Once upon a time, people got rich by making stuff — cars, railroads, skyscrapers. Even silly stuff such as Silly Putty, the Hula Hoop, the Pocket Fisherman, the Inside-the-Egg-Scrambler still had the hallmark of being “stuff.” But today, it’s enough to have an idea, the more inane the better. All it takes is to come up with some idiotic “app” and the money starts pouring in. No need for an assembly line. All it takes is a room filled with nerds.

Consider “Yo!” This is a “social application whose only function was to send the user’s friends the word ‘Yo’ as a text and audio notification.” (Wikipedia) Its creator took only eight hours to dream it up and it’s now valued at $5 million to $10 million. I don’t have the expertise to create an “app,” nor do I have the energy to labor for eight long hours. That’s why I’m intrigued by the exciting new opportunities in turning catchphrases into profitable trademarks.

According to an article in the Wall Street Journal, legendary basketball coach Pat Riley trademarked “three-peat,” referring to a sports team that wins three consecutive titles. If the Miami Heat had beaten the San Antonio Spurs for their third straight NBA title, it would have meant a bonanza for Riley. He would have collected royalties from every hat, shirt, jacket, mug, tankard, key chain, bumper sticker, paper pennant, paper weight, bedspread and smart phone cover containing the magical expression “three-peat.” Unfortunately for him, Miami failed to win. He will have to wait until the next three-in-a-row sporting event comes along. One supposes that he has enough money to tide him over.

Riley’s ploy is not unique. According to the same article, boxing ring announcer Michael Buffer trademarked his signature utterance, “Let’s get ready to rumble.” It has since garnered over $400 million in licensing revenue. Basketball player Anthony Davis trademarked “Fear the Brow,” a reference to his “unibrow.” Baseball player Bryce Harper trademarked, “That’s a clown question, bro,” his response to a reporter’s stupid inquiry.

My wheels are spinning. There must be an almost infinite supply of every day phrases that have not been trademarked: “It doesn’t take a rocket scientist,” “Sounds like a plan,” “The greatest thing since sliced bread,” “I kid you not.” If I trademarked just one of those phrases, could I not collect a royalty every time it was used? Four hundred million dollars may not sound like a lot to a billionaire oligarch, but it would help me put groceries on the table. By the way, has anyone spoken up for “It would help put groceries on the table?”

My wife, a shrewd business person, has the ultimate idea: File for the trademark on “Have a good one.” How many times a day is that banal phrase uttered? If I got just one penny per use, I’d probably haul in a billion dollars a day. Talk about the “Lazy Man’s Way to Riches.” This is like making gold out of thin air. I’m laughing all the way to the bank. Wait a minute…”Laughing all the way to the bank.” Quick, trademark those words.