Pragmatic. Logical. Charismatic. You’re pretty sure you could manage a business and do it properly too. It sounds like a lot of fun, but you don’t want to be tied to someone else’s dream – if you’re going to run a business, you want to make your mark. It has to be something that’ll keep you going once the novelty has worn off. If you’re ambitious but lacking inspiration, there are a few places you can mine for that great idea. So, where do great ideas come from?
1. Passion
Passion brings a bit of colour into your life! It gives us a reason to get out of bed in the morning and without it our quality of life is severely impacted. What are you passionate about? Finding a way to turn your passion into a business means that every morning you’ll be jumping out of bed to start your day! Not sure what your passion is just yet? Try some different things – you never know what’s just around the corner.
2. Anger
You know how fast companies are to respond to complaints on social media? Big companies know that anger can be contagious and if many people are enraged at the same problem, they need to develop a solution and fast. If there’s something that frustrates you, you’ve got an instant problem to solve. What can you do to make it better?
3. Necessity
As human beings, there are some basic needs that sustain us: air, food and water come to mind. Maybe you already have food and even Sainsbury’s offers free air and water, but we also have more complex needs. Psychologist Abraham Maslow developed a ‘hierarchy of needs’ to show what motivates people at different stages of development. Whether looking at basic needs or more advanced, once you know what you want to improve, an idea is likely to follow.
4. Addiction
Everyone’s got something they’re addicted to – whether we’re talking about coffee, football or even Pokémon (hey, you gotta catch ‘em all, right?). Some addictions are healthier than others, but it’s hard to deny their business potential. Whether feeding an addiction or helping to kick the habit, looking at what people can’t live without is a good way to find your business idea.
5. Hobbies
People often talk about turning their hobbies into a business, and with e-commerce sites like etsy and Facebook marketplace it’s now easier than ever to get started. If there’s something you really enjoy doing or making, why not have a go at freelancing? There will be people out there looking for your skills and if not there’s no harm done, as you’re already doing it for yourself.
Ready to get started? Try to write down 2-3 things for each of the points above. Do any ideas overlap? Business ideas that fall into more than one category are more likely to be a success, so see what you can come up with!
