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User mikekchar on the value of ideas: My advice is to lower the value of ideas. A lot of time people think, "If only I had a good idea I would be successful".
by ivars 6y ago
User mikekchar on the value of ideas:
My advice is to lower the value of ideas. A lot of time people think, "If only I had a good idea I would be successful". You will see other people saying things like, "Buy my good idea!". But really, good ideas are a dime a dozen. Good ideas, bad ideas... it actually doesn't make much difference. What makes the difference is execution and timing.
For things that take a long time, timing is essentially random. The world is chaotic. Had I known everyone and their dog would be locked down in their houses for months on end, I would have built something to cater to them. But of course, there is no way to know. I find it amusing that just before the pandemic there was a thread on HN talking about overvalued unicorns and Zoom was up near the top of the list. What would need to happen to make Zoom a household name, people asked?
To be successful, really what you need is execution and to have the patience to wait until what you are doing is relevant. Of course there is the fear that it will never be relevant. However, if you accept the thesis that the good idea is not valuable in itself, then you realise that it is not really valuable to pivot without a really good reason. A good idea that is never relevant is just as worthless as a bad idea that is never relevant. However, even a bad idea that is executed very well and ready when the opportunity arises can be successful.
- pier25 6y agoGood comment. Also I don't think most people can really tell when an idea is good. Seemingly good ideas fail all the time and if it was easy to determine which ideas are good everyone would be successful.
- robocat 6y ago> Also I don't think most people can really tell when an idea is good. My heuristic is that if you google it and someone is doing it successfully, you know you had a good idea, and it makes me happy. If you google it and nobody is doing it, it is a bad idea for some reason that’s not obvious.
- harry8 6y agoAnd if you see $100 on the road, leave it there, it's fake or someone would have picked it up first.
- zimablue 6y agoThis is an excellent comment, it should be noted given the thread.
- pixelface 6y agoSomething that bugs me about this metaphor is the foregone conclusion that the thing on the ground is identifiably a $100 bill. Clearly anyone seeing a great idea for the taking will do so, but the discussion is really more comparable to seeing a bit of trash on the ground and pondering whether it might be money or not. The issue is having ideas but not the ability to determine whether they are good ideas nobody has capitalized on yet or bad ideas that others have abandoned. I find myself asking this question often about a lot of things -- am I somehow so fortunate or clever that I've conjured a great idea, or do I lack the clarity of thought or prior knowledge to understand why my idea is bad, useless, or somehow infeasible?
- whymauri 6y agoFWIW, the quote about money on the ground initially comes from a critique on the efficient market hypothesis, not commentary on the nature of ideas. So it's expected for there to be analogical disconnect here. For it to work as intended, you'd have to construct (or buy into) some framework for an "efficient marketplace of ideas."
- pixelface 6y agoAbsolutely and I am aware of its origins, but I've seen the analogy brought out at least a few times here on HN when discussing the merits and potential of an idea that seems obvious but has gone unexplored or uncommercialized. I get the sense that there may be some beliefs around the evaluating of ideas, at least in this crowd, that lead some to see it as being comparable to noticing a sum of money on the ground. I'd love to understand that.
- phkahler 6y agoI think the best way to evaluate an idea is to ask if you'd use it yourself. If it solves a problem for you, there will be others that want it - nobody is unique. It's when you think you know how to solve someone else's problems that things go wrong - collaboration is important in that case.
- jtsiskin 6y agoYes. If my friend had pitched Airbnb or Uber many years ago, I’m sure I would have dismissed them as impossibly risky. Or Snapchat as only useful in niches. Or Peloton as way overpriced compared to exercise videos on YouTube.
- p1mrx 6y agoIt can be fun to think of "new" ideas, and then search the Internet for them. This week, I wanted a handheld device to push buttons and open doors without touching them; found several for sale (though the models without covers seem useless.) Later I wanted a 3D support structure to fit under a mask and increase its usable surface area; found several for sale.
- greenyoda 6y ago> 3D support structure to fit under a mask Wow, I also thought about this idea. For those who are interested in something like this, you can search for "frame for face mask" on Amazon...
- Kosirich 6y agoI don't know if you have seen this one: https://bellus3d.com/solutions/facemask.html https://bellus3d.com/solutions/facemask.html *I have no affiliation to the site or map, just remembered a colleague showed me
- StavrosK 6y agoIsn't this a bit useless? Surgical masks aren't meant to fit well, they're meant to keep your spittle from leaving your face. N95 masks are meant to filter incoming air, and those are made to fit well.
- Kosirich 6y agoI kind of agree with you. Actually I think it looks more discomforting than just wearing a surgical mask with straps.
- iso947 6y agoI use the end of my key to push buttons. A shoulder shove works for pushing doors. If I have to pull occasionally I use my T-shirt to get a grip. If it were a major problem I’d use a glove.
- combatentropy 6y agoI totally agree. It is similar to a post by Derek Sivers, "Ideas are just a multiplier of execution", https://sive.rs/multiply https://sive.rs/multiply
- test1235 6y agothe founder of 'peloton' is an epitome of this, becoming a billionaire over the course of the pandemic. https://www.businessinsider.com/peloton-founder-ceo-john-foley-net-worth-crosses-1-billion-2020-9 https://www.businessinsider.com/peloton-founder-ceo-john-fol...