There is a common perception that ideas are hard to come by, that brainstorming is a difficult session to carry out, but really, ideas are dime a dozen. Ideas are not worth millions of dollars even though they might make you that much. It is the execution of the idea that is worth the millions of dollars.

What I am trying to say is that if you have a brilliant idea, chances are that others have thought of a similar idea if not exactly the same and might already be working on it or it may even be near completion. But I am not demeaning the need for ideas. Without ideas, you simply cannot start an innovative business.

However, we need to understand that ideas are just the start and are not the plans to put into practice for a business so do not bet on them. Ideas will still need to go through careful thought and planning before implementation. We need to see ideas as a possibility for improvement. There are many other factors that make entrepreneurship a dynamic experience.

Image from http://www.ifm.eng.cam.ac.uk/dstools/paradigm/innova.html

Here is an image of a Development Funnel where ideas are formed in the initial stage, goes through a selection stage where better ideas are selected to be further developed whether in terms of prototyping or planning and finally, one product is chosen to be released. This is typical of an entrepreneurial startup which does not have the ability to work on multiple products at once.

Therefore, being able to generate a large number of ideas can be really beneficial when you are looking for the right business to work on. It gives you the ability to choose something to work on that is in line with your team’s strength.

So how do we go about generating a decent amount of ideas?

1. Problems give rise to Ideas.

Ideas are generally created to solve problems. So essentially, in order to brainstorm for good ideas, we need to connect ourselves to problems. We will have to heighten our awareness of the world around us, constantly asking ourselves how things can be improved upon. How can things be made easier? How can things be more efficient? Can things be more enjoyable than what it is now? Keep wondering and keep imagining. Keep a log to note down your observations and your thoughts. Bring it with you all the time as you never know when you may see something that inspires you.

It is easier for people to identify problems in areas which they are directly involved in. That is also why many entrepreneurs love what they are doing. Many of them are solving problems which they personally face and that is very good motivation to make it work. So start your thinking from there. What do you like to do? What are the things you do on a daily basis? Where are the places you frequent? Are there things around you that you think can be made better by you?

It is also important for entrepreneurs to have good general knowledge as there exists a myriad of urgent problems all around the world which may or may not be directly linked to our lives, but are more humane in nature than what many of us could identify.

I applaud the will and determination of social entrepreneurs and others who go out of their way to walk in the shoes of others and work to change a world that could be very different from their own.

2. Market Surveillance

After identifying the problem, proper research of solutions that are currently on the market is crucial. Failing which, you might be working on a product or service and 3 months down the road, a friend might walk up to you and tell you that he has been using another product or service which is very similar or might even be better than what you are offering.

Are there other solutions out on the market? Are they something you would love to use and be satisfied with? Can you make it better?

Make sure proper research is done or you might end up finding out that you do not have an innovative idea after all.

3. Think of a good solution

It would be best if we had a direct link to the problem that we are solving if we wanted to create a good solution. We need to have an understanding of the customers who will be using the product/service that we will be working on. We need to know the consumer behavior. We need to know their Needs and their Wants.

Needs

Customer Needs will define the core features and in turn define the business.

Wants

Customer Wants on the other hand gives us a feel for what the customers fancy and will love as a bonus to the core product/service.

It is important not to mix up their Needs and Wants. Companies that have been able to accurately identify the customers Needs and Wants and are able to replicate them in their product/service and in the right proportions have often been the most successful.

Nintendo understood that people needed a new way to interact with their games and families wanted a family oriented console system. The Nintendo Wii was thus a runaway success. It provided a fun and interactive way to interact with games through its innovative controller which resembles a Nunchaku. It also made games which are enjoyable by families regardless of age.

For small startups, our abilities to research the market may not be extensive, but talking to your family, friends and mentors should provide enough insight into the market you are venturing into.

The solutions need not hit the spot right out of the wok. However, listening to people who use your product is important. Constant improvement based on their feedback keeps your customers happy and excited. It also allows you to better define their Needs and Wants.

4. What now?

Get on your way to change the world. Start generating great ideas today!

Grab yourself a notebook as an idea log and keep it with you all the time. Grab a pen/pencil too of course.

Observe the world around you. Make an effort to notice the things that you do, the places you go to, events that take place. Also, make it a point to observe others around you.

Read. Read about your hobbies, read about your favourite things, read about the world.

Keep thinking. Always wonder if things can be made better. And keep thinking of ways to make things better.

As Steve Jobs said in his 2005 Commencement Address to Stanford University,

“Stay Hungry, Stay Foolish.”