Eureka! You bolt upright in bed… you’ve got it.  The perfect business idea.  Finally.  Yes.

Wasting no time, you run to your computer and start searching to see if anyone else has done it… page 1 of your search… well, looks like maybe someone else might be.  But, let’s assume they aren’t doing it well.  Page 2… oh no, three more hits.  Page 3… dang it, Microsoft has a team and Google is ready to launch next week, and looks like three new startups just got VC funding last year.

You sulk back to bed, and hope another idea will strike you…

The First Idea might not be the Best Idea Anyways

Successful entrepreneurs note that the early stages of developing their business concept are a struggle between obstinacy and flexibility. On one hand, the entrepreneur wants to stick to his or her vision in spite of the criticism and doubts. But, on the other hand, the entrepreneur recognizes the importance of adapting the initial idea as research, experience, and understanding increases.

Researchers Hills and Singh asked the entrepreneurs in their study about the change in their original business idea since its beginning. Over 50% of the entrepreneurs said that their idea is about the same, while the other half said the idea or opportunity has changed a “little” to a “great deal”.

• Idea/Opportunity has changed a great deal – 13.2%
• Idea/Opportunity has changed a little – 36.4%
• Idea/Opportunity is about the same – 50.4%

According to the results of a survey by Launch Pad, a marketing consulting company, 44% of the high technology companies they surveyed in 2003 said the company had made a significant change in their business model in the prior year – changes ranging from a new product line or target market to pricing or sales model (and that is a significant change made in just the prior year). The ultimate lesson for entrepreneurs is to recognize that there is a balance in play between obstinacy and flexibility. Recognizing when the idea, focus, model or strategy needs to be changed, in any amount, is an important skill. However, the flipside of the discussion is that an entrepreneur also must recognize when to stick to their vision even in the face of outside pressures or scrutiny.

What is the lesson here?  Find an idea that you think is good, but don’t hold out for a perfect idea — since it may well change and change dramatically in the early stages.  Ideas are just the start — you can’t build a business on just a bright idea!

Why are you waiting around for a brilliant business idea?

Don’t be discouraged if you don’t have that “big” or “perfect” idea yet.  In fact, it may be better if you don’t, as you could find out that your ‘big’ idea really wasn’t that big at all or your ‘Eureka’ moment was only half the story.  Truth is, as you can see — many businesses (nearly half in fact) undergo change from that initial idea or opportunity, and the business itself will undergo a series of changes through its lifecycle.  If you are searching for the “perfect” idea or an idea no one can find fault with before you even start the business, you’re probably going to be looking a long long time…

We’ve all heard the story about what investors look at in a business — team, technology, and market (or some derivation of that combination).  Idea seems to be missing from that list… perhaps you could say it is part of technology, but the truth is, the big ideas aren’t the key to business success.

Missing that “big” or “perfect” idea can be holding you back from starting your business.  But perhaps what you are really missing is the right team around you to refine or enhance your idea to make it a ‘big’ or ‘perfect’ idea.

If you are waiting around for that perfect business idea to strike you in the middle of the night, I hate to tell you this, but look at these success stories that refocused or retooled their business idea during the process.  I’m sure very few of us would fault the Paypal founders now for starting down one path only to shift away from cryptography to “discover” the secret that led to its $1.5 billion dollar acquisition by ebay in 2002.