I spent about 8 hours last week trying to find a startup idea the "right" way—talking to people, noticing friction, looking at industries I knew nothing about. I got nowhere useful. Then on Thursday I was fixing a broken Zapier integration at 11 PM and realized I was doing the same manual workaround I'd mentioned to exactly zero people as a problem worth solving. That's the idea I've been poking at since then.
Thing is, I don't know if this counts. The advice usually says ideas should solve something bigger than your own convenience, and I can't tell if "yet another internal workflow tool" qualifies. I've spent maybe $47 on tools this month too — Clipchamp, because someone on Reddit called it essential for quick edits, but I still haven't opened it for this project specifically.
Has anyone tried building something they uncovered by accident rather than through systematic hunting? And did it feel flimsy at first but actually hold up, or am I chasing a workaround that only matters to me?
Top comments (1)
I think accidental ideas can be some of the strongest ones, because they come from real frustration instead of forced brainstorming. The next step is probably to check if other people are doing the same workaround too.