The second kind of desire is when you want something, because you believe it will bring you something else. Here is an example: “I really like the idea of starting my own company, not because I want to run a company, but because I think that people who own businesses are rich and famous.” Here the emphasis is not on you want so much, but more on what will drive your actions. These are the instrumental desires, because they lead to an ultimate desire. If you have instrumental desires, you need a good idea.
How do you obtain one, in the case of instrumental desires? Thinking, analysis, and introspection could trigger an idea, but you also want to start acting as soon as you can. Start doing something! If thinking, analysis, introspection takes too much time and slows down you acting, it is not that useful. You do not want to be as the people who are trying to think up an idea forever, but never doing anything.
The reality is that they had many ideas. So why did nothing happen? They either didn’t think any of them were good enough, or they were spending all that time trying to refine them or they are spending all their time playing “what if” games, pondering scenarios that might or might not happen. They would have been far better off getting out and doing something because action changes reality and thinking doesn’t. After every action you have new opportunities; potentially new partners, fresh ideas. If you are sitting and not acting, nothing happens.
Sure, ideas can arise in a flash of insight. But more often your ultimate idea will surface and develop through your interactions with other people or the marketplace. You don’t need the idea as much as you need to get started. Worst case? You take a few tiny steps; discover you don’t like what you’re doing or it is impossible. If that happens, you change direction, and move onto something else.
When it comes to generating business ideas, should you consider the ultimate desires or the instrumental ones? The answer is simple – consider both!They both can lead you to the Big Idea. But knowing which is which is very important, because they each take you down different roads.
In the case of the ultimate desire, you are going to pursue it because you feel destined to. If you don’t have the skills right now you will develop them along the way. If you don’t have the contacts or networks right now, you will develop them as well.
Now, let’s take a look at instrumental desire, the desire that leads to something you truly want. You’re looking around for an idea because you think it is going to bring you employment or because you think it will bring you, for the sake of illustration, fame or fortune. So, you know the answer to the question of what do I want? You want the fame and fortune. You want the money. Whatever end goal you have is valid. But since the immediate goal is a means to an end knowing your skills, interests, assets and the rest is really important because you want to do something you like or in an area where you excel, because it will be easier than starting completely from scratch with no particular background or skills.
You, for sure, like everyone else have an idea. Get started and see if it is the right one for your entrepreneurial business.
