

Death by a thousand great ideas - bglad
http://tashian.com/carl/startup.html

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ISeemToBeAVerb
This article illustrates a common problem people have with starting a
business. Idea churn.

The way most people go about starting businesses is to drum up ideas and then
go out into the world and attempt to validate them like so:

01\. Come up with product/service ideas

02\. Seek out a market or present idea(s) to a predetermined market

03\. Conduct market research to validate/invalidate idea(s)

04\. Scrap idea or build idea

05\. Rinse, repeat

This method isn't very effective because it emphasizes validating your
preconceived ideas, not understanding your market and THEN crafting a
compelling product or service to sell them.

The market-first approach, on the other hand, eschews the notion of starting
out with a product/service idea in the beginning. Instead, it focuses on
finding markets to serve, gaining a deeper understanding of what their needs
and pain points are, and then crafting a product or service to offer.

The Market First Method

01\. Choose a market

02\. Conduct research to understand market needs/desires

03\. Brainstorm ideas to solve market needs/desires

04\. Craft a compelling product or service

05\. Deploy. Gather feedback. Iterate.

I find this methodology to be far more effective because it shifts your focus
from coming up with rock star ideas to the far more pleasant and useful
activity of engaging with a market and discovering where you can add value.
Two things, I might add, that come in quite handy when it comes time to craft
your offer and write sales copy.

~~~
shazow
Correction to market-first step 04: Determine if the needs/desires are
significant enough and the solution is worth committing to, then scrap or
build idea.

Another is the customer-first approach, perhaps a layer higher than market-
first approach. That is, think of who you'd like to have as a customer, then
find what problems these people have that need solving.

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OzzyB
Just to focus on the form and not the substance for a moment:

 _"We were in pursuit of a great idea. A jackpot of an idea that elegantly
solved an audacious problem. An idea with clean lines and graceful curves,
horizontally and vertically dovetailing the interests of many."_

What beautifull writing.

~~~
tashian
Aww, thanks OzzyB. I try.

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2pasc
I have been through the same struggle with my co-founder last year...

My main advice to people who leave their job to start working with a co-
founder without an idea AND without a clear verticals they want to focus
on...is not to do it. Time constraints (when you are brainstorming as a side
job) and outside dynamics (being in the middle of real everyday life) can help
you so much be more creative and drive toward a decision. Then, once you have
committed to something, you jump chip and start working on it full time if you
can afford it.

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LyleK
It baffles me why someone would want to start a business when they don't have
an idea. That's backwards. You should only desire to start a business once you
have had an idea that is burning in you so badly that you can't do anything
else.

~~~
2pasc
You're right...but often times...you dismiss the idea creation piece (you have
a lot or most Companies pivot anyway)..and you start a Company out of
optimism, because you love starting Companies and/or because you don't want to
have the constraint of working for somebody else.

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ChuckMcM
Good to remember. There is the parable of the rich man and the poor man, when
the rich man shops he cannot decide but the poor man knows exactly what he can
buy. The root of the issue of course is too many choices. Without some way to
crystallize your choice you often don't get past making the choice.

So good advice to founders is to have a process where you come up with 10
ideas, then you execute on one of those 10, no other choices.

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saurabh
>It worked for Thoureau, Ghandi, and Jack Dorsey.

Its Gandhi, not Ghandi.

I don't understand why so many people misspell his name.

~~~
tashian
Fixed -- thanks!

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blueLight
I think this is one of the primary reasons that people suggest starting with a
product that addresses a problem that you personally have as a founder. It
helps to maintain focus and removes most of the 'thousand ideas' problem.

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zupreme
One good point to make is that solo founders (myself included) often have the
same problem. If you're a person that "great" ideas come to very easily, it's
easy to stop working on (i.e. abandon) the older idea and jump full-force into
the shiny new one.

As Chuck's comment points out, eventually you have to narrow down your choices
and your focus to actually ship a product instead of just being a perpetual
idea mill.

Thanks for a great post Carl.

~~~
jeremyarussell
I find that I'm always coming up with ideas I'm sure are great, and regardless
of if they are or not I also tend to jump to the next program to make, or the
next project to research, or the next something to something-a-fy. Turns out
after a long time of this I have ADHD. I've learned that sometimes it's an
asset, lets me bring renewed vigor to a project, but usually it just makes me
look lazy. I've also found that since limiting myself to two or three projects
that I can freely jump from one to the other (but still only the three) I've
managed to mix the best of both worlds. For the first time ever I'm actually
getting stuff done.

Edit: coming isn't spelled comping

~~~
zupreme
I've, just recently, realized the cure to exactly what ails you Jeremy (having
suffered from the same). It's called marriage.

I tell my wife what idea I'm working on. Just this simple act sets in motion a
chain of events that tends to make me want to see a project through to the
end.

The reason is that, I know she will follow up and ask me later about the
project and, if I have abandoned it, will subject me to "The Speech". I hate
"The Speech" so much that the entire force of my subconscious and conscious
minds will conspire to avoid it - hence shipping products (finally) instead of
flitting from one to the other endlessly.

If any of you don't know what "The Speech" is. You just aren't the right
audience for this advice....yet. :-)

Note: If you aren't married, or aren't planning to get married due to career.
preference, etc. then you should find a friend or family member close enough
to you that they will be willing to give you "The Speech". It works.

~~~
8bitliving
I LOL'd when I read this. It is for this reason I try to talk to my wife about
my projects as little as possible.

