You must begin at the beginning, right?  For the most part, that’s right. It seems logical that the first step in starting up a business is to select your “BIG IDEA.” In other words, identify your product , your target market, your competition, and your unique value proposition.  Sounds like something straight outta the “How to become your own boss” handbook!  Some people actually have true epiphanies – they see a need in the market, or have a deep passion that they can somehow monetize and presto magico! Their big idea appears before them.

For those of us who are not prone to epiphanies, we have to muscle it out. That’s right – inspiration through brute force. Setting out to find your niche, you go through a process to answer the question What do I have to offer the world?

In my previous work, I’ve accomplished this by

locking myself in a room with a whiteboard and not coming out until I am either exhausted or finished. It’s quite daunting and might not give the best possible answer to a big question, but it gets the job done. In most of these situations, it was a solution to a big problem, rather than a big idea, but it’s still the same blank white board staring at you when you start!

Alternatively, you can sit in a field of daisies and day dream, go on a walk and cogitate, or hash through ideas while riding a stationary bike. Those are great beginning processes, however I find my moments of inspiration tend to be right at the most inopportune times, and I have no way to record them. I’ve done everything from pulling over and sending myself a text message or voicemail, to writing on my hand to promising myself that I’ll remember.  I have also bought special notebooks or journals to keep THE LIST.

This time, my process is a bit different. Still somewhat brute force, but allows for a little more natural flow.

Check out this box – my husband gave it to me as a “Good luck and kick ass on your new adventure” gift! (Isn’t he the sweetest guy ever?? ) In addition to being a wonderful gift and well designed by a cool company in New York, (@bestmadeco), it’s going to be my Little Box of Big Ideas. I keep a stack of blank notecards with me everywhere I go, including my night stand. While any scrap of paper will do, I do like a little order to minimize the chaos. Whenever I get an idea – big or small, I write it down and it eventually gets into the box. The box stays on my desk so I can’t misplace it.  Right now I have about 15 cards in the box – not all big ideas, but some may lead me down a path to a big idea. Some have ideas like Serve the community, mom and pop retailers, something to do with scooters, light blue and yellow. All fragments of what I want in this new adventure.

Once I get enough Potential Big Ideas, then I’ll start on the white board and muscle my way through to inspiration. But in the meantime, I’ll carry around index cards and a writing instrument with me everywhere I go to make sure I don’t miss my chance  – whether I’m having lunch with a friend, hiking, building a bunkhouse in Pine County or writing at a coffee shop.

Here’s the bottom line: Do whatever works for you to get your own Big Idea  – because no matter how hard you work, you need to be inspired by what you bring to market! If you aren’t in love with it – your customers won’t be either!