? I ready to INVEST!!! FreeMan, you on point as usual.
This reminds me of that TV show Shark Tank where these guys invent great companies and sell controlling interest to some guy with deep pockets. In the end the product comes out but you don’t get even half of the money from all your hard work.
Mr. Johnson could’ve made a 1 dollar deal on every super soaker made and got a billion dollars. Now he has another billion dollar idea and he wants to find more investors. I mean damn if I got a billion I’m not walking asking for millions again.
This is a lesson in ownership. If he would’ve controlled his genius he would have been a billion dollar businessman. But, some people don’t want money they want to be smart and the really smart people took the money.
I agree @Freeman ownership is the key dont sell youre ideas.
10 cents on the dollar is 10 cents on the dollar. 10% of a billion is 100 million and although it’s more than 10 cents its still 10% and that’s a suckers deal no matter the money.
I agree, $100 million sounds like a lot to cats but he has to realize he gave up $900 million in opportunity cost by not owning his ideal.
The brotha who did Elmo owns the brand…
It is what it is. Sure we can sit here and say what he gave up for not owning his product. But without the help of big corporations assisting you with their big distribution, and marketing his invention would’ve failed.
Props to the brother for what he did, but kats need to realize an invention is like talent, you can be the best or the first but their’s alot more that goes along with that which you must excecute to be successful.
Just look at Master P he created his on distribution company, it flopped, he owned his own snack company it flopped. I give credit to P for trying, but just because you have a good idea don’t me you’re capable of succeeding, and properly executing it. So in regards to Lonnie, he would rather win/lose without other people’s funds.
Another example, Facebook & Myspace were not the first social networking sites, even Blackplanet came before those, but the other two executed properly to position themselves to become profitable.
Also I agree with alot of what you say freeman playa. But you’re the type of cat that don’t believe in credit, loans, etc and that’s your preference. But the thing about doing damn near everything yourself is it’s takes alot longer(in most cases), and is alot more difficult. On the other hand you can start you’re company virtually from free if you do it right, which is what alot of white kats are doing. But the problem comes, when these kats fail, investors or banks get angry because they lost their money.
To expound, look at kats like Donal Trump. He’s a billionaire, and he’s still using investors dollars to finance luxury real estate projects in other countries. Capital Preservation 101 homie.
@Ed – Man I’m not hating on the brother at all but damn man it’s ironic to find a cat with a billion dollar idea come back and ask for investors again. It just doesn’t make any sense moneywise. Now again I don’t hate the brother at all because he got up and did his thing.
When we remove the fact that he won out of the equation we still need to count what was won.
@Yung Suave – Welcome! – How about Coca Cola needed distribution and they make deals but in the end they own Coca Cola. How about Calvin Klein needed distribution but in the end he owns his own line. Why is is that when we analyze the success of a Black Man we are supposed to automatically accept lesser by saying we need to get put on!
Let’s use your Master P example. When he signed that 85% deal and made the money he was a genius. So all the second and third ideas might not be a success but I tell you what that first one was enough to take him to the top. P owns speakers and gas stations and all kinds of shit that people don’t pay attention to. BUT and BIG ASS BUT he got the best deal on his talents right out the gate. He didn’t say please I want to get put on he recognized that he wanted a great deal no matter what level in the game he was in. Why do you want to skip over the deal that made P on Forbes when all the distribution angle and snack company didn’t work? Do you know all of the failures of Donald Trump too?
I do believe in credit and the like but you have to own your shit! C’mon homie why is it that everyone else can set up distribution deals and we got to get raped for our shit? Young cats want to get put on so much that you lube your anus for them and show them the empty vaseline canister. You even got Rap cats coming down telling you to own your masters and to own what you produce but instead you want to get 10 cents on the dollar and say to yourself it’s better than nothing. Credit is a tool and investors are a tool but when you end up leveraging your own hustle and giving more to others than you take of your own cake the tool becomes you.
See the game is you get caught up in wanting everything right now. So if someone said you can have 100 million in 5 years or 10 million right now you are so desperate that you say at least I got something. And, that’s exactly what you got the LEAST.
Also homie Trump ain’t a Billionaire at all. There’s only a couple of cats that really have that dough and Trump ain’t one of them. C’mon if a cat had a billion do you think he would still be doing deals to be on TV? What would a couple of million add to a cat who got billions….. Not a damn thing! He could get money from the interest off the billions to dwarf trying to be on NBC.
All and all brother it’s a combination of both that makes the best mix. The game is knowledge and understanding. Don’t be the cat that believe what you see on TV as that’s just a show the cats who own the means to put you on got the dough! Ya Dig!
Extra: For example… who owns the Miami Heat? The owner got enough dough to sign LeBron,Wade & Bosh and all the suckers to the game are saying the players are paid! WTF! We got to take our understanding of money up a notch. Find out the cat who owns the Heat and I bet you he made it not selling his idea or getting put on by other cats.
I’m not knocking P at all, in fact I know the kat personally and I respect him for what he did in the music business(especially with kats calling southern dudes slow). And yes Trump had ALOT of failures in the past.
I’m a young kat, but not naive at all. I rarely watch TV, unless it’s a financial channel. And according to my research Donald Trump has a networth of well over 2 billion dollars. He does TV shows to teach and help upcoming people. And don’t think I’m a Trump rider or even a white rider, cause I use to hate trump when I found out he was old money and I’m well aware of the greatness of our people with black wallstreet, and our ancient civilization,etc.lol.
I agree with you on us doing bigger, but I have to keep it 100% real. They’re are entities working against us on that front, their have been several known attempts at blocking attempts of black businessman from purchasing their own airlines, schools, etc.
My previous point was that if Lonnie wouldn’t have initially got put on, their would’ve been a high chance of him failing.
But I agree 100% with everything else. You shouldn’t be used as a tool. As a matter of fact the majority of the businesses I currently own, and plan to own I will maintain 100% ownership of.
SN: what’s your business email, I have an inquiry about advertising with your site
Yeah I agree on the last part! But that’s just the way things are homie. The average person doesn’t have financial literacy, and doesn’t even want it. When I first started educating myself in high school on financial education, I tried to put my friends & family on but to no avail.
Ironically enough my child hood friend just got signed to the nba(Greg Monroe), and to me I’m really not into the “getting choose” Bs. But that’s just how the game is,we’re the choosen few of entrepreneurs and investors. We’ll always be the minority of people in every race, ethnic group, or society.
Understanding chips is too much “work” for alot of these kats.
Nahh homie I don’t think you riding anyone but that’s just the normal cats that people bring up Trump. Even if Trump is trying to put cats up on game it’s still a money hustle and if he had billions it wouldn’t be worth it. The only cat that really did that was Dale Carnegie. Also Trump money and worth is tied into what people think the buildings are worth not tied into actual chips in the pocket. A lot of cats got a house worth something but in the end can’t get the money out of it. If you have a 500K house but owe 480K you only got 20k but on the outside you look like you got 500K. That’s what most of these cats got.
There will always be people against us but the key to that is to own your stuff. Somebody got to go and forget the past and build anyway. Yes people will not understand it but until P took that 85% on them no one thought that was possible. We just got to keep at it and we’ll get through.
Well you can’t teach a old dog new tricks but you can put the youngins up on game. People want to convince cats who don’t want any better but we got to twist that and turn the hustlers on the streets into businessmen because they’ll take the chance.
The game in numbers are the same for everyone. The white folks aren’t all businessman either it’s only a small percentage that run things. We just have to get our Black Merchant Class up and pull up the cats who already got the knack and ain’t shook by who is standing in front of them.
If you teach a kid to ride a bike he doesn’t know how hard it is. If you teach a teenager how to ride a bike they give it a try. If you teach a adult how to ride a bike they will turn around and ask you why I’m OK walking. That’s the game homie… don’t waste time with the adults they don’t want it anymore.
Just want to make a PSA (Public Service Announcement),
Be careful about the names you drop claiming who you know and don’t know. One of the biggest mistakes people make is they assume famous cats and celebrities they name drop don’t read blogs.
Even worst, they even assume I don’t got phone numbers in my rolodex of the person they claim to be knowing. These cats are about business and from my experience, I rarely know a celebrity/business that can truly give a damn about anybody not business to them. And when you business, all relationships are confidential and privacy is respected and there is no need to name drop.
That’s the PSA….