FAQs

When someone exclaims "That's a great idea!" they usually mean that something unusually beneficial has happened, out of proportion to what would normally have been expected in the circumstances.

A Sebir is an innovative idea with this quality. A Sebir is innovative because the beneficial value it generates greatly exceeds the cost of the effort employed to implement the idea.

The term 'Sebir' is a loose acronym for the description 'Small effort: big result'. It is a label attached to any idea where it is obvious that the investment of a relatively small amount of effort has generated a disproportionately beneficial result.

"I once knew a chap who had a system of just hanging a baby on the clothes line to dry and he was greatly admired by his fellow citizens for having discovered a wonderful innovation on changing a diaper." Damon Runyon 1880-1946, Newspaperman and Author

Whatever you are involved in, Sebirs help you when you need innovative ideas (i.e. Sebirs) to:

• Save Money.
• Make Money.

Often we cannot come up with such ideas easily for three main reasons:

• We don't know where to find an innovative idea or how to develop one.
• We do know that coming up with an innovative idea – usually by trial and error – can be time consuming.
• We do know that an innovative idea (if we find or develop one) will probably be costly.

"There is one thing stronger than all the armies of the world; and that is an idea whose time has come." Victor Hugo 1802-1885, Poet, Novelist, Statesman

Sebirs help you by providing:

• A simple method whereby you use your natural creativity to breed innovative ideas (Sebirs).

And because you borrowed the essence of those innovative ideas from Sebirs that have been successfully proven elsewhere, you are well placed to:

• Breed a Sebir relatively quickly.
• Breed a Sebir at minimal cost relative to the anticipated benefit.

"Sebir" is pronounced 'Seebur'

The unique value proposition of Sebir.com is that you can efficiently track down innovative solutions to problems (Sebirs) that are sufficiently similar to the one you are facing that you can adapt what you find to breed your own solution.

Sebir.com enables you to breed innovative ideas for the purposes of making money and saving money. It does this by guiding you through three main areas:

Here is more detail about what you will encounter in each area:

Understanding how Sebirs are created

• Great Sebirs in History Page.
  This highlights how Sebirs have led to the breeding of famous products and services.
• Sebir Demonstrator Pages.
  These identify a common thread in the way those Sebirs were bred – the 'association' of two previously unrelated thoughts, experiences or ideas. By reviewing some of these Sebirs, it is possible to gain an understanding of how we all breed such ideas 'by association'.

Select a relevant Sebir

• Sebir Selector Question Pages.
  By describing your particular circumstances and need via the Sebir Selector, you can discover relevant Sebirs. Your responses to five simple questions form your Selections Summary or your Selections Signature. This is your 'sign-off' on what you are looking for.

'Associate' and Breed Your Own Sebir

• Individual 'Selected' Sebir Pages.
  Following submission of your Selections Summary or your Selections Signature, you are presented with three Sebirs in descending order according to their Relevancy Match (described below). You scrutinize the three Sebirs and, utilizing knowledge gained from the Sebir Demonstrator about how innovative ideas can be bred from something that has similar problem-solving ability, you aim to adapt that Sebir to your circumstances.
  
  The two 'Hints' provided with each Sebir are designed to help your 'breeding'.
  
  You can select a cluster of three Sebirs as many times as you like.

A major challenge for any business is to succeed quickly but, at the same time, to do so sustainably, with the least possible impact on the environment.

Sebirs are the paragon of sustainability because their entire premise is that of extracting latent or residual value from what already exists but is currently underutilized.

A Sebir can only be a Sebir if the value it generates is not created from scratch but is simply innovatively released.

As such, Sebirs:

• Do not create or consume additional resources;
• Do not add to any environmental footprint.

The Sebir Demonstrator displays a collection of well-known innovative ideas (Sebirs) which resulted from the combination of two previously unrelated experiences to breed something new and valuable. Often the inspiration for the novel combination occurred completely by accident when the fortuitous 'association' of two previously unconnected thoughts in someone's mind suggested the ultimate outcome. Basically an accidental, lightbulb moment occurred.

This sort of innovative thinking, while it is usually accidental, is common and the mental process involved is referred to as having ideas 'by association' or 'associational thinking'.

The Sebir Demonstrator operates through illustrating the well-known (but not so well-understood) technique of having ideas 'by association'.

"The starting point is the notion of the associative memory. Information in the human mind is not stacked neatly in files and folders the way it's organized inside a computer. Rather the ideas are organized by association". Chris Crawford, Game Designer

By way of a quick, non-technical explanation, having ideas 'by association' occurs because typically the mind organizes information into categories. One of these categories can link to something else in such a way that a completely new thought is formed, even though the two thoughts are not necessarily connected with each other.

"Creativity is connecting things". Steve Jobs 1955-2011, Entrepreneur

The Sebir Demonstrator illustrates a number of well-known Sebirs that were bred in this fashion and describes them in such a way that insight and understanding can be gained into the process that lies behind breeding ideas 'by association'.

The heroes in the Sebir Demonstrator examples happened to observe something being accomplished in a particular situation – a capability, a problem-solving ability – that they recognized could work in another situation that was on their minds.

In essence, they needed two things to happen:

• They needed to enjoy some serendipity. By accident, they luckily happened upon a situation they could draw upon to resolve a latent need or issue, perhaps something they had been mulling over.
• They had to employ an act of the imagination to recognize that the problem-solving ability they were seeing at work could be applied to that unresolved issue latent in their minds. All they had to do was to apply it more broadly.

The takeaway from the experience of each of these innovators demonstrates that anyone can breed Sebirs if the circumstances are right.

Such insight and understanding can be employed to breed new and useful Sebirs by means of the Sebir Selector.

This is the Breeding Mountain for the invention of Morse Code.

Although the mental processes that the innovators in the Sebir Demonstrator went through obviously cannot be described with precision, it is possible to illustrate practically what happened:

• The breeding process is like climbing up one side of a mountain, pausing to reflect, and then travelling down the other side.
• In going up the left-hand side of the mountain, the Sebir Demonstrator innovators climbed from experience, to understanding, and to recognizing the specific capability (i.e. problem-solving ability) involved. From there, they 'associated' more broadly and identified the general capability at work (the mountain top reflection).
• Travelling down the other side of the mountain, they moved from the general capability to a comparable specific capability, and then applied it more narrowly in a different setting to achieve a satisfying and valuable innovative outcome (the Sebir).

The essence of breeding a Sebir is to generalize from a specific experience that has been recognized and then, having identified the general capability that is at work on the mountain top, specializing down from that general capability to apply it in a narrower, different setting.

The Sebir Selector is built upon the mental foundation of breeding ideas 'by association' in that it describes Sebirs that can potentially breed other Sebirs if they stimulate analogous or parallel thoughts. It seeks to tap into your natural creativity. In the words of neuroscientist Dr Barry Gordon, it is just a matter of joining the dots.

"The dots are pieces or ideas, the lines between them are your connections or associations. ...That's what happens when ideas or concepts 'pop' into your mind." Dr Barry Gordon, Neuroscientist

Usually, Sebirs produced 'by association' have the major disadvantage of occurring by accident. The Sebir Selector aims to reduce or eliminate this accidental aspect by using your Selections Summary or your Selections Signature – your specification of your need – to locate a proven Sebir that is likely to be relevant to your circumstances. This greatly increases the likelihood that you will be able to breed a new Sebir that meets your need by 'associating' from the observed Sebirs. The Sebir Selector 'selects' from thousands of Sebirs that have been successfully employed around the world.

The Sebir Selector is the vault where a steadily increasing number of Sebirs are stored. When you specify your need via the five questions in the Sebir Selector, it searches to locate Sebirs that are most relevant to the explicit circumstances you have specified.

Once identified as a genuine Sebir, each Sebir is dissected and subjected to a proprietary Analysis Algorithm before it is added to the Sebir Selector. The key details of the Sebir's anatomy that drive its effectiveness are optimized and a proprietary Rating Algorithm is applied to this analysis. The objective is to ensure that the analysis and rating of each Sebir is optimized so that the Sebir always responds when its unique Selections Summary or Selections Signature is submitted.

Each presented Sebir reflects such treatment. In addition to the appropriate descriptive text, its 'Relevancy Match' is also clearly displayed. The Relevancy Match is a percentage measure of how closely a Sebir matches the Selections Summary or Selections Signature that has been submitted. The higher the percentage (max. 100), the better the match between the two.

The Sebir Selector reduces or eliminates the main weakness with the mental process of breeding ideas 'by association' or 'associational thinking', i.e. the reliance on luck or fortunate accident. It does this by asking you a series of questions about the need you have for a proven Sebir and then presents you with three Sebirs from which you can breed.

Using natural language entry in the Search Box, you initiate and then select your preferred response in each case from the suggestions presented. These suggestions fall under the following five areas:

• the business or activity you are involved in.
• your type of organisation, product or service.
• what you want to do (your goal).
• the problem blocking your goal.
• the people or things that need to respond for you to achieve your goal.

The answers you select form your Selections Summary or Selections Signature for the Sebir you require. The Sebir Selector uses this Selections Summary or Selections Signature to find a Sebir that appears to be the closest match to the circumstances you specify.

The Selections Summary or Selections Signature you submit dramatically increases the likelihood that the Sebirs presented are relevant and can therefore be bred from and used successfully to resolve your need.

More specifically this is what happens:

• The Sebir Selector puts you in the path of serendipity i.e. it eliminates the need for a happy accident. By entering your Selections Summary or Selections Signature, you specify your business or activity, your goal and why you cannot currently achieve it. By specifying the sort of Sebir required, you automatically remove the accidental or fortuitous element.
• The Sebir Selector assists your imagination by presenting three Sebirs that have successfully resolved a need similar to the one being specified via your Selections Summary or Selections Signature.
• Finally, in addition to the presented Sebirs themselves, two Breeding Hints drawn from the underlying proprietary Sebir know-how are offered for each Sebir to nudge your imagination along so you can breed your own solution.

Although natural language entry and autosuggestion are expected to be the preferred means of discovering relevant Sebirs, the option of full browsing of traditional Dropdown Menus is also available.

A video of instructions for full browsing use of the Sebir Selector Dropdown Menus appears below:

"Don't worry about people stealing your ideas. If your ideas are any good, you'll have to ram them down people's throats". Howard Aiken 1900-1973, Mathematician and Computer Engineer

The unique value proposition of Sebir.com is that you can locate innovative solutions to problems that are sufficiently similar to the one you are facing that you can adapt what you find to breed your own solution.

To make sure that you can locate a Sebir that you can use, you have to be able to specify what you are looking for and then be able to save the selection decisions you employed to find it.

There are two levels of proficiency for discovering relevant Sebirs.

Basic

For a new visitor to Sebir, the first time you look for a relevant Sebir, you select from responses to five simple questions. After identifying your business or activity, the five questions help you define what you are trying to do (your goal) and what is stopping you from doing it

These are the five questions:

• Q1. What do you do? (Select your business or activity involvement)
• Q2. How do you operate? (Are you a Business? Government? Non Profit? Provide a Consumer Product? Provide a Business Service?)
• Q3. What do you want to achieve? (Your goal)
• Q4. What problem is stopping you? (Select a description of the obstacle you face)
• Q5. Who or what are you targeting? (Select the People or Things Group that can respond to satisfy your goal)

The natural language entry and autosuggestion built-in to the Search Box mean that the responses you select to the five questions are guided and straightforward.

Your responses are accumulated and displayed for you as your Selections Summary following the third presented Sebir. Although obviously you will need to signup, you can save your Selections Summary in a single page and re-submit it without going through the five questions again. But to search for a new Sebir, you will need to go through and respond to the five questions again and save a fresh Selections Summary.

A typical Selections Summary looks like this.

Each Sebir discovered and selected is described in no more than 200 words and is presented in a Standard Template:

• Snapshot – gives a brief summary of what the Sebir does and for whom.
• Goal – confirms what goal is being pursued.
• Problem – pinpoints what's blocking achievement of the goal.
• Sebir – contains a succinct description of how the Sebir overcomes the problem and delivers on the goal.
• Breeding Hint 1 – suggests how the initiative as described in the Sebir can be applied to similar situations.
• Breeding Hint 2 – suggests how the target for the initiative described in the Sebir can be broadened to influence many more possible people groups or things.

The Sebir most relevant to your Selections Summary or your Selections Signature is presented first and is followed by other Sebirs that have the same Selections Summary or your Selections Signature, but have a lower Relevancy Match. The Relevancy Match is a percentage measure of how closely a presented Sebir matches the Selections Summary or your Selections Signature you have entered. The higher the % (max. 100), the better the match.

The Relevancy Match is constructed from the classification of each fully-described Sebir against more than 600 criteria. Each Sebir is scored in terms of its 'breeding potential' against each classification criterion. The combined total of its scores i.e. its potential to be 'bred from', is its Relevancy Match.

When each Sebir is presented, its Relevancy Match is also displayed prominently.

Although the ability of a 'Google Search' to retrieve information is most impressive in its reach, there are at least three significant shortcomings in the search for a solution to a specific problem they might have:

• The results returned are of widely varying length and quality. This can make searching for information that is specifically useful very time consuming. Often review of initially promising material can lead to nowhere of real value
• The results presented can come from virtually anywhere and inevitably this can affect the integrity of that information. Commonly, the initiators of the information have commercial gain in mind and are not impartial or objective
• Google tends to treat a search request as a search for relevant information or knowledge and is not primarily seeking to provide a solution to a problem
• Google does not recognize anything about who is requesting information and the responses provided therefore are inevitably generic

The Sebir Selector overcomes these shortcomings in the following ways:

• By guiding you through five steps, it compels a precise specification of what you are looking for. This specification ensures pre-emptive control over quality by mandating a precise structure driven by algorithms in both questions and answers
• Presented Sebirs are described in a pre-determined format that illustrates their key features, including suggestions of how they can be adapted to your need. This will always be done succinctly, in no more than 200 words each time
• The text provided is not just information; it is a solution to a need that exists. And, those solutions are factually based i.e. every Sebir is a proven business initiative that has been successfully implemented by someone to solve a problem analogous to the one you specify. But in fact, they go further than that. They are solutions that are inherently rewarding because they are characterized by a 'Small effort: big result'
• Each Sebir presented is 'customized' to your declared business or activity and, even more helpfully, tailored to what you want to do. The descriptions of the presented Sebirs recognize you and your goal

There are three main reasons for this:

• Although we know things, we don't necessarily remember them when it would be helpful to do so. Psychologists refer to this tendency as the Recency Effect (or Serial-position Effect) – the principle that the things or experiences you encountered most recently, you will most likely remember best. The earlier periods are often forgotten, at least until something brings them back to you

  For this reason, Sebirs are included irrespective of their substance, from the most simple to the most complex. The key criterion is relevance. If a Sebir is relevant to the Selections Summary or your Selections Signature you have submitted to the Sebir Selector, it will be presented to you. You may know it once you see it – or it may strike you as very obvious once you see it – but, without prompting, it is quite possible that you would not have thought of it

"There are lots of things, just lying on the beach as it were, that we don't see until someone else picks one of them up. Then we all see that one." Julia Robinson 1919-1985, American Mathematician

• The potential for breeding a Sebir from another Sebir has absolutely nothing to do with how clever or complex the source Sebir is. What matters is its essence – the initiative or action that releases the value and the principle that makes it work. Very often, the simplest principle can be adapted to other circumstances, and often with impressive effect
• It is also worth remembering that it is often the simplest and most obvious ideas that are the best ... at least that's what we usually conclude once we notice them. There is an economy of effort that is so elegant that it is sometimes barely noticeable

"When you innovate, you've got to be prepared for everyone telling you you're nuts". Larry Ellison, American Businessman

Start describing your business or activity and select one that fits best.

Examples of what you could select if you entered "cos" for "cosmetics"

• cosmetics

  In E-Tailing (E-Commerce) > Cosmetics or Beauty Products

• cosmetics

  In Retailing (Traditional) > Cosmetics or Beauty Products

• cosmetics

  In Manufacturing - Consumer Goods > Cosmetics or Beauty Products

• cosmetics

  In Wholesaling or Distribution > Cosmetics, Toiletries or Pharmacy Products

Enter 'Business', 'Government' or Non-Profit' and select the Product or Service that matches best.

Examples of what you could select if you entered "business"

• business

  In Business Organization > Durable Consumer Product

• business

  In Business Organization > Consumable Consumer Product

• business

  In Government Organization > Business Product

• business

  In Non Profit Organization > Business Service

Start describing your goal and select one that matches it best.

Examples of what you could select if you entered "market"

• market

  In Increase Growth > Increase Market Awareness

• market value

  In Increase Growth > Increase Market Size

• market

  In Increase Growth > Increase Market Share

• market profile

  In Increase Growth > Increase Market Awareness

Name the obstacle. Select a problem that best expresses the problem you are facing.

Problem descriptions you could see if you entered "advertising" and where solutions can be found in each case

• expensive seasonal advertising

  In Marketing > Promotional Email Solutions

• ignored customer advertising messages

  In Marketing > Word Of Mouth Marketing Solutions

• business name or brand advertising not cost effective

  In Marketing > Brand or Livery Solutions

• problems with media channels used for advertising

  In Marketing > Media Advertising Solutions

Start describing people or things that you need to respond and select the best match.

Examples of who you could choose to target if you entered "customers"

• customers

  In People > Consumers of Durable Products

• customers

  In People > Business Customers for Services

• customers

  In People > Guests

• customers

  In People > Customers for Government Products or Services

The Sebir Community is the place where you browse, respond to, and request Sebirs (innovative solutions) from others.

The Community Noticeboard displays 'Current Open Requests' for Sebirs and 'Recent Closed Requests' i.e. previous requests for Sebirs that have been responded to and for which the solutions can now be viewed.

Each 'Current Open Request' and 'Recent Closed Request' on the Community Noticeboard is displayed in summary form, usually in terms of the problem for which a Sebir has been sought. Selecting one of them either reveals the completed Request Template in the case of a 'Current Open Request' or the completed Response Template in the case of a 'Recent Closed Request'.

The Community Noticeboard also provides a Sebir Request Template that stipulates the information that is required to ensure a that the need for an innovative solution is validly described.

Once a Sebir Request is submitted, it is posted on the Community Noticeboard in summary form. When it is opened, it displays a summary of the Sebir Request and provides the option to 'Submit a Sebir Response' via a Sebir Response Template.

The Sebir Community is based upon a system of request and response and participation in it varies according to your subscription status under Prime Features.

Basic

Anyone can browse the Current Open Requests and Recent Closed Requests on the Community Noticeboard.

Premium Subscribers

In addition to browsing Sebir Requests and Sebir Reponses on the Community Noticeboard, Premium Subscribers can also submit responses to Current Open Requests.

VIP Members

In addition to browsing Sebir Requests and responding to them, VIP Members can also freely post requests for innovative solutions to any problem they face.

A description of all the benefits available to Basic Subscribers, Premium Subscribers and VIP Members is shown in Prime Features.

The Sebir Community is based upon a system of request and response and participation in it varies according to your subscription status under Prime Features.

The Sebir Community is based upon a system of request and response.

Describe your need for a Sebir and the problem you are facing by using a Sebir Request Template.

Once you have completed the Sebir Request Template, you post it on the Community Noticeboard.

Someone who has successfully resolved a similar problem to yours is able to respond by means of the Sebir Response Template.

The response in the form of a successful solution to the problem will be accessible via the Community Noticeboard as a 'Recent Closed Request' for a period of time.

Select the 'Current Open Request' on the Community Noticeboard that you wish to respond to and you will be presented with a completed Sebir Request Template that summarizes the need for an innovative solution to a problem.

A date by which a solution is required is also shown just above the 'Submit a Sebir Response' button.

If you know of a potential solution to the need described, click on 'Submit a Sebir Response' beneath the Sebir Request summary.

You will then be presented with a Sebir Response Template in which the 'Current Open Request' you selected has been summarised.

Enter your solution in the 'Suggested Solution' box provided and, once complete, post it to the Community Noticeboard via the 'Submit' button where it will appear as a Recent Closed Request.

Your Sebir Response will be recorded in 'My Account' under 'My Community Activity'.

Only VIP Members can request a Sebir.

A description of this benefit and other benefits to which VIP Members are entitled are shown in Prime Features.

Select the Sebir Request Template on the Community Noticeboard and specify your need for an innovative solution to a problem you are facing by completing the required information fields.

When you have finished, post the completed Sebir Request Template to the Community Noticeboard via the 'Submit' button where it will appear as a Current Open Request.

Your Sebir Request will be recorded in 'My Account' under 'My Community Activity'.

Whereas the Sebir Selector enables Sebirs to be discovered according to their relevance to five Categories in total – Business or Activity; Operating Mode; Goal; by Problem; and finally, Target Audience or Things – the Sebir Marketplace allows you to locate and retrieve Sebirs by a single Category, including FREE lists for developing personal innovative skills.

Once a Category List is selected, each TOP 5 or TOP 10 List contains Sebirs that are ranked in priority relevance against the selected Category.

A selected TOP 5 or TOP 10 List can then be purchased.

There are 5 Groups of Category Lists as follows:

• Business or Activity Lists

  The TOP 5 or TOP 10 Sebirs for the Business or Activity selected

• Goal Lists

  The TOP 5 or TOP 10 Sebirs for achieving the Goal selected

• Problems Lists

  The TOP 5 or TOP 10 Sebirs for resolving the Problem selected

• Target Audience or Things Lists

  The TOP 5 or TOP 10 Sebirs for influencing the People Group or Things selected

• Personal Innovative Skills Lists

  The TOP 5 Sebirs for developing the Innovative Skill selected

To deal in the Sebir Marketplace, select one of the 5 Categories of Lists for which you would like to acquire multiple Sebirs.

Firstly, under the List Category that you select, you will be presented with a Dropdown Menu of all of the General Categories available for that List.

Secondly, once selected, each General Category opens up a dependent Dropdown Menu that contains the Specific Categories available for that List.

Thirdly, you select the Specific Category List you are interested in.

When you have finished your Category List selection, you complete the required payment.

You will then be presented with 5 or 10 Sebirs for the selected Category List.

Your purchases of Category Lists will also be recorded in 'My Account' under 'My Marketplace Lists'.

Basic

TOP 5 Lists cost $15.

TOP 10 Lists cost $25.

If a TOP 5 List has been previously purchased and the TOP 10 List for the same Category is then selected, the TOP 10 List will cost $15.

The TOP 5 Personal Innovative Skills Lists are all FREE.

A description of all benefits to which Basic Subscribers are entitled is shown in Prime Features.

Premium Subscribers

Premium Subscribers are entitled to one FREE Top 5 Category List each year.

A description of all benefits to which Premium Subscribers are entitled is shown in Prime Features.

VIP Members

VIP Members are entitled to five FREE Top 5 or TOP 10 Category Lists each year.

VIP Members are also entitled to request that a new Category be added to Sebir.com. Provided what is requested can be reasonably integrated into the existing category structure, such requests will be accommodated in an appropriate form.

A description of all benefits to which VIP Members are entitled is shown in Prime Features.

Prime Features provides access tools and mechanisms to enable you to discover more and more Sebirs with less and less effort.

Prime Features comprise three Plans that exist on three levels:

Basic

The benefits available under the Basic Plan (no cost) are as follows:

• Gain access to all Sebirs.
• Save your Selections Summaries.
• Utilize the Breeding Mountain tool.
• Receive the 'Sebir of the Week' alert.
• Browse Sebir Requests and Responses on the Community Noticeboard.
• Participate in the Sebir Marketplace.

There is no need to signup or login to enjoy most of these benefits.

However, you will need to login if you wish to save access to the Sebirs you have located via your Selections Summary or retain a record of your activity in the Community or Marketplace.

Premium Subscribers

In addition to all of the benefits available in the Basic Plan, as a Premium Subscriber, you can also:

• Gain access to the Selections Signature tool.
• Be advised of Recently Added Sebirs that could be relevant to your circumstances.
• Respond to Sebir Requests.
• Obtain one FREE TOP 5 Category List per year.

A Premium Subscription costs $10 per month.

VIP Members

In addition to all of the benefits available in the Basic Plan and to Premium Subscribers, as a VIP Member, you can also:

• Post requests for Sebirs on the Community Noticeboard.
• Obtain five FREE TOP 5 Category Lists per year.
• Request a New Sebir Category to be added to Sebir.com.

There are three plan levels available on Sebir.com.

• Basic

  – no cost

• Premium Subscribers

  – $10 per Month

• VIP Members

  – $100 per Year