Many people have asked us across the years how to turn their idea into a business, and shared their fears, which I came to realize are common stoppers for going from idea to execution, from a thought to an actual business. I chose to mention some of them here, as they are inspiring and can be that push you need to start your own business.
How can I find the right idea?
The bad news, which is also good news, is that you can't. Because ideas are nothing. Knowing that, you can now move forward to the next step which will get you closer to your truth or business model.
Everyone has thousands of ideas a day, if all of them were to succeed, we would all be successful.
In order for an idea to be worth anything, there are two first points it needs to answer:
It has to answer a problem (so don't ask yourself what your idea is, but rather ask yourself what solution are you offering, what problem it is solving).
It's all about execution (don't just stand there trying to perfect the idea in your head, go ahead, get out there and get started, you will perfect it as you go, as you learn, and as you grow).
I am passionate about something. Can it become a business?
This does look like a good start :) to strive at something, we have to be passionate about it, so why not start the other way around? in other words, the answer is: yes.
If we look at professionals' pasts, we often find that what they offer today is an answer to what they needed when they were younger. Starting with myself, growing up I had a problem communicating, expressing myself (on many levels I still do, and this is a continuous work in progress). Looking back at that fact, it probably isn't a coincidence that I ended up becoming a branding and communication professional.
A good friend is an exceptional child therapist. Looking into her childhood, we would see that it was not a happy one (to say the least), and she had to endure things a child shouldn't have to.
So if there is something you are passionate about, most likely you are good at it as you have questioned it, done it over and over again, long enough to become good at it, if not great. Now ask yourself, how can the world benefit from your passion too? what solution would you be offering if you were to turn it into a business? Start brainstorming. Start doing. Start building your passion into a business.
I have a great idea but I am afraid to talk about it, what if people steal it?
If you keep your idea to yourself, you won't get started, and you will keep postponing its start due to fear (fear of not succeeding, fear of being copied, so on). If the idea is solving a problem, then most likely, someone will soon enough think of a similar idea, and execute it, without you even sharing it. If it's needed in this world, then it will eventually happen.
So instead of keeping it for yourself, go out there, ask people for their feedback, starting with people you mostly trust and admire, you have much more to learn from these conversations that will help you fine tune it and move forward, than you have from not discussing it at all. Get started, the time is now.
Send in your questions, and we will happy to answer them in our next article.
To your success!
Mariejoe