I recall a conversation I had with two friends when one of them was creating a t-shirt brand that were an adoption of an existing popular design. He was not breaching any copyright, but he had modified the wording to change the meaning, and appeal to a whole different market. It was almost like a parody of the existing brand.

The other friend accused him of ‘stealing an idea’, and a very interesting conversation evolved from that one statement. To cut a long story short, that one conversation made me realize something about producing products and services in business.

We either have two options:

1. Generate a brand new idea and build a product or service around that

-or-

2. Look for an existing idea and improve on it.

I am sure many of you will have reacted the same way as my second friend – ‘but isn’t that stealing an idea, why can’t you create something for yourself?’. When I considered it, I realized that as I drive around there are countless manufacturers of cars on the road. Did each of those companies invent the concept of the ‘motor vehicle’ at the same exact moment? Of course not, one person invented the motor vehicle and other companies determined (or believed) that they can do better or differently.

It is not necessary and critical for you to find a brand new idea when it comes to starting a business related to a product or a service. You can analyse what is already in the market, or filling the need for a target audience, and determine if you can improve what is already existing.