Finding a startup idea for a $50k/m solo business

Hey Guys! Thanks for tuning in. Here are the stats of the week for solopreneurhunt.com

This week we’re going to cover:

1- Successful vs Unsuccessful Startups: 3 key mistakes to avoid as a new entrepreneur

2- 3 tools to help you find startup ideas

3- Idea vs Execution: Why your startup idea doesn’t need to be revolutionary.

What is a Startup? Successful Startup VS Failing Startup

In its simplest form. A startup can be classified into 2 categories:

1. An attempt to solve an unresolved Problem

2. An attempt to fulfill an unresolved Need

The key word is unresolved. You have to find a niche where demand is unfulfilled.

There are 3 most common mistakes entrepreneurs make :

1. The idea did not solve an ACTUAL problem. More of a “cool to have”

2. Too much competition & no differentiation (Niche was too broad)

3. The product & its value were marketed incorrectly either: Not enough, wrong strategies

So successful startups were the ones that nailed the 3. Even if just one of those is incorrect & it can ruin an otherwise perfect execution.

Do you know something else that is crucial?: Build something that YOU find important & meaningful.

Solve an issue that matters to you. Building a startup is extremely hard.

There will be highs, there will be lows.

So everybody knows that consistency & never giving up is the most important thing to be successful.

Then you must be building a solution to a problem you’re eager to solve. This will keep you going regardless of motivation.

Do you know why Elon Musk is so successful, perseverant & committed?

• He is building companies that he finds INCREDIBLY important & meaningful (Tesla, SpaceX, Boring Company)

• All of those companies intend to solve a very important problem. And problems that truly matter to Elon.

Here are the 3 best tools to help you find ideas:

1- ChatGPT

• One of the best functionalities of ChatGPT is its ability to adopt an “Archetype”. You can then use it as an advisor! Ask it for its 5 best ideas to get your brainstorming going.

2- Google Trends

• Go on Google Trends and write your industry/area of interest: Here is an example with the word “Poker”

• Now you can see what questions people ask and what Trends are linked to your desired industry.

3- Notion

• Build 3 columns, Concepts, Promising, Building.

  • Concepts: Anything goes there. Any app idea goes in there.

  • Promising: App ideas that solve a valuable & simple problem: You could build it with your level of skills.

  • Building: You select the idea that interests you the most and/or solves the most important problem. Bonus points if it has both!

• Throughout your day, think of the situations you encounter. What problems do you face? Can you think of a simple solution to solve it? Write everything down!

Idea vs Execution: Why a simple idea > complex one

Your startup idea doesn’t need to be revolutionary.

Do you know why?

Because Execution > Idea.

Executing a simple & niche idea that solves an actual problem is worth 100x more than having the idea of the century but executing only 5% of it.

There is no such thing as a million-dollar idea. There is however a million-dollar execution.

Idea x Execution = Business

So just pick a solution to one of your problems that you truly find important. And start building. The simpler the better. Just get the MVP out there! (Minimal Viable Product)

That brings me to the 3 startup ideas of the week:

1. ChatGPT addon to download & update files: Ever used ChatGPT for coding? Then you know tracking the changes it recommends is painful. How about a way to simply click “download” to automatically download the most up-to-date files?

2. ChatGPT app, finetuned for stock recommendation: Want to invest in the stock market but you don’t know which stock to invest in? What industries are good right, what trends, what market condition? Imagine a finetuned version of chatGPTthat recommends stock investments based on your pre-learned investment behavior & market trends (risk-averse, less risk-averse)

3. Uber-type app for property management: Are you renting out your place but currently on a business trip? Do your guests need help with something? Imagine an app that allows you to contract highly rated part-time property managers near your home to do specific tasks/checkups for you.

Now, what’s next for solopreneurhunt.com ?

1- Continuing organic marketing of the landing page waiting list

2- Build the core functionality: Browse courses by categories (Copywriting, Sales, Indie Hacking, etc.)

3- Build the database of courses: Get first feedback from customers on the waiting list

And that concludes this week’s newsletter 🔥

Hope you liked it and feel free to reach out @thezachhan on Twitter. Always happy to chat.