Startup Strategy: Problem vs. Opportunity

I’ve come to realize that there’s a clear difference between a problem and an opportunity. A problem is something you can solve or fix, while an opportunity is a gap in the market that you can fill with something new. With a problem, there’s usually a clear metric for success. For example, SpaceX’s reusable rockets solved the problem of rocket waste and allowed for greater efficiency in space travel.

An opportunity, on the other hand, doesn’t always have a clear metric for success. It’s about identifying a gap in the market and filling it with something new that meets a need or solves a problem that people didn’t know they had. This can come in the form of a new product, service, or even a restaurant.

As an example, let’s look at the tech industry. One of the most successful companies of our time, Apple, identified an opportunity in the market for a sleek and user-friendly personal computer. They saw that the existing products in the market were clunky and not user-friendly. Apple filled this gap with their innovative products, and the rest is history.

In addition to Apple, there are countless other examples of companies that have successfully identified an opportunity in the market and filled it with something new. For instance, Amazon saw an opportunity to create an online marketplace where people could easily purchase and sell goods. They filled this gap with their e-commerce platform, and today Amazon is one of the largest companies in the world.