I know what I'm experiencing is NOTHING new. Its funny how the entrepreneur bug hits and then all of a sudden, everywhere you look there's an opportunity. "Hmm...I have a hole in my sock and so does a lot of other people, and I've got a solution. TO MARKET. NOW".
It's something my partner and I have been struggling with for three years now (oh, that's so sad to admit) [sherna: it's been three years already?? - nadiyah: crazy isn't it?]. Ideas, one after another. We finally find something we like - we decide to go for it, we start making strides and then we get scared (or inspired by something else). We let our original idea fizzle. We go back to our cubicle-farm jobs that we whine about. (sherna: lol @ cubicle farm job - i love you) And then one of us gets inspired, three months later - and the cycle continues. And Continues.
[sherna: she's a little irritated with me - i did this. nadiyah - yea, you did this HAHA, but you're not the only one who's had doubts]
And you know its bad when you talk to your support group and you find yourself having this conversation, over and over again:
EGirls: Hey, this is what we're doing.
Friend: Cool.
:pause:
Friend: But what happened to ____________ (the idea you were SOLD on 3-6 months ago)??
EGirls: (Ohh yea, what about that?) umm...We scrapped it.
Friend: uhh, Ok.
:friend and EGirl shrug:
How do you make it stop?
You do you stop the wheels from turning? Or how do you at least get the wheels to turn in the same direction? Finding new ideas aren't the problem. Rumor has it Richard Branson has a book he keeps with him at all times that he jots down new ideas in so he can capture them, for future reference, without letting them paralyze his current endeavours.
My Take: New ideas aren't the problem. The pressure to have "everything thought out" and "the perfect idea" is the problem. You become so absorbed in something and its many possible extensions (that you have to rule out for immediate deployment for practicality's sake) that you almost come to the other end of the spectrum - thinking "its too much". Its too much for a first business. Or its too much to accomplish all at once. Or its simply "too much".
How do you make it stop? (sherna: MAKE IT STOP!!)
How do you buckle down and say this is it, and go do while managing to STAY THE COURSE!?
(Sherna: How do you stay the course folks - help!!!)
Nadi - we're staying the course, ES it is!
Now Playing: Fiona Apple - Sleep to Dream
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5 comments:
You raise a good point...but let me tell you something. It's when that does stop that you need to worry.
When what stops you? Idea ADD??
I'm in agreement. But the other side is, you can't be convinced of that. You've got to believe it (damn, I sound like Dr. Phil). But seriously - it's like trying to kid yourself into believing something you don't - if it isn't in you, it just isn't in you.
And the only thing that can fix that is "time".
I have been there time and time again. Even though I've yet to find a way to beat it completely, here's my take on what you do: pick an idea that you can see yourself enjoying working on the solution for hours and days on end. Then, check to ensure that it's a big enough potential market to go after.
Usually I start to shy away from an idea after doing the initial groundwork because it's something that sounds like a good business opportunity but doesn't motivate me enough to stick with it through the initial lean stage where you need to put everything you need into it to make it workable.
Thats what lead us to ditch many of our ideas...especially ones that were in SATURATED market spaces.
However, more often than not, we get paralyzed by the "whoa! this might be too big" (not the idea itself but what we're hoping to accomplish with the first wave).
That being said, it also forced us to prioritize. EVERYTHING does not have to perfect in order to "go live" with an idea. Sometimes it requires figuring out what's necessary for "go live" and what can be postponed for future developments...and what future developments might even garner some buzz.
Thanks Jarrett.
nadiyah, that's a great post
inability to stick to one opportunity is the reason why I'm drifting into vc
pretty sad....but it's true. on the one hand, I can't see my self sticking with just one startup for any longer than a couple of years - which is bad, but on another hand, with multiple startups the entrepreneur diversifies her portfolio - which is good.
anyway, here's some thoughts on "How do you make it stop?"
1. Let it flow: Because entrepreneurs have all their eggs in one basket - one approach is to turn your back on the traditional way of doing entrepreneurship (own company for life...your "baby") and think of your profession as that of a market researcher/ marketing manager which no special attachment to any particular startup concept (like a vc).
Specifically, I've found that it helps if you think of your self as a professional opportunity spotter. That's just your job as an entrepreneur. You find interesting opportunities by conducting market research.
If you find a good opportunity (i.e. you have proof), you can either invest your self in it, or pass it on....to another entrepreneur, venture fund etc..
A stack of papers which proves a market opportunity is worth a lot of money.
In that sense, it's ok to be pursuing heaps of ideas, as long as you understand that your primary role is that of a market researcher - who either keeps, or sells her research.
If you want to follow this path, this style of doing business, then specialise in doing market research.
Personally, this is my preferred style of practicing entrepreneurship. People hire me to do market research, I conduct the surveys, find/fail to find proof of a market and then either stop there or use the market research to build a team.
This approach diversifies risk for the entrepreneur because she's juggling 5-10 startups at any one time. Like a marketing manager at Kimberley Clark or something.
The idea is, that with time, an opportunity comes along that's so awesome that it makes you forget about all other opportunities.
Likewise, I don't think this approach is flawed because you don't have a passion for any particular company. The passion is for the process of making companies, not the result of the process.
Entrepreneurs enrich the society by making startups - not any one particular startup.
2. Markets come first. I've found that the reason why founders keep having ideas for new startups is because they are solutions-focused, rather than problems-focused.
Mike Hirshland has a great post on this issue: http://vcmike.wordpress.com/2006/08/31/marketing-myopia/
The point is this; if you want more discipline in your opportunity selection (i.e. sticking to ideas), then stop thinking in terms of new product features (always changes) and start thinking in terms of customer needs (almost never changes).
If you develop a passion for a particular market problem (i.e. helping kids learn or stabilising superconductors), your mind will remain focused.
Hope that helps....I'm not sure if does....
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