For the uninitiated, “The Gambler” is a country song written by Don Schlitz and made famous by Kenny Rogers. Our narrator rides a train ‘bound for nowhere’ with an experienced gambler who offers advice in exchange for the princely sum of a taste of whisky and a cigarette.
If you have never heard the song, then I recommend you give it a listen. The gambling is a metaphor for life, and the advice dispensed in the chorus and a few short verses is profound, and applicable even to IP. I often reference it when talking clients through their options.
Filing any form of registered IP is a gamble. There is no certainty of outcome, and only a fool would promise you a favorable result at the outset. You are taking a chance.
The gambler tells the narrator, “If you’re going to play the game boy, you’ve got to learn to play it right.”
Don’t wing this. Do it properly or not at all. Expect value, but don’t skimp. Look for solid advisors and carefully consider their counsel.
“You got to know when to hold ’em, know when to fold ‘em”.
Constantly reevaluate your position. There will be numerous opportunities to do this. These usually involve a decision about whether to continue. Do you file the next stage of the application, do you make that response or pay that renewal?
“Know when to walk away and know when to run.”
Choose your battles. Don’t throw good money after bad. If something no longer suits your commercial objectives, or the scales of the cost benefit analysis tip for the worse, then cut it loose, and don’t dwell on your losses.
Because “Every gambler knows, that the secret to survivin’ is knowin’ what to throw away and knowing what to keep.”
The song’s final advice is “that the best that you can hope for is to die in your sleep.” This sounds right In the bigger context of our life, but we should keep both IP and poker in perspective, because neither should be life or death.
I hope that in these words, you find “an ace that you can keep”.
