The word ‘Entrepreneurship’ has never resonated much with me. I have always pictured myself as that person who goes on to work for big noble firms, continuing with and improving what others have already started, and finding fullfilment and purposeness through that.. But creating something new and doing startups? Not so much. Although I have a feeling that this course will change my viewpoint…
One negative perception that I’ve had of entrepreneurship is that people go into it almost solely because of the fame and money. However, having read some of this course’s articles (i.e. Thomas Oppong, ‘Don’t Just Start a Business, Solve A Problem’) and after today’s lecture about Idea Generation, I am starting to get a different perception. Sure enough, I still think money accounts for a big part of all the reasons people become entrepreneurs, but I have also come to realize that what many entrepreneurs actually want to do is to make the world a more efficient (and in most cases better) place through solving recurrent problems in various areas. I believe that the best ideas and creations must come from those who foremostly just want to solve a problem, not triggered by any other factors such as money or fame. Because, at the end of the day, doing something out of one’s passion, belief and self-initiated purpose is what creates meaning. And meaning is what can truly create an endless drive that is essential for success.
Another misconception I’ve had about entrepeneurship is that, the idea and the product all have to be really big, or at least become that really quickly. Maybe it’s because that majority of the time, small startups don’t get as much attention as the ones that have become very big and successful. Or that I don’t pay enough attention to them… But after today’s lecture, I strangely got very excited just by knowing that you should/can start small and find a solution to a problem that serves “only” a smaller (core) group of people. It actually makes a lot of sense – one step at a time, right? And you don’t have to go very drastic with the product – small changes and improvements suffice 🙂 Next time, I will no longer be dismissive about ideas that come to my mind. I will get on with it and think, ‘who else can benefit from this idea?’ and ‘how cna I take this one step further?’
So, what’s upcoming now is to generate a good idea sketch. Good to learn that brainstorming from scratch might not really help. However, Idea Generation is just the beginning. I read somehwere that a sound business plan and execution are just as important, if not more. So, with that said – I am looking forward to the upcoming lectures!
/Yuwei (Yuwzhng), Team Dreamgineering