Big Idea Center Blog

6 Business-Building Activities You Can Do Over Summer Break

Written by Don Morrison | May 5, 2021 11:45:00 AM

 

Early-stage teams don’t need to lose their momentum as we go into summer break.  In fact, there are several things that you can do to help move your project forward.  Consider tasking each team member with one of the following:

 

1.Stakeholder Discovery

It’s hard to do too much stakeholder discovery.  You can reach out over the summer to talk to as many stakeholders as possible to validate your assumptions.

 

 

 

2. Competitive Research

Dig into your competition.  Understand their strengths and their vulnerabilities.  This should help you better understand what makes your business different than what's already out there.

 

 

 

3. Get a Job

In addition to paying for your Starbucks habit, getting a job in the area you are trying to disrupt will give you unique first-hand insights into the problem you are trying to solve.

 

 

 

4. Work on Your MVP

Use the downtime to work on your minimum viable product (MVP) or working prototype.   

 

 

 

5. Build an Advisory Board

Seek out a domain expert in your field, someone with business development expertise and someone with marketing skills to be on your advisory board.  The right advisors can provide great strategic advice and also open doors for you via introduction to their contacts.

 

 

 

7. HAVE FUN!

Don’t forget to have fun and enjoy the summer break but you can still move your project forward and be ready to hit the ground running when the fall semester starts.