Business ideas are so cheap you can get a dozen of ‘em for a dime. But how do you bridge the gap between business inspiration and results?

Harness your ideas

Some ideas hit you suddenly like a bolt of lightning. They might stem from a conversation with a colleague, or a dream that’s been harboured for a long time.

I don’t know about you, but I find that it’s when I’m relaxing on a weekend or enjoying a good glass of wine that the most wonderful business ideas flutter in on silver wings. It’s as though I need to give them a little space away from work so they can bubble up into my consciousness.

I gleefully savour these moments of business inspiration.

Funnily enough, though, that doesn’t necessarily mean I actually have the motivation to do anything about them. When faced with the reality of having to invest time, hard work and money, it all just doesn’t seem as fun anymore!

Commit to something

For some people, it may be a case of having too many ideas, wanting to tackle all of them at once and not knowing where to start.

Try and pick just one and focus on that first. It’s better to give one idea 100% of your energy and see it move forward than to split your attention over ten ideas and give each of them only a portion of your efforts.

Want more articles like this? Check out the work motivation section.

Make a realistic plan

Once you’ve decided to follow through on your idea, break it into a set of achievable goals and tasks.

Don’t set yourself the task of writing your entire business plan in a month if you have three kids and a full-time job. Setting unrealistic goals just results in discouragement and frustration.

Stay motivated by thinking long term

Motivation is much easier when it’s driven by emotion. So, before you sit down to do anything, think about a happier lifestyle, a more fulfilling job or the smiles on your customers’ faces.

A clear picture of your end goal and its consequences will have you steaming towards the reality of your new business faster than you thought possible. It’ll make it easier to tick all those mundane tasks off your to-do list too.

Persistence pays off

I think the key to turning an idea into reality is to just keep coming back to it. Persist with setting up structures and systems, doing loads of research and asking lots of questions.

Where did you get your business inspiration to start your business? I’d love to read your stories.