Preparation

Idea Generation

As an entrepreneur, it is important to spend time looking at your idea and trying to come up with new possibilities, extra features, alternatives, etc. This will not only give you an even better understanding of your idea, it will improve it and will make your business more competitive.

CREATIVE THINKING

• Widen your perspectives
• Question assumptions (Why not? What if?)
• Break the rules
• Make associations.

2. Bring your thinking back into the real world:

• Evaluate
• Judge
• Tried before?
• Will it work?

Try the following creative thinking techniques:

• Brainstorming
• Attribute Listing
• Who, What, Where, When, Why, How
• Assumption Smashing
• Discontinuity.

Technique 1: Brainstorming

1. Get a group together (Four is the minimum, preferably more)
2. Define a problem and discuss it
3. Redefine the problem
4. Practice run to warm up the mind – How many uses can you find for a paperclip?
5. Brainstorming
   • Aim to generate as many ideas as possible
   • All ideas are acceptable
   • The crazier the idea the better
6. Select the craziest idea and brainstorm that idea for a while.

Technique 2: Attribute listing
This technique is best used when you are thinking of adapting or developing an existing product or service.

Take the particular product and list its attributes: For example, shape, size, design, materials, colour, functions and cost. Then take each attribute and try to find as many alternatives to it as possible.

Technique 3: Who, what, where, when, why, how
Tease out different perspectives and ideas with any product, service, problem or situation, using the six prompts above.

Technique 4: Assumption-smashing
List the assumptions that underpin the problem or idea, then explore what happens if you drop assumptions. For example, why assume that this product should be made of plastic. What if it were made of something else?

Technique 5: Discontinuity
Disrupt your own patterns. Programme interruptions in your day. Do something you have never done before or read something you would not normally read. Watch some different TV programmes.

Putting it into practice
Developing an idea is only part of the battle. The idea must also work in practice. Therefore, it is important to ask yourself some critical questions about your business and your product/service:

1. Why is it a good idea?
2. On what assumptions is that opinion based?
3. How can you prove that those assumptions are correct?
4. What types of customer will be interested in your product/service?
5. Why?
6. List four reasons why the idea may not work.
7. List four reasons why it will work.
8. What is different about this idea from others already in the market-place?
9. Why are those differences important?
10. What if ... you changed the product/service in some way?