Stop worrying that someone is going to steal your idea, just launch!

One of the topics that comes up perhaps most often at our monthly Lioness Lean In Breakfast events around the continent is the fear experienced by startups that someone will come along and steal your idea. And yet as I often share in these conversations, this should not be your biggest worry as a startup. In fact, how to practically turn your idea into a viable business proposition, and getting it launched quickly into the marketplace, should be your real concern. I was reminded of this fact when I was reading an article which featured a quote by Sean Parker, the founder of Napster.  He said: “Your biggest challenge as an entrepreneur is not concealing your idea from others or keeping your idea a secret, it is actually convincing people that you’re not crazy and that you can pull this off.” He’s so right - this is the real challenge to be overcome. So, stop worrying that someone is going to steal your idea and instead, build it, launch it, and refine it once it is out there - after all, the biggest advantage comes from being first to market.