Easy-to-dismiss Idieas

Jan 4, 2016
Once companies reach the billion dollar club, their basic idea and value proposition seem obvious, but this was not always the case in their early days.

Many billion dollar companies have ideas that were easy to dismiss at first. How many people really ride in black cars? Who really wants to watch live video streaming of people playing video games? Why does anyone care about yet another cloud backup and sync service? Photo messages… that disappear?!?! How many people are interested in renting a couch in someone’s home?

Airbnb co-founder Brian Chesky has discussed this openly:

When we came to the Valley, no one even wanted to invest in Airbnb. One of the reasons was they thought the idea was crazy. People thought I’d never stay in a stranger’s home. That’s creepy.
It turns out that the biggest ideas are not clear when you first see or hear them, either because the idea seems small, regulations are high, or the fundamental assumption seems flawed. However, successful companies often start with executing very well on an initial concept that is the beginning to a much bigger offering.

Do not be scared of shocking people with your ideas. A visionary is someone who sees 10 years in advance. Therefore, what he sees is often misunderstood by his own people. On the way to success, no one else will believe in your dreams. Be your #1 investor!!

Written by

Esdras malbranche