Key Takeaways
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Ideas Are Cheap, Execution is Hard:
- Finding business ideas is easy; the challenge comes in execution and validation.
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Understanding Validation:
- Validation is often misunderstood. It doesn't mean a guaranteed success but indicates the potential of a business idea.
- Validate by determining:
- If people want it.
- If you can build it.
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Types of Problems:
- Problems can be big or small, frequent or infrequent.
- For a bootstrap founder, ideally solve "small but frequent" problems.
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Three-Step Validation Approach:
- Personal Outreach:
- Reach out directly to individuals discussing the problem.
- Gauge the problem's substance, its frequency, and their willingness to pay for a solution.
- Content Creation:
- Create and distribute content discussing the problem (not the solution) on social media, blogs, or forums.
- Analyze feedback and interest to gather more insights.
- Paid Ads:
- Set up a landing page for a coming soon product.
- Run ads to see if strangers sign up for the waiting list, indicating broader interest.
- Personal Outreach:
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Final Advice:
- Following these steps doesn't guarantee business success, but it puts you closer to building something viable.
- Be cautious and avoid making radical financial decisions based solely on these validations.