Pruning is the art of balancing between growth and yield. Ideas and ventures need the same care.
I started to prune trees some years ago in the family garden: apples, pears, plums, cherries, peaches, even walnuts. All have different characters, are in different ages and stages and need a different strategy and approach to reach the best result. I have learned a lot from books and from people who have done this for decades. I have listened to many stories about the whys and hows. People prune trees so that they bring the best results. With pruning you can influence how much fruit the tree yields, how much it will grow, you can help balance the resources of the tree in order it can have a rest and remain active and fruitful for a long time. But each tree needs a different care, beginning with defining the initial shape at young age, density of the branches, the best time to prune and how much intervention can they take in one go when neglected for some years. As I have been immersing myself in the theory and the practice of pruning I realized that the same is happening when we start to nurture an idea, a project or a venture. Each has a different profile, needs a unique approach, you have to shape it carefully at the beginning and you have to balance growth and yield thoughtfully to grow a sustainable business.An initial idea, in most cases, is based on well-established experience or on a strong gut-feeling of what an important problem is and how it should be solved. From that standpoint it can grow into thousands of directions and you need to carefully cut out those options that do not have a potential and leave the ones that are promising.
That is how idea pruning works.
To grow a prosperous product or service from an initial idea is a long way to go but there are many good tools that can help you along. And an experienced mind can always come handy.
That is why Ideapruner came to life in the first place.
I would like to share what I have learned in the last twenty years in research, innovation and idea development and cultivate this knowledge to work also for you.
About me
I am Judit Varga, a product, design and business strategist with leadership experience in the think tank industry. 20 years in research and innovation projects and teams has been backed by a degree in psychology and business. With new tech in focus, I have been working in and with big corporations, C-suite executives, innovation labs, small developer teams and startups of all kinds. I have been involved in 100+ product development projects, screened 500+ startup and product ideas, co-mentored 30+ early stage startup teams, designed and executed 300+ user research projects, conducted 600+ group discussions, interviews and workshops.