The 4 things I wasn’t told before I became a startupper.

Don’t expect an article about waking up early and writing things down on funky notebooks.

#1 — Having an idea doesn’t make it good.

Our parents lied to us. We are not that special, at least not from an inborn perspective. Most of us have been raised by overly supportive generation Xers telling us how extraordinary we were and it turns out we’re not.

“You were so advanced for your age that at some point we considered putting you in a special school.”

We all got golden medals just for showing up and if, as children, it was great to feel so empowered, it doesn’t result in creating hardworking and self-critical young adults. We were a bunch of happy and confident kids that’s for sure. But now, our real challenge is to become self-aware adults that are not too cocky and lazy. We need to learn to say things like:

“Wow, I really got carried away here! At first, it felt amazing but now that I look at it properly I can see it’s a shitty idea I shouldn’t waste my time on.”

and

“Well, I can see there is potential in this complex project. It won’t be easy but I’ll make it.”

#2 — Tell your idea to everyone

Hear ye, hear ye, all ye who pass by “no one wants to steal your idea”. Nobody! I know it’s shocking…

The truth is, even if it is the best idea in the world, at first, the world won’t care. Like not even for a single second. Also, your first concept needs refinement (#4) so there is really nothing to steal (yet). If you let yourself slip into this crazy paranoiac state of mind you are gonna to lose so much:

• Time
• Energy
• Opportunities
• Precious resources

Time:
Protecting the embryo of an idea is complex because it isn’t a finished product or service, and legal frameworks are just not designed to do so. Confidentiality agreements are pretty time-consuming to draft too for neophytes. But as they say “what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger” and in this case, you might become a little bit more knowledgable about the legal aspects of protecting an idea effectively. But I’m pretty sure that you have way more urgent things to do!

Energy:
If drafting compelling confidentiality agreements is complex well now try to convince people who have no idea about what you do to sign them! The bright side here is that you should practice your negotiation skills a bit.

Opportunities:
Did you get someone excited about your mysterious project? They even signed your brand new confidentiality agreement? Cool! Now, look at their disappointed faces when realising that your idea is just a draft.
It hurts I know… But remember that everything is a matter of expectation and in this case, after teasing people so much about your secret and revolutionary idea, you cannot blow their mind with the starting point of a potentially good idea. Long story short, you’ve lost your credibility and your audience attention. People won’t collaborate with you, introduce you to their network, advice you, guide you, etc…

Precious resources:
Encouragements AND criticisms are the fuel of an idea. Feedback are honestly the most precious resource you can afford at an early development stage. You cannot afford to waste it by keeping your great idea secret out of fear.
Be also aware that not telling anyone might also be a subconscious defense mechanism that you put in place to make sure that your idea won’t be confronted nor challenged. So here we go with #3!

#3 — Don’t take it so personally

You have created this little idea all by yourself or together with very meaningful people for you. It keeps you up at night but you love it deeply anyway. Looking at it from this perspective it seriously looks like a baby and that’s why it’s so easy to take everything you’re being told so personally.

When facing criticisms keep in mind that, 99% of the time, your interlocutor is not looking to hurt you personally. No one means that “your baby-idea is ugly”.

Except for a couple of sociopaths, willing to make you break under the pressure of their interrogation for fun, nobody is looking to destroy you. Most of the time, people actually genuinely want to help out. Concerns, doubts, misunderstandings you need to listen (not just “hear”, but “listen” carefully) in order to refine your idea so that you can “give it the best shot possible at life”!

#4 — Nothing is written in stone

As the saying goes “only fools never change their minds”.

Have you noticed how great ideas, just like great dates, often inexplicably start looking a little clumsy and not as flamboyant as they used to after a while? It is a little scary and it is also a great source of disappointment but it is a healthy process. You can’t let it discourage you. In fact, never questioning nor doubting the validity of your idea is going to lead you to a sudden, unexpected and very painful failure in the end.

The process of listening to others’ concerns as well as your own and implementing changes accordingly will only let you build a stronger idea that will more easily be turned into reality later on. Just remember that ideas, just like every living beings, evolve or die.