Questions

Up until now I have thought about ideas in the following ways: -what pain points do I experience? What are the potential solutions? -what software is horrible to use? How can I improve it? -what is an old industry that needs disrupting or a market that most people aren't thinking about? -what would be a 'cool' idea or product? Something I would love to use? -what am I most passionate about in life? ...the list goes on and on. Bottom line, I keep searching and searching, but I can't find the right idea that I would feel excited about working on for the next 5 years. A lot of people say "it's not the idea, it's the execution". I agree 100%, however I'm afraid if I pick the wrong idea my efforts will yield a much smaller result. Whereas, if I focused on a good idea the whole process of driving success would be easier. Sometimes I wish God would just slap me in the face with a good idea to work on. I know once I get started on an idea that I am passionate about I'll make sure wholeheartedly that the business is successful. However, getting off the ground just seems like an eternity. Any suggestions on how I should be thinking about the idea generation process? Or better yet, do you have any ideas that you would like to work on, but don't have time and you think I should work on? Your help / advice is greatly appreciated.

Having been in a similar situation about 6 months ago I am sorry to tell you that; the magical idea will never show up one day.

Have you ever worked in the enterprise? If so, what would YOU love to see changed?

If you come up with any idea you can run it against this checklist:

1) Does it replace something that people use today? If Yes, you need to look at every integration point of this service and provide a seamless transition (Not easy)
2) Try to cater to fixing a single problem that is cross-cutting across departments (if only sales or HR can use it, you are in the vertical domain knowledge business. That is hard to establish yourself in. Instead stick with a wide problem -- Look at WuFoo for example)
3) Make sure whatever you provide has immediate, measurable value proposition. E.g; Create forms without relying on your IT team, track time 4x faster than using Excel etc.

If you want to bounce your ideas off of me, I would be happy to help.


Answered 10 years ago

Unlock Startups Unlimited

Access 20,000+ Startup Experts, 650+ masterclass videos, 1,000+ in-depth guides, and all the software tools you need to launch and grow quickly.

Already a member? Sign in

Copyright © 2024 Startups.com LLC. All rights reserved.