The Myth of the Killer Idea

Your idea is the least valuable “ingredient” in building a successful business.

So argues John Warrillow in this excellent article, “Idea is least important part of a company.”

If you run a business, you know that your idea was the least difficult part. My guess is that your idea has evolved considerably since you first conceived it.

The myth of the “killer idea” leads young and wannabe entrepreneurs to protect their concepts as if they had discovered the cure for cancer. They request that investors sign non-disclosure agreements before they reveal their ideas, which serves only to ensure those ideas never get funded.

I might argue the idea is the least important part of building a valuable company.

To this, I would add that ideas are not protected by copyright. This is why you can go open up a burger joint and compete against McDonald’s if you want.

Ultimately, it’s not the idea that makes the difference, but the quality and speed of execution.

For proof, look no further than the article linked above. He mentions the author of the 2010 book Do More Faster, which contains a chapter called “Trust Me, Your Idea Is Worthless.”

Guess who registered DoMoreFaster.com back on November 11, 2006? Yep, you guessed it. ;-)

-Ryan M. Healy