Many entrepreneurs believe that the key to achieving huge success and making a lot of money is coming up with revolutionary, life–changing ideas; however, nothing could be further from the truth. Due to our natural tendency to avoid change, innovative ideas such as the iPhone do not come by very often. In fact, making such a huge, groundbreaking impact on an industry is almost impossible.
One does not need to reinvent the wheel to make a lucrative, impactful idea. A winning idea does not have to be technical or complicated to be successful. In fact, complicated business strategies with protracted execution time can be an entrepreneur’s worst enemy. It is better to improve on an existing idea and bring it to the market. Many entrepreneurs with humble beginnings and simple ideas have translates their ideas into successful businesses.
Benefits of Reinventing
People who choose to reinvent an existing idea can count on there being a ready market for their idea, which is a colossal advantage. Creative ideas may be easy to come by; however, ensuring that consumers will spend their money on those ideas is a whole new ballgame. In addition, it takes a lot of time and money to test a new idea or product. Reinventing in a market that already exists is cheaper, less risky, and less time consuming.
The Winning Idea
Most people have heard the phrase “thinking out of the box”. Seth Godin, a successful author and marketing guru, says that it is better to think the next box. Looking at things from several perspectives can be highly enlightening. Sometimes, all one has to do is overturn the box to come up with a winning idea.
There are many examples of such simple yet brilliant ideas. For example, a gentleman from Mumbai, India who was fed up with having to cope with soggy pizza deliveries came up with a simple innovation. While most pizza boxes came with vents on the sides, he thought of adding vents on top instead. Adding vents on the top of the box retains heat while releasing steam. In this case, one would say he thought on top of the box.
Entrepreneurs can draw inspiration from everyday products and reinvent them. Ways of knowing whether your idea could turn into a successful business include:
• Your idea solves a problem
• You are ready to put in the energy and time
• Other people are excited about your idea
• Your idea is simple and you respond to feedback
• The timing is right
Creative thinkers are able to breathe life back into stagnant products and make them popular in the market.