For every idea you come up with, there are probably ten other people in the world executing that same idea.
I tend not to worry about people stealing my ideas.
One of the things that has developed this attitude over the years is the above thought, expressed today by Michael Karnjanaprakorn.
The other thing that has helped is something that's crossed my mind more recently, and it's about the concept of the perfect idea:
It doesn't exist.
We tend to approach life like this:
"All I need to do is think of the perfect, groundbreaking idea. Then I can execute on it. Riches, profits, fame shortly after."
That's backwards, actually. Nothing great in the world has ever started with a perfect, unchanging idea.
Ideas evolve, and they grow. Also, ideas need air to grow - they only develop when shared.
There's a third concept as well now that I think of it:
Ideas aren't valuable - being able to generate ideas is valuable. If you truly have a good idea, then it is merely an extension of the fact that you have an infinite supply of truly good ideas.
On the other hand, if you're holding on to that one, perfect idea, you've got a bigger problem than someone stealing it: it's your only one.
