Beware Entrepreneurship in Isolation

Entrepreneurs often behave like a middle schooler with a crush.

Do you want to be right or do you want to be happy?”

― Phillip C. McGraw aka Dr. Phil

Far too many entrepreneurs are obsessed with their idea (aka “happiness”). I have been there myself. After a moment of inspiration, it is easy to become infatuated with a business idea. But the work of an entrepreneur is neither solely creative nor theoretical. 

Being an entrepreneur is about being right in the marketplace.

Far too many businesses are simply dead-on arrival. What happened between the idea and the real world? What did the entrepreneur miss?

Failure often results from a fundamentally flawed understanding of entrepreneurship itself.  The movies and press extol the reclusive genius who goes away to develop an idea, which is then revealed to the world with great acclaim and revenue. 

This is the exception, rather than the rule.

True entrepreneurship is more of a dance.  It's a negotiation between what the market wants and what the entrepreneur is able to provide.  The most important thing is early and frequent communication with the marketplace. 

This sort of feedback gathering feels risky. When you are in love with your idea, it hurts to realize the idea may be flawed.

Early feedback gathering holds the idea itself loosely. Instead of dictating from on-high, there is a humility in going to someone and saying, "I think you might have this problem - can you tell me if that is true?" 

You may be correct, or you may hear, 'you're close, but my real problem is this.'  Then you can go back and determine if you can solve that problem.

Clayton Christensen said people spend money to 'hire’ goods/services to solve their problems, a tool for “the job to be done.”  

As an entrepreneur, you must be sure you know what the job is!

For anyone with a new idea, talk early and often with your target customer base.  Hold loosely to a proposed solution, adapt quickly, and 'co-create' with your customer the best possible solution.