I tripped over an ideation framework by John Rush shared in a tweet.

Here is a local copy (tweets get deleted sometimes…):

Here’s the tweet where it came from:

It’s a great framework.

Here’s a snippet of what it means, as described by our friend gpt4o:

  • Start with pain points as the best source of high-quality ideas.
  • Consider technology as a way to adapt existing solutions or create new applications.
  • Cloning can be a valid strategy but typically lacks originality unless combined with significant differentiation.
  • Thoughtfully evaluate ideas’ potential impact, innovativeness, and market fit.

Almost gpt buddy, good try.

What it is really saying is the best place to harvest real and valuable business ideas is personal pain points experienced at work. After that, find something that is working, clone it, and take in a different direction.

Reminds me of the old “rip, pivot, jam” strategy from back in the day.

Using the Rip, Pivot, and Jam method they were able to find a niche, apply known business practices, and rock out a successful product line.

  • Rip - Identify if others in the niche are making money from it
  • Pivot - Bring it to a new market / new approach
  • Jam - Crash the boards with 100% energy

All good stuff.

And good for “profitable business ideas”.

Although I like this stuff (suspect its valuable as a strategy), it’s not what I have done.

An approach I’ve used is:

  • Follow curiosity and work on things that I can’t not work on

This double negative is key: “can’t not work on”. It’s a compulsion.

Another philosophy I follow:

  • Make things you want to exist in the world

This is also powerful.

I didn’t come up with this phrasing, it was probably tweeted sometime in the last 15 years and I grabbed onto it. But it’s the right approach for me.

Here’s another framework I really like (because I have done this a few times), by Russell Brunson.

Local copy again in case the tweet gets deleted:

Here’s the original tweet:

  1. Take something you already do
  2. Learn to do it bettern than anybody else
  3. Teach it to others.

Simple. Effective.