Start with the problem

Start with the problem

Most people who want to build a business start with a solution.

They have an idea for an app. A product. A course. A service. They love the idea — and the idea is the seed of everything that comes next, so they begin to build.

And then, weeks or months or years later, they wonder why no one cares.

The answer is almost always the same: they did not start with the problem.

The problem is the foundation

A business is not its product. A business is the relationship between a person with a need and a person who can meet that need, in a way that is fair to both.

If you do not understand the need — deeply, specifically, in the language the person uses to describe it themselves — you cannot meet it. You are guessing.

The solution is the easy part. Solutions are everywhere. The real, careful, patient work is understanding the problem.

Three questions to ask before you build anything

1. Who, specifically, has this problem? Not "everyone". A specific person.
2. What have they already tried? And why didn't it work for them?
3. What would have to be true for them to choose what you're offering?

If you cannot answer these in writing, in plain language, you are not ready to build yet. You are ready to learn.

That is not a setback. That is the first real step.