Starting a business of your own is something you’ve always wanted to do. Kudos! Go for it. Says, so INC.’s survey 63% of the 20-somethings wish to do the same. It’s pretty conceivable that you’re interested in starting a business since you’re on this website and reading this article.
So, where do you start? An idea, a business idea.
You need an idea. It is where you start to sow the seed for your business. If you initiate with a creative and innovative idea, you create a destiny of a successful business structure.
The fundamental question is how to get good business ideas to begin your own startup.
Don’t worry! You have landed in the right place at the right time. I’ve scratched up the internet realm and compiled this article to ease your hardships.
Here are 6 ways to get good business ideas to begin your own startup.
1. Finding solutions to your frustrations
Think of those things that frustrate you, time and again. There must be something. Ask yourself, what frustrates you the most at this very moment in life?
It can include your private life, work environment, or anything in general.
Did you get one? Yes? Excellent!
Now, what might be the best solution to that problem? Brainstorm to figure one out.
There you have your business idea to begin your own startup.
There might be a situation where a small niche relates to you and your problem. No matter what, you can target that niche and evolve your business with time.
It might be an ice cream stall in hot weather or a full-fledged computer and IT store in a locality of tech geeks, you can take your shot.
Say your solution (product) only solves the problem of 0.5% of the world’s population. You will have about 38.765 million individuals to target and initiate your startup.
I am not embellishing it but only simplifying the business principle from my point of view.
Every great business idea has come from solving personal problems. Many people only complain about their situation, while some come up with solutions to it, create a product, and sell it to make money.
Be the one that figures out a solution and capitalizes on it.
For example, someone must have had a problem traveling with their pet; BOOM! a pet bag.
You never know if a simple solution to your frustration explodes to capture the world’s interest. Why not give it a try?
Innovative solutions to your frustrations can be a good business idea to begin your own startup.
2. Devising futuristic ideas – to solve future problems
While everyone concentrates on solving present-day problems, you should think ahead of time (say 10-12 years). Explore the possible tribulations of the future. Work on assembling the best possible solution to such a problem.
There you have your business idea for your startup.
It may not seem feasible and relevant at the moment, but you should believe in your research, case studies, plans, and out-of-the-box thought process.
You should have a clear vision that you are targeting a future market, not the present. For now, it won’t earn you a penny; instead, soak up available resources. Prepare for such situations beforehand.
You can take a prominent example of Elon Musk, a successful businessman and innovator.
He hasn’t become successful overnight. He built his success upon his futuristic ideas when no one else thought it possible. No one believed you could successfully land a rocket back on the earth’s surface except Elon.
He believed he could achieve it with help and funding from higher authorities. He secured everything he needed to achieve what he has today. He worked for it, believed in it, and showed the world the power of futuristic thinking.
It is one of many futuristic ideas by Elon, and I won’t talk about every one of them. It is an example to show that you can achieve what you seek if you have a promising idea to solve a future problem.
You are building your business for the future, not today. People will pay for your solution, maybe not today, but eventually.
Start thinking today and work for tomorrow.
3. Come out of the shell – explore for experience and ideas
As an entrepreneur scouring for good business ideas to begin your own startup, you should come out of your comfort zone, explore new ideas, and view problems from all perspectives.
As Nadia Goodman, in one of her articles, expresses that ideas demand creativity and flourish on diversity and novelty.
It means you don’t have to sit for hours brainstorming ideas and solutions. Some people might do so, and they can. But ideas don’t need to pop up when you look for them.
You might think of a great idea when you are on holiday, enjoying your vacation on a beach. It is also possible that an idea pops up while hiking up the hills.
What I mean here is different places have their respective situations and problems. You cannot find good ideas by placing yourself in a room confined by walls.
Get out, go on a trip, visit a new place, explore communities, talk with people, learn about their problems, and ask them what might solve them.
New places present unique perspectives. Brainstorming in a broader field delivers better possibilities for finding practical business ideas for a startup. It will help your cause of finding ideas for your startup.
You will get ideas you’ve never had before if you do something new.
4. Turn your hobby into a creative startup idea
Why do you have hobbies? Because they are the most satisfying things to do. Isn’t it? Well, why not consider turning your hobby into a creative startup idea to begin your own startup?
Every job coach or career counselor will tell you the same thing —” Find a career that you enjoy.”
What is more enjoyable than a hobby? So, it is a perfect business idea for your startup. The real issue you need to work on is monetizing your hobby and making it relatable to others.
You will put your heart and soul into your hobby to make it a successful business. It is not the same as doing a task you must do in an office. Doing something you love hits different; more importantly, it is your own, and you put extra effort into what you do.
For example, you like cooking and have taken classes to perfect your cooking skills. So why not first work as a chef in a restaurant and learn the operations? You can use the experience to open up your restaurant later.
Or, you can hire a good management team and lead the kitchen yourself. Deliver quality food with good taste, and see if it doesn’t work. It surely will because everyone doesn’t hesitate to pay for good food.
Cooking is just an example; you can turn any hobby of yours into a business idea and become successful if you can sell your idea to the audience.
Brainstorm, research, and turn your hobby into your business.
5. Keep abreast of platforms like Shark Tank & Dragons’ Den
Are you still wondering how to get good business ideas to begin your own startup? If so, you can consider the business ideas from entrepreneurial-themed reality shows like Shark Tank and Dragons’ Den.
Many entrepreneurs come here (Shark Tank and Dragons’ Den) with fascinating business ideas, some already in operation. They come here to sell their business ideas or a percentage of business equity for money.
Let us take an example of Bottle Bright, also known as Hydrapak or Clean Ethics. Seth Friedman and Justin Koehneke, two mountain bikers, came to Shark Tank in Season 6, Episode 14, and asked $75,000 for 15 % equity in Bottle Bright.
Instead, they secured $75,000 for 33.3% of their company with Lori Greiner. Some sources claim the net worth of Bottle Bright after Shark Tank to be more than $600,000.
Here, you can see these two entrepreneurs came up with an idea to clean water bottles and remove stains and odors in a non-traditional and healthy way.
As a wannabe entrepreneur, you can browse through ideas that others come up with, tweak some of your own ideas into those, and start your business.
Although these ideas will not be original and unique, you can take advantage of the idea if you can make it your own by altering the originality.
It is important not to violate patent rights and other legal entities. Do not precisely copy the same; at most, make it similar.
Take inspiration, channel your ideas, and create your own.
6. Start something, somewhere – overcome fear.
I suggest you involve yourself in something, whether creating your own or working for others. Don’t keep yourself idle; engage in some work, learn something new daily, polish your skills, and have an open mind to everything around you.
It allows you to experience real-world work cultures, requests, demands, supplies, problems, solutions, and whatnot. You will have the chance to explore the opportunities and figure out the problems that come along.
You can now focus on the solutions and devise new concepts to eradicate such problems. It’s better to tackle such issues and overcome them instead of feeling miserable and complaining about them.
Do not hesitate to use your experience fearing failure. You do not taste success until you try. You try, you fail, you fail but do not give up. At least give your best before you stop.
Do not let your fear take over you to stop you from starting your business. Failing a few times may be the triggering point for your success.
Set a goal, be determined, work for it, and don’t fear failure. Stand up stronger every time; success is imminent.
Conclusion
Use anything in your reach to explore the unexplored and come up with a unique and innovative idea that can solve people’s problems. If people relate to it, you can make billions and even remodel an industry.
I hope the tips above will help you get good business ideas to begin your own startup. It isn’t just successful and intelligent people who come up with great ideas. Anyone can come up with good business ideas for a startup, and everyone can make it if acted upon it wisely.