Ask HN: How to deal with being idea rich, but time poor?

#1

Post by DamonOehlman » Thu, Feb 10, 2011, 12:25 AM UTC

I really struggle with having a lot of ideas, and while I'm very grateful that I have this problem it can be pretty frustrating. They certainly aren't all good ideas, but some probably are (there's a couple that I think are crackers).

The question is, how do you deal with the situation of having many ideas but only so much time (and/or money) to invest in exploring the potential of those ideas?

Re: Ask HN: How to deal with being idea rich, but time poor?

#2

Post by wallflower » Thu, Feb 10, 2011, 12:31 AM UTC

This article is a bit pithy but true. Ideas aren't worth that much.

http://www.oreillynet.com/onlamp/blog/2005/08/ideas_are_just...

My advice is do something that you would like your mother or father to excitedly tell their friends about (assuming they are still around).

Re: Ask HN: How to deal with being idea rich, but time poor?

#3

Post by ajaymehta » Thu, Feb 10, 2011, 12:42 AM UTC

Well ask yourself why you have so little time. Are you passionate enough about your ideas that you feel what you're doing instead isn't exciting/worth it?

If you have ideas but you feel your time is better spent doing your work/school/whatever, then get one super-compelling idea and follow through!

Re: Ask HN: How to deal with being idea rich, but time poor?

#4

Post by mkinnan » Thu, Feb 10, 2011, 12:56 AM UTC

I am in the same boat ... my plan is to work on the idea I am most passionate about. Then when I have a nice revenue generating business, I can hire developers to make my other ideas happen.

Re: Ask HN: How to deal with being idea rich, but time poor?

#5

Post by DamonOehlman » Thu, Feb 10, 2011, 1:07 AM UTC

ajaymehta wrote: post #3

Well ask yourself why you have so little time. Are you passionate enough about your ideas that you feel what you're doing instead isn't exciting/worth it? If you have ideas but you feel your time is better spent doing your work/school/whatever, then get one super-compelling idea and follow through!

That's a fair point, but the point is I am already executing one of the things that I am passionate about. So following through is happening in that regard.

But in the midst of that execution, there are other ideas that probably have a genuine shot of generating some revenue. So the question is how to either:

A - Prevent yourself getting distracted by that idea. Do you share it or just sit on it?

B - Seriously evaluate whether it is worth either changing direction or finding ways to execute both (or more) ideas in parallel.

Given that we have the phrase "serial entrepreneur" (which I am not a big fan of honestly) rather than "parallel entrepreneur" I'm guessing a one thing at a time approach is the best way to go ;)

Re: Ask HN: How to deal with being idea rich, but time poor?

#6

Post by DamonOehlman » Thu, Feb 10, 2011, 1:15 AM UTC

wallflower wrote: post #2

This article is a bit pithy but true. Ideas aren't worth that much. http://www.oreillynet.com/onlamp/blog/2005/08/ideas_are_just... My advice is do something that you would like your mother or father to excitedly tell their friends about (assuming they are still around).

I think that article does make a nice clear point, and while the ideas aren't worth that much in some regard, being a multiplicative factor is a pretty big deal.

Re: Ask HN: How to deal with being idea rich, but time poor?

#7

Post by coenhyde » Thu, Feb 10, 2011, 4:30 AM UTC

Find people who can execute your ideas (or part there of) for you. Think of your time as a finite resource, which it is.

You have two options:

1. Do less of your ideas by focusing on what is most important.

2. Use someone else time

Not everyone can be a specialist at everything. Know what you are good at then consider outsourcing what you are not so good at to someone who is better than you. They will do a better job and most likely get the job done faster too.

Though this is assuming your ideas are worth pursuing.

EDIT: Remember you don't only have to outsource things such as programming or graphic design. What about things such as book keeping or house keeping.