The 10 Things Not to Ignore When We Develop an Idea into a Viable Startup

In a 2021 post we described how Optometrists with an entrepreneurial mindset can develop an idea into a viable startup. Here are ten things that Optometrists entrepreneurs should not ignore when developing an idea into viable startup:

1. Entrepreneurship is not for everyone, as less than 5% of the society are entrepreneurs. Optometrists should assess if they have an entrepreneurial mindset before starting a business.
2. The lack of formal business knowledge cannot be underestimated. Optometrists should seek to improve their business skills through courses, training, or mentorship programs.
3. Critical decision-making should not be entrusted to someone else or outsourced. Optometrists should make informed decisions on their own.
4. Before drafting a business plan or implementing a business model, aspiring entrepreneurs need to look differently at problems and think differently as well. Optometrists should approach problems creatively to identify unique solutions.
5. Professor James Green’s “The Opportunity Analysis Canvas” can help in identifying entrepreneurial opportunities and building successful and sustainable innovative businesses. Optometrists should consider using this canvas to analyze potential business opportunities. For example, an optometrist might use the “Opportunity Analysis Canvas” to identify a gap in the market for affordable eyewear for people with low income.
6. To be successful as an entrepreneur, one needs to have an entrepreneurial mindset. Optometrists need to develop this mindset to spot opportunities and build successful businesses.
7. The three categories of entrepreneurial opportunities are innovating through inventing new technologies, exploiting market inefficiencies resulting from the asymmetry of information, and reacting to shifts in relative costs and benefits of alternative uses for resources. Optometrists should explore these categories to identify potential business opportunities.
8. The idea of how to build a startup has evolved over time. Optometrists should stay up to date on current startup trends and methodologies.
9. Optometrists seem to lack proactive entrepreneurship and are being disrupted by other entrepreneurs who know how to seek, screen, and seize entrepreneurial opportunities. Optometrists should actively seek out and capitalize on entrepreneurial opportunities to avoid being disrupted.
10. Optometrists should consider utilizing other business models such as “The Lean Startup” and “The Business Model Canvas” to help them build successful and sustainable businesses.

Like in the 2021 post, By taking a creative approach and using the canvas, Optometrists might develop a business model that provides affordable eyewear to people in need. They might also use “The Lean Startup” methodology to validate their business idea and test it before launching.