How to get money to fund your idea

How to get money to fund your idea

Barkha Shah | June 09, 2005


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An innovator's dos & don'ts

Manuel Torres, a pioneering Spanish designer, has spent 30 years solving manufacturing problems for the aeronautics industry, but his latest brainchild is his proudest achievement yet: a desalination plant, powered by wind energy, capable of providing clean water without polluting the environment. He reveals his mantras to Leslie Crawford of Financial Times:

Do invent -- don't copy
Own your technology
Do diversify by adapting the technologies that you have mastered to new industries in order to reduce dependence on just one sector
Don't consider entering a business that is being done well. Look for industries in crisis: they are prime targets for companies that can offer innovative solutions. Remember that renaissance always follows a period of decline
Don't be intimidated by "experts" in an industry. Experts often cannot see the wood for the trees. Success breeds complacency and "closed professional niches", both of which are bad for business. An outsider often sees more clearly what is not working and what can be improved