The first way to protect yourself, and during the creation of the idea, is keeping quiet about the idea. It is important to limit the people you talk to and who you discuss the information about that secret and ideas during the creation of the idea.

During the time of the creation of your ideas, secrecy is the best way to prevent the theft of your idea.

In order to keep the idea a secret until you are able to patent the idea or product, you will want to take steps to help the secret remain just that a secret.

 Have employees, independent contractors, and anyone that you have that will need to be worked with the idea, sign contracts that ensure their confidentiality.
 Make sure that all items that are dealing with the idea is marked confidential.
 Have suppliers and vendors sign a confidentiality agreement.

In time, this secrecy will be more difficult to control, therefore as soon as you can, you need to start taking the legal steps to protect the idea from others being able to illegally copying your idea.

The second way to protect you and your idea is to consider the legal protection options that are available. There are options as far as patent, trademark, and copyright that will work in different situations. Depending on where your idea comes into play, you will find that a different set of legal documentation needs to be completed.

Depending on if you have an invention, a design, or some kind of author work or artistic creation, you will need to find out where your idea fits into the protection of the United States Government.

United States Copyright Office
http://www.copyright.gov/
A copyright is used for protecting works from authors. This would include books, manuscripts and paintings etc.

United States Patent and Trademark Office
http://www.uspto.gov/

Patents are for Utilities, designs, plants, and items like this.

A trademark is for words, symbols, names, and items that are similar to this.

Once you have decided where you need to go to protect your idea, you can go to these links and start the application online through the electronic services. This is relatively quick and easy.

The total process if all of the paper work is complete and correct you will get a certificate of registering the idea, within normally a few months. If there are issues with registering the idea it can take longer.

However it is worth the work, when you consider the risk and cost of someone else coming in and taking credit for your work and your idea.

Depending on what idea you have, you will need to find the right option for protecting your work. The fees vary for each of these services, and can be paid online, or through check or money order in most cases.