Maybe your idea for your new personal care product came to you like a flash of lightning. Or maybe you mulled it over for months, or even years, before your idea solidified.

Whatever the case, taking your project from an idea to finished product is a journey, one that probably won’t be without delays, disappointments, compromises, and forks in the road. Yet the payoff is potentially a huge one, not just in terms of monetary rewards, but also in the satisfaction of realizing a dream. At Goldn, we help lay out the path and put you in contact with the right people and companies to help you achieve your goals.

But the journey is yours, and before you take that all-important first step, you need to be ready for what lies ahead. Here are seven ways to prepare for your journey from a great idea to a finished product.

Envision your Success

Being confident of your future success doesn’t mean going out and spending money you don’t have on the odds that you’ll be raking in cash a few months from now. Instead, envision your future by imagining what it will feel like to have a successful product launch, the sense of satisfaction it will bring, and the other doors it will open. Carry that mindset with you—you’ll need it during difficult times when your confidence may waiver.

Commit to the Process

If you’re the type that gives up on a project or idea at the first signs of pushback, it’s time to hunker down and commit to the long game. Carrying your idea from its nascent stages to a finished product in hand is a process—we call it a journey for a reason! Go into it with the knowledge that it won’t be a straight, smooth road, and decide ahead of time that you are not going to give up until you get there.

Take Your Time

Whatever their field, very few successful entrepreneurs achieved success overnight. The product development process is long, sometimes complicated, and always requires attention to detail. Don’t expect things to happen quickly, and don’t be discouraged when the process doesn’t move as fast as you’d like. Just take a deep breath and have confidence that in due time, you’ll get to where you need to be.

Be Flexible

When you envision your product and fix the image in your mind, it’s often hard to diverge from that original idea. But flexibility is your ally in this journey. If an ingredient isn’t available, a supplier can’t meet your demand, or circumstances in the creative process call for you to switch gears, the deftness with which you can handle these curves in the road may well be key to the realization of your dream.

Take Advice

At Goldn, we’ve assembled a team of experts in every phase of product development and marketing, and our unique business model allows you to communicate and collaborate with like-minded professionals across the industry. While their advice can’t supplant your idea and vision, be open to suggestions. Sometimes even the smallest shift in approach can be key to opening the road ahead, and a thoughtful piece of advice can help you see solutions or alternatives you might not recognize otherwise.

Believe in Yourself and Your Idea

“A winner is a dreamer who never gives up,” Nelson Mandela once said. No amount of encouragement and support can push you along on your journey if you don’t first believe in yourself and your idea. Conceiving, developing, and marketing a new product is an audacious act that requires you to have faith in the strength of your idea and in your own resilience to see it through.

Enjoy the Ride!

Seriously, what could be more fun than discovering ingredients, developing formulas, designing packaging, and preparing a marketing campaign for your baby? Your journey is an exciting period of discovery and self-fulfillment. And just by getting started, you’re taking such a self-affirming step. Be sure to step back from time to time, pat yourself on the back for having the courage and vision to do what you’re doing, and enjoy the process!