At initial stage of a startup, the core idea makes a huge difference. Small changes in your initial idea/direction will make a big difference to where you end up.
With a great idea, it’s a multiplier for all your efforts down the line, compounding over time. Going in the wrong direction wastes your life’s energies.
5 frameworks to help founders refine their startup ideas and move from left to right.
Some of the biggest ideas most people didn’t think they looked like good ideas at the beginning. Such contrarian ideas allow you to compete in a less crowded market and thus they give you a greater ability to take market share and win before others catch on.
Nothing is 100% original. Novelty is a risk. Too much of it, and you’re almost certain to fail. Too little of it and you’re just a redundant copy of someone else - which is also a recipe for failure. What’s needed is a balance of both.
When making a new game, change only one elect from what came before. In gaming there are three big elements:
Perhaps changing only one of these three helps you focus. Don’t overstretch. Don’t try to change everything. Be aware of what parts of your idea you’r testing that are new, and what parts of your idea you can count on working.
The biggest ideas often strike a balance between what has been proven to work and something totally new. Iteration can be a form of innovation. Most of the companies you admire as innovative actually operate in the ‘new energy’ category.
Identify what technology has changed in the last 3-36 months that will let you create a new product, a new experience.
Look for a new product experience in proven areas that is only possible recently due to a recent technological shift.