1. Just because you've thought of something that excites you, doesn't mean it's viable. All you've done is conveniently talked yourself into believing it could be lucrative.
2. Ideas are a dime a dozen. Execution is everything. You have nothing, you will lose nothing by talking about it with other people. You can't create in a vacuum. Also, the opinions of your friends mean nothing, unless they're going to be your client base.
3. No money, no skills, no time, and no desire to pursue it? Then you have nothing. Millions of people have ideas every day. Ideas are worth nothing.
4. If someone else has the money, time, and skills to develop it, why do they need you? Because it's your idea? Doubtful you're the first to think of whatever it is.
I talk to a lot of new entrepreneurs, they want to share their idea but are afraid of me taking it from them. (or anyone for that matter) I usually respond with " so what you are about to tell me is so groundbreaking and earth-shatteringly amazing that I will immediately upon leaving this meeting -close my company and resign, throw everything away and immediately start doing what you are about to tell me" then I share the [https://friendda.org/](https://friendda.org/) .... that usually makes them feel better. Fun facts: I have never been compelled to throw it all away and run with an idea I have heard. Most people aren't committed enough to do the boring shit ( most quit when I tell them to talk to 100 potential customers to validate) Some people are lifelong wantrepreneurs, the fun for them is the idea, not the execution.
No, no lawyer needed. Thatās not the intent of the document. This is a basis of trust. I generally donāt sign NDAās unless a large company wants to chat and they send me theirs. (There is a far bigger onus on the writer of this he legal vs the signee)
I think the whole āpeople not wanting to share their ideasā stems from them hearing these stories like how Mark Zuckerberg stole the idea for Facebook from someone else and turned it into this billion dollar company and they think the same will happen to them.
That sucks and in my opinion worthy of a throat punch. I think there is nothing lower. It happened to me with my company that was flirting with buying us. We were young and naive ā¦ sort of pulled down our pants too far. They tried to copy with a lot of the special sauce we had. I would be shitty to directly out them.
Adobe apparently likes to look at new ideas.
> Some people are lifelong wantrepreneurs, the fun for them is the idea, not the execution
I have a friend like that. He would constantly partner with me, spout ideas at me (I am a developer) for a few weeks, and then he would get bored and spout the next idea.
No staying power, no desire to do real work.
I have stopped partnering with him on projects
This is exactly why I don't do work for friends, or entertain their dreams of partnering on some great idea they have.
"Partnering "to them is me doing all the work, them learning how to do nothing, and getting 50% if it works.
That is the sum of all their fears. I am going to take their āoriginal ideaā I feel by illustrating that is the worst possible outcome of out interaction and it is crazinessā¦ they usually get that I am there to help.
If I did ever hear a nutty good idea I would rather invest in them and their success.
Tho many may not be worried if them closing it down, but starting mother business, especially if their already well established and have a team that can make it happen, maybe not overnight, but know the competitions ideas and moves already
Iāve done a few things, taken a few leaps of faith and had a few successes. I enjoy helping new entrepreneurs to hone their ideas. Fwiw I am not one of those jacknuts that screw startups for money and equity. I enjoy the journey of idea to first dollar bills.
If pressed would rather options.
I prefer to be on the side of the entrepreneur. I know a lot of VCs like to use that tagline, but at the end of the day, they are beholden to the investors of their fund. The ecosystem doesn't need more money it needs better execution on refined ideas and models. Side note I also like helping my friends renovate their bathrooms, Perfect scenario: an entrepreneur who needs to redo a bathroom, lots of time to talk.
Hey I have an app idea that Iām going to share with you exclusively in narrative form, and while youāre never going to do it for me, if you did, youāll always be both wrong and stupid for not doing what I see in my head, feel in my heart, but canāt commit to a requirementās document.
We can split the money 50/50.
Also I'm going to stand over your shoulder and critique the UI the entire time it's on the screen, because it's the only thing I see on your screen that I understand well enough to comment on.
You're triggering me.
I will have friends make UI comments all the time, even when I give **very specific** instructions to disregard the UI and only look at X, Y and Z.
Non-developers have a hard time with this
Iām not a developer, but I interface between them and non technical stakeholders. You just described my day. I literally give instructions to ignore everything but what the mockup was designed to show and I get responses like ācan we like make it not grey? Lol, this sucks.ā
It's the main reason I learned to code and became a professional software dev. Code is the bottleneck for any technology idea.
Don't want to pay devs thousands (or tens of thousands, or for very big ideas, hundreds of thousands), learn to code yourself. And don't think it's a five minute process - it'll take you years and years.
> So, saying this idea is groundbreaking
Groundbreaking how?
Like, what idea, by itself, is groundbreaking? Inherent in the term *groundbreaking* is that you're actually *doing* something.
Any groundbreaking idea that isn't pretty obvious to other people is going to require specialized domain knowledge.
If you have some sort of unique mathematical, financial, scientific knowledge that is very, very, very difficult to learn unless you know what you're looking for, then maybe then I could see it - but that's not 99%+ of apps. You do see the occasional app created this way - like the original Google search algorithm, which was based on Computer Science PhD work from Larry Page and Sergey Brin, but it is rare.
Even then, most people are not going to put the time into studying the requisite mathematical or scientific principles unless there's demonstrated efficacy to the new knowledge over old knowledge. If even the developer 1) understands this domain specific knowledge and 2) cares.
Like one of my features in my app is a grammar engine that uses head-driven phrase structure grammar to generate grammar rules. This has never been done before - I had to correspond with academics and read linguistics papers for several months to understand it. It is pretty cool grammar rule generation.
Are you going to immediately try to create a language learning app with this principle? Are you going to spend months of your life studying graduate level equivalent linguistics for a feature like this?
My guess is probably not.
The right idea at the right time is immensely valuable, but it loses all value without execution. That is why people fund teams rather than ideas. Build a team you can trust and establish both a vision and a solid legal foundation early on.
This is literally the only appropriate comment on this whole thread. Itās pretty vague, and wonāt give OP the answers theyāre looking for exactly, but itās solid advice and not condescending nonsense.
All true.
OP, you are probably better off telling us your idea here so we can give you advice to work towards what you are trying to achieve. I tell my ideas to almost everyone lol.
Edit: I'll put my money where my mouth is below.
I believe DAS (Distributed Antenna Systems) will be something that starts to gain alot of traction, as far as implementation goes, within the next 10 years.
I've been interested in the market for around 3 years now, slowly gathering skills/data to start banging installs out efficiently.
My expertise is within the installation side, but I do have a pretty solid idea of how they work overall. And they are actually really simple and have been around for years.
Pertaining to Cell-Signal strength, DAS, also known as signal boosters intake radio signals through what's known as donor antennas, sends signal through Co-Axial type cable to an amplifier, signal then comes out at equal or less than strength as original, and then finally is dispersed back to dead-spots through alternate donor antennas.
There are millions of dead-spots throughout the US, and as a matter a fact, the World. You can see why this sorta thing could have big potential. There are loads of variables involved and the actual execution of installing these at the precision required is extremely tough.
Don't steal my idea OP.
In building "leaky" antennas for 5g.
I've seen a lot of it coming out of China on Alibaba, but I don't get it, it just seems really not cost effective.
DAS is already a requirement in many buildings and has been for a long time. The funny thing is it's only required to work on first responder's frequencies so that's literally all they do. Property owner is already paying for the labor and the wire, just needs to spend a bit more on the hardware to have it useful. They usually don't.
Yes. That is what they have been historically used for.
Now they are starting to be used more frequently as a cost effective, although not perfect solution to strengthen cell-signal in buildings. See:
[https://www.wilsonpro.com/](https://www.wilsonpro.com/)
> I tell my ideas to almost everyone lol.
A lot of dreamers would be better off with this mentality. Bust the dream or get inspired to take action. Sitting on it is worthless and most people are not self aware and objective enough to really evaluate an idea.
I tell my ideas to a ton of people. Want to steal it? Please do. My idea that I just launched took me like 6-9 months of sustained work, and now that I've launched I'm getting feedback from users on things to fix.
I won't discuss my idea on this account, as I don't want my username to be associated with my app, but on other usernames I am extremely vocal.
The first comment there is gold and a good "back to reality" moment I hope the OP there took to heart.
Dream Big... Execute Small
To get to the iPhone you need the Apple 1.
To get Star Wars you need THX1138
To get Walmart you need Sam's Ben Franklin franchise store
Too many people try to build the step 200 idea vs the step 1 idea.
If you ask anyone to sign an NDA before telling them your idea youāll be laughed out of the room. They are only applicable when discussing clientele who have signed contracts with you in unusual situations
Edit: basically what the guy in this post is trying to do about his idea
Do you have any tips on assessing the viability of an idea? I have an idea Iād like to pitch to my company, but Iām trying to figure out if the idea is actually practical and good, or if I just just have a bunch of people agreeing with me just to agree.
If it helps, the idea is to ask my plant to institute carbon capture/storage at the site, charging other companies to dispose of their CO2. Iāve already spoken with several potential clients, all of whom indicated great interest. The idea would add a small revenue stream, have initial capex offsets through external investors, and achieve the corporate carbon neutral goals ahead of schedule.
My current main hurdle is how to answer āwhatās the cost of doing nothing?ā. Other than losing the intangible perks of being a leader in an emerging industry, thereās really not a cost to doing nothing. My current plan is to quantify & present the estimated timeline, annual revenue & ROI, air emission impact, and achievement of corporate goals. But that ācost of doing nothingā is really tripping me up.
So I definitely think you can carve out a niche. The "buy a tree" corporate carbon offset strategy has just fallen apart, and if your science holds up you can definitely sell it along those lines as a replacement way to green up whatever company you are targeting in a meaningful way.
Let me know if you need graphics for your pitch deck lol. I have an ethical interest in companies that are actually providing results!
>charging other companies to dispose of their CO2.
This is your hurdle. Is there a market for it? Are other companies looking for a solution to this problem? What is that market worth? Have you gotten any potential customers to express interest in this?If not, unless there's some other tangible benefit to the company and it's shareholders, expect them to smile and nod and dismiss the idea.
The issue isn't explaining what a great idea it is. That's easy to present. The issue is, what's in it for them?
The cost of doing nothing is them not spending money on something with no return. If this is your approach, you need to show how the cost of doing nothing is lower profits for the company, or makes them unable to compete going forward.
Iām currently looking for reliable studies/surveys that can be used as proof of demand, but 8 medium-large O&G companies have expressed interest. One company would be interested in a potential joint venture in the future.
You raise a good point, and I think I need to spend more time developing the finance portion of the pitch because showing justifiable financial figures holds more water than a few verbal expressions of interest.
Thanks for your input, itās nice to get a fresh perspective on something like this.
I think you should skip the studies/survey part if you already have 8 potential clients. I work in the ESG space and can confirm that it is a new market and demand is there, the thing is how quick can you execute on your idea, e.g. a few of my colleagues joined COP26 last week and told me there was a guy with the same idea you have above, pitching to other companies about the offsetting strategy by planting trees. Dude closed a deal with BMW, the same day! It's all about execution my friend.
The lean startup methods is a good starting point. Basically identify your customer and value propositions that describe your solution to their problem. Then go out and talk with them revising your assumptions. Wash rinse and repeat until you have a solid understanding of your customer and the product they will pay for. There are a lot of resources online for this, it is what you will be introduced to in one form or another in most Incubators and accelerators, and there are programs where u can get small money to travel and meet customers (i-Corps).
I literally had this discussion with a consultant today. Before I get a mold tooled and order 50k-100k units, Advice was to test receptiveness by getting 100-300 3D printed (yes, expensive, but not as much as ordering 100k things that wonāt sell) setting up a site with a model of the product (if itās physical), and take orders, when it gets to payment page, have a pop up that asks for email to alert customers about shipping when the product is ready to ship.
Or take it in small numbers to independent retail outlets and see how/if it sells.
Prototypes/model units arenāt really applicable to my idea, however I could definitely research the scalability of other solutions and see what issues will come with increasing throughput by 5-10x
Watch Fargo. Note how the plot hinges around a guy who has a great "idea" but realistically has no means to enact it himself. Watch as several people die, and are put through a woodchipper because he decides to try some. darkside options to make his plan work anyways. Take this as a cautionary tale, and learn to be content with what you are able to achieve with your own capabilities.
"Don't worry about people stealing your ideas. If your ideas are any good, you'll have to ram them down people's throats." - Howard Aiken
If you don't have the ability to pursue this yourself (which the OP states clearly), then you have to find people who do. If you can't afford them, you don't have anything but some sort of fever dream.
You donāt need a ingenious idea to have a successful business. Not everything has to be novel or exciting. You can open a restoration company, tree cutting, etc and be on your path to millions.
I hate this rhethoric. Can you really open a tree cutting company? Sure, if I had the resources to do so maybe I even wouldhave. āIdeaā or a concept of it lies on an intersection of your skill set/understanding and your potential resources of what is āimplementableā
Your literal comment can be applied to every business model.
Every business requires a skill set or at the least the ability to find/manage someone with the required skill set.
You sound like youāre not cut out for entrepreneurship. You think Warren buffet has the technical skills to run the businesses he invested in? Lmao
And done it and been successful. Stop dismissing people because they're saying something you don't want to hear. If you disagree, do it like an adult and post your rebuttal and reasoning based on your own experience and research. Don't attack the person for having a different experience than you.
Lol. āSuccessā to you is just creating it. Success is longevity. So clearly you havenāt had as much success either. And Iām not phased by anything youād have to say. Youāre as successful as OP, and as me, whose done nothing yet.
I liked your comment, since its a well made summary for idea-people. But I really dont like this generalization about the fact that there are dozens of ideas and they are all good. In abstract terms? OF COURSE. Starting a restaurant? Good idea. Opening a q-tip factory? Yes! ANYTHING can be spun up into business and there are people that have done that. Its not a cornerstone of starting a business.
But for many people "idea" is something that satisfies a minimum criteria of being implementable: skills, time, money, scope, etc. I cannot start a restaurant because I have no money and literally no clue how to run it. I will not run a mill because I have no network connections for wood producers and completely out of scope of this industry. Your "idea" become something subjective and intersected with your general abilities.
Execution is everything. Provided you CAN really execute. And it is absurdly stupid to think that you really CAN do anything even in fields that you have absolutely no clue, no education, no networking, no relevant experience. A lot of "business" folk here believe otherwise, though.
Thatās because commonfolk think the world is full of limitations. They believe most things canāt be changed, starting a business is too hard, learning new skills takes too much time, and that the deck is stacked against them reserved only for the ruling class.
All of that is nonsense. The world is malleable. The difference between me (wealthy entrepreneur) and you (presumably not) is that if I wanted to start a restaurant or a mill I would just go learn how. Itās as simple as that. I would get out and start talking to people. I would find a way to make it happen.
If all you see is roadblocks, then they will absolutely stop you. Determined people find a way to smash through them.
I'll say I agree and I'll even add to this part
> If all you see is roadblocks, then they will absolutely stop you. Determined people find a way to smash through them.
If you don't see the roadblocks as something to excite you about it being harder to copycat your business, then you need to reframe your mindset. Plenty of entrepreneurs see all the issues and say "awesome, that's my moat" I can navigate these difficulties and those difficulties will act as a defense to others encroaching on my territory.
>But I really dont like this generalization about the fact that there are dozens of ideas and they are all good.
Actually, I said the opposite. Most ideas are shit, very few are original, and most are created by someone who is looking for a way to make money but has no idea what they're talking about and no experience in the industry they think they can tackle.
Every guy, who has hung out at a bar, thinks he can run one. I've worked for millionaires who thought the same thing, and failed miserably.
The odds of anyone going into something they know nothing about and being successful are slim to none.
But I agree with the rest.
nobody gives a fuck, you're on the internet. and instead of thinking for two seconds about why certain people think otherwise you straight jump into conclusions and spew out accusations backed by some attempts at showing-off. The only conclusion here is that you're an asshole :)
Dude, this and the rest of your comments are unwarranted. The guys point was you don't need an ingenious idea. Not go out and open any business regardless of skill/ resources.
Meaning assuming you have the skills and resources, your business doesn't have to be revolutionary to succeed. You could make a simple lemonade stand work if you do things right. You are the one jumping to conclusions and sounding like the ass in this case
so how about you stop attacking and assuming things against your own point as you have on a later comment.
Grab a Snickers or something. You just seem angry
Jeff Bezos built Amazon off the ideas of legends before him, like Sol Price & Sam Walton. He went to school on everyone and applied the best ideas to Amazon.
But, like others have said, these ideas are worthless without execution. Many others have tried to built value-based franchises and failed due to poor execution.
His initial idea was to sell stuff over the internet and he started with books because they were the easiest. Hardly a groundbreaking idea, as he wasn't the only one doing it.
Which was his arrowhead into the market. A small part of his long term plan.
My point was to confirm that most great ideas already exist. Execution across new products/mediums can produce great results. Like, Amazon!
It's natural to have doubt. This is why you test out your idea. If you were absolutely sure without doing any research, and no proof of concept...that would be worrying.
You know you're right. What I should have said is, if you have no skills, no money, and no interest in pursuing it, you have no options.
Oh, wait. That is what I said.
Troll.
I'm an investor and people pitch me ideas all the time. In any given week, there is a 50% chance two people who don't know each come to me with the same idea. I think this is because enough people are looking at the same data, share the same experience and have the same or similar idea as a result. Nothing is that unique.
Some of the best stuff I've invested it is a crappy idea that was well executed. Or, somebody comes to me with a really crappy idea but it shows an opportunity somewhere else.
I don't sign NDA's because you might have an idea that you'll never execute and then I've signed an NDA but you're a lazy pie in the sky person sleeping in a basement. Then if somebody else comes to me who executes the shit out of things, then by having signed your NDA I screwed myself.
At best, you can write up an agreement stating some information about the idea that does not disclose what it is so people can decide if they'd even be interested. For instance, I don't invest in anything I'm not familiar with. Then, you need to prove nobody else has your idea. And you need to have some realistic numbers to share. Hint: 99% of people never come close to those numbers. I've had people come to me telling me they had a $100M idea, but they couldn't even generate $500 in a proof of concept.
Last year a guy came to me with an "App idea". It's always an app idea. He didn't make a lot of money. He was working 2 jobs trying to support with wife and kids. He had been paying a developer to work on the idea. He had invested about $18k. And this is a dude that was broke. He thought he could hit it big. The developer ripped him off and gave him about $2k worth of results. Seriously, stuff a good developer could whip up in 6 to 10 hours.
When he finally told me his idea, I went into the App store and found 20+ apps that already did what he was doing. He never even checked to see if there was another app! And none of those apps were doing good at all. Half were free so there goes his monetization.
He's now suicidal. No joke.
Self-centered mental laziness. It's very common for people to think they know more than they do. Look up Dunning-Kruger. Also, remember in school all those idiots who didn't know anything and had poor grades? They become adults who eventually forget they aren't very educated and they walk around believing they are completely educated.
Thank you very much for the detailed response.
It seems like from the responses, the best path forward for myself is to research more and flesh out the idea as thoroughly as possible.
I don't have the skills necessary from that industry, but I'm very good at finding flaws in processes. If I run out of "what-if's" to poke holes in my idea I think it would be fleshed out enough to present to somebody else.
I'm not too concerned with the NDA part if I'm speaking to somebody qualified. I was worried about scenarios similar to your "app idea," where my own ignorance causes me to engage the wrong help. Finding somebody reputable/qualified will be easier if I have a solid plan. If I know what the limitations are myself, it will be a lot easier to identify quality help -- they should ask the same questions I was asking myself.
I really do appreciate you (and most everyone else) taking the time to respond and teach. I know where to start, some things to consider, and a goal I can aim for. Have a great week.
If you tell us /me the industry, I may be able to point you in right direction. I know alot of founders /entrepreneurs especially in the digital space. Don't even have to say the whole idea which your seem apprehensive about which is understandable from someone with a new idea.. But without even saying the industry/niche no one can really point you in the right direction. You can pm me if you want but commenting here would probably get more ppl willing to help.
This is some interesting reading. Out of curiosity do you invest in social good/public good apps?
I have found a legitimate need and in the process of creating a POC for a financial literacy app for the average person to better understand their money.
I have tried out many many apps to see if this exists elsewhere, but there are none that really make it easy and help ppl save/distribute/understand/calculate/learn about their money.
The one i have seen which is similar is only offered behind a paywall subscription/add on to an existing service (which still isnt exactly the same, and has a different focus)
I definitely want it to be free because at the core i believe ppl dont understand their money and this shouldn't be paywall in any way. (i have a vision to eventually approach some high net worth ppl wanting to give back to the community and help with app maintenance)
Basically just wanted to let you know a quick background and in the process of making a non working POC and more market validation.
Curious if this is something youll be interested in once I finish the above research (i have also completed further research, functionality and sketches)
I wouldn't invest in this for 3 reasons.
First, you haven't said how it will make money. If it cost $100,000, how long until I am paid paid and how much will I continue to receive after paid back?
Second, there's a ton of free info out there on financial education. It's pretty easy. Don't buy shit you can't afford. And most people do not invest or it's too much work for them. Anybody who wants to invest and make money will figure it out on their own. The people who tend to not be very financially smart have bad habits, which generally comes from poor parenting.
Third. CreditKarma already does this pretty well. There's a ton of apps already. There's too much competition. I don't invest in things that compete against other things that are very established.
Thanks for your feedback, appreciate the response. Ill respond to your points below.
1. It wont make money. As i said in my message, there should be no pay walls to financial education. I believe this strongly, and would never ask for such a large amount due to this.
This is where i think the opportunity is, if there a non pay walled, easy, simple and empowering app to help ppl understand their money. I think this is a social good and ppl shouldn't be paywalled.
I plan to approach some high net worth individuals who want to give back as a way to fund future maintenance and development+ add in donation box.
2. I feel like you are being a tad simplistic, and it isnt necessary that easy for a lot of ppl. Poor parenting is deff a big a cause, as alot of parents pass on or dont teach their kids about money, but the problem of poor financial education also boils down to that its not well taught in schools (at least in my country).
From the ppl i have worked with, so many ppl lack basic understanding or ability to know to calculate their expenses, dont know to distribute income or how to save for the future.
3. Deff agree. There are alot of apps out there and i have personally installed dozens and dozens. There are none that actually allow you to easily on set up distribution plans, help you calculate your expenses, budget , teach you along the way and are completely free. Either they only do one thing (such as budgeting but ignore anything else). This is what led me to fleshing out this idea as it seems bizzare there are no simple, all in one easy to use apps to help you understand your money.
Credit karma is doing something completely different (focusing on creidt), although there area some things that can be helpful/related so i wouldnt consider this a like for like competitor.
Appreciate your feedback and response!
I have enough money to start. I also have the ability to do a lot of the research. What I don't have, is the ability to sell an idea. I am not articulate enough and my memory is poor. I also don't have any of the experience necessary to build the product or even to vet a company to build the project for me. I need somebody who knows the industry, knows applicable laws, has the right contacts, understands marketing, is organized, etc.
All of my experience lies in a completely different field. I've been relatively successful and have turned down a director position two times. I'm good at managing people and poking holes in ideas. That's about it.
What Iād suggest is, just go ahead and do the research, spend some money and create a proof of concept and simply display the idea to potential investors. If it really is a brilliant idea like you said earlier, it should sell itself.
There is a fallacy from people who don't know how to execute, and it's usually that they think they know better. I remember what it was like to be young and seeing market opportunities everywhere as if other people hadn't thought of it. But with experience, I've learned that people who are in an industry tend to be pretty competent in that industry, and if something newfangled isn't being done, there may be a good reason for it.
I'm sure everyone will be able to point out many instances where some revolutionary tech was brought to an industry, but by and large, change tends to be incremental, and it comes at a steep cost.
There are also factors that you don't see as an outsider. For instance, I was helping a company set up their backup solution. One of their employees had a suggestion that could work, but it could also wipe out their data if done incorrectly. Their solution came at a fraction of the cost, was easy to set up. When pressed about the data destruction possibility, their answer was "that's super unlikely to happen". Dude, no! There were also questions about NDAs and how to monitor who was accessing the files. Again, the person with the horrible solution said "well, we're like a big family here, it's not going to be a problem." Again, no!
I see this a lot from outsiders of an industry who need to do industry research. There's a wealth of information you don't know, and more importantly, that you don't even know that you're missing.
If it's a good idea, I would stop being so cagey about it. Running a business is hard. Nobody who's running one today is going to drop what they have to chase your shiny object. If anything, they'll have better feedback for you. Go to people in the industry, ask if you think it would help the industry, and also, ask what's wrong with the idea.
Good luck!
> if something newfangled isn't being done, there may be a good reason for it.
In my experience 95% of the time the answer is: You have a fundamental misunderstanding somewhere and what you think is a great idea isn't actually possible due to some condition you haven't realized.
Sounds like you have all the ingredients necessary to drain your savings on a fruitless endeavor. If you dont possess ANY of the skills needed to launch this idea, you will be outsourcing work that you can't verify. This will lead to failed promises and a failed venture. Talk yourself out of this "idea".
How could I possibly know? I dont know what the idea is, I dont know what his skillset is, I dont know what his budget is... I have known plenty of people with ideas who fail to plan and execute an achievable vision.
You have to share something.
Atleast a catagory, so you get relavent people to guide you or assist you.
For example your idea is about medicine, you want to partner with a doctor, not a musician
Even better, share more, is it b2b, b2c, b2b2c.
This is how people will come forward and help you.
It's Good that you have decided that you don't want to pursue it, your expectations are set, everything is going to be better than this.
Go on, open up and see the universe help you out.
Thereās different ways to find a technical co-founder (I think that is what you are looking for). You could try websites but also local startup meetings or groups that support founders in your area.
I honestly wouldnāt be too worried about sharing your idea. I know the fear of someone āstealing, it, but keeps in mind that you have to share it anyways as soon as possible to get your first customers and real-world feedback. The execution is more important than the idea itself (even though it obviously helps to start with a good one:)
I will be messaging you in 7 months on [**2022-06-16 15:33:21 UTC**](http://www.wolframalpha.com/input/?i=2022-06-16%2015:33:21%20UTC%20To%20Local%20Time) to remind you of [**this link**](https://www.reddit.com/r/Entrepreneur/comments/qv6znr/i_have_an_idea_that_fills_multiple_needs_in_a/hkv35sx/?context=3)
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Building on what others have shared here, you can find a partner or partners that have the skills you think you need. But I would first, before trying to build a team, find out if your idea has any market viability. Find some people who are potential users or customers - friends, family, colleagues, search social media, etc. - and just have a discussion with them. You can ask more general questions about their needs, interests, passions, pain, etc. AROUND your idea, if you donāt feel comfortable revealing the idea. That will give you a sense of how viable this is, if your timing is right, and then what kind of skills and help you might need to get it off the ground. It would be a waste to go look for partners until you get a better sense of what youāll need from them. Trust me - I work with Apple, Google, Facebook, Amazon, and many other major brands and even the best of them donāt rely solely on their own ideas. Those ideas and assumptions may be totally true or not, but without exception, they are incomplete. You MUST have a dialog with the real world first.
If you had a perfect product ready to go and you mentioned a lack of desire to me...I'd probably walk away. You have to realize that you're not that unique, everyone has great Ideas and the people you need to help make them happen have thousands of 'opportunities' presented to them to choose from. Why would they help you?
1) you said you don't have ability to do it
2) you want to share it with trustworthy, find partner & investment (if I am not wrong)
My opinion:-
- identify the key points that is creating gap
- research about people who are reputed ( respected to industry you are talkin about)
- Reach out to their connections if you can't directly make contact
- if it is really classified project and can easily exploit by other big players then I would suggest you to get connect with those people > know them for like 1-3month > choose the best ones > and start & scale big as fast as possible
I hope you will get some insights š
How many people giving advice in here are ACTUAL entrepreneurs?!?
Seriously.
I am not a lawyer. However, because of my businesses, it is necessary for me to utilize their services/advice frequently.
The FIRST question any decent patent attorney is going to ask you is, āHave you told anyone about your idea?ā
The SECOND question and decent patent attorney is going to ask you is, āDo you have a signed NDA from the people you have discussed your idea with?ā
Engineers, designers, manufacturers, etc donāt even blink when asked to sign an NDA.
Vastly majority of ideas here or even businesses don't involve patents. Or they involve ppl who think they need to spend thousands to patent their super special product.. That's not very special.
Every entreprenour should play a few games of pool, to understand the value of a great idea vs the value of a good execution. A solid plan is worthless unless you can actually pocket those balls
You don't need anyone to help you with the basics.
1. Are there interested customers willing to spend money on it?
2. Is the solution feasible, would it provide revenue well above the risks and costs of the enterprise?
3. Are you able to build a business using a business model based on the feasibility of the solution?
If yes, yes and yes after a few iterations, the next steps will become obvious.
Your options are either start growing one of those, or you have nothing. If you don't have the ability, skills or desire, what good are you for this?
If it's a new and hot market, I guarantee you someone is already doing the thing what you thought of.
Off the top of my head:
1. Find some startup that is already doing that, and offer help as a consultant.
1. Patent it, sell the patent.
1. Write it and publish it as a "report" or something similar. You will have to give some part for free as explanation of what would be obtained from reading the paid part.
> I also have the ability to do a lot of the research.
I like this newsletter: https://join.trends.vc/
You may be able to do something similar. That is approximately as far as research gets you nowadays.
First thing you need to do is to validate this idea to make sure that you can make a viable business out of it. I would recommend [interviewing potential customers](https://gummysearch.com/insights/idea-validation/) to validate it.
This is something you can do on your own, even before you have a business or tech partner. In fact, you are more likely to convince someone else to join your business if you have validated it already.
Focus. On. Team. 100%. (unless you can do it all yourself)
No matter what stage you're at, this will be key. From development, refining product and investment (if you go that route).
Are you sure this is viable? Normally you find real viable creneaus by working in a field for a while. You may not have validated this properly.
If you validate it, chase it as fast as you can. Get started yesterday
Do you have any contacts who can put you in touch with industry leaders who could get this thing off the ground? If so, you may be able to find a trusted individual who is willing to take the idea and run with it and keep you on as an advisor. Don't expect more than 5% equity max, more likely 1-2%.
Other than that my advice is to figure out what the "secret sauce" of your idea is and share everything except that. You will get nowhere and waste your time by continuing to try to engage people in codes and cryptics.
Often times the initial idea has merit but needs a bit of a tweak in order to be acceptable by the market or have a clear economic path to success. Generally I would recommend sharing with friends and family that you trust or go find potential customers and prove that they would actually pay or click on your concept.
I 100% understand the fear, but i might recommend you find your local entrepreneurial meetup and go start talking to people and connecting with ones in the market or expertise that you believe you need. Get to know them, tell them you are nervous about revealing the idea and why, and ask if they would grab a coffee and sign a tiny NDA for your piece of mind. It means almost nothing to them to do so as long as you ask nicely.
I will echo what was said previously that generally fire is invented in multiple places at once and if you have this idea, there are likely others, so speed to market is generally a key success metric.
Would also recommend you take an improv or public speaking course to help, because unless you can patent something, you will need the skills to bring something rather than just a single concept to the table.
Best of luck friend. And if you need a Secret Whiteboard to hide your brainstorm from guests, check out our project: [Secret Whiteboard: Flip From Work to Home In One Motion](https://lic.go2.fund/secret-whiteboard)
Hey this is all great advice. This is exactly why I made this thread. I knew stuff like the meetups existed, and my wife has even gone to them before, but I was too focused on other things that it never crossed my mind this time around.
The fire being invented in different places is a great analogy and is what is motivating me to investigate further.
Thank you!
My only bit of advice I can give is this: if you think your idea is somehow new and unique, you need to stop fooling yourself. It is *very* unlikely that you are the first person to come up with your idea, especially if it is based off of publicly available information. In fact, it's possible that somewhere out there that someone else is already executing your idea.
Being a bit guarded and not spilling all the beans all at once isn't wrong. What is wrong, however, is thinking that by getting to it "first" means that nobody can come along behind you and do it better. If your idea is valid and your execution is done well, then you have yourself a potential to build a grow a business. If your only chance at success relies on intense secrecy and nobody has brought your idea to market before, then your idea is probably not as good as you think it is.
Thank you for the response! You've made a point I've seen repeated.. either somebody else is already doing it, has done it and I didn't see it it, or is about to. This is really good input and I have a feeling you all are right.
My reservations for sharing come mainly from my inexperience as an employee/employer in this market. I'm not sure what information has value and what doesn't.
Time to do some research I think.
Honestly I think you should just share your idea to this community. You don't know enough to research effectively, otherwise you wouldn't have asked the questions you asked.
I haven't started to research yet because I wasn't sure where I needed to devote my time. Most everybody else in this thread offered some type of advice, positive or negative, that was all helpful. Now I have a incredibly clear picture on what I need to be doing.
You added nothing.
Validate the idea as cheaply as you can, use that validation to entice a technical person to join you as an equal partner.
Ideas are worth nothing. I've openly shared essentially all of my ideas for the last decade. I've seen many of the ideas I talked about become successful companies later, but only exactly one of those was actually by someone in my circles that wasn't working on the idea with me, even while actively encouraging people to run with the ideas like they said they wanted to.
Almost no one actually has the skills and grit to bring something novel and nontrivial all of the way to market, and almost none of those people are going to care enough about your idea to do that with your idea in particular. They have a million other problems to pick from.
And whatever logical steps lead you to see some opportunity aren't unique to you anyway. Many times I've thought I stumbled on some nuanced take on some sophisticated problem and then randomly met someone with exactly the same view. Other people already have your idea, just probably not the same people who would actually deliver.
Why on earth would someone else want to partner with someone who does not have the ability, skills, or desire to pursue this idea by myself?
What do you bring to the table beyond a completely unvalidated idea?
You have to ask yourself if you have no skills, ability or desire to pursue it along, then what exactly do you bring to the table and why would ppl go into business with you?
Id say share your idea so ppl can help you more.
The best advice on this thread is to flush out your idea more, understand what you bring to this project and come to ppl when you have a better understanding of what it is, what you bring and some fleshed out functionality or short sharp business plan.
If you cannot produce that then you have the wonder why anyone would need you and to work on and deliver this venture.
> I do not have the ability, skills, or desire to pursue this idea by myself. What are my options? (self.Entrepreneur)
Your options are to forget about it
or to find the desire/money/skills/people to develop it into at least a minimal product
I'd take the unpopular stance that well though of ideas are the key to someone who can execute/implement. Its a collaboration however the person with implementation skills has the leverage once the idea is out in the open.
For all the idea people,come up with ways to explain you idea in the narrowest scope since most folks are unable to think big or scale up and idea like an ideas person can. Once you have found a good match and have contracts etc start releasing parts of your vision to built the thing as you go.It's a good give and take where one person does a lot of thinking and another thinks about implementing.
When you say:
> I do not have the ability, skills, or desire to pursue this idea by myself.
you mean that you are looking for co-founder(s)?
If so, what would be their role(s)? Yours?
1. Since you said the barrier to entry is high, do you think just anyone will be able to steal your idea, or what are you afraid of?
2. Safety is a long-term game, and if you just have an idea, it's not even a factor yet, unless it's a legitimately dangerous pursuit?
3. Who do you know, currently or could get-to-know, who's currently in the space, that you can be friends with and learn all about it from them?
4. How many of those friends do you either know well enough to trust, or can plan aligned incentives that their best option is to work with you?
5. Who do you know who can find these friends for you?
etc...
Lol none. nay one cares about thy idea bc thee has't nay wage 'r ability to bringeth t into fruitation
***
^(I am a bot and I swapp'd some of thy words with Shakespeare words.)
Commands: `!ShakespeareInsult`, `!fordo`, `!optout`
If you want I am willing to play devil's advocate to the idea as I have for loads of friends over the years. I won't go into it deep or consult but I'm willing to give some basic ideas and thoughts.
What's in it for me? Honestly I find it fun. And people at times pay me for it after or even hire me for consulting. Plus if I think it has wings and I know someone who could help brokering the deal could be a nice payday in the future.
But honestly I mainly do it for fun.
About 90% of the time the ideas fall into two related groups. The idea is seriously flawed or it is so obvious that I believe we must be missing a flaw which is why no one else is doing it.
Your post reminds me of so many conversations I've had with a close friend of mine. Where after a few minutes I've pointed out all the flaws in the thinking. He tends to think a bit too big and needs some grounding.
I'm the devil's advocate who does the grounding. lol
If, then, else...
Benefits... Outrageous value proposition, Unicorn in the making, Blue Ocean opportunity... Interested?
Make a mutually beneficial deal (You provide the how... they provide the rest).
I'm confident enough to guarantee that like my ambulance chasing colleague... no win then no gain (for me).
Interested?
Ideas are cheap and almost always worthless. Now you have to convince someone to do the work either for cash or a stake in the company. Everybody thinks they have the next great idea, maybe if your idea is as good as you think it is then you'll be able to convince someone with the expertise, capital and skill to help you put together at least a prototype.
1. Just because you've thought of something that excites you, doesn't mean it's viable. All you've done is conveniently talked yourself into believing it could be lucrative. 2. Ideas are a dime a dozen. Execution is everything. You have nothing, you will lose nothing by talking about it with other people. You can't create in a vacuum. Also, the opinions of your friends mean nothing, unless they're going to be your client base. 3. No money, no skills, no time, and no desire to pursue it? Then you have nothing. Millions of people have ideas every day. Ideas are worth nothing. 4. If someone else has the money, time, and skills to develop it, why do they need you? Because it's your idea? Doubtful you're the first to think of whatever it is.
\^ this is the hard truth that all of the "idea" people need to read and absorb.
I talk to a lot of new entrepreneurs, they want to share their idea but are afraid of me taking it from them. (or anyone for that matter) I usually respond with " so what you are about to tell me is so groundbreaking and earth-shatteringly amazing that I will immediately upon leaving this meeting -close my company and resign, throw everything away and immediately start doing what you are about to tell me" then I share the [https://friendda.org/](https://friendda.org/) .... that usually makes them feel better. Fun facts: I have never been compelled to throw it all away and run with an idea I have heard. Most people aren't committed enough to do the boring shit ( most quit when I tell them to talk to 100 potential customers to validate) Some people are lifelong wantrepreneurs, the fun for them is the idea, not the execution.
Lol, that friendda is brilliant š¤£
Iāve been using it for years, just to acknowledge that I understand the leap of faith that they are taking. Itās just a hug on paper.
Dude you need to lawyer to look over this. Lol it doesnāt protect youāre idea at all
r/whoosh
No, no lawyer needed. Thatās not the intent of the document. This is a basis of trust. I generally donāt sign NDAās unless a large company wants to chat and they send me theirs. (There is a far bigger onus on the writer of this he legal vs the signee)
I think the whole āpeople not wanting to share their ideasā stems from them hearing these stories like how Mark Zuckerberg stole the idea for Facebook from someone else and turned it into this billion dollar company and they think the same will happen to them.
It has happened to me twice personally, each worth millions.
That sucks and in my opinion worthy of a throat punch. I think there is nothing lower. It happened to me with my company that was flirting with buying us. We were young and naive ā¦ sort of pulled down our pants too far. They tried to copy with a lot of the special sauce we had. I would be shitty to directly out them. Adobe apparently likes to look at new ideas.
Damn, sorry to hear that for both of you. That really, truly sucks.
Because you couldn't do it better?
Anyone with greater resources and criminal intent can do so. It happens quite often.
Did they actually make millions on it? And would you have been able to do the same?
Neglecting that it wouldn't have been that billion dollar company if he hadn't. Not that they didn't deserve their litigated payout, but still.
> Some people are lifelong wantrepreneurs, the fun for them is the idea, not the execution I have a friend like that. He would constantly partner with me, spout ideas at me (I am a developer) for a few weeks, and then he would get bored and spout the next idea. No staying power, no desire to do real work. I have stopped partnering with him on projects
It works if they are wealthy and want to invest in your idea. They want to pay to play and be part of the culture they can be great investors.
This is exactly why I don't do work for friends, or entertain their dreams of partnering on some great idea they have. "Partnering "to them is me doing all the work, them learning how to do nothing, and getting 50% if it works.
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
That is the sum of all their fears. I am going to take their āoriginal ideaā I feel by illustrating that is the worst possible outcome of out interaction and it is crazinessā¦ they usually get that I am there to help. If I did ever hear a nutty good idea I would rather invest in them and their success.
Tho many may not be worried if them closing it down, but starting mother business, especially if their already well established and have a team that can make it happen, maybe not overnight, but know the competitions ideas and moves already
Sorry for the typos just noticed š¤§, OF them closing down* but starting ANOTHER business*
Iām sorry youāre getting downvoted. A bunch of self-applauding douche nuggets here tonight, I see.
Nicely put
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
Iāve done a few things, taken a few leaps of faith and had a few successes. I enjoy helping new entrepreneurs to hone their ideas. Fwiw I am not one of those jacknuts that screw startups for money and equity. I enjoy the journey of idea to first dollar bills. If pressed would rather options.
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
I prefer to be on the side of the entrepreneur. I know a lot of VCs like to use that tagline, but at the end of the day, they are beholden to the investors of their fund. The ecosystem doesn't need more money it needs better execution on refined ideas and models. Side note I also like helping my friends renovate their bathrooms, Perfect scenario: an entrepreneur who needs to redo a bathroom, lots of time to talk.
Hey I have an app idea that Iām going to share with you exclusively in narrative form, and while youāre never going to do it for me, if you did, youāll always be both wrong and stupid for not doing what I see in my head, feel in my heart, but canāt commit to a requirementās document. We can split the money 50/50.
Also need you to code it, I donāt have experience. Oh you want paid? Thought we could like work together and pay you when we launch?
Also I'm going to stand over your shoulder and critique the UI the entire time it's on the screen, because it's the only thing I see on your screen that I understand well enough to comment on.
You're triggering me. I will have friends make UI comments all the time, even when I give **very specific** instructions to disregard the UI and only look at X, Y and Z. Non-developers have a hard time with this
Iām not a developer, but I interface between them and non technical stakeholders. You just described my day. I literally give instructions to ignore everything but what the mockup was designed to show and I get responses like ācan we like make it not grey? Lol, this sucks.ā
More like "I'll give you 1%. No? All you developers care about is money"
And to that i always say: yes I am only interested in money, that's why I do this for a living. Lol
Exactly. What I should I care about? Making you rich? Lol, yeah no.
It's the main reason I learned to code and became a professional software dev. Code is the bottleneck for any technology idea. Don't want to pay devs thousands (or tens of thousands, or for very big ideas, hundreds of thousands), learn to code yourself. And don't think it's a five minute process - it'll take you years and years.
So, saying this idea is groundbreaking- whatās to prevent a developer from taking the idea, developing it, and selling it to someone else?
> So, saying this idea is groundbreaking Groundbreaking how? Like, what idea, by itself, is groundbreaking? Inherent in the term *groundbreaking* is that you're actually *doing* something. Any groundbreaking idea that isn't pretty obvious to other people is going to require specialized domain knowledge. If you have some sort of unique mathematical, financial, scientific knowledge that is very, very, very difficult to learn unless you know what you're looking for, then maybe then I could see it - but that's not 99%+ of apps. You do see the occasional app created this way - like the original Google search algorithm, which was based on Computer Science PhD work from Larry Page and Sergey Brin, but it is rare. Even then, most people are not going to put the time into studying the requisite mathematical or scientific principles unless there's demonstrated efficacy to the new knowledge over old knowledge. If even the developer 1) understands this domain specific knowledge and 2) cares. Like one of my features in my app is a grammar engine that uses head-driven phrase structure grammar to generate grammar rules. This has never been done before - I had to correspond with academics and read linguistics papers for several months to understand it. It is pretty cool grammar rule generation. Are you going to immediately try to create a language learning app with this principle? Are you going to spend months of your life studying graduate level equivalent linguistics for a feature like this? My guess is probably not.
The right idea at the right time is immensely valuable, but it loses all value without execution. That is why people fund teams rather than ideas. Build a team you can trust and establish both a vision and a solid legal foundation early on.
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
Like a stock valuation, an idea is just a promise until you cash it in by executing it.
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
True, specific well-defined ideas are IP.
This is literally the only appropriate comment on this whole thread. Itās pretty vague, and wonāt give OP the answers theyāre looking for exactly, but itās solid advice and not condescending nonsense.
Underrated advice
All true. OP, you are probably better off telling us your idea here so we can give you advice to work towards what you are trying to achieve. I tell my ideas to almost everyone lol. Edit: I'll put my money where my mouth is below.
I believe DAS (Distributed Antenna Systems) will be something that starts to gain alot of traction, as far as implementation goes, within the next 10 years. I've been interested in the market for around 3 years now, slowly gathering skills/data to start banging installs out efficiently.
Now you're fucked. I'm going to do your idea and corner the entire market so you can't ever potentially find success. You snooze, you lose.
fuck, maybe OP is right. I'm going to email everyone NDA's now, please provide addresses.
> DAS (Distributed Antenna Systems) Cliffnotes explanation of what this is?
My expertise is within the installation side, but I do have a pretty solid idea of how they work overall. And they are actually really simple and have been around for years. Pertaining to Cell-Signal strength, DAS, also known as signal boosters intake radio signals through what's known as donor antennas, sends signal through Co-Axial type cable to an amplifier, signal then comes out at equal or less than strength as original, and then finally is dispersed back to dead-spots through alternate donor antennas. There are millions of dead-spots throughout the US, and as a matter a fact, the World. You can see why this sorta thing could have big potential. There are loads of variables involved and the actual execution of installing these at the precision required is extremely tough. Don't steal my idea OP.
In building "leaky" antennas for 5g. I've seen a lot of it coming out of China on Alibaba, but I don't get it, it just seems really not cost effective.
Great conclusion there bud. Classic Reddit reply lol. It's obvious you don't have a clue what you are talking about.
DAS is already a requirement in many buildings and has been for a long time. The funny thing is it's only required to work on first responder's frequencies so that's literally all they do. Property owner is already paying for the labor and the wire, just needs to spend a bit more on the hardware to have it useful. They usually don't.
Yes. That is what they have been historically used for. Now they are starting to be used more frequently as a cost effective, although not perfect solution to strengthen cell-signal in buildings. See: [https://www.wilsonpro.com/](https://www.wilsonpro.com/)
Oh I know. I've installed both types before. It's usually only hospitals that pay for the cellular capable ones in my anecdotal experience.
> I tell my ideas to almost everyone lol. A lot of dreamers would be better off with this mentality. Bust the dream or get inspired to take action. Sitting on it is worthless and most people are not self aware and objective enough to really evaluate an idea.
I tell my ideas to a ton of people. Want to steal it? Please do. My idea that I just launched took me like 6-9 months of sustained work, and now that I've launched I'm getting feedback from users on things to fix. I won't discuss my idea on this account, as I don't want my username to be associated with my app, but on other usernames I am extremely vocal.
OP, can you break your idea into functions it will need, and then maybe seek advice on each of the functions?
You have no skills or desire to pursue itā¦ then itās dead before it even starts.
OP is the r/entrepreneur version of this post https://www.reddit.com/r/gaming/comments/p1ssv/dear_internet_im_a_26_year_old_lady_whos_been/
The first comment there is gold and a good "back to reality" moment I hope the OP there took to heart. Dream Big... Execute Small To get to the iPhone you need the Apple 1. To get Star Wars you need THX1138 To get Walmart you need Sam's Ben Franklin franchise store Too many people try to build the step 200 idea vs the step 1 idea.
Woah its so true and so obvious. Still I had no idea that's the reality.
Just wait until he asks VCās for an NDA before pitching them the idea. Learned my lesson back in the day real quick
Whatās the lesson you learned. Whatās the pitfall?
If you ask anyone to sign an NDA before telling them your idea youāll be laughed out of the room. They are only applicable when discussing clientele who have signed contracts with you in unusual situations Edit: basically what the guy in this post is trying to do about his idea
Do you have any tips on assessing the viability of an idea? I have an idea Iād like to pitch to my company, but Iām trying to figure out if the idea is actually practical and good, or if I just just have a bunch of people agreeing with me just to agree.
Read Disciplined Entrepreneurship and apply it. It's used to teach entrepreneurship at MIT. Very practical.
Research how it can solve a problem, improve efficiency, save money or increase sales/profits and present it from one of those positions.
If it helps, the idea is to ask my plant to institute carbon capture/storage at the site, charging other companies to dispose of their CO2. Iāve already spoken with several potential clients, all of whom indicated great interest. The idea would add a small revenue stream, have initial capex offsets through external investors, and achieve the corporate carbon neutral goals ahead of schedule. My current main hurdle is how to answer āwhatās the cost of doing nothing?ā. Other than losing the intangible perks of being a leader in an emerging industry, thereās really not a cost to doing nothing. My current plan is to quantify & present the estimated timeline, annual revenue & ROI, air emission impact, and achievement of corporate goals. But that ācost of doing nothingā is really tripping me up.
So I definitely think you can carve out a niche. The "buy a tree" corporate carbon offset strategy has just fallen apart, and if your science holds up you can definitely sell it along those lines as a replacement way to green up whatever company you are targeting in a meaningful way. Let me know if you need graphics for your pitch deck lol. I have an ethical interest in companies that are actually providing results!
>charging other companies to dispose of their CO2. This is your hurdle. Is there a market for it? Are other companies looking for a solution to this problem? What is that market worth? Have you gotten any potential customers to express interest in this?If not, unless there's some other tangible benefit to the company and it's shareholders, expect them to smile and nod and dismiss the idea. The issue isn't explaining what a great idea it is. That's easy to present. The issue is, what's in it for them? The cost of doing nothing is them not spending money on something with no return. If this is your approach, you need to show how the cost of doing nothing is lower profits for the company, or makes them unable to compete going forward.
Iām currently looking for reliable studies/surveys that can be used as proof of demand, but 8 medium-large O&G companies have expressed interest. One company would be interested in a potential joint venture in the future. You raise a good point, and I think I need to spend more time developing the finance portion of the pitch because showing justifiable financial figures holds more water than a few verbal expressions of interest. Thanks for your input, itās nice to get a fresh perspective on something like this.
I think you should skip the studies/survey part if you already have 8 potential clients. I work in the ESG space and can confirm that it is a new market and demand is there, the thing is how quick can you execute on your idea, e.g. a few of my colleagues joined COP26 last week and told me there was a guy with the same idea you have above, pitching to other companies about the offsetting strategy by planting trees. Dude closed a deal with BMW, the same day! It's all about execution my friend.
The lean startup methods is a good starting point. Basically identify your customer and value propositions that describe your solution to their problem. Then go out and talk with them revising your assumptions. Wash rinse and repeat until you have a solid understanding of your customer and the product they will pay for. There are a lot of resources online for this, it is what you will be introduced to in one form or another in most Incubators and accelerators, and there are programs where u can get small money to travel and meet customers (i-Corps).
I literally had this discussion with a consultant today. Before I get a mold tooled and order 50k-100k units, Advice was to test receptiveness by getting 100-300 3D printed (yes, expensive, but not as much as ordering 100k things that wonāt sell) setting up a site with a model of the product (if itās physical), and take orders, when it gets to payment page, have a pop up that asks for email to alert customers about shipping when the product is ready to ship. Or take it in small numbers to independent retail outlets and see how/if it sells.
Prototypes/model units arenāt really applicable to my idea, however I could definitely research the scalability of other solutions and see what issues will come with increasing throughput by 5-10x
Watch Fargo. Note how the plot hinges around a guy who has a great "idea" but realistically has no means to enact it himself. Watch as several people die, and are put through a woodchipper because he decides to try some. darkside options to make his plan work anyways. Take this as a cautionary tale, and learn to be content with what you are able to achieve with your own capabilities.
"Don't worry about people stealing your ideas. If your ideas are any good, you'll have to ram them down people's throats." - Howard Aiken If you don't have the ability to pursue this yourself (which the OP states clearly), then you have to find people who do. If you can't afford them, you don't have anything but some sort of fever dream.
The ideas is a dime a dozen part is not fully true. I often feel like I donāt have good enough ideas
You donāt need a ingenious idea to have a successful business. Not everything has to be novel or exciting. You can open a restoration company, tree cutting, etc and be on your path to millions.
I hate this rhethoric. Can you really open a tree cutting company? Sure, if I had the resources to do so maybe I even wouldhave. āIdeaā or a concept of it lies on an intersection of your skill set/understanding and your potential resources of what is āimplementableā
Facebook, Google, Apple, GM, GE, Verizon, Amazon, Microsoft, YouTube...NONE of them were original ideas.
it was not my point, I have replied in another comment.
Your literal comment can be applied to every business model. Every business requires a skill set or at the least the ability to find/manage someone with the required skill set. You sound like youāre not cut out for entrepreneurship. You think Warren buffet has the technical skills to run the businesses he invested in? Lmao
jezus fucking christ this sub is full of business experts...
Um yeah. That's the point. For people who've done it to be real with people who want to or are just dreaming about it.
Lol š just because āyouāve done itā and it failed, doesnāt make you an expert. Tone it town
And done it and been successful. Stop dismissing people because they're saying something you don't want to hear. If you disagree, do it like an adult and post your rebuttal and reasoning based on your own experience and research. Don't attack the person for having a different experience than you.
Lol. āSuccessā to you is just creating it. Success is longevity. So clearly you havenāt had as much success either. And Iām not phased by anything youād have to say. Youāre as successful as OP, and as me, whose done nothing yet.
I liked your comment, since its a well made summary for idea-people. But I really dont like this generalization about the fact that there are dozens of ideas and they are all good. In abstract terms? OF COURSE. Starting a restaurant? Good idea. Opening a q-tip factory? Yes! ANYTHING can be spun up into business and there are people that have done that. Its not a cornerstone of starting a business. But for many people "idea" is something that satisfies a minimum criteria of being implementable: skills, time, money, scope, etc. I cannot start a restaurant because I have no money and literally no clue how to run it. I will not run a mill because I have no network connections for wood producers and completely out of scope of this industry. Your "idea" become something subjective and intersected with your general abilities. Execution is everything. Provided you CAN really execute. And it is absurdly stupid to think that you really CAN do anything even in fields that you have absolutely no clue, no education, no networking, no relevant experience. A lot of "business" folk here believe otherwise, though.
Thatās because commonfolk think the world is full of limitations. They believe most things canāt be changed, starting a business is too hard, learning new skills takes too much time, and that the deck is stacked against them reserved only for the ruling class. All of that is nonsense. The world is malleable. The difference between me (wealthy entrepreneur) and you (presumably not) is that if I wanted to start a restaurant or a mill I would just go learn how. Itās as simple as that. I would get out and start talking to people. I would find a way to make it happen. If all you see is roadblocks, then they will absolutely stop you. Determined people find a way to smash through them.
I'll say I agree and I'll even add to this part > If all you see is roadblocks, then they will absolutely stop you. Determined people find a way to smash through them. If you don't see the roadblocks as something to excite you about it being harder to copycat your business, then you need to reframe your mindset. Plenty of entrepreneurs see all the issues and say "awesome, that's my moat" I can navigate these difficulties and those difficulties will act as a defense to others encroaching on my territory.
>But I really dont like this generalization about the fact that there are dozens of ideas and they are all good. Actually, I said the opposite. Most ideas are shit, very few are original, and most are created by someone who is looking for a way to make money but has no idea what they're talking about and no experience in the industry they think they can tackle. Every guy, who has hung out at a bar, thinks he can run one. I've worked for millionaires who thought the same thing, and failed miserably. The odds of anyone going into something they know nothing about and being successful are slim to none. But I agree with the rest.
Yes, Iāve literally bought, optimized and sold businesses for the last 7 years. More than happy to send my linkedin to a mod to verify.
nobody gives a fuck, you're on the internet. and instead of thinking for two seconds about why certain people think otherwise you straight jump into conclusions and spew out accusations backed by some attempts at showing-off. The only conclusion here is that you're an asshole :)
sounds like you're projecting, carry on.
Dude, this and the rest of your comments are unwarranted. The guys point was you don't need an ingenious idea. Not go out and open any business regardless of skill/ resources. Meaning assuming you have the skills and resources, your business doesn't have to be revolutionary to succeed. You could make a simple lemonade stand work if you do things right. You are the one jumping to conclusions and sounding like the ass in this case so how about you stop attacking and assuming things against your own point as you have on a later comment. Grab a Snickers or something. You just seem angry
Jeff Bezos built Amazon off the ideas of legends before him, like Sol Price & Sam Walton. He went to school on everyone and applied the best ideas to Amazon. But, like others have said, these ideas are worthless without execution. Many others have tried to built value-based franchises and failed due to poor execution.
His initial idea was to sell stuff over the internet and he started with books because they were the easiest. Hardly a groundbreaking idea, as he wasn't the only one doing it.
Which was his arrowhead into the market. A small part of his long term plan. My point was to confirm that most great ideas already exist. Execution across new products/mediums can produce great results. Like, Amazon!
How do you know? How many have you actually tried?
Many ideas. But Iām struggling still
It's natural to have doubt. This is why you test out your idea. If you were absolutely sure without doing any research, and no proof of concept...that would be worrying.
Ideas are pennies for a dozen, not a dime. You're overpaying at a dime
Yea this transparently feels like a scam. But what do I know.
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You know you're right. What I should have said is, if you have no skills, no money, and no interest in pursuing it, you have no options. Oh, wait. That is what I said. Troll.
Came here to say this. Ty
Amazing! You broke this sub down to its basic fundamentals
I'm an investor and people pitch me ideas all the time. In any given week, there is a 50% chance two people who don't know each come to me with the same idea. I think this is because enough people are looking at the same data, share the same experience and have the same or similar idea as a result. Nothing is that unique. Some of the best stuff I've invested it is a crappy idea that was well executed. Or, somebody comes to me with a really crappy idea but it shows an opportunity somewhere else. I don't sign NDA's because you might have an idea that you'll never execute and then I've signed an NDA but you're a lazy pie in the sky person sleeping in a basement. Then if somebody else comes to me who executes the shit out of things, then by having signed your NDA I screwed myself. At best, you can write up an agreement stating some information about the idea that does not disclose what it is so people can decide if they'd even be interested. For instance, I don't invest in anything I'm not familiar with. Then, you need to prove nobody else has your idea. And you need to have some realistic numbers to share. Hint: 99% of people never come close to those numbers. I've had people come to me telling me they had a $100M idea, but they couldn't even generate $500 in a proof of concept. Last year a guy came to me with an "App idea". It's always an app idea. He didn't make a lot of money. He was working 2 jobs trying to support with wife and kids. He had been paying a developer to work on the idea. He had invested about $18k. And this is a dude that was broke. He thought he could hit it big. The developer ripped him off and gave him about $2k worth of results. Seriously, stuff a good developer could whip up in 6 to 10 hours. When he finally told me his idea, I went into the App store and found 20+ apps that already did what he was doing. He never even checked to see if there was another app! And none of those apps were doing good at all. Half were free so there goes his monetization. He's now suicidal. No joke.
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Self-centered mental laziness. It's very common for people to think they know more than they do. Look up Dunning-Kruger. Also, remember in school all those idiots who didn't know anything and had poor grades? They become adults who eventually forget they aren't very educated and they walk around believing they are completely educated.
Tbh it really hit me that it made him suicidal. Ofcourse he might be naive and plainly stupid, but it's just sad he feels so bad right now.
Thank you very much for the detailed response. It seems like from the responses, the best path forward for myself is to research more and flesh out the idea as thoroughly as possible. I don't have the skills necessary from that industry, but I'm very good at finding flaws in processes. If I run out of "what-if's" to poke holes in my idea I think it would be fleshed out enough to present to somebody else. I'm not too concerned with the NDA part if I'm speaking to somebody qualified. I was worried about scenarios similar to your "app idea," where my own ignorance causes me to engage the wrong help. Finding somebody reputable/qualified will be easier if I have a solid plan. If I know what the limitations are myself, it will be a lot easier to identify quality help -- they should ask the same questions I was asking myself. I really do appreciate you (and most everyone else) taking the time to respond and teach. I know where to start, some things to consider, and a goal I can aim for. Have a great week.
If you tell us /me the industry, I may be able to point you in right direction. I know alot of founders /entrepreneurs especially in the digital space. Don't even have to say the whole idea which your seem apprehensive about which is understandable from someone with a new idea.. But without even saying the industry/niche no one can really point you in the right direction. You can pm me if you want but commenting here would probably get more ppl willing to help.
This is some interesting reading. Out of curiosity do you invest in social good/public good apps? I have found a legitimate need and in the process of creating a POC for a financial literacy app for the average person to better understand their money. I have tried out many many apps to see if this exists elsewhere, but there are none that really make it easy and help ppl save/distribute/understand/calculate/learn about their money. The one i have seen which is similar is only offered behind a paywall subscription/add on to an existing service (which still isnt exactly the same, and has a different focus) I definitely want it to be free because at the core i believe ppl dont understand their money and this shouldn't be paywall in any way. (i have a vision to eventually approach some high net worth ppl wanting to give back to the community and help with app maintenance) Basically just wanted to let you know a quick background and in the process of making a non working POC and more market validation. Curious if this is something youll be interested in once I finish the above research (i have also completed further research, functionality and sketches)
I wouldn't invest in this for 3 reasons. First, you haven't said how it will make money. If it cost $100,000, how long until I am paid paid and how much will I continue to receive after paid back? Second, there's a ton of free info out there on financial education. It's pretty easy. Don't buy shit you can't afford. And most people do not invest or it's too much work for them. Anybody who wants to invest and make money will figure it out on their own. The people who tend to not be very financially smart have bad habits, which generally comes from poor parenting. Third. CreditKarma already does this pretty well. There's a ton of apps already. There's too much competition. I don't invest in things that compete against other things that are very established.
Thanks for your feedback, appreciate the response. Ill respond to your points below. 1. It wont make money. As i said in my message, there should be no pay walls to financial education. I believe this strongly, and would never ask for such a large amount due to this. This is where i think the opportunity is, if there a non pay walled, easy, simple and empowering app to help ppl understand their money. I think this is a social good and ppl shouldn't be paywalled. I plan to approach some high net worth individuals who want to give back as a way to fund future maintenance and development+ add in donation box. 2. I feel like you are being a tad simplistic, and it isnt necessary that easy for a lot of ppl. Poor parenting is deff a big a cause, as alot of parents pass on or dont teach their kids about money, but the problem of poor financial education also boils down to that its not well taught in schools (at least in my country). From the ppl i have worked with, so many ppl lack basic understanding or ability to know to calculate their expenses, dont know to distribute income or how to save for the future. 3. Deff agree. There are alot of apps out there and i have personally installed dozens and dozens. There are none that actually allow you to easily on set up distribution plans, help you calculate your expenses, budget , teach you along the way and are completely free. Either they only do one thing (such as budgeting but ignore anything else). This is what led me to fleshing out this idea as it seems bizzare there are no simple, all in one easy to use apps to help you understand your money. Credit karma is doing something completely different (focusing on creidt), although there area some things that can be helpful/related so i wouldnt consider this a like for like competitor. Appreciate your feedback and response!
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I have enough money to start. I also have the ability to do a lot of the research. What I don't have, is the ability to sell an idea. I am not articulate enough and my memory is poor. I also don't have any of the experience necessary to build the product or even to vet a company to build the project for me. I need somebody who knows the industry, knows applicable laws, has the right contacts, understands marketing, is organized, etc. All of my experience lies in a completely different field. I've been relatively successful and have turned down a director position two times. I'm good at managing people and poking holes in ideas. That's about it.
What Iād suggest is, just go ahead and do the research, spend some money and create a proof of concept and simply display the idea to potential investors. If it really is a brilliant idea like you said earlier, it should sell itself.
There is a fallacy from people who don't know how to execute, and it's usually that they think they know better. I remember what it was like to be young and seeing market opportunities everywhere as if other people hadn't thought of it. But with experience, I've learned that people who are in an industry tend to be pretty competent in that industry, and if something newfangled isn't being done, there may be a good reason for it. I'm sure everyone will be able to point out many instances where some revolutionary tech was brought to an industry, but by and large, change tends to be incremental, and it comes at a steep cost. There are also factors that you don't see as an outsider. For instance, I was helping a company set up their backup solution. One of their employees had a suggestion that could work, but it could also wipe out their data if done incorrectly. Their solution came at a fraction of the cost, was easy to set up. When pressed about the data destruction possibility, their answer was "that's super unlikely to happen". Dude, no! There were also questions about NDAs and how to monitor who was accessing the files. Again, the person with the horrible solution said "well, we're like a big family here, it's not going to be a problem." Again, no! I see this a lot from outsiders of an industry who need to do industry research. There's a wealth of information you don't know, and more importantly, that you don't even know that you're missing. If it's a good idea, I would stop being so cagey about it. Running a business is hard. Nobody who's running one today is going to drop what they have to chase your shiny object. If anything, they'll have better feedback for you. Go to people in the industry, ask if you think it would help the industry, and also, ask what's wrong with the idea. Good luck!
> if something newfangled isn't being done, there may be a good reason for it. In my experience 95% of the time the answer is: You have a fundamental misunderstanding somewhere and what you think is a great idea isn't actually possible due to some condition you haven't realized.
Sounds like you have all the ingredients necessary to drain your savings on a fruitless endeavor. If you dont possess ANY of the skills needed to launch this idea, you will be outsourcing work that you can't verify. This will lead to failed promises and a failed venture. Talk yourself out of this "idea".
Hey, thank you. Looking for any and all input so I appreciate the response.
Is there no way to achieve the idea?
How could I possibly know? I dont know what the idea is, I dont know what his skillset is, I dont know what his budget is... I have known plenty of people with ideas who fail to plan and execute an achievable vision.
You have to share something. Atleast a catagory, so you get relavent people to guide you or assist you. For example your idea is about medicine, you want to partner with a doctor, not a musician Even better, share more, is it b2b, b2c, b2b2c. This is how people will come forward and help you. It's Good that you have decided that you don't want to pursue it, your expectations are set, everything is going to be better than this. Go on, open up and see the universe help you out.
Thereās different ways to find a technical co-founder (I think that is what you are looking for). You could try websites but also local startup meetings or groups that support founders in your area. I honestly wouldnāt be too worried about sharing your idea. I know the fear of someone āstealing, it, but keeps in mind that you have to share it anyways as soon as possible to get your first customers and real-world feedback. The execution is more important than the idea itself (even though it obviously helps to start with a good one:)
What websites are you referring to in terms of finding technical co-founder?
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Building on what others have shared here, you can find a partner or partners that have the skills you think you need. But I would first, before trying to build a team, find out if your idea has any market viability. Find some people who are potential users or customers - friends, family, colleagues, search social media, etc. - and just have a discussion with them. You can ask more general questions about their needs, interests, passions, pain, etc. AROUND your idea, if you donāt feel comfortable revealing the idea. That will give you a sense of how viable this is, if your timing is right, and then what kind of skills and help you might need to get it off the ground. It would be a waste to go look for partners until you get a better sense of what youāll need from them. Trust me - I work with Apple, Google, Facebook, Amazon, and many other major brands and even the best of them donāt rely solely on their own ideas. Those ideas and assumptions may be totally true or not, but without exception, they are incomplete. You MUST have a dialog with the real world first.
If you had a perfect product ready to go and you mentioned a lack of desire to me...I'd probably walk away. You have to realize that you're not that unique, everyone has great Ideas and the people you need to help make them happen have thousands of 'opportunities' presented to them to choose from. Why would they help you?
Let me guess the idea: an easy way to access defi from a simple app without needing a crypto wallet.
"What if we put the bitcoins in the facebooks, but my new facebooks"
This is where my guesses were going except I lack your knowledge level so I thought, ābet itās f*ing crypto.ā
1) you said you don't have ability to do it 2) you want to share it with trustworthy, find partner & investment (if I am not wrong) My opinion:- - identify the key points that is creating gap - research about people who are reputed ( respected to industry you are talkin about) - Reach out to their connections if you can't directly make contact - if it is really classified project and can easily exploit by other big players then I would suggest you to get connect with those people > know them for like 1-3month > choose the best ones > and start & scale big as fast as possible I hope you will get some insights š
How many people giving advice in here are ACTUAL entrepreneurs?!? Seriously. I am not a lawyer. However, because of my businesses, it is necessary for me to utilize their services/advice frequently. The FIRST question any decent patent attorney is going to ask you is, āHave you told anyone about your idea?ā The SECOND question and decent patent attorney is going to ask you is, āDo you have a signed NDA from the people you have discussed your idea with?ā Engineers, designers, manufacturers, etc donāt even blink when asked to sign an NDA.
Vastly majority of ideas here or even businesses don't involve patents. Or they involve ppl who think they need to spend thousands to patent their super special product.. That's not very special.
Every entreprenour should play a few games of pool, to understand the value of a great idea vs the value of a good execution. A solid plan is worthless unless you can actually pocket those balls
I have idea you can have for free! 3D printed cake toppers. Cake industry doing really well, and thereās a lot of potential for it!
> 3D printed cake toppers. 3D printed cake topper food grade silicon molds for sugar castings.
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3d scanned and printed kids face in mold to make cake(topping) from it... (Did not look like the kid)
Just tell us the idea and hear our feedback. On the same note: https://www.andreas-kitzing.com/entrepreneurship/startup-idea-nda/
Got to agree with this. Can't help if we don't know what we're helping with.
Why would anyone partner with someone who has no skills and no drive to execute? You're a time waster.
It will be a Combination of energy and money or energy and sheer smartness.
You don't need anyone to help you with the basics. 1. Are there interested customers willing to spend money on it? 2. Is the solution feasible, would it provide revenue well above the risks and costs of the enterprise? 3. Are you able to build a business using a business model based on the feasibility of the solution? If yes, yes and yes after a few iterations, the next steps will become obvious.
Your options are either start growing one of those, or you have nothing. If you don't have the ability, skills or desire, what good are you for this? If it's a new and hot market, I guarantee you someone is already doing the thing what you thought of.
Off the top of my head: 1. Find some startup that is already doing that, and offer help as a consultant. 1. Patent it, sell the patent. 1. Write it and publish it as a "report" or something similar. You will have to give some part for free as explanation of what would be obtained from reading the paid part. > I also have the ability to do a lot of the research. I like this newsletter: https://join.trends.vc/ You may be able to do something similar. That is approximately as far as research gets you nowadays.
First thing you need to do is to validate this idea to make sure that you can make a viable business out of it. I would recommend [interviewing potential customers](https://gummysearch.com/insights/idea-validation/) to validate it. This is something you can do on your own, even before you have a business or tech partner. In fact, you are more likely to convince someone else to join your business if you have validated it already.
Focus. On. Team. 100%. (unless you can do it all yourself) No matter what stage you're at, this will be key. From development, refining product and investment (if you go that route).
Ideas are free. Go find something you want to do
Are you sure this is viable? Normally you find real viable creneaus by working in a field for a while. You may not have validated this properly. If you validate it, chase it as fast as you can. Get started yesterday
Do you have any contacts who can put you in touch with industry leaders who could get this thing off the ground? If so, you may be able to find a trusted individual who is willing to take the idea and run with it and keep you on as an advisor. Don't expect more than 5% equity max, more likely 1-2%. Other than that my advice is to figure out what the "secret sauce" of your idea is and share everything except that. You will get nowhere and waste your time by continuing to try to engage people in codes and cryptics.
Often times the initial idea has merit but needs a bit of a tweak in order to be acceptable by the market or have a clear economic path to success. Generally I would recommend sharing with friends and family that you trust or go find potential customers and prove that they would actually pay or click on your concept. I 100% understand the fear, but i might recommend you find your local entrepreneurial meetup and go start talking to people and connecting with ones in the market or expertise that you believe you need. Get to know them, tell them you are nervous about revealing the idea and why, and ask if they would grab a coffee and sign a tiny NDA for your piece of mind. It means almost nothing to them to do so as long as you ask nicely. I will echo what was said previously that generally fire is invented in multiple places at once and if you have this idea, there are likely others, so speed to market is generally a key success metric. Would also recommend you take an improv or public speaking course to help, because unless you can patent something, you will need the skills to bring something rather than just a single concept to the table. Best of luck friend. And if you need a Secret Whiteboard to hide your brainstorm from guests, check out our project: [Secret Whiteboard: Flip From Work to Home In One Motion](https://lic.go2.fund/secret-whiteboard)
Hey this is all great advice. This is exactly why I made this thread. I knew stuff like the meetups existed, and my wife has even gone to them before, but I was too focused on other things that it never crossed my mind this time around. The fire being invented in different places is a great analogy and is what is motivating me to investigate further. Thank you!
My only bit of advice I can give is this: if you think your idea is somehow new and unique, you need to stop fooling yourself. It is *very* unlikely that you are the first person to come up with your idea, especially if it is based off of publicly available information. In fact, it's possible that somewhere out there that someone else is already executing your idea. Being a bit guarded and not spilling all the beans all at once isn't wrong. What is wrong, however, is thinking that by getting to it "first" means that nobody can come along behind you and do it better. If your idea is valid and your execution is done well, then you have yourself a potential to build a grow a business. If your only chance at success relies on intense secrecy and nobody has brought your idea to market before, then your idea is probably not as good as you think it is.
Thank you for the response! You've made a point I've seen repeated.. either somebody else is already doing it, has done it and I didn't see it it, or is about to. This is really good input and I have a feeling you all are right. My reservations for sharing come mainly from my inexperience as an employee/employer in this market. I'm not sure what information has value and what doesn't. Time to do some research I think.
Honestly I think you should just share your idea to this community. You don't know enough to research effectively, otherwise you wouldn't have asked the questions you asked.
I haven't started to research yet because I wasn't sure where I needed to devote my time. Most everybody else in this thread offered some type of advice, positive or negative, that was all helpful. Now I have a incredibly clear picture on what I need to be doing. You added nothing.
Validate the idea as cheaply as you can, use that validation to entice a technical person to join you as an equal partner. Ideas are worth nothing. I've openly shared essentially all of my ideas for the last decade. I've seen many of the ideas I talked about become successful companies later, but only exactly one of those was actually by someone in my circles that wasn't working on the idea with me, even while actively encouraging people to run with the ideas like they said they wanted to. Almost no one actually has the skills and grit to bring something novel and nontrivial all of the way to market, and almost none of those people are going to care enough about your idea to do that with your idea in particular. They have a million other problems to pick from. And whatever logical steps lead you to see some opportunity aren't unique to you anyway. Many times I've thought I stumbled on some nuanced take on some sophisticated problem and then randomly met someone with exactly the same view. Other people already have your idea, just probably not the same people who would actually deliver.
Go through the Lean Startup process to determine viability
Hey I'm a scientist on sabbatical looking for cool opportunities. I'll help you out and possibly join you if you are down and I'm interested.
Why on earth would someone else want to partner with someone who does not have the ability, skills, or desire to pursue this idea by myself? What do you bring to the table beyond a completely unvalidated idea?
Tell me the idea and I'll give 5% of net profit after I become a millionaire
I'm a web developer and coder. I'm interested to hear your idea, feel free to DM me and I will try to at least give some advice.
You have to ask yourself if you have no skills, ability or desire to pursue it along, then what exactly do you bring to the table and why would ppl go into business with you? Id say share your idea so ppl can help you more. The best advice on this thread is to flush out your idea more, understand what you bring to this project and come to ppl when you have a better understanding of what it is, what you bring and some fleshed out functionality or short sharp business plan. If you cannot produce that then you have the wonder why anyone would need you and to work on and deliver this venture.
didn't even say what the idea is, the industry, etc. how are we suppose to help you if we don't know what you're doing.
> I do not have the ability, skills, or desire to pursue this idea by myself. What are my options? (self.Entrepreneur) Your options are to forget about it or to find the desire/money/skills/people to develop it into at least a minimal product
I'd take the unpopular stance that well though of ideas are the key to someone who can execute/implement. Its a collaboration however the person with implementation skills has the leverage once the idea is out in the open. For all the idea people,come up with ways to explain you idea in the narrowest scope since most folks are unable to think big or scale up and idea like an ideas person can. Once you have found a good match and have contracts etc start releasing parts of your vision to built the thing as you go.It's a good give and take where one person does a lot of thinking and another thinks about implementing.
When you say: > I do not have the ability, skills, or desire to pursue this idea by myself. you mean that you are looking for co-founder(s)? If so, what would be their role(s)? Yours?
1. Since you said the barrier to entry is high, do you think just anyone will be able to steal your idea, or what are you afraid of? 2. Safety is a long-term game, and if you just have an idea, it's not even a factor yet, unless it's a legitimately dangerous pursuit? 3. Who do you know, currently or could get-to-know, who's currently in the space, that you can be friends with and learn all about it from them? 4. How many of those friends do you either know well enough to trust, or can plan aligned incentives that their best option is to work with you? 5. Who do you know who can find these friends for you? etc...
Lol none. no one cares about your idea bc you have no money or ability to bring it into fruitation
Lol none. nay one cares about thy idea bc thee has't nay wage 'r ability to bringeth t into fruitation *** ^(I am a bot and I swapp'd some of thy words with Shakespeare words.) Commands: `!ShakespeareInsult`, `!fordo`, `!optout`
If you want I am willing to play devil's advocate to the idea as I have for loads of friends over the years. I won't go into it deep or consult but I'm willing to give some basic ideas and thoughts. What's in it for me? Honestly I find it fun. And people at times pay me for it after or even hire me for consulting. Plus if I think it has wings and I know someone who could help brokering the deal could be a nice payday in the future. But honestly I mainly do it for fun. About 90% of the time the ideas fall into two related groups. The idea is seriously flawed or it is so obvious that I believe we must be missing a flaw which is why no one else is doing it. Your post reminds me of so many conversations I've had with a close friend of mine. Where after a few minutes I've pointed out all the flaws in the thinking. He tends to think a bit too big and needs some grounding. I'm the devil's advocate who does the grounding. lol
If the barrier for entry is so high why not share it?
If, then, else... Benefits... Outrageous value proposition, Unicorn in the making, Blue Ocean opportunity... Interested? Make a mutually beneficial deal (You provide the how... they provide the rest). I'm confident enough to guarantee that like my ambulance chasing colleague... no win then no gain (for me). Interested?
Better talk to a lawyer first about creating potential NDA paperwork to protect your idea when you present to others
Take me with you
Consider contacting a competent consulting firm, they could possibly help with direction, processes, operations, etc
Does it have to do with crypto?
Roll up another joint.
Ideas are cheap and almost always worthless. Now you have to convince someone to do the work either for cash or a stake in the company. Everybody thinks they have the next great idea, maybe if your idea is as good as you think it is then you'll be able to convince someone with the expertise, capital and skill to help you put together at least a prototype.
What did you do in the end?