There is a common misconception, probably inherited from movies and some particular cynical views of capitalism, namely that you should keep your ideas for yourself. Otherwise someone can steal your idea!

In my opinion (which is inherited from the opinions from people in the know), the reality does not conform to that.

To start a project/company takes energy. To start a project takes time. People wont quit what they’re doing and invest resources into some idea they heard somewhere.
Angel investors  (private investors who invests from their own pocket) are interesting to look at. The existance of Angel investors supports my claim in a way. Angel investors are experienced and rich, yet they don’t take ideas from a youths. They give money to the youths to capitalize on their time, energy and commitment.
Indeed Angel investors agrees. Here’s a fictional quote that sums up what I’ve heard from Angel investors (just because I like quotes and it looks cool):

The year is 2015! Do you really think your idea is unique? In this day and age, ideas are worth nothing. It’s all about the execution! I invest in the person, not in the idea.

So what is the next step?

The next step is to tell it to the world

Go to events and pitch your idea to as many as you can! This is what I did yesterday at SUP46, indeed it was super valuable.

I found a programmer who got so intrigued by the “It’s a mix of LinkedIn and WhatApp” pitch that we pivoted the idea for 20 minutes from a programmers point of view!
I also found 3-4 iOS developers who may or may not be interested in joining my team.

The idea in your head will never improve as long as it remains in your head only. Do yourself a favor and share it today in class! You will get two invalueable things: Feedback and contacts!

Yesterday at SUP46 (Startup People of Sweden) I attended an #ExpertNight focused on funding for startups, a topic closely related to what we did and discussed about in class.

The event tried to answer some of the most common questions startups face: “When should you raise money? How much do you need? Who should you take funding from? Is it better to grow organically?”

Among the guests for the panel discussion were Tim Yi He (Northzone), Joakim Dal (GP Bullhound), Johan Crona (ALMI Invest), Henrik von Stockenstrom (FundedByMe), Anette Nordvall (Stoaf.se).

After a brief introduction, the panelists talked about how they scout for startups to invest in: some go to events and get to know people, some do generic market research to see if there’s anything interested that has been funded recently, others just filter the applications they receive.

The most important question is another, though: what is the selling point that captures the interest of investors when talking with startups?

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