A great idea alone will not make you successful. An idea is simply the first step in the task of converting your creativity into an opportunity. How do entrepreneurs transform a good insight into a marketable opportunity? These 5 steps can guide you through the process:

The 5-step Creative Process for Entrepreneurs

• Preparation — After coming up with a great idea, let the left side of your brain do some information gathering. The left side of your brain is analytical, objective and rational. Use it to examine and collect information related to the idea.
• Mastication — Mastication is the act of chewing. Once enough general information has been gathered, let the right side of your brain “chew” on the idea. The right side of your brain is intuitive and subjective; it will approach the idea from a holistic perspective and find synergies you never realized.
• Incubation — Walk away from the idea. This may seem counter-intuitive, but in actuality you are way too close to the idea after the first two steps. It is important to back away from the idea and let it incubate and mature in your mind at a subconscious level. The best way to do this is to engage yourself in an activity that allows you to lose track of time (e.g. exercising, playing video games, etc.).
• Illumination — Most great inventor/entrepreneur success stories begin their tale at this step — when the proverbial “light bulb” turns on. This “Eureka!” moment is the culmination of the preparation, mastication and incubation steps. At the point of illumination, the synergized idea bursts out of subconscious incubation and into your conscious mind — usually when least expected.
• Commercialization — Some may say this is the easy part, others might tell you that the real work starts here. Commercializing your idea is the last step in its transformation into an opportunity. In this step you are smoothing the edges of the idea and developing a model for monetization. Who will pay for it? How will you manufacture it? Where should you position it in the market?

Attribution:

• New Venture Creation (Timmons & Spinelli)
• John Schuyler: 5-Steps in the Creative Process

Kawasaki believes the essense of entrepreneurship is about making meaning; changing the world in a positive way should be the core of any new start up. In The Art of the Start, he defines four ways to create meaning:

• Make the world a better place
• Increase the quality of life
• Right a terrible wrong
• Prevent the end of something good

“If you make meaning, you will probably make money. But if you set out ot make money, you will probably not make meaning and you will not make money.”

Does your business strive towards one of these four goals? Seeking meaning shifts your focus away from money, power, prestige and all of the other temporal results of starting a company and instead focuses it on changing the world in a positive way. Will people 200 years from now still benefit from the things your company does today? Set out to create genuine meaning and they just might.

You can watch Kawasaki speak more on this topic and others at the Stanford Technology Ventures Program website.

Method 1: Same Line Item

1. Description: Replacing light bulb / Quantity: 1 / Price: $10.00 / Total: $0.00

Total Balance Due: $0.00

Method 2: Separate Line Item

1. Description: Replacing light bulb / Qty: 1 / Price: $10.00 / Total: $10.00

2. Description: Light bulb discount / Qty: 1 / Price: ($10.00) / Total: ($10.00)

Total Balance Due: $0.00

Important keys to remember:

• Invoice everything! Doing this “makes it official” in the customer’s eyes.
• Always make sure to clearly state the regular price of every product or service. This establishes the value of everything you provide.
• Explain to your customer why you are providing this product/service for free. Optionally, explain that this is a one-time offering.

Giving away things for free is fun and rewarding, sacrificing value to do so is not. Make sure your customers understand and appreciate the value of the product or service that you are providing them at no cost. Your life will be easier for doing so.

Reading a business magazine in the doctor’s office inspired Joseph Tantillo to try his hand at online retailing. At the time, he and his wife were expecting their first child and wanted to work from home. An article about starting an online store jumped out at him, he recalls—and, as a member of a fraternity in college, he decided to sell personalized Greek apparel to that market.

…

Using the strong Greek network worked, as he’s built GreekGear.com’s yearly sales to $1.9 million.

Read the full post about GreekGear.