FIVE TIPS FOR ENTREPRENEURS 
Rick Spence Mar 11, 2011 – 1:04 PM ET
A distinguishing characteristic of entrepreneurs is the sheer number of great business ideas they tend to concoct.
A few minutes in the shower or a half-hour at the airport reading a business magazine can result in a torrent of ideas for new products, fixing production blockages, expanding distribution, and wearing down that procrastinating purchaser in Pickering.
The trouble is, an entrepreneur's support system can rarely cope with many ideas at once. And frankly, many of these notions need to be better thought through before they're worth investigating.
To be effective as an entrepreneur, you have to get better at editing your idea stream. The more rigorously you refine your ideas before throwing them at other people to examine or execute, the more likely those ideas are to take root and flourish.
Marla Tabaka is a Chicago-area business coach and consultant who specializes in helping entrepreneurs grow their revenues beyond the million-dollar level. In a recent online article for Inc. magazine, she offered five tactics for turning your idea flow into actionable opportunities.
Examine and Expand: When your ideas are a-borning, ask yourself "what if" questions. "What if this idea was in place right now, what would be different because of it?" "What if I could see this idea as something bigger than it is right now, how would it look?"
Compare your idea to your vision and mission statements: Does it fit with your long-term goals? Does it fix problems or just confuse the picture? Avoid letting new ideas make you lose track of longer-term objectives.
Apply SWOT analysis: Draw a quadrant on a piece of paper to assess your idea based on your Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats. List all the factors you can think of in each area. Ask yourself questions such as "Can this weakness be minimized or eliminated?" and "How can we convert this threat into an opportunity?"
Analyze the latest trends: If you are looking at a new product or service, does it meet your clients' needs in new, creative ways? Will it stand out or get lost in the chaos? Explore your idea to see how you can make it different and/or better from the rest.
Brainstorm with friends and peers: Ask friends, business colleagues and other creative and strategic people to work with you assessing new ideas. Welcome feedback. Make it fun.
Naked ideas perish fast. The more you can nurture and develop your ideas, the greater chance you'll see them grow to fruition.
For more, see the full version of Ms. Tabaka's article here.
http://business.financialpost.com/2011/03/11/five-tips-to-nurture-your-bright-ideas/
Remember to check out the Short-on-ideas blog page
