“How do you pick the business or industry to go into?”
I get asked this ALL the time and often people dont like my answer
Because I don't really have one. A lot of it is just feel and lessons from failed experiences.
The output of that is a “process” I’ve honed in over the years. And this is it:
It starts with energy.
Does the idea give me energy and excitement? I don't want to guess at the answer. It needs to be very apparent to me from the start.
If I notice my cursor keeps finding its way back to that tab over and over, then I know I’m drawn to it.
Most ideas fail that test fast. I'll be super obsessed all afternoon, wake up the next day, and it's gone.
Maybe thats my ADHD, or maybe that’s just a natural filter. If It fades away like that, I’m okay with it.
But energy only gets you to start. The thing I really need in is longevity.
This is the gauge I have for the ROI of the idea or business:
Will this idea give me back what I give to it.
Usually that’s measured by revenue, but not always. There are plenty of things I do that dont provide any monetary return, but with business, revenue is ultimately very important.
My whole strategy is one line: “I keep feeding an idea as long as it keeps feeding me back.”
Usually that doesn't last very long, and I let it go. But every once in a while it just keeps giving, and those are the ones that turn into a big business.
Every ‘yes’ here is a ‘no’ to something else. Saying yes to one idea means saying no to ten others. So it has to keep earning the yes.
When something earns enough for me to bring in a partner, I look for one thing first: trust.
Skill comes second. I'd rather hand it to someone I trust completely and teach them the ropes than a pro I have to watch over.
Further, If I pitch them and they're not immediately stoked, it's over. I've twisted arms before and partnered anyway. It never worked. Ok, rarely. But not worth it.
I can't sell someone into excitement. It has to already be there.
There it is, energy to start, longevity to stay and trust to scale.
I should probably put together a PDF on this and attach it, but that doesn’t excite me right now.
What does, however, is stuff like this youtube comment. That's freaking awesome.