MIT GSL 2018 week 1 | tuesday

Agenda Review of Design Thinking Ideation Learn how to fill the top of the funnel with ideas Learn to choose the best idea Get to know your classmates and have FUN! Wrap-Up

Thinking of Design… Know your user → Understand the problem → Ideate → Prototype → Test user centric NOT product centric Do you really understand the problem? Why is solving the problem important? How many different crazy ways can you solve the problem?

Ideation

3 Types of Founders

How to come develop an idea

Fill the top of the funnel with ideas Find a problem that (1) needs to be solved and (2) you’re passionate about solving User defined innovation - you as the user & your own problems Close family or friends facing problems Interests & Passion for a specific industry Knowledge - focus of education or career Connections - expertise in industries Market pull vs. Tech push vs. Hybrid Market pull  best type (unfilled need, willing to pay) BUT hard (covered more in Step 1) Tech push  Tech Innovation or Tech-enabled Business Model or Process Innovation (Uber), use with caution

How do I choose a good idea to start a company

Sifting out GOOD ideas from BAD

1. Personal Filter The idea won’t go away You really, really care You can explain it Will making it happen be fun to you? Can you see yourself doing it for 5+ years? 10+years? Can you get the other people you need excited about it? Is it within your domain of expertise? Does it fit with your overall personal goals?

2. External Filter Do the people you need to convince get the idea? How about your idea? Do the people you need to convince get the idea? Can you recruit the team you need? Do the customer buy the idea? Do the business partners you need buy the idea? If you need investors, do they buy the story? Is the timing right?

3. Execution Filter Market adoption rate and issues How about your idea? Market adoption rate and issues What things need to go right? How many? What things, if they went wrong, would kill you? What competitors will you have as soon as you launch your new venture? How will they react? How do you assess the overall risk? What did you miss? Did you ask experts in this area? Does the idea continue to motivate you and others when honestly facing with the downside?

Let’s Ideate!

But first, let’s get in the right mood ... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MUO-pWJ0riQ

Improvisation Takeaways Listen actively → Willingness to change Yes to EVERYTHING → takes us somewhere Play the game → rules in the system that guides us to improvise & create Relax & have fun → letting yourself fail Fail

Rules for Brainstorming I “Yes and …” Play Have fun Follow some simple rules Everyone gets to speak One person at a time Keep it short

Rules for Brainstorming I Questions to answer: Do you really understand what the problem is? Why is the problem important to solve? How many ways can you brainstorm to solve it? Diversity is good. List top 10. Get at least a little crazy … open up the aperture!

Homework

Ideation Journal – Due Tomorrow Example: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Q75PuPIxdNh4mJpHYZ- UPEKLQZB3Y7ePN9AVbJOMwtQ/edit#gid=624376164

Wrap-Up Review of Lecture Overview of Next Steps Homework