I love swimming in ABC’s Shark Tank

My head is so full of what I like to consider “great ideas.” I jot these ideas down and keep an “ideas”-tagged notebook in Evernote that’s overflowing. It’s gotten to the point that, with so many ideas and so little time (and money) to put them into play, I get stressed just looking at that notebook. Because I’m interested in what people think of new ideas, I used to be somewhat of a fan of the short-lived ABC reality show American Inventor. I didn’t care about the drama behind anything going on, nor did I really care who won. What I did like, though, was seeing what professionals and titans of innovation thought of these ideas presented to them. What I didn’t like about American Inventor was that I really did not like most of the judges, in particular Doug Hall.

ABC’s taken another stab at the idea/invention game with Shark Tank (ABC, Sunday, 9 PM), an American spin-off of the extremely popular Japanese show, Dragons’ Den. I haven’t had the chance to check out Dragons’ Den, but I did happen to turn on Shark Tank a couple of weeks ago, and I’m hooked. While I sorta dug American Inventor, Shark Tank is so much better. Here’s why:

The judges are realistic. The four judges have impressive resumes and put their knowledge in those areas to good use. Sure, sometimes they are a bit arrogant, but what do you expect from people who happily classify themselves as “sharks?” Daymon John knows clothing and related accessories, so he chimes in when these business ideas appeal to that side of things. Kevin Harrington, a pioneer of infomercials, will pipe up (rarely — man he is quiet for an infomercial guy) when someone’s got a gadget that will do well on TV.

Rarely will the judges insult the people presenting to them with useless “I’m a king shit and you should listen to me” crap; they offer advice and tell it like it is, why it will succeed and why it would fail. Kevin O’Leary is probably what you’d call the “class bully” of the group and is the one most would simply call an asshole, but he has a Simon Cowell-esque way of being brutally honest and, most of the time, he’s right!

There’s no one winner. Each week the sharks simply pick which ideas they’re going to invest in and which they will pass on. Most times someone will at least counter-offer what the presenter is asking for rather than decline altogether. This is an episodic reality show, with no need to stick around week after week to see who’s advancing to “the finals.” Just tune in as you want, see what ideas are popping up and what these experts have to say about them.

There are more good ideas and fewer WTF ideas. Too many times the producers of reality shows will decide there needs to be an idiot thrown in to spice things up a bit. American Idol does this way too often, as lunatics come out of the woodwork to stand in line at local (or remote!) audition locations in hopes their macabre outfits or their singing puppets will get them on TV. Unless you’re an idiot, you know these people didn’t pass through initial screenings because their ideas or performances were good! Some of them are fun, but sometimes it’s just overdone. Shark Tank, thankfully, doesn’t overdo it here.

The judge tips are sound, and I’m left feeling encouraged. Like I said, I’m an idea man, so I’m all about feedback. I can watch Shark Tank and relate to some of the ideas presented and how these people are going about their businesses. The feedback given to them is usually brief, but it’s sound advice you can take with you. The people presenting to the sharks may not always get the deal they are looking for, but some people pay thousands of dollars just to get the feedback they received.

How about you? Are you liking Shark Tank? How does it measure up to Dragons’ Den? Let me know, because I may have to tune into BBCA and give that a go if it’s up my alley.

Clacked by Keith McDuffee
on Aug 26, 2009 @ 14:00 EST5EDT