Entrepreneurial Success

1) Understand: The ability to study and understand people of different likes, needs, characteristics, and demographics is priceless in marketing and innovation. Most companies don't understand that to make better products and services, you absolutely have to care about the person using it. This is known as having empathy for the consumer. It is imperative to have a genuine interest in the needs of those you are serving for innovation to exist.

2) Observe: Many entrepreneurs started by observing either themselves or someone else struggling over a process or task. Scott Cook, founder of Intuit, for example, observed his wife one night tediously paying the bills manually and wondered if there was a way he might be able to "quicken" the process. Since then, Quicken is still driving hundreds of millions of dollars for the company. The best innovators are those that experience first hand and are able to recognize trends and consumer needs immediately as they happen. This requires a keen sense of observation. As you observe people in their natural environments, it is important to ask the "why" question. For example, instead of accepting that one in five motorcyclists will eventually have an accident, ask the question "why?" Doing so will allow you to better understand and find the flaws in things you would not otherwise see. You can't ask the motorcyclist why, you have to be able to figure it out by using your intuition. Start by keeping a "bug list" throughout the day. Every time you notice something that bugs your or someone around you, write it down. At the end of the day, when you're relaxed and feeling inventive, think up the many things that could be done to get rid of these bugs.

3) Visualize: Your visualization potential is determined by your ability to see the end result without allowing your limitations to get in the way. In visualization, the devil's advocate is the enemy. The "vibrating cell phone" was invented by IDEO, who noticed that their employees became increasingly annoyed by people's cell phones going off during meetings. It didn't take long for them to realize that this was happening in corporate meetings around the world. They understood and had empathy for who they were addressing, the emotional value was there, and they visualized their end result- a meeting without the annoying interruptions of everyone's cell phones going off while discussing important matters. They tried putting a red flashing light on the antennae, a giant button that could be pressed immediately to forward the person to a "please hold" message while the person exited the meeting and many other concepts before they finally came up with the vibrating cell phone.

4) Evaluate and Refine: It is critical that after an idea has been generated, and the concept has been thought through using visualization, it must be evaluated for and refined. This involves a concept known as prototyping. You don't truly know whether or not something will work until a "mock-up" has been created. At this point, another brainstorming session is usually required in order to evaluate and refine the prototype.

5) Implement: Implementation is the action taken to the idea. It is the mass production. It requires a shear determination and willingness to do to whatever it takes to take it to the public. Often, funding is required to make this happen. This is when your strength of character, perseverance, and willpower is often tested, as is the validity of your product. You know that it works, and while You may know that it will help many people, you just have to be able to convey it and convince those that have the resources to make it happen. Never lose sight of the fact, however, that you have what 99.9% of people do not- the ability to master innovation. Such qualities are highly sought after and valued by corporations and investors, so it is important to not get frustrated and have absolute perseverance in your quest for implementation.