How to get & validate your startup idea.
Dreaming about launching a startup but “don’t have the right idea”? This post is for you. The right idea might be closer than you think 😉.
In this, second “starting startups mini-series”, it’s all about ideas.
Previous mini-series post was about taking the leap:
Generating Startup Ideas
Many great startup ideas arise organically, but here are also structured ways to brainstorm:
1. Leverage Expertise:
Focus on fields where you or your team have specialized knowledge. Founders in familiar industries spot unique problems faster.
2. Solve Your Problems:
Think of products or services you wish existed. Doordash originated from students wanting better food delivery options.
3. Spot Changes:
Watch for new regulations, trends, or technologies that make previously impossible ideas feasible.
You can browse through sites like Failory, Google Cemetery, Amazon Cemetery, Startup Cemetery to see what others built, why they failed and if the right time is not just now.
4. Learn from Startups:
Work at a startup to gain deep industry insights, putting yourself in a prime position to identify viable opportunities.
Personal note:
When I realized my 9-to-5 was draining me and I wanted to finally start my own business, I did not have a novel idea or a dream to solve a world problem.
So, I spent two days in front of a huge mindmap to better understand myself, my expertise, and my motivations, and soon after, it became clear what I should build.
I’m thinking of publishing a template of this mindmap - reply if you’re interested.
4 common “idea stage” mistakes
1. Solution in Search of a Problem:
Don’t start with a technology (e.g., “AI is cool”) and then hunt for a problem to solve. This leads to “superficially plausible” problems that users don’t care about. Instead, start with a real, tangible problem.
2. Tar Pit Ideas:
Beware of ideas that seem simple but are structurally unsolvable. For example, countless founders have tried to build apps for friend group coordination, but none succeed because the underlying issue isn’t technical but behavioral. Same with AI trip planners - most people want to be in charge and enjoy the research.
3. Skipping Research:
Always Google your idea to see who has tried it before. Talk to past founders to understand why they failed.
4. Idea Paralysis:
Don’t jump into the first idea without thinking it through, but also don’t wait endlessly for the “perfect” idea. Instead, aim for a good starting point that can evolve.
Key questions to validate your idea:
1. Founder-Market Fit: Are you the right person to solve this problem?
2. Competition Insight: Competition is not a bad thing. Look for spaces with existing players but where you can identify unmet needs or inefficiencies. No competition often means no demand.
3. Market Size: Is the market large (e.g., $1B+) or small but rapidly growing? Either can work, but targeting growth trends often offers hidden opportunities.
4. Scalability: Can the business scale efficiently? Pure software businesses scale easily, but service-based models often don’t.
5. Adjacent Opportunities: If your idea doesn’t work, are there neighboring opportunities you can pivot into within the same space?
6. Boring but Valuable: High-impact ideas often look boring at first glance, like tax accounting or payroll software. They’re underserved because founders tend to ignore them.
And remember, it’s unlikely you will actually end up earning decent revenue from that first ideas. Most startups pivot. Start → execute → validate → repeat.
Ideas are worth nothing unless executed 😉
Next up, I’ll be writing about:
✅ How to start 🏁
✅ How to choose get & validate the right idea
👉🏻 How to set up your business and where
👉🏻 How to select a co-founder
👉🏻 Techniques to get your first 100 customers
I’ll include examples from my startups atlaseek and qasima, along with key moments (both good and bad) from my personal journey.
If you haven’t already, subscribe to continue this “starting mini-series” with me.
See you next week!
Kristina
🔗 Connect with me on LinkedIn - Kristina Melsova.
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