Getting rich quickly
Getting rich quickly seldom happens, unless you have won the lottery or inherited wealth. When it does happen, it’s usually due to many more factors than just hitting the market at the right moment with an idea and a little money. Most people are neither entrepreneurs, nor flush with investor money, yet they seem to think venture capitalists are eager to hand out checks to people with good ideas. Nothing could be further from the truth. A good idea is valuable only to someone in a position to execute it.
I often hear new ideas that sound exciting, but lack the foundational pillars needed to prop up a real business. Rather than trying to market an idea, ask yourself a couple of simple questions: “How can I build a business around this idea? Is there someone else out there who is in a position to execute my idea?”
If you have an idea that you think has merit, see if you can make it fly by pitching it to interested and influential people. Or, simply give it to someone else — and watch the results come back to you.
That’s right: give it away. If it is a success, you’ll benefit both personally and professionally. The fact that you gave it away won’t matter in the long run, even if you measure success by how much money you have in the bank.
Success should be measured by the amount of impact you have on the world around you, by how many lives your ideas influence. Money may be a byproduct of an idea’s impact, but it certainly is not the only gauge of success.
As Seth Godin has said: The guy who came up with the idea of sliced bread never made any money. The real money was made by Wonder Bread, the company that packaged, marketed, and sold pre-sliced bread to the masses. It’s better to execute the idea than to invent it. You want to convince someone that they need to execute your idea to become successful — or do it yourself.
So, when you have a great business idea that you’re sure can make you rich, step back and ask yourself: “Do I have what it takes to build a business around this idea? Do I have the passion to see this through?” If you can’t answer yes to both questions, find out who does have the business passion and acumen, and pitch it to them. If they decline to invest in it, you can open-source the idea, and see what happens. If it has an impact, you could be one of the lucky ones.
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Posted on Apr 23, 2008 by Kevin Milden
@Paul Grunt — Thanks Paul. It is really sad because a few people made a ton of dough on the web in the very beginning. Almost 15 years later we are all still plagued with the “Get Rich Quick Online” attitude that I think ruins the dynamic. You can make money on the web, but like any industry, it is good to understand what works and what doesn’t. At New Leaders we are trying to keep it simple by explaining what we do clearly. It is hard to believe that even 15 years later, most people don’t have the slightest idea of how it all works, yet they want to get rich quickly. When I talk to a prospect that wants to start an online business but has no prior experience, I ask them to get a basic education about design, html, technology, and networking – either from books or sites. If they are going to run a web business, then they need to understand the basics in order to communicate properly. Asking the right questions is always better than pretending you know the answer.
Posted on Apr 28, 2008 by Kevin Milden
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I like your thoughts here Kevin. Your passion for delivering an idea is very inspiring!
Posted on Apr 28, 2008 by Paul Grunt