Product/market fit is a common startup concept relating to how well a product meets the needs of the market. There’s another kind of fit that deserves more discussion: founder/idea. Founder/idea fit is taking into account the passions and strengths of the co-founders and maximizing them in the context of the business idea. A founder with little interest or zeal for an idea, even though it’s the best one he could come up with, is more likely to fail than a founder that truly believes in something, even if the idea isn’t as good.
Here are some ways to look at founder/idea fit:
- Take the concepts from Strengths Finder and apply those to the founder in regards to the startup idea
- Identify the things that you do for fun, regardless of getting paid, and see if the idea gets real value from them
- Imagine yourself five years from now running the startup at a successful, sustainable scale — how happy do you see yourself?
Founder/idea fit is a critical component of the startup equation and shouldn’t be underestimated. Some of the best advice I ever received was to figure out what I was good at, figure out what I truly enjoy, and figure out how to combine those to make a living — you’ll never work a day in your life.
What else? What are your thoughts on founder/idea fit for startups?
David Cummings on Startups 
Interesting ….I fully agree with the concept ….
Reblogged this on Simple as it is and commented:
Good for starter to have own business!
Reminds me of how I was advised on selecting my dissertation topic. Not to aim for a certain idea, but to pick a few ideas that I really enjoyed reading and thinking about, investing time and attention into those streams of research, and arriving at a study idea.
Also makes me think of how much of career assessment/coaching is done – helping people identify and better understand their interests, natural tendencies, and strengths. Founders so frequently arrive in coaching conversations after they’ve started something – it would probably help to start working more closely with an advisor/coach when the entrepreneurial itch first starts to help guide the decision-making process.
Interesting post.