I never perfected an invention that I did not think about in terms of the service it might give others… I find out what the world needs, then I proceed to invent. —Thomas Edison INTRODUCTION One of the biggest questions on every hopeful entrepreneur’s mind is, ? how do I come up with a compelling idea for a new venture?? While there is no right or wrong answer to this question, there are several things to be aware of and thinking about as one heads down the entrepreneurial path.
Even if a great idea has already come to mind, it is essential to cover the basics – the market, product/service offering, competitive, economic, and team dynamics to determine if the idea has the potential to become a viable venture opportunity. The objective of this note is to help guide students interested in becoming entrepreneurs. Specifically, this note will cover the common sources of inspiration for finding potential ideas and creating a vision, highlight the importance of capitalizing on trends, and review the basic components of what makes an idea an opportunity worthy of pursuing.
Where to start looking for an idea? Successful entrepreneurs have found inspiration from many different sources, but often putting an initial stake in the ground is difficult. A good and logical starting point for an entrepreneur is to think about what s/he knows best, especially with regards to work experience; after all, there is great value in learning before doing. According to a recent Inc. 500 study, the ? dominant source of venture ideas is prior employment.? 1 work experience is useful because of the relationships and networks one develops and the knowledge and skill-set that is built up around a particular industry/field.
The Term Paper on Most Commonly Cited Characteristics Found in Successful Entrepreneur
There has been extensive research conducted on the characteristics that successful entrepreneurs possess. These attributes vary widely across literature, however there are common key traits that are required to achieve any form of success. Frederick et al (2013) suggest entrepreneurs are risk takers, optimistic, have sound judgement and an ability to manage. While a review of literature relating ...
Further, the workplace is where the ? greatest opportunity for need observation occurs.? 2 Since a majority of ideas come out of a former career 1 Anne Marie Knott, Venture Design (Thousand Oaks: SAGE Publications, Inc. ), p. 45. Ibid. , p. 46 Jocelyn Hornblower prepared this case under the supervision of Lecturer Dr. Dennis Rohan as the basis for class discussion rather than to illustrate either effective or ineffective handling of an administrative situation. 2 Copyright © 2008 by the Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University. All rights reserved.
To order copies or request permission to reproduce materials, e-mail the Case Writing Office at: stanford. edu or write: Case Writing Office, Stanford Graduate School of Business, 518 Memorial Way, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305-5015. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, used in a spreadsheet, or transmitted in any form or by any means –– electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise –– without the permission of the Stanford Graduate School of Business. Identifying Venture Opportunities E-323 p. 2 r consulting work, the entrepreneur should reflect on what s/he learned about industry, products/services, production, marketing, competition, etc. through job experience. There may be tangential opportunities to consider, for example to compete with a more innovative product/service offering or to introduce a novel business model. Prior work experience is not always required when exploring entrepreneurial ideas. Educational background can be extremely valuable and can provide the entrepreneur with skills and learnings that can be applied creatively, as well as provide the entrepreneur with an established network of students and faculty.
The Term Paper on The Ideas Concepts And Work Of James Dyson
Student Initiated Module (Elective) BA Hons Industrial Design University of Central Lancashire Assignment: 'The ideas, concepts, and work of James Dyson' By Robert James Fryer Contents Page Chapter 1 Introduction 3 Chapter 2 History and Education of James Dyson 4 Chapter 3 The Work of James Dyson 7 Chapter 4 Product Range 10 Chapter 5 New Innovations 16 Chapter 6 Research 20 Chapter 7 Conclusion ...
Regardless of the area of study, having an educated appreciation for a particular subject matter can be very beneficial in identifying venture opportunities. Sometimes overlooked sources of inspiration for finding new ideas are travel and personal hobbies. Life experience is just as applicable as work and education in thinking about problems and needs and how best to solve them. Travel, especially international travel, can be an excellent resource as it allows one to take note of what is going on in other parts of the world, to observe trends that are taking root elsewhere but not yet at home, and to experience different ways of doing things.
Howard Schultz’s inspiration for Starbucks came to him when he was on vacation in Italy and admired the ? cafe culture? there that had not yet taken root in the US. Another valuable exercise is to reflect on experiences (particularly frustrating ones) as a retail or industrial consumer. Entrepreneurial ideas can be the result of simply being an irritated consumer looking for a better solution, where ? in solving their own needs, they often find they satisfy the latent demands of a broader group of users.? Recall the origins of Nike – Phil Knight and his track coach Bill Bowerman were dissatisfied with the footwear available for longdistance runners, so they started their own footwear company using Bowerman’s waffle maker to produce the rubber soles. Never underestimate the importance and relevance of contextual knowledge. Many successful entrepreneurs have found their ideas by reading different newspapers and economic and technical publications in order to keep abreast of trends and events taking place around the world.
