The way we sleep is incredibly important, you need proper support for your whole body. If you sleep with bad support or uncomfortable bedding it can result in sore muscles joints, back pain, neck pain, ect. Along with our high priced bedding comes high priced and high thread count, sheets, covers and cases. All bedding aside most importantly, to Amanda Blyth, are the sheets!!!

Idea Title:
Untangle-able Sheets

From:
Amanda Blyth in Kamloops BC

Idea Summary:
Sheets that don’t scrunch, tangle or get pushed to the end of the bed while you sleep!

Idea Description:
I don’t know about you but it’s annoying when you’re sleeping and throughout the night the sheet gets crumpled at the bottome of the bed or scrunched up behind you and after laying on it all night you wake up with a sore back.

Last night I though of a way that this could be fixed! Fitted sheets could be made specially to include the top sheet but have the top sheet attached. It would be like a very baggy sleeping bag. The reason you want it baggy is because some people don’t like having the sheet tucked at the end of the bed and so that you’re able to get in and out of it! I know, it seems like a lot of material but it’s no more than would be used regularily it’s just attached instead of seperate. Then when you make the bed (so that it’s not bunched up and filled with wrinkles. You pull the sheet flat on the bed, yes there will be bulk on the edges but again, no different then if you had a regular sheet!

If you had a chance to be an actor or actress in your favorite movie as one of the lead characters would you take it? Many of us wanted to be or still want to be famous, if you’re in one of those categories here’s your second chance at making it to Hollywood!!!! Al Barnes submitted this idea regarding CGI technology, thank you Al!!! We appreciate your submission, your t-shirt is on its way and you have been entered into the BIG $10,000 draw!!!!

Idea Title:
NO Time for Face time, My face is in the movie

From:
Al Barnes from Stoney Creek Ontario

Idea Summary:
Set top box that captures facial image in 3dand then generates an image in your favorite movie with personal image putting them in the movie.

Idea Description:
Noticing so many more movies done in CGI and thought of an idea in the not so distant future where you could upload your image into the main characters and put your own voice ect into the movie.

Message:
Probably is already available at a Best Buy near you.
Thanks

SPECIAL MESSAGE:
Do you have an idea that you think could make money? Submit your money-making ideas using the form located here.  If any of the teams use your idea or if we publish your idea to our website we’ll give you credit, automatically send you a cool Race To A Million T-Shirt AND enter you for a chance to win your choice of either…

1. A Trip for 2 with all expenses paid to Kamloops, BC, Canada for the season finale;  or
2. $10,000 … That’s ONE MILLION cents in exchange for your 2 cents … A great return on investment that makes cents … as well as sense! (Don’t worry we won’t pay out in pennies… we promise.)

Pete & Dean

North American’s tend to waste a lot, even when it comes down to food. The grocers waste, restaurants waste and we waste.  The idea machine, Amanda Blyth, share her thoughts with us about turning wasted food back into rich soil to feed our food!!! We love hearing from you Amanda keep it up and that $10,000 could be yours!!!

Idea Title:
Composted Soil Amendment

From:
Amanda Blyth in Kamloops

Idea Summary:
Food waste recycled from around the city to make a nutritious addition
to your garden!

Idea Description:
Currently in Whistler, “Whistler Composting” collects food waste from hospitality grocery stores, land clearing and biosolids, which is then composted to make a good quality soil amendment (http://www.carneyswaste.com/commercial_services/composting_soils.html). Therefore instead of the waste being thrown out its sold as an additive to soil for your garden!

I think this is a great idea and Kamloops should bring it into play. In addition to getting food waste from grocery stores etc. the city should supply bins (your choice whether you have one or not since some people compost already) that you can leave out with your garbage and recycling that you can fill with your composting. Then when the city comes once a week, they pick that up and compost it for you! The additive can then be bought at a local store, from the company that does the composting (which will also need started!) and the city office if needed.

We recycle paper, why not food waste?

SPECIAL MESSAGE:
Do you have an idea that you think could make money? Submit your money-making ideas using the form located here.  If any of the teams use your idea or if we publish your idea to our website we’ll give you credit, automatically send you a cool Race To A Million T-Shirt AND enter you for a chance to win your choice of either…

1. A Trip for 2 with all expenses paid to Kamloops, BC, Canada for the season finale;  or
2. $10,000 … That’s ONE MILLION cents in exchange for your 2 cents … A great return on investment that makes cents … as well as sense! (Don’t worry we won’t pay out in pennies… we promise.)

Pete & Dean

In today’s world of technology, there are many personal items to keep track of throughout the day. You have a cell phone, camera, keys, iPod, wallet maybe a even a tablet!! Misplacing these items is never fun. Amanda’s big idea makes it possible for us to track where we place these things!! Thank-you Amanda for your contribution we always appreciate it!! Good luck, Canada day will come faster than you think!!

Idea Title:
Remote “Finder”

From:
Amanda Blyth in Kamloops

Idea Summary:
A button operated, customizable, lost item finder!

Idea Description:
Do you constantly misplace things such as your cell phone, the TV remote, or your car keys? I know I do.

Some telephones nowadays have a finder button on the deck of the phone, which when pressed sets off a beeping sound to help you find where your phone has magically run off to.

It would be neat if there was a universal device that was created that you could attach and use to find any item of your choice. Kind of like an automatic car un-locker, you could create one similar but instead
have different colored buttons all over it, like red, blue, yellow, green, and orange. The product could come with custom stickers that say things such as “Cell”, “phone”, “keys”, “remote”,
etc. and maybe some blank ones for your own custom description. When someone purchases the device, they can label each colored button with a desired item. Coming with this device would be removable buttons
that you could stick on each of the items that you wish to run on this device, so for example, you stick the blue button on your cell phone, and then on your device label the button “Cell” and so on. That way if you were to misplace something all you have to do is press the color that represents the item and it will trigger that identical colored button that is located on the item you’ve chosen.

This would make losing things a lot less frustrating!

CMDC Comments:
The thing about the idea stage as an entrepreneur is that if you have a good idea someone else is either thinking the same thing, has thought about it, or is already doing it! While searching for an appropriate photo for this submission Amanda I came across a product on Amazon.com which is described very similarly to what you were thinking of, check it out!
http://www.amazon.com/Wireless-Remote-Control-finder-Glasses/dp/B002II81N0

SPECIAL MESSAGE:
Do you have an idea that you think could make money? Submit your money-making ideas using the form located here.  If any of the teams use your idea or if we publish your idea to our website we’ll give you credit, automatically send you a cool Race To A Million T-Shirt AND enter you for a chance to win your choice of either…

1. A Trip for 2 with all expenses paid to Kamloops, BC, Canada for the season finale;  or
2. $10,000 … That’s ONE MILLION cents in exchange for your 2 cents … A great return on investment that makes cents … as well as sense! (Don’t worry we won’t pay out in pennies… we promise.)

Pete & Dean

At Race to a Million we try to be environmentally conscious, from the coffee we drink to the t-shirts we give away for this contest. During the Christmas season many people forget to follow some basic conscientious principles regarding the environment. In fact Christmas can sometimes promote a lot of unnecessary consumption including the tree’s we put up in our houses. We cut down tree after tree after tree and Steve Rollheiser has an environmentally conscious solution for that!! Thanks for your submission Steve your t-shirt has been sent!! Good luck on winning that $10,000!!!!!!

Idea Title:
Christmas Tree Hugger

From:
Steven Rollheiser in Kamloops BC

Idea Summary:
“rent out” live evergreens in pots for Christmas trees, give partial credit for return of healthy trees, store them until spring then resells them for planting.

Idea Description:
The group contracts bulk purchase of 4-5′ evergreens in pots for 20-25$ each, partners with school groups, parent advisory groups, non-profits etc to presell trees for say $60 for Christmas trees, then delivers them, and if purchaser wants, picks them up early in New Year- stores them until springtime in semi-sheltered area to protect the now non-dormant trees from freezing, then resells the returned trees to City of Kamloops (or whatever) for their treeplanting program. The original tree purchasers can keep the tree, or return for partial credit if tree is alive and well.
Essential partnerships: tree farm
Schools, Parent advisory groups, City of Kamloops (as end-purchasers at original bulk-buy price) non-profit groups to front money, deliver, pick up and store trees, some corporation or organization with space to store live trees (under shelter, not necessarily heated, no fire risk)

If this sold 5,000 trees and realized a $20 profit each, that’s $100,000. Lots of kids in town to promote to parents, serves the environment, shared profits with schools, Parent Advisory Groups serves educational support needs, mutually beneficial partnership with municipality is a win-win. Corporation could get a tax write off for donating storage space. Tree farm sells lots of live trees. Good likelihood for repeat annual business- last time I checked, Xmas comes every year. As long as costs reasonably competitive with your regular ‘throw-away’ tree, easy to promote as a green alternative. Offer discounts for repeat/early purchasers. Solicit Municipal support for sales, local media, try to get the whole community behind the idea, could have significant growth potential. Volunteers needed to deliver/collect trees, maybe check them re ?watering during storage etc, altho if they could be made to go dormant again after being inside for the 10-14 days of the Christmas season, might not need much upkeep until planting time.

SPECIAL MESSAGE:
Do you have an idea that you think could make money? Submit your money-making ideas using the form located here.  If any of the teams use your idea or if we publish your idea to our website we’ll give you credit, automatically send you a cool Race To A Million T-Shirt AND enter you for a chance to win your choice of either…

1. A Trip for 2 with all expenses paid to Kamloops, BC, Canada for the season finale;  or
2. $10,000 … That’s ONE MILLION cents in exchange for your 2 cents … A great return on investment that makes cents … as well as sense! (Don’t worry we won’t pay out in pennies… we promise.)

Pete & Dean

Not everyone is naturally good at golfing. That’s why we practice, because practice makes perfect.This is an idea where practice meets practicality. Bryan Wickham submitted this idea about a shade umbrella you can use to practice chipping! Bryan your t-shirt is on its way and we’ve submitted an entry for you to win that big $10,000!!!!! Who knows maybe you’ll WIN BIG and take your prototypes further than you dreamed!!!

Idea Title:
Umbrachipin (umbrella and golfing practise aid)

From:
Bryan Wickham in Kamloops BC

Idea Summary:
An umbrella that doubles as a practice target for chipping and putting.

Idea Description:
One piece of equipment that is common with all golfers is the umbrella. The umbrella that I designed has the ability to be inverted, forming a “cup”. On the top and the bottom are pockets. The top pocket is for chipping practice, and the bottom for putting practice.

So when you are waiting to tee off, or at home in your backyard, you can use this umbrella to assist in sharpening your short game.

Message:
I have some prototypes for viewing.

SPECIAL MESSAGE:
Do you have an idea that you think could make money? Submit your money-making ideas using the form located here.  If any of the teams use your idea or if we publish your idea to our website we’ll give you credit, automatically send you a cool Race To A Million T-Shirt AND enter you for a chance to win your choice of either…

1. A Trip for 2 with all expenses paid to Kamloops, BC, Canada for the season finale;  or
2. $10,000 … That’s ONE MILLION cents in exchange for your 2 cents … A great return on investment that makes cents … as well as sense! (Don’t worry we won’t pay out in pennies… we promise.)

Pete & Dean

In today’s society, where news broadcasters and newspapers deliver nothing but tragedy to your doorstep, it’s hard to see the good in the world. However random acts of kindness happen all the time ever day. Whether we see them or not, do them or don’t do them, choose to broadcast them or not to broadcast them, they still happen. From Cambridge Ontario, Jeanette chooses to see the good and hopes to one day reward it. And with this submission we hope to reward you Jeanette for your wonderful input!!! We’ve sent you a t-shirt and entered you into the BIG $10,000 draw!!! If you haven’t heard of it yet, check out our Thanks a  Million card!!!

Idea Title:
Random Acts of Kindness

From:
Jeanette Richards from Cambridge Ontario

Idea Summary:
To show people that we do live in a loving society and that it’s not all that they see on their news stations or read in the papers.

Have people report random acts of kindness and follow up those stories to find out the 5 W’s
I’d love to hear local stories of people caring for and looking out for each other. There are some of us who actively live our lives making the lives of the people around us better, lets find out just how much of that goes on on a regular basis, I bet you we’d surprise ourselves, and what a good feeling that would give people, it might even start spreading.

Idea Description:
So, we just send out a bulletin to all radio station across our nation that we are calling all angels.

All the people who on a regular basis do for others as they would like done to them, I think that we should honor each and every one of them.

Find out if there’s something they would like for themselves and whether it is that they need some plumbing done or a vacation cause they have never had one, lets get the people they have done acts of kindness for to pull together their resources to make this happen for him/her

Message:
We could approach local business’s and perhaps have a travel agency donate a trip and even have a local plumber donate his time to install him a new sink

It could be as easy as getting he and his wife a babysitter so they can have a night out which hasn’t happened in years.

What I’m saying is I know that there are many business’s who would sponsor to help an angel of kindness, we have several I could think of, RIM, TOYOTA, BUDDS.

Lets use the Kiss method and not make it a huge deal.

Even if a random act of kindness doesn’t make the show we should have a place on the website for this show where people can report the acts they know of, sort of an honourable mention to acknowledge their importance.

SPECIAL MESSAGE:
Do you have an idea that you think could make money? Submit your money-making ideas using the form located here.  If any of the teams use your idea or if we publish your idea to our website we’ll give you credit, automatically send you a cool Race To A Million T-Shirt AND enter you for a chance to win your choice of either…

1. A Trip for 2 with all expenses paid to Kamloops, BC, Canada for the season finale;  or
2. $10,000 … That’s ONE MILLION cents in exchange for your 2 cents … A great return on investment that makes cents … as well as sense! (Don’t worry we won’t pay out in pennies… we promise.)

Pete & Dean

Hi everyone,

It’s been four and a half months since we launched the Race to a Million. There’s six months to go and we are entering an exciting new year for 2011.

With incredibly talented  and dedicated staff, the amazing entrepreneurs on the Race to a Million teams, several business leaders from the community, our business partners, and most importantly you the fans… we’ve accomplished some great things already in 2010.

Here are our top 8 accomplishments for 2010!

1. Together, we’ve created a reality television show that is positive not negative and that has started to demonstrate that incredible things are possible when everyone works together.
2. Over a half a million dollars has been invested into the Race to a Million in order to create this unique opportunity for the public, entrepreneurs, business people, and non-profit groups to work together and to create further success.
3. We’ve provided masterminding support and mentoring to a total of 37 entrepreneurs who in turn have started no less that 16 new business ventures in 2010 which otherwise wouldn’t have happened. These same people have formed the teams of the Race to a Million and they’re working on additional ideas together to benefit their teams, their charities and their community.
4. We’ve already achieved over 3000 registered fans and supporters for the Race to a Million from over 20 countries through the www.racetoamillion.ca website, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Google Buzz. WOW
5. We’ve helped to shine a spotlight on the great city of Kamloops. We’ve put the city of Kamloops on a world stage and brought attention to the fun, innovative and exciting business climate and the great people in our city that help make it all happen. Over 2000 of the show’s registered fans are outside of Canada!
6. We’ve inspired people across the nation, into the United States and around the world to start their own mastermind groups and work as a team to start entrepreneurial businesses which can make a difference in the world while at the same time become profitable and fun!
7. We’ve brought some exposure and awareness to some important charities that deserve our support and we’re finding new ways to benefit even more non-profit groups and worthwhile causes.
8. We’ve shown that it is possible to produce a quality TV show from this region that deserves to be broadcast into other markets and continue into a second season with the possibility of expanding the teams to as many as one hundred is as many cities.

Now, more than ever we need you!

Have you ever heard of a TV show created by the fans? Here’s your opportunity to stand up and be counted. You have the opportunity to be part of this exciting effort. We want your help… your creativity… your passion… your involvement… your advice… your influence. Without you there is no “we”. WE can do amazing things together!

Here are some ideas that we hope may appeal to you.

1. If you are not already a registered fan, PLEASE become one today. This shows the TV networks that people care enough to be involved! It shows the contestants that you support them and what they are trying to do! When you become a fan it shows potential corporate partners and sponsors for the show that it is worth their while to get involved. Please become a Facebook fan, follow us on Twitter, subscribe to our channel on YouTube and register as a user on our website.
2. After you become a fan please share the link to the Race to a Million website with as many people as you can and tell them to do the same! If you have a website we’d love to have you provide a link to us and encourage your readers to follow along.
3. We’re also looking for people that would like to become a contributor.  Would you like to write articles for us that contain strong business tips, ideas and entrepreneurial advice?
4. Do you know someone who would consider becoming a sponsor, advertiser, or partner for the show? We would sure appreciate an introduction to them and an opportunity to come up with some creative ideas for how we could work together to benefit their business while creating more value for our fans.
5. Have you considered buying a Thanks a Million card and making a difference to someone else in your life?  The Thanks a Million card purchases help support the Race To A Million and everything we are attempting to do.
6. Would you like to work with one of the teams to help them out with advice or mentoring?
7. Please consider submitting your business ideas for making money. Perhaps you could brainstorm some ideas with your friends or family and submit them together. When we publish your ideas on the Race to a Million website you’ll get a great t-shirt and you’ll be entered for a chance to win $10,000. You get an entry into the contest for every idea you submit that we publish.
8. You can also submit ideas for what you’d like to see on the show.  It could be an idea for a new segment or an improvement for something we have already done? Do you know someone we should interview? How about something you’ve always wanted to learn?

What can you offer? We’d love to hear. Please consider sending Dean and I an email at info@racetoamillion.ca or reach us through the contact form on this website.

Cheers

Peter Cameron-Inglis

Here are a couple of great big crazy ideas examples… In this video Dean tells us about his invention, the “neat seat lifter”, what his patenting process was, and how his outcome came to be. Peter goes over his “line drive golf fishing system” and the unexpected success it had while it was still current. It started out as a joke and a brainstorming session and turned into a great start-up business success. Don’t forget you could WIN $10,000 just for submitting your idea to racetoamillion.ca

Fast Tube by Casper

In this video … If it’s been awhile since you visited the Race to a Million website we invite you to take another look.  We’ve made a lot of changes and additions for you.

Fast Tube by Casper

We’ve had a few of the fans for the show say that submitting their idea was a little bit of a challenge so as you can see here we’ve made it as simple as possible for you to share your ideas and of course qualify for the ten thousand dollar give-away.

Simply click on the “submit your ideas” graphic. Now, we need to know who you are so take a moment to fill in your details.  This way we can send you your Race to A Million t-shirt if we post your idea and of course we’ll know how to contact you if your name is drawn as the winner of the ten thousand dollars ($10,000) at the end of season one in June 2011.

If you’ve won the $10K you’re going to want to know right?

And also, if you’re looking for some inspiration to come up with your own ideas why not take a couple of moments and have a look through some of the submitted ideas to see what other fans are doing.

Before you give us the description of your idea, don’t forget to take a moment or two to decide which of the great t-shirt styles you want and make sure you indicate which size is best for you.

Now back to the home page we go with another new tab for you to check out.  It’s the Thanks a Million tab and that’s the key to getting your Thanks a Million card. Check out what this great program is all about. The cards are available now and you could start a wave of appreciation that spreads all around the world and actually track what your act of kindness does as a traverses the globe.

And of course a couple of the teams have some new team members and you can get to know them on the Team Bio pages and you can also get the latest team standings on the leader board page too.

Stay up to date and current by checking back any time at RaceToAMillion.ca

Local entrepreneur and just a generally inspiring person Natalie Peace joins us in the studio to talk about her business Booster Juice. Natalie shares some great advice for young entrepreneurs and talks about her motivations to make a difference when starting her company.

Natalie is a graduate from Thompson Rivers University who has followed her dreams in spite of the likelihood of success and challenges she faced. She found a franchise that was aligned with her own personal values and hasn’t looked back since. She’s worked hard to run her business while still attending her classes and eventually achieved her goals. It’s been four and half years now and Booster Juice now employees over 50 people in Kamloops.

Natalie measures her success not only through having a socially responsible business with healthy products but also how she is able to help her employees grow and how she can impact her customers to also participate in changing the world one random act of kindness at a time.

Natalie finds it rewarding to see her efforts over the last four and a half years have a lasting effect on over 350 people she’s had work for her. Many have gone on to become great leaders themselves and she’s very happy to have played her part. The random acts of kindness challenge that Natalie started has now generated over 44,000 random acts of kindness not only through her staff but also throughout the community and is now growing internationally.

Natalie shares with us that her success is due to three things: hiring the right people; being creative; and measuring her success on multiple bottom lines.

You can check out Natalie’s website at www.nataliepeace.com

Fast Tube by Casper

When Dean and I started the Race to a Million we did a little research. We wanted to know what the average person thought about business and entrepreneurs. We knew that people, including ourselves, have a tendency to socialize and interact with like minded individuals who think like they do.  We needed to know what other people thought about business that were not necessarily like us, others who were not part of our sphere of influence.

Boy, did we get a shock! We managed to find a lot of people who were neither business people nor entrepreneurs, but we thought they should be. These people, like us, love to be creative. They care about their friends, family and community. They are enthusiastic. They like to have fun. These people work tirelessly on school PACs, cadets groups, card making and scrap-booking groups, and fund-raising committees for children’s sports groups. What we learned from many of them contained some surprises for us.

Perhaps the biggest surprise for me was that many of these enthusiastic, creative, and caring people truly believe that you can not succeed in business without being ruthless, cutthroat and self-centered. They had stereotyped business people according to the negative and sensational examples of the heartless, cold and calculating millionaire celebrities we all love to hate. I heard time and again that these people wouldn’t want to enter into business because they wouldn’t like the person they would have to become.

95% of our economy is driven by small business entrepreneurs.  What would our economy look like if these people didn’t feel like this about the prospects of starting a business? They’re the creative backbone of our society! They care about people! They’re the business owners that every potential customer and every potential employee is looking for! If we could find a way to show these people that nice people don’t have to finish last – it could be a game changer.

This is one of the reasons why we started the Race to a Million and also the reason why we chose our slogan, “Nice People Can Finish First”.

Yesterday, I was a little disturbed with a related sentiment posted by a reader on our website. It was in reference to Team Genie’s project which they have apply named the Kids Coffee and Tea Company. Here’s what the comment says:

• “Are they using sympathy for children to cash in? Boo. What a sick program all together. Shame on all of you sick people. Money is your god.”

Here was my response:  (click here if you want to see the full dialogue – it’s at the bottom of the page when you follow the link)

• In my opinion I believe Team Genie has chosen a good avenue to align and promote their brand of coffee. They have chosen to support causes for children in three different ways: 1) in support of children from farming families where the coffee comes from … 2) in support of Make-A-Wish foundation (Team Genie’s primary charity of choice) in order to grant wishes for children with a terminal illness and 3) as a fund raising opportunity for kids school, sports and recreational groups. Are they using sympathy to cash in? I don’t think so. Rather I believe they are giving consumers a choice to support a coffee brand that does more than just line its shareholders pockets with money. Money is not their God. They are making a difference and I for one am proud to be associated with what they are attempting to do.

I think this is another example of people assuming that making a profit and running a business is dirty. We should not be shying away from realizing our dreams of supporting our families and making a difference in the world. We should be embracing it! While the concepts of socialism and communism have the greater good in mind; it’s a proven fact that they just don’t work! Communism has been a cause of oppression and hardship for millions of people generation after generation.  I think where people go wrong with capitalism is the idea behind what a business is and is not.

Look at Natalie Peace in the business tips interview we recently did. She started Booster Juice because she wanted to make a difference in the world! Who says you have to wait to become a successful millionaire before you can become a philanthropist? Why can’t we find smaller but consistent ways of making a difference as we progress in our businesses and give back to social and environmental causes as we’re on the journey? Why do some individuals assume that our motives aren’t noble?

The good news is not everyone feels this way. The face of business is changing in the world… it’s becoming social… it’d becoming about more than the bottom line… as Natalie says… it’s about multiple bottom lines. I invite everyone to join us! As Shaw TV’s campaign recently said “Together is Amazing!” … Together we can make a difference… contact us if you’d like to find out how you can help. We’d love to hear from you.

The commercial transport industry is a big one, and it demands big transport vehicles! From planes to trains we ship in mass amounts and we have to ship it fast. This revolutionary idea about Wing in Ground courier’s is from Jonathan Anthony who has submitted many great ideas already!! Thank-you Jonathan for your support and input!!

Idea Title:
Wing in Ground effect Courier and Transport Service

Idea Summary:
Wing in Ground effect aircraft may not be well known yet but they are machines capable of carrying much larger cargo loads than equivalent sized aircraft but are restricted to much lower altitudes. Often they’re amphibious (built to take off from and land from water) making them the perfect means of high speed transportation for island hopping and coastal transport in hard to reach places.

Idea Description:
Conventional airplanes gain lift from their wings creating a low pressure zone under the wing and a higher pressure zone over the wing. The air under the wing moves faster and keeps the plane in the air. Ground effect is the opposite and works by having the wing create a high pressure zone under the aircraft body so that it rides on a cushion of air like a hovercraft but without the need for a rubber skirt.

Although typical commercially available vehicles of this nature only operate at a cruising altitude of around 3 meters (flight control becomes sluggish at higher altitudes) the Soviet Union was able to recycle many old cargo planes by converting them to ground effect vehicles used for high military transport in the Black and Caspian Sea. Their original designs were intended to cruise at 3 meters but were found to be most efficient at 20 meters with a top speed of 300 knots or about 560km/h. Some research craft made it as high as 400 knots or 740 km/h.

Imagine a fast happy medium between gas guzzling jumbo jets and slow lumbering sea faring cargo ships.

Imagine something that would make hard to reach communities accessible and change the waterways.

There is slow but growing use of these craft in Japan, Germany, Austrailia, America, and probably more. The German coast guard is rumored to have a few of them in use that are capable of over 200 knots. In that application speed can save lives.

Business Idea:
A coastal shipping and transport company using ground effect vehicles to minimize transport effect on marine habitats, reduce fuel consumption, and make isolated coastal and island communities more accessible to improve their quality of living. Shipments will arrive far faster than by boat and far cheaper with far less fuel than by conventional aircraft.

The catch? One would probably need a million dollars to start this business unless you were able to purchase just one or two ground effect aircraft and start a small operation for 250-500 thousand Can it be feasible? If buying a rig for the same price can be part of a feasible business plan despite todays high fuel costs then absolutely.

Licensing catches? I’m not sure what piloting license is required for these craft in Canada and what the Canadian government classifies them as. Marine vehicle or Aircraft. In the United States they’ve been classified as marine vehicles and only require a regular boaters license to operate them.

Operational catch: even if you can acquire a craft that operates at a slightly higher cruising altitude so you can fly in rougher seas you still have to be able to land and take off from those seas. Your business plan may at times be subject to the will of El Nino which is Spanish for…. The Nino, according to Chris Farley.

Message:
I doubt I’ll ever have the money to start this business myself so here it is! It’s also not my passion to run a shipping and receiving business so even if I could run it the business would never “take off”.

SPECIAL MESSAGE:
Do you have an idea that you think could make money? Submit your money-making ideas using the form located here.  If any of the teams use your idea or if we publish your idea to our website we’ll give you credit, automatically send you a cool Race To A Million T-Shirt AND enter you for a chance to win your choice of either…

1. A Trip for 2 with all expenses paid to Kamloops, BC, Canada for the season finale;  or
2. $10,000 … That’s ONE MILLION cents in exchange for your 2 cents … A great return on investment that makes cents … as well as sense! (Don’t worry we won’t pay out in pennies… we promise.)

Pete & Dean

Smooth coffee with no bitter after taste … there’s a great reason why one of the brands for Kids Coffee and Tea Company is called the “Time Out”. Team Genie takes you into the Roasting Room and a little further behind the scenes with their custom blending and roasting process. Get acquainted with their Roastmaster as he introduces you to some of the steps. Organically grown Kenya, Guatemala and Sumatra beans are roasted individually and then blended together to create this unique taste. But, according to Team Genie, it’s more than just custom roasting and a wide variety of blends… it’s also more than the environmentally conscious packaging… but it’s nothing without you. With you Team Genie says “together we can provide the support that the Make-A-Wish foundation really deserves”.

Get to know Team Genie and their Kids Coffee and Tea Company by watching these three great videos:

Video: Team Genie Launches Kids Coffee and Tea Company – Race Update – Ep. 7

Fast Tube by Casper

Video: Behind The Scenes with the Kids Coffee and Tea Company – Custom Roasting

Video: Rich Coffee With Gold Nuggets? Race Update – Genie Ep. 8

I’m going to clean my office today and I’d like to share with you the reason why.

Things like clearing the recycling cardboard out of the office hallway, cleaning our offices, cleaning off our computer desktops and keeping our software up to date, properly greeting our coworkers, and washing the dishes are so insignificant and small…

Having your staff decide whether to leave or stay in your company, needing your team to come up with great ideas and solutions to big business problems, customers choosing to trust and increase their business with your company, caring for your coworkers, friends and family … these are the BIG things!

If we can’t take care of the small simple things how can we take care of the big ones in business?

I recently read a book called the “Tipping Point” by Malcolm Gladwell. I referred to it in an earlier post on the Race To A Million website.  You can read it here.  In the book Mr. Gladwell tells a story about the New York subway system and a man who was charged with cleaning up the crime that had plagued New York’s transit authority for far too long.  He was facing the challenge of dramatically reducing what seemed to be an insurmountable number of major felonies and murders. He was almost dismissed over his decision as to how he was going to clean it up. He decided to focus on the smaller less significant crime of graffiti. He reasoned that if criminals saw that New York cared about something as simple as graffiti in a big way then it would make a large impact on the more significant crimes without having to do anything directly. Turns out, he was right.

Last night I read another great illustration of small things making a significant difference in a book by Sir Richard Branson. The book is aptly named “Business Stripped Bare” and in it Branson shares many great business insights.  Yesterday evening I read how the Virgin group of companies is concerned first and foremost about people, their staff and their customers and how the two are inseparable and so closely related. Virgin often considers and protects themselves from the potential to mechanize people and turn them into machines or at least into just another cog in the wheel. With all of their success, fast paced business environments, and expensive machinery (planes, trains, automobiles and even a “space ship”) one would think that they might have a tendency to dehumanize their staff and customers, at least a little.  But this is not the case. They go as far as actually humanizing, instead, their machinery.  Every car on every train, every plane, every vehicles in fact has a human name.  This make seem very funny but it is brilliant. Pure genius. Their level of attention and safety record has increased dramatically as a direct result.  People relate more to the machinery and take better care of it, they actually “relate” to it because it has a personal name.

This morning I had a great conversation with my business partner Dean. He told me a story of a recent disagreement between Richard Branson and Stephen Colbert where Mr. Branson ended up apologizing by naming one of his planes after Mr. Colbert.  Wow! What a great way to make a huge impression with something that is so insignificant.  Does it cost Branson anything to name a plane after someone. No, in fact it probably makes him money through the value of the publicity alone AND what a huge impact it can make on a person!

Taking care of the small things – the little details – makes all the difference in the world.

I’m going to clean my office and desk now.

What small thing can you do today to make a difference to someone else?

Cheers.

Peter Cameron-Inglis

P.S. If you’re looking for an inspirational idea of something small you can do today that has a potential big impact, check out our Thanks A Million cards.

Thanks a Million cards allow you to say ‘thanks’ – and pass it on! From person to person and place to place, each card’s progress is tracked online, taking with it a rich collection of inspirational stories of sincere gratitude. And who wouldn’t want to be a part of a journey like that? They’re definately one way I’m ‘paying it forward’ this holiday season.

You can read more about the Thanks A Million cards at http://www.racetoamillion.ca/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/RTAM-release-thanks-a-million.pdf