Some tips for the trade...

Have you ever thought about making your own product, creating something that is all your own and then selling it? I will say that the journey to get to this spot where I am, in the bottling and labeling phase and sending it out to the world phase, has been a lot of trial and error. But, if you want to make something, and want to find someone to make it for you, I definitely have a couple of key things that I learned along the way, so that you don't have to make the same mistakes. OK, mistakes is a pretty strong way to think about it, but I didn't know any better, so here are just some thoughts so that your process can be a little bit more sped up. 

1. Find people that are like minded. Immerse yourself around people that want to create and build a business, because this will help with your motivation, and also as a sounding board to keep committed.
2. Be selective of who you do talk to. Find people that you can trust to not share or monetize your idea before you have a chance to roll it out. Depending on what stage you are in the process, find 2-3 people that you can keep your idea under wraps with who will also provide guidance along the way.
3. Find a mentor. This is very important, because a mentor will help to teach you and can help develop your idea because they have most likely already been down the same path, or know people that you can reach out to.
4. When finding someone to produce your product, make sure that you are protected with a non-disclosure document. If you do not take the effort to protect your idea when you work with a company or individual, there is a chance your idea could get taken or reproduced. Having documents in place before you hand over your trade secrets will help protect you against infringement (i.e. copycats).
5. If your product needs packaging, either ask your manufacturer who they buy their packaging through, or find forums online of people that make something similar and reach out. You want to find a reputable company so that you can be assured of continuous stock. Don't be afraid to ask for samples!
6. Join local groups, entrepreneur online discussions, forums, meet-ups, basically anything that revolves around marketing, making, and producing consumer products or goods. You'll never know who you'll meet that will help take you to the next level!