Find inspiration for your new business venture with these tips

ST. PAUL,Minn. — Entrepreneurship can be a rewarding career path – you set your own hours, do something you love and answer only to yourself – but it also comes with many challenges. Deciding what kind of business to begin is the first obstacle.

“Generating business ideas is a must for any business venture,” says John J. Liptak, Ed.D., in his new book Entrepreneurship Quizzes. “In order to generate ideas for your business, you need to be observant, creative and knowledgeable. You can find business ideas in all sorts of places.”

To brainstorm ideas about products or services that may be profitable, consider Liptak’s following tips:

• The yellow pages can be an excellent source of ideas for your business. Use it to identify existing businesses in your area that are similar to one you might like to start. How can your business be different from an existing one?
• Magazines and books related to your interests can be chock full of business ideas. Pick up any magazine and look through it. What ideas jump out at you?
• The Internet is full of great ideas. You can simply do a Google search for franchises, for example, and you will get a plethora of new ideas. Search for websites related to your interests. What interesting ideas do you find?
• Read and study as much as you possibly can about your product or service. Go to the local library or bookstore and simply browse. What topics catch your eye?
• Observe what is going on around you. Go to the mall or some other public place. Watch people and notice the trends that you see. What products are people using? How do they dress? Is there a product or service that is essential?
• Think creatively about existing products you or your friends use. Are there ways to combine two existing products into one of your own? What is available but is too expensive to be practical? Can you do it for less money? What are the technology (service, educational and so on) needs of the future?
• Think creatively about the needs of various groups of people. What do babies need? What are the needs of teenagers? Is there a product that parents could use? How can you improve life for the elderly?

“Constantly think about new ideas and new ways of doing things,” Liptak says. “Think about what is needed in your town or community. You should also think about things that could be improved or a service that could be provided in a better way. Keep a running list of business ideas in a small notebook that you carry with you.”

Additional tips can be found in Entrepreneurship Quizzes. The book was published in April of 2012 and is available at major bookstores, Amazon.com and jist.com. 

About John J. Liptak, Ed.D.

John Liptak is one of the leading developers of quantitative and qualitative career assessments in the country. He is the director of Career Assessment and Counseling at Radford University in Virginia, and president of the Center for Career Assessment, Inc. He consults on assessment development for schools and agencies and has developed specialized assessment instruments for use with clients. Liptak is a regular speaker at national and international conventions and wrote several best-selling career assessments available from JIST Publishing.

About JIST Publishing

JIST, America’s Career Publisher, is a division of EMC/Paradigm Publishing. As the leading publisher of job search, career and occupational information, JIST empowers today’s workforce and students to achieve long-lasting rewards in their careers.