How do you find a business idea?
Whats the best idea to start a new business?
Need to find a business idea so you can be your own boss? Choosing the right business is easier than you think. Click here for the simple recipe for success by @heysunnyjess #success #entrepreneur #businessClick To Tweet
Becoming your own boss, running your own business, and taking charge of your life is kind of the ULTIMATE dream, am I right?
I can see it now, the way I’ve decorated my office, my planner full of meetings that EXCITE me, and most of all, I can see myself rocking the #girlboss life, a total power-house dominating my industry.
Ah yes, I can see it. I wear that hat VERY well, it’s a killer look for me.
Can you see it for yourself? Do you dream about being in charge of your life, running your business like the girl boss you ARE? Except that… well… you’re not. Because trying to navigate the pathway to start a business and become your own boss is tricky. It’s totally achievable with a plan in mind, but to create a business plan you need a business idea, right?
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So let me ask you… WHAT DO YOU WANT TO DO WITH YOUR LIFE?
If your answer was either:
a) I don’t know
b) all the things. Like. ALL of them.
or
c) aren’t you supposed to tell me how to start a business in this post?
Then, friends, this guide is for you. For a lot of successful business owners their idea came to them effortlessly, but most of the time there is some serious effort that goes into conceiving a solid idea that can be used to start a business.
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How to Find a Business Idea Worth Starting
Here is the thing about business. You can’t be successful without drive, desire, and dedication. It takes a LOT of work to start a business and get it up and running (some businesses more than others!).
So if you think you’re going to get through the set-up stage and start making some money, you need to have a solid plan that you care about. An idea that gives you that drive, desire, and dedication that you’ll need. A golden ticket idea to start a business.
Our goal is to find THAT idea. The one that is going to get you up every morning and have you excited. The one that will let you quit the 9-5 and start living your dream. The one that will CHANGE YOUR LIFE.
Choose A Business Idea You’re Passionate About
What am I passionate about? What should I do with my life? I know I want to start a business, but I don’t know what I want my business to be!
Coming up with an idea for a business can feel a little like searching for a needle in a haystack. Or a single, lime-green polka dotted starfish amongst the vastness of the ocean. It can feel impossible to narrow down all the thoughts going through your brain but you KNOW you have got to do this and that you want to do this, so let’s get started. Let’s start your dream!
There is a common misconception that people with an entrepreneurial spirit should start a business based on what they are passionate about. For example, if you LOVE rock climbing, start a rock climbing business. Do not do this.
I repeat. DO NOT DO THIS.
What? But Jess, I want to start a business I am passionate about and do what I love! Why can’t I start a business about something I love?
Short Answer: because your “love” will not make it successful.
Long Answer: To have a successful business, you need to have clients that are willing to pay for what you do, which means you need to make THEM want the kool-aid you are selling. Trying to start a business based only on the fact that you are passionate about it, with no other purpose, is not going to sell to clients. They have opinions of their own, and they are going to do what THEY love. They don’t care about your Kool-aid.
YET. Let’s make them care.
Let me tell you what makes them want YOUR kool-aid… You are providing them with a SOLUTION.
Choose a Business Idea that Provides a Solution
You read that right, your business should be a SOLUTION.
Not a hobby. It is still incredibly important to find a business idea that you are absolutely passionate about, but your passion is only HALF of the recipe. The other half of the recipe should be determining what kind of solution your business is going to be providing to a problem.
Now let’s get into the nitty-gritty and find the perfect recipe for you, bake it up, and see what comes out!
👉🏽 RELATED POST: How To Start A Profitable Business That You Love
Make a List of Passions and Problems
The first step is to start keeping TWO lists. You can keep them on your phone, in a notebook, or use an awesome downloadable template.
- On the first list, write down everything that sparks your fire and makes you happy. What are you passionate about? What things make you excited? What do you love?
- On the second list, you are going to write down things that tick you off. What makes you angry? What annoys you? What are the random problems that you notice?
I am personally passionate about a lot of things, so I feel like business ideas were constantly flitting in and out of my brain. I took several weeks of writing down things that I loved, ideas for businesses that I felt passionate about, and things that make me happy. I also spent that time writing down things that bothered me and problems that I came across.
Deciding on an Idea to Start a New Business
And then, you celebrate with a wedding of something you’re passionate about and a problem that needs solving. Your idea for a business should unite both!
You marry an idea from one list to an idea from the other list, and BOOM! Your baby business idea is born!
Examples of Finding an Amazing Business Idea
For example, I LOVE to write and be creative. I HATE that there are so many mommy bloggers out there that give off an unreal perception about what life is like after having kids, I just want to see more REAL women on the internet that are actually relatable.
Therefore, the natural path for me was to start writing a blog with a focus on maintaining REAL-ness on the internet. So Hey Sunny Jess was born! I focus on tips and tricks for moms that promote self-confidence and body positivity, and I write as transparently as possible about my experiences and problems.
Now, that’s just my example, but you can apply this model to any other company that is successful. Look at what they are providing, why do people come to them? It’s because they are providing a solution for SOMETHING.
Let’s look at another example of this model. Take a look at Mark Zuckerberg. You know, the infamous creator of Facebook? Mark had a knack (well… more than just a knack!) for technology and creativity when he ran into a problem and created Facebook to solve it. Take a second and think about it. What problem was Mark trying to solve when he created Facebook?
If you look into how Facebook was founded, you’ll know there is speculation as to whether Zuckerberg created it as a tool to get to know people or if he did it as a way to meet girls. Either way, the problem he saw is that there wasn’t a way to get people connected or learn more about them. So what did he do? He created it himself. He took his passion for technology and married it with the problem he saw at hand, and Facebook was born.
And now his company is one of THE most successful companies to have ever existed. Ever.
Clearly, coming up with a business idea that is solutions-oriented is KEY to the recipe to start a business and become the successful, amazing #girlboss you are meant to be!
How to Choose Your Business Idea
Once you have a chance to review your two lists, start thinking about how your passions might work well to solve some of the problems that you’ve found.
You might need to delve deeper into your lists and discover what they are really saying about you.
For example, I hate slow lines. Whenever I am in a slow line, I get all fired up and start thinking about ways things could be moving more efficiently (i.e. open another register, separate the line into two, etc.) and it took me a little bit to realize that the problem here is that I don’t like inefficiency in organization. I like the way things are organized to function efficiently. And I LOVE when things are pretty.
So you know what I think is just a DYNAMITE business idea? An app to organize your day in a way that is easy-as-pie to use and keeps you efficient as a human.
Ha. Put a pin in that. The Timepage app is close, but it’s not quite perfect!
The great thing about both of these lists is that they encompass what you are passionate about, both in what you like and what you dislike. This means you are automatically going to have a list of business ideas narrowed down that are things you CARE about, which is going to give you the drive you need to get going and start a business of your own.
👉🏽 RELATED POST: 7 Steps to Making Extra Money on the Side
Start a Business with Your Best Idea
With your golden ticket idea in hand, you are ready to hop on the #girlboss train and start your journey!
Now that you’ve got your business idea, you’re ready to make your goals, create a plan, and build your empire!
You got this, babe!
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How do you find a business idea?
