Are you in the process of developing some new ideas for your business right now? If you are, then today’s post is just what you need!
One of the most effective ways to generate valuable, new ideas and insights, is to think on paper. The act of committing our ideas onto a blank sheet of paper with a pen or pencil, seems to encourage thoughts to flow more freely (for me and many others I know), than simply jotting notes down via a computer keyboard.
Getting started
The challenge many people face when developing ideas in this way, is how to get started. For me, the secret to getting great answers and ideas, is to ask great questions. Here are a few questions to get you started and help you develop some new ideas.
If my business was perfect in every way, what would it look like?
- What would my income be?
- What would my client list look like?
- How many hours would I work each week?
- Where would I work from?
- Who would I hire?
- What would my marketing look like?
- Which of my current customers or clients would I no longer be working with?
- Which new clients would I replace the above clients with (name names)?
Then what?
Once you have pondered these questions or some of your own (or both), start writing! Get your pen moving and jot down as many answers as you can. Make sure you give yourself enough uninterrupted time to get as many ideas down as possible. If you can manage an hour, great. If you only have 30 minutes, that’s a good place to start (plus you might want to add some time management questions as well!)
Quick Tip: Don’t rule anything in or out. List everything and decide afterwards what’s worth working on and what’s not.
Will all your ideas be gold dust? Probably not.
Will some of them be useful? Yes.
Might 1 or 2 of your answers lead you to a significant breakthrough, which could massively improve your business? Yes, of course!
Everything starts with an idea
By developing new ways to encourage your creative thinking process, you can increase the number and quality of ideas you have. By acting on your best ideas, you significantly increase your potential. I wrote a post earlier this year on how to improve your thinking, which you may also find useful. In addition, this post has links to OVER 140 business development and marketing ideas.