Eureka!
About a month ago I got struck by lightning. Well, not literally. Figuratively. I got hit by an idea. A real Eureka – run-out-of-the-tub-naked-throwing-papers– kind of moment.
When I was younger and composing music, this would happen occasionally. I’d be playing my guitar when suddenly it happened. The world would seem to disappear, and I’d enter a realm beyond time and space. My consciousness and ego would step aside, and it felt like music would flow through me.
When I awoke it would be to a new piece of music. Sometimes fully formed. As a result, some of the most beautiful pieces I use to create I would have a hard time taking credit for. It simply didn’t feel like I had made it. It felt like I stumbled upon something fully formed. Obviously, I ended up taking credit for it, nevertheless. A good sign the ego had returned.
Luckily all composition doesn’t happen this way. If that was the case, we wouldn’t get much done. And ideas and creativity can be accessed without entering a parallel realm. Most ideas come through hard work, frustration or sheer persistence.
As a startup consultant I meet a lot of people who’ve had their own little eureka-moment. Sometimes I even help guide them towards one. But the conception still fascinates me. And I’m not sure I fully understand where it comes from.
So, let’s dive into it!
Where do ideas come from?
My experience as a composer resembles Plato’s Theory of Forms. This philosophical concept suggests that ideas exist in a non-material realm of perfect, unchanging forms—a realm beyond our physical world. While intellectually stimulating, this concept has been largely rejected in scientific contexts.
In many religious traditions, ideas are believed to come from Divine Inspiration. While this view holds a great deal of cultural significance, it is not empirically supported.
Then there’s the Idea of the Genius: The notion that ideas are the domain of rare individuals with extraordinary abilities. My ego likes this explanation. But evidence increasingly shows that creativity often emerges from systems, networks, and deliberate practice. So, I would dispel the myth of the lone genius as well.
What does science say?
Cognitive Science and Neuroscience provide some of the most empirically grounded frameworks for understanding creativity. They suggest ideas emerge through sensory experience processed by the brain. Or neural connections that synthesize, analyze, and iterate. They are probably right. But it’s not very sexy.
Innovation studies offer another perspective. Network and evolutionary theories show how ideas are shaped by social environments and iterative refinement. While subconscious theories, such as those of Freud and Gestalt psychology, propose that creative insights often originate from unconscious processes. These insights can seem spontaneous or inexplicable but are rooted in the brain’s ongoing work behind the scenes.
What do I think?
Personally, I adhere to Terry Pratchett’s view in the Discworld book series. In Discworld, Pratchett imagines a chaotic dimension called Idea Space (shout out to Plato) – a metaphysical realm where ideas float freely, waiting to latch onto suitable minds.
In this universe, ideas are treated as semi-autonomous entities that actively seek hosts. They exist independently of people, striking randomly and often choosing the least prepared among us. Take that, ego!
Once an idea exists, it evolves and spreads as others latch onto it. Humans, in this context, are vessels rather than creators in the traditional sense. I wonder if both Plato and Pratchett experienced something akin to my Eureka moments as a young composer.
And I’m curious if neuroscientists then would benefit from picking up a guitar every once in a while…
Anyway, back to the idea.
“Just tell me the idea allready!”
Sorry, but no. I will reveal the actual idea in a later article. But for now, it’s quite frankly not that important. The problem the idea is solving is way more interesting. And much of what we do in validating business ideas has more to do with understanding the problem than with perfecting the solution.
So, the purpose of not telling about the idea serves a higher purpose:
To underline the importance of
a) challenging and killing your idea. And
b) validating that the idea actually solves a problem that somebody is willing to pay for having solved.
So, for now, let me just summarize my idea like this:
My idea will fundamentally change the way we understand, develop, measure and invest in startups. Regardless of industry, vertical or geography.
Woops, there goes the ego again. And with that a beautiful segment to our next concept: Inventors Bias.
“I’m afraid you’ve contracted Inventors bias”
Inventors bias is a term commonly used in the startup community along with Founders bias. Both terms describe a tendency of creators to overvalue their own ideas or solutions. Often at the expense of objectively evaluating their viability. It stems from emotional attachment, effort invested, and a natural desire to see one’s work succeed. This bias can lead to ignoring flaws, dismissing critical feedback, and failing to validate assumptions.
It really is quite the bias.
And it has, unfortunately, led many inventors, founders and investors down bad paths—sometimes with severe consequences.
I remember a story from my high school (which might be an urban legend). One of our math teachers had supposedly solved one of the great unsolved equations. He was already envisioning a Nobel Prize or Fields Medal. Long story short: he’d made a calculation error and ended up admitted to a psychiatric ward.
In the startup world Inventors bias has led to founders taking out mortgages, sinking life savings, and experiencing catastrophic outcomes ranging from personal ruin to divorce, and, in extreme cases, even suicide.
So, what’s the cure for Inventors Bias?
Why Validation Matters
The antidote to Inventor’s bias is validation. The validation process forces us to test assumptions, confront uncomfortable truths, and refine our ideas based on real-world feedback. Unfortunately, there is a lot of misunderstanding about how you actually validate business ideas.
In my next article, I’ll dive into our framework on how to do validation properly using this new idea as a case study and showcasing how we are currently working on validating whether the idea holds up to reality. I’ll cover topics like mindset, techniques on desk research, leveraging AI and how to craft a validation strategy.
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