PESTEL
Trends in an ecosystem around you
One option to find a problem you as an entrepreneur can solve is to watch around you on a larger scale.
For example you can use the PESTEL model and see what are the trends in each of the categories.
In may not be as easy as it seems to find the right problem for the right entrepreneurial idea, here is something that help you, the PESTEL model, that will help you make a complete scan of the environment around and help you develop a general idea and grasp of what is happening around you.
For example:
The questions above are just examples, there can be of course a lot more, just go category per category and brainstorm as many problems and possible solution as you can. And by all means make it as relevant as possible to the geographical area where you would like to operate as an entrepreneur, be it country, region, city, city district or maybe village, and look out for patterns out there. Also keep in mind to select an area and society you know, you won’t be asked to make complex scientific research and data, just write
down what you see is happening around you.
When you start exploring PESTEL’s categories, an interesting way to go about it is to set a goal, for example, think about 5 problems in each category, once done find five more, and more until you have drawn out an entire map and can’t think of any other problems anymore, and looking at that map, see which “problem” feels like the one, or ones that you want to tackle with your entrepreneurial idea.
Sharing Problems
PESTEL is just one of many tools helpful in identifying problems, another common one is to observe your every day life and that of others, really into detail down to the simplest tasks, like brushing teeth, to work, meals, leisure etc. Each needs its tools and resources, toothpaste, coffee machine, phone, etc. which are supposed to make the task simpler and yet can also create other problems.
- Empty toothpaste tube and not a spare one at home?
- Bad quality internet connection and speed of software?
- Working until late and unable to cook?
And there appear solutions like home delivery of shopping, alternative software development, food delivery etc. Each of those solutions are enterprises, identified solutions, and one sure thing we all know is that problems are all around us.
Find a problem to solve, it can well come from the specifics of daily life that frustrate you and others, finding ways how things can be done faster, more comfy, cheaper.
- Which everyday activities take the most time, and could/should be done faster?
- What activities do you do like once a month, but take a lot of time?
- What things you hate and yet you must do that take huge willpower to actually get up and do it?
- What nice services or good did you witness or experience abroad that would be nice to have at
home? - What are your biggest costs? And for what do you spend that much money?
- What costs can you cut and reduce? What product or service can help you to do that?
Look around, reflect on your own personal experience, involve peers and friends, everywhere you can find sources ready to feed you with information on problems that need a solution.
“I choose a lazy person to do a hard job. Because a lazy person will find an easy way to do it.” -Bill Gates
