A few weeks ago I was at a meetup in Philadelphia when a young guy pitched me on a startup idea he had.  And I guess that makes sense.  People hear about Carsten and I starting LTLprints.com and see that as a opener to pitch me their  ideas. On the whole this pleases me and I’m grateful for the conversation.  Most are truly interested in my response, other times they just want me to tell them that their idea is worth pursuing.  Occasionally I get the sense that they want me to drop everything I’m working on and start working solely on their idea because it’s just that awesome!  In nearly all cases, my response is never far off from the following:

Stop just talking and thinking about your idea and start moving towards making your idea a reality. Take the first step - even if it’s in the wrong direction you’re moving and moving is better than standing still.

After delivering the following advice, normally with some sugar, I help the person to make the next step actionable.  I’m not telling the people they shouldn’t share their ideas, but rather I think people wait way too long in the planning stage before taking the first step. Do your homework, plan, but make it actionable and put yourself on a timeline. How do you get from the idea on the whiteboard to a nascent startup?  The same way you run a marathon, one step at a time.

What do you think?  What tips might you have for breaking out of the planning stage and getting started?

Oh, and if you’re feeling stuck with your idea perhaps an hour or so with Philly’s own Alex Hillman from unstick.me is just what the doctor ordered.

Tags: Alex Hillman, get started, getting started, startup advice, startups, unstick.me