What’s a Good Business Idea? (Hint: Not Just What You Like)
Let’s Connect!
Hello Future Leaders and Entrepreneurs!
"Follow your passion." It's great advice for a hobby, but doesn’t always translate to business. The market doesn't reward what you love; it rewards what value are you providing to others. A great business idea lives at the intersection of your passion and the world's real needs. To show you how to find that sweet spot, we'll dive into the journeys of five entrepreneurs who built empires not just on what they loved, but on what they saw the world needed. Their turning points and mindsets offer a direct path for YOU to turn your ideas into a real business.
-Let’s do this.
Build What People Don’t Know They Needed
Steve Jobs famously created products people couldn't even articulate they wanted. His approach was about reimagining our interaction with technology.
The Turning Point: The iMac (1998)
The iMac was a revolution because it fixed a problem people didn't even know needed fixing. In the 1990s, computers were beige, complicated, and intimidating. Instead of a clunky machine with separate parts and messy wires, Jobs's iMac was a vibrant, all-in-one unit that was beautiful, simple, and intuitive. It not only got rid of the clutter, but also made a bold move by replacing the standard floppy disk drive with the USB port, a forward-thinking bet on the future. The iMac proved a computer could be more than just a tool; it could be a beautiful and easy-to-use centerpiece that anticipated future innovations.
Reflect & Apply
Stop asking people what they want and start observing what annoys them. Your business idea might be hidden in a routine frustration they've learned to live with.
What’s the "floppy disk" of today's world? Identify an outdated technology or process that everyone accepts, and envision a solution that will outlive today’s practices.
Obsess Over Your Customer
Bezos didn't invent online shopping; he perfected it by putting the customer at the center of every decision. Amazon’s success is built on an unwavering commitment to convenience and trust.
The Turning Point: The Flywheel of Amazon Prime (2005)
Amazon Prime was a revolutionary solution that transformed the platform of online shopping for customers. Instead of seeing it as just a store, Prime members could pay a single fee for unlimited, fast shipping on millions of items. This eliminated the pain of paying for shipping, and made the whole online shopping experience super simple and worry-free. This immediate gratification and sense of value built fierce loyalty, fundamentally changing how people shopped. What Prime sold was convenience and peace of mind, making Amazon an indispensable, trusted service in many humans lives.
Reflect & Apply:
How can you simplify a process for your customer? Brainstorm ways to make their experience dramatically easier, faster, or more reliable than any competitor's.
What "unreasonable" level of service could you offer to build a loyal customer base others can't compete with?
Redefine What Already Exists
Brian Chesky at Airbnb didn't invent travel or hospitality. Their philosophy was to reinvent how existing resources are used.
The Turning Point: The New York Photo Initiative (2009)
IIn its early days, Airbnb's biggest problem wasn't a lack of listings; it was a lack of trust. The idea of staying in a stranger’s home was a foreign concept, and the blurry, unprofessional photos on the site made it feel even riskier. The founders realized they needed a powerful solution to build confidence. They flew to New York and personally took high-quality photos for their hosts, giving each listing a professional, inviting look. This hands-on effort wasn't something they could do for every listing forever, but it was the exact solution they needed to build a human connection. This simple act of personally improving their product was the turning point that made the foreign concept of Airbnb feel safe and real.
Reflect & Apply:
What industries seem "stuck in their old ways"? How could you use technology to make their services simpler, more affordable, or more personal?
What underutilized resources exist in your community? Could you build a platform that connects people to these resources in a new way?
You want to receive more brandOn VALUE, subscribe to YouTube Channel! click link below
Solve Your Own Pain Point
Sara Blakely wasn't a fashion mogul; she was just an everyday woman frustrated with women's underwear. Her philosophy: your personal frustrations are clues to unmet market needs.
The Turning Point: Oprah's Endorsement (2000)
After facing constant rejection, Blakely's persistence led to a crucial moment. Her seismic turning point came when she used her entrepreneurial grit, and sent her product to Oprah Winfrey. In 2000, Oprah featured SPANX on her show, validating Blakely's core premise: a personal pain point, consistently addressed, could resonate with millions. The product solved a common, unspoken problem for women everywhere. The frustration with visible panty lines and uncomfortable shape-wear proved that an authentic solution to a personal need could unlock a massive market.
Reflect & Apply:
What recurring problem do you face in your life? If something bothers you enough to want a better solution, chances are thousands of others feel the same way.
Is there a niche market you understand intimately because you're a part of it? Your insider knowledge could be your biggest advantage.
Don’t forget to energize your brain and turn that brandOn with 787 coffee! order online, link below
Think Bigger, Be A Disruptor
Arianna Huffington didn't just want to start a blog; she wanted to transform the media landscape. Her philosophy was about thinking bigger than traditional news, creating a new model that combined professional journalism with a massive network of citizen bloggers.
The Turning Point: The AOL Acquisition (2011)
Arianna Huffington identified a key problem with traditional news: it was slow, one-sided, and couldn't keep up with the speed of the internet. Her vision to solve this was by creating a new hybrid model that democratized news. Instead of a handful of professionals controlling the narrative, she combined traditional journalism with a massive network of citizen bloggers, creating a single, go-to destination that reflected a far wider range of voices and opinions. The rapid growth of her platform, The Huffington Post, and its eventual acquisition by AOL in 2011, proved that her disruptive model wasn't just an idea, it was a powerful solution that redefined how people get their news.
Reflect & Apply:
Think about a community you belong to. It could be a hobby, a professional group, or a neighborhood. How could you empower its members to become creators or contributors, rather than just passive consumers of information?
What's a topic or industry where the experts are few and the voices are many? How could you build a platform that gives an authentic voice to every person, turning a one-way street of information into a collaborative conversation?
Think Different.
A great business is born from the place where your passion and the world's needs meet. The journeys of these five entrepreneurs prove that success comes from a strategic mindset and the courage to act. You've probably already had your next great business idea, the difference is that you haven't acted on it yet. The time to build is now.
-Thank you for Reading!
Let's get to work. 💯
Want the insider playbook that's helping thousands build wealth without traditional degrees?
Every two weeks, I share the exact strategies, mindset shifts, and real-world tactics that successful entrepreneurs use to create financial freedom—including interviews with millionaires who started with nothing but ambition.
Join 15,000+ game-changers getting the SoyBrandon newsletter. No fluff. No theories. Just proven methods that work.
[Subscribe free here →] Because your breakthrough moment could be in the next email.
Your First Three Steps to Launch
You've seen that the biggest barrier to starting a business isn't money. It's the willingness to begin. The entrepreneurs we've discussed didn't just have great ideas; they took action. Here are three simple, actionable steps you can take right now to turn your idea into reality.
1.Define Your Mission
Don’t get stuck in the planning phase. Look at the mindsets we've discussed and pick the one that sparks the most passion in you. Is your goal to solve a personal pain point like Sara Blakely? Do you want to obsess over a customer's experience like Jeff Bezos? Your "why"—the reason you're doing this—will push you far more than any bank account. Once you have that, you can pick your vehicle: a product, a service, or a piece of content. Your "why" will be the single most important factor in deciding what to focus on.
2. Launch Your Momentum
Forget the paperwork. The first step is to take the first step. Is your idea an e-commerce store? Go create your free Shopify account. Is it a vintage clothing business? Grab your keys and go to your local thrift store today. Is it content creation? Pull out your phone and shoot your very first video. The goal is to build momentum, and as Brian Chesky and Sara Blakely showed, momentum starts with a concrete action, not a spreadsheet or a business plan.
3. Build the Habit
The most successful businesses are built on a foundation of relentless consistency. You don't need to be perfect on day one. You just need to show up every day. Commit to a schedule, whether it’s posting one video per day or spending two hours a week on your business. This simple act will prove to you and your future customers that you are serious, and as Jeff Bezos's flywheel demonstrates, it is the only way to turn a passion project into a profitable brand.
Let's simplify the concepts
Imagine a simple fruit stand. You could spend all day thinking about apples because you love them (your passion), but a good business starts when you notice everyone else wants bananas (the market need). Your first step isn't selling; it's finding the problem, like everyone's bananas being bruised, so you find and sell only the perfect ones. You learn that people are hesitant to buy from a new stand, so you don't build a big machine—you personally polish each banana by hand to show you care. That simple act of building trust gets your first customers. When they tell their friends, a business "flywheel" starts spinning: more customers mean you can buy bananas for a better price, which means you can sell them for less, which brings in even more customers. As your business grows, you notice customers using your bananas to make smoothies; they don't know they need a smoothie machine yet, but you see their hidden problem and build it for them. In the end, your fruit stand didn't succeed because of the single apple you started with. It succeeded because you focused on a problem, you built trust, and you kept the business moving forward with consistent action, proving that an idea is a powerful reminder that a plan and action are far more powerful than a bank account.