11 Sure Steps for nurturing your Idea & starting a Business
You can have a billion brilliant ideas, but if you can’t get develop them, communicate them, persuade them, your great ideas won’t get you anywhere.
Topics: the Idea, Refine & Enhance, helping Friends & Family, Website, Advisors, Wins, No Fear, Strategic Plan, Test new Ideas, 1st Client, Adjustments.
1st the Idea. Great new business ideas can happen anywhere, any time: in the shower, working out at the gym, or commuting to work. At a convention a few years ago, the idea formed for my – now successful marketing company. On the plane – on the way home – I told my boss that I wanted to start a marketing business. He asked a lot of questions, and his answers helped me develop my idea into a business. But as most Founders know, the idea was just the beginning. That’s why I followed up with these steps that helped me nurture my new idea and build on it – when I was starting a business.
- Refine & Enhance your Idea. You need to put some meat on the skeleton . I’ve found that it’s best to focus on what you’re really good at. For example, I have always loved helping people and coming up with solutions for them. So, that was what my startup ended up doing. I found that if you pick an idea that fits your passions, goals, & strengths, the rest should fall into place.
- Don’t let Naysayers talk you out of it. My husband at that time (now ex-) was less than enthusiastic, but that didn’t discourage me. I was committed. He didn’t understand what was going on in my brain. To him, work was just work. To me, it would be so much more. That’s why I gave up and stopped talking about it to him. But, that didn’t mean I wasn’t going to do it. You want feedback from family, friends, & experts who know the market. But instead of letting the feedback turn you away from your objectives, let the feedback help you make the idea better – to meet the needs of your potential customers.
- Start out by helping Friends & Family. I started small, did the work on the side, still keeping my full-time job, & practicing with people who knew me. I did a little Logo/ Brand work for friends and family right away. I was good practice.
- Get your Website up & running. First time out of the box, I chose one of those “already-done-for-you” website systems, selected a template, filled in the blanks, & I was on the internet. Okay, it wasn’t the prettiest or most professional-looking website out there, but it was up, it was mine, & it meant that we were open for business.
- Get Credit & Professional help [Advisors, not mental] where you need it. When I just started out, I didn’t have much spare cash. So I did what many just-starting-out-entrepreneurs do. I got a credit card. Then, I used it to hire a designer (who I still work with today) to design a professional Website & Logo for me. It was the best investment I ever made.
- Celebrate the Baby steps, small Wins. I loved doing the work. One of the jobs was to design a Logo for a friend opening a clothing boutique. I was incredibly proud. Each success made me want to do more to help more people.
- Don’t let your Fear show. Even though there were points when I was scared, and didn’t know what I was talking about, I acted like I did. That got my foot in the door. I discovered that I learn fast and dedicated myself to making my new business idea work – doing whatever it takes.
- Work on a Strategic Plan. My original mission was to reach out to the world via LinkedIn. I beefed up my profile, and that got me enough business to leave my corporate job. Then I started planning the next step.
- Test new Ideas. You shouldn’t rest on your laurels. Instead, you can continue to test pricing, branding, features, & customer experiences. Try out some cutting-edge & creative designs.
- Get going & make Adjustments as you go. Once you learn what works best & what doesn’t, you can adjust your operation. As your customers’ needs change, you can be responsive and build & enhance your products & services to there needs.
- Get your first BiG Client and learn the best way to operate. My first big Client changed my life. I learned how to do so much! I managed the client on my own and wore the hats of probably 10 other people. This helped me develop a strong team down the road – mostly because I learned first hand what it took to handle a big Client. Then, I lead a team to do the same.
Conclusion: Turning your Idea into the reality of a successful business sure isn’t easy. But can be exciting and a whole lot of fun. To get your juices flowing, build on your idea, and take it to the next level. The process may not come in an orderly fashion at first, but if you set goals and stick to these steps above, your business idea can blossom and grow into new – and an even more rewarding & exhilarating ways.
Comments: Do you have any thoughts on how to nuture ideas?
fm Huff Post.com 21 July 15 enhanced by Peter/CXO Wiz4biz
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