I like the quote: "Be in love with your problem." My brother told me that some many ideas fall flat because their creators have a "solution in search of problem."
* Your idea does not have to be great from the start, it can (and probably will) naturally evolve * Keep a "problems book" instead of "ideas book" * Personal connection to a problem is very useful * Have a brainstorm sessions with friends so you can identify potential co-founders, vibe one ideas =) * Do you have a unique perspective/insight on a problem because of your qualifications/experience? () * Build and MVP once you have an idea * Fall in love with the problem and customer, but not the product. * Release MVP within a week * Handpick initial users
Love the shorten format! It's always a pleasure to hear Mike discuss the fundamentals. You'd be surprised how often people over complicate things and get them wrong. Keep it up guys!
I saw this 6 mins video in my feed and I thought it would be a quick watch... turns out I had to pause every single time and takes notes because of how good the advice was... loved it!
When I started my partnership with Gagake Spa Technology, the support I received was thorough and timely. I am really impressed with the kind of service they offer not just to their customers but also to their partners
As a young man just starting out on my journey. It is so reassuring to know that this is the way to go about because it's how I have gone about it but wasn't sure I was doing it right. Thank you
Such a short video and yet Michael is able to drop some very important information so succinctly! Really appreciate doing this. This is almost like a condensed TLDR of several books on how to start-up.
The most I like is the way he says the advice in one-to-one way : It is like a confession from a friend. Regarding the information is like how to not waste time with great ideas without the knowledge of they solve a problem or there are users ( real users : not expectations in your head ) that will like them.
I dropped my cs major because I felt like i was too much qualified for this major. I am currently working as full stack dev and working on my startup everyday and hopefully, it will help the entire world 🌎. Thanks for giving more guidance
This is great! Even if you know this, it's always good to get reminders. Thank you for sharing! One thing that I want to add when you think about problems, is to try to answer the question: What is your life mission? Answering this question is a game changer, it's what will allow you to go solve a problem you are passionate about, that will help you push through until the end, and minimize your regrets.
Thank you so much Michael, you helped me answer a lot of questions especially with the " why are you qualified question" I was recently asked by a potential investor. Thank you so much
How to know if your idea will work ? 1. Research. 2. Is there competition in my space? 3. Are my competitors making money? 4. Can I do my idea differently and/or better? 5. What solution can you give your ideal customer? 6. Is there a demand. 7. See what people are searching for online. 8. Get to know your audience. 9. Build a MVP. 10. Crowdfunding. 11. Find a mentor. 12. Check the response of customers/audience by posting coming soon. 13. Get some feedback. 14. How will you market your business? 15. What are your passions ? 16. Turn to social media.
Great content, as usual! Does anyone else think he looks like he's being interrogated, though? "WHERE ARE THE STARTUP IDEAS! TELL US WHERE YOU'RE HIDING THEM!"
STEPS: (1) Start with a problem (NOT AN IDEA!) +Do I have a personal connection to the problem? (2) Brainstorm with friends. +Essential for recruiting co-founders. (3) Why are you uniquely qualified to solve this problem? +Special insight??? (4) MVP. +Don't fall in love with it; make it 4 learning & feedback. +Release quickly! +Fall in love with the problem & the customer, NOT THE SOLUTION. (5) Initial users. +Handpicked. +Problem MUST be SEVERE ENOUGH 2 em 2 an extent of willing to pay 4 the soln, however shitty.
Notes from the video: Common misconception - that your idea has to be great Cofounder justin.tv -> later become twitch (and sold to amazon) Original Ideas was to create online reality tv show -> now it stream service for gamers 0:53 1.START WITH A PROBLEM Starting with idea is tricky (сложный) Because immediately people want to grade your idea Easier to start with a problem and how you can grade your problem If you start with a problem - ask yourself: do I have any relationship with this problem personally? Personal connection to a problem is really helpful for 2 reasons: 1. You can tell whether the solution is in the ballpark of solving the problem 2. When you’re dicouraged, you still have a personal connection to see you through untill you find a solution that does work I think the better than read the startups books -> read the problem books Brainstorm with friends: It’s a perfect time to start thinking how to recruit co-founders On this brainstorm sessions you can understand with whom you are talk well Do it with a friends you might want to create a startup with 2:43 2.WHY YOU UNIQUELY QUALIFIED TO WORK ON THIS PROBLEM NOW. Is there a some angle of the problem, that you think you understand, that other don’t understand (maby some personal experience with the problem you have) Look at some other people how tried to solve this problem before -> how they solving the problem now, or how the failed to solve this problem You can get basic understanding - what other people thought their unique insight was and wether is the same or different than yours. 3:42 3.YOUR MVP (MINIMUM VIABLE PRODUCT) MVP - it’s a first version of the product that you released and test an idea - is it solve the problem Most important thing in MVP => Don’t fall in love with it Because your MVP may not resolve the problem, or resolve it very poorly And it’s the first step in the learning process - whether the saw problem is solvable A lot of people fall in love with their product, and not in love with the problem or their customer Treat your product in a way that it can change, developed or improved How to not fall in love with initial product -> Release it quickly Often an MVP can released in day or weeks It’s not gonna be perfect, and not might be that you are proud of, but it can be beginning of a learning about whether or not you can actually solve the problem 3:45 4.INITIAL USERS Your initial users should be almost be hand-picked You should have a strong opinion about who should be your initial customer is And you shouldn’t try to solve this problem for someone who: 1) isn’t willing to try a startup 2)The problem you are trying to solve is not really important problem in their life Your goal with MVP is not - how many people will use your product But to test for ANY GOUP OF YOUR CUSTOMERS is that MVP actually solve thier problem The best startups is very carefully sort the people who will test their MVP - and make sure that it is a right time of the customers 5:50 IN CONCLUSION The road map is: Think about problem -> Brainstorm with friends -> Why you uniquely qualified to work on this problem now -> Build Your first MVP (Don’t fall in love with it) -> Filter users who will test it -> Get feedback and improve your product
thanks so much for this, need to get the mvp out the door before doing anything more time commitment intense. I always feel the need to over deliver on things because I can but it just takes so much more time. I liked what you said about not being proud of it. I need to get over that shit and get in front of the customer! Thank you!
Thanks for this Micheal. I very much agree with having a problem book rather than an idea book. Interestingly I figured out my MVP sometime in January because I took out one of my books to outline the problems customers face, that way I can create a checkbox system to know which I have implemented and the right problems being solved. Had to label the book "Problem Book" now. Thanks for the insight.
Worst thing to do is let everyone join your platform. You want a highly controlled and vetted submarket where you can conduct experiments. You can't do that if you have 50 different types of users, 49 of which aren't your ideal customer,
Great pointers! I would definitely change my strategy for initial users for my MVP based on your last point. Wish I could edit that in my YC S19 application as well lol.
You could also add an additional tip, like creating a page and then sharing it, that way you won't have to re-tell the idea again and again. Maybe use page builders like GatherThoughts or Wix etc
Do not start with a problem! Start with demand. Demand is 'needing to accomplish something'. The problem with problems is that often people don't want help. 9/10 out of an audience might say they have a problem, but if 0/10 want the help then it leads to startup doom. The founders believe they can convince people to want to solve their problems. The other issue here is the GTM suggested if going after B2B. Heavily filtering users will lead to an overly optimistic approach especially if you are asking them only to test. Feedback given when people are asked to try something versus when they are asked to buy something is different. Want real feedback that filters by people who actually will pay? Sell them something. By all means do research and even help people for free, but do not kid yourself anything is 'validated' until people start paying with either money, referral, testimonial or something else that can help get more customers.
Michael, I was at an Ivy League School Innovation conference. I asked an alum, the President of a pharma company if he had a specific problem. He said absolutely my company has that problem. I asked him "how much does that problem cost your company?" He said " I don't know, but it is a huge number". Imagine what the president tells his board. I solve technical hardware problems. Unsolved these problems make a huge dent in industry revenue. A minor challenge is funding a demo solution. Michael how do I convince a uninterested CEO that their costly problem can be solved?
what about ideas in the construction industry? I have tons of ideas for software to save contractors time because my dad runs a construction business, but 'construction people' don't like using technology. Is that an up hill battle or is it possible to convince them to change?
there is the classic store with brick and mortar let's call it 1.0 in this store, products almost never change and the owner chose the products it is boring now, there must be a new store let's call it 2.0 in this store, products always change and people choose the products there will be via an app on the app, there is a huge catalog, people choose the products that will show up in the store the store is constantly being supplied with the products people choose
there is the classic store with brick and mortar let's call it 1.0 in this store, products almost never change and the owner chose the products it is boring now, there must be a new store let's call it 2.0 in this store, products always change and people choose the products there will be via an app on the app, there is a huge catalog, people choose the products that will show up in the store the store is constantly being supplied with the products people choose
I understand thinking about problems, but what might be the problem justinTV or Twitch solved? Is it thinking about problems or creating a problem to solve? Like i guess you could position twitch and argue it solved a “problem” but was it inherent ? What’s the problem it solved? Lack of viewership? Connectivity between the community?
I am thinking about a new type of restaurants : eating-spots, in eating-spots, food keeps changing, chefs also rotate, this is opposed to current restaurants thanks to this rotation of food and chefs, eating-spots are way more powerful than restaurants, along with that, there is an app, people vote for the food that will be cooked in the next days, menu is influenced by the live input of the people via an app,
How can we get to work with Y combinator? We have a new patented technology in the Virtual Desktop space that's allowing us to be priced close to half of our competition in the market while providing more features!
He says that now... Twitch didn't start with a problem. What problem does an online reality TV show solve? If we start with a problem, how will services for frivolous entertainment and leisure be built?
I am thinking about a new type of restaurants : eating-spots, in eating-spots, food keeps changing, chefs also rotate, this is opposed to current restaurants thanks to this rotation of food and chefs, eating-spots are way more powerful than restaurants, along with that, there is an app, people vote for the food that will be cooked in the next days, menu is influenced by the live input of the people via an app,
@@Zo-hc2fn Nice idea. This could really open up ones options, and set some interesting "urgency" or really enhance the "experience" factor for a food location opp. :D Nice thinking @Zo Wo
They did, issue was people could not stream prior to it. Starting "reality TV" was the main problem. And then it turned out to be the solution for game streaming, which wasn't their purpose. That's what Seibel means & examplifies with.
I like the quote: "Be in love with your problem." My brother told me that some many ideas fall flat because their creators have a "solution in search of problem."
* Your idea does not have to be great from the start, it can (and probably will) naturally evolve
* Keep a "problems book" instead of "ideas book"
* Personal connection to a problem is very useful
* Have a brainstorm sessions with friends so you can identify potential co-founders, vibe one ideas =)
* Do you have a unique perspective/insight on a problem because of your qualifications/experience? ()
* Build and MVP once you have an idea
* Fall in love with the problem and customer, but not the product.
* Release MVP within a week
* Handpick initial users
Thanks!
I personally like these short length videos instead of those 20+ min videos. Just straight to the point. Thanks a lot. 🔥
Love the shorten format! It's always a pleasure to hear Mike discuss the fundamentals. You'd be surprised how often people over complicate things and get them wrong. Keep it up guys!
I think it's human nature. There are tons of ambiguities in our work, and our brains don't deal with ambiguity very well
I saw this 6 mins video in my feed and I thought it would be a quick watch... turns out I had to pause every single time and takes notes because of how good the advice was... loved it!
When I started my partnership with Gagake Spa Technology, the support I received was thorough and timely. I am really impressed with the kind of service they offer not just to their customers but also to their partners
As a young man just starting out on my journey. It is so reassuring to know that this is the way to go about because it's how I have gone about it but wasn't sure I was doing it right. Thank you
How successful is your journey kindly reply bro
@@dhayalanm2206 so successful that he doesn't have time to comment now!
I wish I could like this video more than once.
Such a short video and yet Michael is able to drop some very important information so succinctly! Really appreciate doing this. This is almost like a condensed TLDR of several books on how to start-up.
These video essays are literally a goldmine of information
This is the only channel with no channel logo
This is called quality over quantity.👍🏻👍🏻
The most I like is the way he says the advice in one-to-one way : It is like a confession from a friend.
Regarding the information is like how to not waste time with great ideas without the knowledge of they solve a problem or there are users ( real users : not expectations in your head ) that will like them.
I dropped my cs major because I felt like i was too much qualified for this major.
I am currently working as full stack dev and working on my startup everyday and hopefully, it will help the entire world 🌎.
Thanks for giving more guidance
This is great! Even if you know this, it's always good to get reminders. Thank you for sharing!
One thing that I want to add when you think about problems, is to try to answer the question: What is your life mission?
Answering this question is a game changer, it's what will allow you to go solve a problem you are passionate about, that will help you push through until the end, and minimize your regrets.
Hope I'll see you across the table one day, thank you for the great advice!
Thank you so much Michael, you helped me answer a lot of questions especially with the " why are you qualified question"
I was recently asked by a potential investor.
Thank you so much
Just want to echo the sentiment -- huge fan of this format (in addition to longer form for deep dives | interviews)!
How to know if your idea will work ?
1. Research.
2. Is there competition in my space?
3. Are my competitors making money?
4. Can I do my idea differently and/or better?
5. What solution can you give your ideal customer?
6. Is there a demand.
7. See what people are searching for online.
8. Get to know your audience.
9. Build a MVP.
10. Crowdfunding.
11. Find a mentor.
12. Check the response of customers/audience by posting coming soon.
13. Get some feedback.
14. How will you market your business?
15. What are your passions ?
16. Turn to social media.
Creating a problem book was a groundbreaking idea for me, thanks!
This is a brilliant way to approach building any type of company
this is like first advice they should take before someone jumps with startup ideas 💡
don’t love your product(mvp) , love your problem and try to solve it with different angles .
Thank you Michael, can't wait to see more videos from you!
So much gold information in such little space of time! This is much better even than the Zuckerber interview!
Michael sounds like a practical chap
Great content, as usual! Does anyone else think he looks like he's being interrogated, though?
"WHERE ARE THE STARTUP IDEAS! TELL US WHERE YOU'RE HIDING THEM!"
All what Michael says is pure gold
Start with a problem is great way to start
Problem first. Thank you Michael
STEPS:
(1) Start with a problem (NOT AN IDEA!)
+Do I have a personal connection to the problem?
(2) Brainstorm with friends.
+Essential for recruiting co-founders.
(3) Why are you uniquely qualified to solve this problem?
+Special insight???
(4) MVP.
+Don't fall in love with it; make it 4 learning & feedback.
+Release quickly!
+Fall in love with the problem & the customer, NOT THE SOLUTION.
(5) Initial users.
+Handpicked.
+Problem MUST be SEVERE ENOUGH 2 em 2 an extent of willing to pay 4 the soln, however shitty.
Notes from the video:
Common misconception - that your idea has to be great
Cofounder justin.tv -> later become twitch (and sold to amazon)
Original Ideas was to create online reality tv show -> now it stream service for gamers
0:53 1.START WITH A PROBLEM
Starting with idea is tricky (сложный)
Because immediately people want to grade your idea
Easier to start with a problem and how you can grade your problem
If you start with a problem - ask yourself: do I have any relationship with this problem personally?
Personal connection to a problem is really helpful for 2 reasons:
1. You can tell whether the solution is in the ballpark of solving the problem
2. When you’re dicouraged, you still have a personal connection to see you through untill you find a solution that does work
I think the better than read the startups books -> read the problem books
Brainstorm with friends:
It’s a perfect time to start thinking how to recruit co-founders
On this brainstorm sessions you can understand with whom you are talk well
Do it with a friends you might want to create a startup with
2:43 2.WHY YOU UNIQUELY QUALIFIED TO WORK ON THIS PROBLEM NOW.
Is there a some angle of the problem, that you think you understand, that other don’t understand
(maby some personal experience with the problem you have)
Look at some other people how tried to solve this problem before -> how they solving the problem now, or how the failed to solve this problem
You can get basic understanding - what other people thought their unique insight was and wether is the same or different than yours.
3:42 3.YOUR MVP (MINIMUM VIABLE PRODUCT)
MVP - it’s a first version of the product that you released and test an idea - is it solve the problem
Most important thing in MVP => Don’t fall in love with it
Because your MVP may not resolve the problem, or resolve it very poorly
And it’s the first step in the learning process - whether the saw problem is solvable
A lot of people fall in love with their product, and not in love with the problem or their customer
Treat your product in a way that it can change, developed or improved
How to not fall in love with initial product -> Release it quickly
Often an MVP can released in day or weeks
It’s not gonna be perfect, and not might be that you are proud of, but it can be beginning of a learning about whether or not you can actually solve the problem
3:45 4.INITIAL USERS
Your initial users should be almost be hand-picked
You should have a strong opinion about who should be your initial customer is
And you shouldn’t try to solve this problem for someone who:
1) isn’t willing to try a startup
2)The problem you are trying to solve is not really important problem in their life
Your goal with MVP is not - how many people will use your product
But to test for ANY GOUP OF YOUR CUSTOMERS is that MVP actually solve thier problem
The best startups is very carefully sort the people who will test their MVP - and make sure that it is a right time of the customers
5:50 IN CONCLUSION
The road map is:
Think about problem -> Brainstorm with friends -> Why you uniquely qualified to work on this problem now -> Build Your first MVP (Don’t fall in love with it) -> Filter users who will test it -> Get feedback and improve your product
Micheal gives a lot of information in minutes.
Actually the Best vid on You Tube so far. You did not waste my time, you have inspired moi, Thank you.
very simply explained. Right attention span. Not too long
thanks so much for this, need to get the mvp out the door before doing anything more time commitment intense. I always feel the need to over deliver on things because I can but it just takes so much more time. I liked what you said about not being proud of it. I need to get over that shit and get in front of the customer! Thank you!
Thanks for this Micheal. I very much agree with having a problem book rather than an idea book. Interestingly I figured out my MVP sometime in January because I took out one of my books to outline the problems customers face, that way I can create a checkbox system to know which I have implemented and the right problems being solved.
Had to label the book "Problem Book" now.
Thanks for the insight.
Nobody:
Grammar nazi: insight*
GS4444 thanks for the correct, I'm glad you got the message
Michael Seibel has really good insights. Thanks for sharing Michael, you are doing great work.
Worst thing to do is let everyone join your platform. You want a highly controlled and vetted submarket where you can conduct experiments. You can't do that if you have 50 different types of users, 49 of which aren't your ideal customer,
Great pointers! I would definitely change my strategy for initial users for my MVP based on your last point. Wish I could edit that in my YC S19 application as well lol.
Can you please share what you're building?
@@reach2prasanna hello , i like to build startup, lets connect
@@Mb-vr3kj kindly lets connect
Thank you very much for sharing !!
Great content (as usual) and resonates with our own trip so far
You could also add an additional tip, like creating a page and then sharing it, that way you won't have to re-tell the idea again and again.
Maybe use page builders like GatherThoughts or Wix etc
This is Goated
Such an amazing video, so helpful in clearing my thinking up.
incredible advice. thank you Michael
Thanks a lot. Very educative and insightful! I'm about to download this video
Thank you for the video. I’d like to know what problem TikTok solving and how to present this problem in presentation for investors?
A treasure trove, 3 years later.
Wow, such a great explanation. Thanks so much
Thank you for making these videos.
Michael with the jewels 💭
SO helpful, loved this. More!
This is gold. I absolutely loved it!
Thank you a lot guys :)
You dont know how much this content worth
This is amazing value!
Thank you. Great information and to the point.
great explanation
Sound insight Michal, thank you
great tip as always
THANK YOU VERY MUCH!
These are great insights
Do not start with a problem! Start with demand. Demand is 'needing to accomplish something'. The problem with problems is that often people don't want help. 9/10 out of an audience might say they have a problem, but if 0/10 want the help then it leads to startup doom. The founders believe they can convince people to want to solve their problems.
The other issue here is the GTM suggested if going after B2B. Heavily filtering users will lead to an overly optimistic approach especially if you are asking them only to test. Feedback given when people are asked to try something versus when they are asked to buy something is different. Want real feedback that filters by people who actually will pay? Sell them something. By all means do research and even help people for free, but do not kid yourself anything is 'validated' until people start paying with either money, referral, testimonial or something else that can help get more customers.
Michael, I was at an Ivy League School Innovation conference. I asked an alum, the President of a pharma company if he had a specific problem. He said absolutely my company has that problem. I asked him "how much does that problem cost your company?" He said " I don't know, but it is a huge number". Imagine what the president tells his board.
I solve technical hardware problems. Unsolved these problems make a huge dent in industry revenue. A minor challenge is funding a demo solution.
Michael how do I convince a uninterested CEO that their costly problem can be solved?
This angle makes you intimidating like an interview lol.
Thank you for sharing!
Thank you!
Michael I have a solution for reducing carbon emissions what should I do?
Thanks for the advice!!
How does this work for startups that are by nature not about solving problems but making more recreational or entertaining products?
Great video. Thanks for sharing...
Could we just browse the social media contents and collect/aggregate top 10 problems faced by users?
what about ideas in the construction industry? I have tons of ideas for software to save contractors time because my dad runs a construction business, but 'construction people' don't like using technology. Is that an up hill battle or is it possible to convince them to change?
I think that it will be better to look for early adopters rather than laggards.
Thanks Michael
What problem did you try to solve with justin.tv? It may be really good example!
added this video to my playlist - thumb up :)
Super succinct. I'm sure this will help me
Thanks you for sharing!
there is the classic store with brick and mortar
let's call it 1.0
in this store, products almost never change
and the owner chose the products
it is boring
now, there must be a new store
let's call it 2.0
in this store, products always change
and people choose the products there will be via an app
on the app, there is a huge catalog, people choose the products that will show up in the store
the store is constantly being supplied with the products people choose
Great advice.
there is the classic store with brick and mortar
let's call it 1.0
in this store, products almost never change
and the owner chose the products
it is boring
now, there must be a new store
let's call it 2.0
in this store, products always change
and people choose the products there will be via an app
on the app, there is a huge catalog, people choose the products that will show up in the store
the store is constantly being supplied with the products people choose
Thank you 🙏🏻
I understand thinking about problems, but what might be the problem justinTV or Twitch solved? Is it thinking about problems or creating a problem to solve? Like i guess you could position twitch and argue it solved a “problem” but was it inherent ? What’s the problem it solved? Lack of viewership? Connectivity between the community?
Thanks for sharing appreciate it ❤️🙏🤘
Need (Problem) is mother of invention of good product or service
From such a theoretical perspective even though he didn’t experience it himself
Thanks a lot
I am thinking about a new type of restaurants : eating-spots,
in eating-spots, food keeps changing, chefs also rotate,
this is opposed to current restaurants
thanks to this rotation of food and chefs, eating-spots are way more powerful than restaurants,
along with that, there is an app,
people vote for the food that will be cooked in the next days,
menu is influenced by the live input of the people via an app,
GOLD🌟🌟
Thanks a lot.
this is amazing！
How to do the best market research before starting, can i trust the data i find on data provider websites?
as he says, build and launch an mvp, that will be 100% realistic data haha
Very interesting & thx for the share :)
How can we get to work with Y combinator?
We have a new patented technology in the Virtual Desktop space that's allowing us to be priced close to half of our competition in the market while providing more features!
He says that now... Twitch didn't start with a problem. What problem does an online reality TV show solve?
If we start with a problem, how will services for frivolous entertainment and leisure be built?
Tqvm Sir.
Need a resource for the next step - design/development.
Thanks
I might be missing something here but what problem did justintv solve orrignally?
Gold mine!
Would you agree, one should fall in love with solving the Problem... not the MVP?
I am thinking about a new type of restaurants : eating-spots,
in eating-spots, food keeps changing, chefs also rotate,
this is opposed to current restaurants
thanks to this rotation of food and chefs, eating-spots are way more powerful than restaurants,
along with that, there is an app,
people vote for the food that will be cooked in the next days,
menu is influenced by the live input of the people via an app,
@@Zo-hc2fn Nice idea. This could really open up ones options, and set some interesting "urgency" or really enhance the "experience" factor for a food location opp. :D Nice thinking @Zo Wo
@@PaulDeuchar if eating-spots open, I will go everyday
Vending massage chairs are an effortless business investment that generate revenue quickly.
I don't think neither Justin.tv or twitch started w a problem tho :/
But they did. The founder's problem of how they can get rich with a tech startup.
@@omarfarooq605 lolololol
It didnt start with one but it solved one. Gamers being able to monetize their hobby and create a community in a different angle than YT.
They did, issue was people could not stream prior to it. Starting "reality TV" was the main problem. And then it turned out to be the solution for game streaming, which wasn't their purpose. That's what Seibel means & examplifies with.