Taking of care of your business ideas

From the advertiser.com, July 23, 2010


Entrepreneurs count on ideas. For some those ideas form an innovative product for others it may be a unique process or management technique. Business leaders can quickly become bombarded with new thoughts, concepts, or methods but what happens after the light bulb goes off becomes the reason some businesses
succeed and others don't.


Ideas need to be welcomed and entertained but then sent right out the door if they aren't good. It is easy to become attached to our ideas, "our babies" even. But some ideas shouldn't be nurtured. I often find myself
infatuated by a new concept or thought on how to improve something. However, when I articulate it out loud it doesn't take long before the Devil's Advocate exposes its flaws. A good idea will stand for itself but you have to let go when one isn't worth fighting for.


At the same time, you have to embrace criticism with a grain of salt. I have learned not to directly associate the value of an idea with the response it gets. No one is going to have the same passion about an idea as you do. No one can see the same picture in your head as you describe it. Seek validation from people you trust.

When I decided to start my business I pitched the idea to a few of my friends and family. The responses varied. Some quick to respond, "Aren't there businesses like that already?" while others were more generically supportive saying things like, "sounds like it could work" and "good luck." Some even began to add to the idea increasing the range of responses.

It is important to consider these reactions just another data set needed to make a better hypothesis, not the conclusion. Chances are you are not alone in your thoughts. I can't tell you how many times I have an idea and with a little research quickly discover I wasn't the only one to think of it. It is easy to get discouraged and abandon it altogether. But knowing that someone else came up with it as well could be the validation you need to know it is an idea worth pursuing.

And if not, believe in yourself enough to know that if you came up with one idea you can come up with another. Ideas are like girlfriends, when you lose one you think you'RE never going to get another one and then out of nowhere you find yourself getting married in two months. True story.

There is no surefire way to tell if an idea is gold. That would tilt the balance of risk and reward so delicately set in place. Ultimately, we are responsible for creating our own battery of tests to grade the quality of an idea. We can have tons of ideas but it is only the ones that we pursue that count. Trust your gut, but also have a guide.

Tyler Woerner is founder and creative director of Pixelbrush Studios. He writes about being a new entrepreneur each week in The Advertiser. E-mail Tyler at tyler@pixelbrushstudios.com.

From theadvertiser.com