Why is it that some small business owners and start-up founders come up with solutions to customer problems that are far superior to those available on the market? What separates the winning product from the loser? How do innovative young entrepreneurs steal the march on their competitors?
It’s an easy thing to say but a difficult thing to do. That’s to keep pushing after you think you have found the best solution, answer or idea. I suppose it’s human nature to come up with a solution that you think is ideal and stop. You may not feel the need to push the boundaries or your boundary but what if you could go further and come up with something far better than you had originally envisaged?
In creative thinking you will come across the analogy of a bow and arrow. The longer you hold the tension of the bow, the better your aim. This simply means that the longer you hold your creative tension, the more chance you have of coming up with an idea, concept or solution that best meets your potential customers’ needs. Robert Fritz, the author who has written on creativity, uses the analogy of an elastic band. Holding the elastic band taut for as long as possible increases your creative solutions.
Perhaps one of the best questions that you can ask yourself is, “What other possibilities are there?” This question will force you to think beyond your first, second or third solution.
It’s easy to be satisfied with your first idea and then start to develop it. But what if there are better, quicker and more cost-effective solutions? You’re only going to find out if you keep your idea generation process going.
Yes, it may be hard work to keep coming back to the idea generation process to stretch your own personal boundaries and come up with something better than you had intended. But many start-up founders put their work away for a week or perhaps longer, let their ideas cool and come back and tackle the problem from a different angle or perspective.
Nobody says you have to do it this way but in this competitive environment where thousands if not hundreds of thousands of people are breaking into the market with new products and services, you need to stand out.
If you get stuck, you may want to try other idea generation techniques to spur you further. They are many available and you could try some such as the SCAMPER process, lateral thinking, mind maps, freewriting or even use a desire map.
Eventually, you need to find a solution that satisfices, which essentially means is the best possible solution that you can come up with realistically to solve a specific problem or issue. You don’t want to go on and on seeking for perfection but never getting anything out into the marketplace. A minimum viable product is all the rage these days in the lean start-up thinking movement but coming up with your best possible solution before you test on the market can save you much time, money and heartache. This resource, “Breakthrough Ideas” will help you.
