Who is the author of Will It Fly?

The author of Will It Fly? is Pat Flynn.

Entrepreneurship

Will It Fly? Book Summary - Will It Fly? Book explained in key points

Listen to the Intro

00:00

Will It Fly? summary

Name: Will It Fly?
Rating: 4.2 (51 reviews)
Author: Pat Flynn

Pat Flynn

How to Test Your Next Business Idea so You Don't Waste Your Time and Money

4.2 (51 ratings)

17 mins

Brief summary

Will It Fly? by Pat Flynn is a step-by-step guide that helps aspiring entrepreneurs validate their business ideas before investing time and money. It covers market research, identifying ideal customers, and creating a solid business plan to maximize potential success.

Topics

Entrepreneurship Innovation

Table of Contents

Will It Fly?
Summary of 8 key ideas

Audio & text in the Blinkist app

Key idea 1 of 8

What’s in it for me? Get your entrepreneurial idea ready for take-off.

Say you’re thinking about starting your own business. You have an innovative idea and want to build a business around that idea. But, more importantly, you want it to succeed; you want it to defy gravity and soar toward the stars.

But before an idea can pick up speed and really take flight, you first need to get it off the ground – and that’s where these blinks come into the picture.

From aligning your business brainchild with your personal goals to making your plans financially viable, these blinks will make sure that your brilliant idea is ready for take-off.

In these blinks, you’ll learn

how to identify your strengths;
why you probably shouldn’t create a website for food trucks if you don’t own a food truck; and
how to speak the language of your customers.

Becoming a successful entrepreneur means creating a business that’s in line with your lifestyle goals.

What’s the first order of business for any young entrepreneur before starting her business? Is it getting funding? Or maybe printing business cards? Actually, the first step involves going much deeper; the entrepreneur needs to investigate how her idea will support her desired lifestyle.

Before turning any idea into a successful business, it’s essential that you make sure it’s aligned with your values and goals. After all, you’re going to put your time, energy and money into this project and the closer it comes to matching your personal goals and values, the more satisfied you’ll be.

So, if you’re a people person, make sure that’s reflected by your business’s social environment, and be sure to create a space that will let you nurture this aspect.

But how can you see to it that you’ll make decisions about your future business that will leave you satisfied? Well, you can simply try interviewing your future self.

Self-examination will help you decide what type of business best suits you – and it’s easy to do:

Grab a piece of paper and divide it into four sections. Then, identify the four most important parts of your life. Your categories might be, for example, Family, Career, Well-being and Money.

Next, assign each of these categories to a different quadrant on the paper. Once you’ve done that, imagine yourself five years down the road and write down all the things that come to mind.

For example, under the Money category, you might write, “in five years my mortgage is paid off, I’ve invested in property, have a steady income from rentals and my kids’ college funds are squared away.” If, during this process, you start to think that your idea won’t generate enough money to make this scenario realistic, set aside time right now to improve it. This way, you’ll avoid making this disappointing discovery in five years.

All this talk of the future might have you itching to get to work on your business. But first, you’ll need to identify a few more personal things to ensure your idea is right for you.

Successful entrepreneurs spot their advantages by looking to the past.

Is there one thing that you’re exceptionally good at? If so, you should learn to use it to your advantage! Your unique skills and characteristics give you a competitive edge, a niche from which to operate – in other words, an unfair advantage.

Such an advantage is kind of like your superpower because it makes you stand out from the competition; it should thus be an integral aspect of any new idea. In fact, the mere knowledge that you’re good at something will help motivate you.

Map your idea and distill it to its essence.

So, you’ve traveled into the future and back to the past. You know what you want from life and have some ideas about what you want to do; now it’s time to work on your business idea.

For starters, jot down any thoughts that relate to your idea in a mind map, a useful tool for structuring your thoughts in a visual representation. You can design yours either on paper or electronically.

Share your idea, ask for feedback and research your market.

OK, now your idea is in a shareable format, but before you launch your business, it’s essential to research how the world will respond to it.

Your idea will be improved by sharing it and learning from the feedback. In fact, even casual chats at work or at home can lead to valuable feedback that can help you refine your concept. But you must also be sure to speak with potential clients.

Understand your audience’s issues and how they describe them.

Conducting research can teach you a lot about your potential market, but it’s also crucial to know how to care for your clients. After all, they’re the ones who will be buying your product.

To do so, you should develop an actionable customer profile, also known as a Customer P.L.A.N. This tool will help you identify how your business idea matches up with your audience; in the end, your business will do much better if you understand your customers in all of their complexity.

Strengthen your idea by collecting customer anecdotes and tuning into their needs.

Now that you know how to identify the problems your audience faces and the language they use, it’s time to consider the anecdotes that will help you stay connected to real people. Here’s how:

Anecdotes are stories, usually short, funny or interesting ones, and you should always encourage your customers to share them. These little bits of information will help you tailor your idea to your customers’ experience.

Smart entrepreneurs test the commitment of their potential customers and investors.

You’ve done your market research and created a customer P.L.A.N. You’re almost there! But before moving forward, remember to validate your idea – financially, that is.

You can start by performing initial testing of the commitment your product or service triggers among potential investors and customers. There are a several ways to do this.

Final validation comes through interacting with potential customers and inviting them to invest.

So, measuring the commitment people have to your idea is essential – but people often won’t buy a product even though they showed interest in the idea initially. As a result, it’s necessary to do a final round of validation.

First, interact with your potential customers and share your solution with them to make sure they’ll actually buy your product in the future. Here, it’s best to shoot for one-on-one interactions whether they’re in person, over the phone, through private messages or by e-mail.

Want to see all full key ideas from Will It Fly??

Key ideas in Will It Fly?

More knowledge in less time

Read or listen

Get the key ideas from nonfiction bestsellers in minutes, not hours.

Find your next read

Get book lists curated by experts and personalized recommendations.

Shortcasts ^New

We’ve teamed up with podcast creators to bring you key insights from podcasts.

What is Will It Fly? about?

Will It Fly (2016) is a guide to testing your business ideas and achieving the smoothest possible flight to success. These blinks will help you critically examine the validity of your ideas, research your market and get to know your future customers.

Will It Fly? Review

Will It Fly? (2016) by Pat Flynn is a practical and insightful guide for aspiring entrepreneurs aiming to validate their business ideas before taking the leap. Here's why this book is worth reading:

Offers a step-by-step action plan with exercises and examples to help readers determine the viability of their business ideas.
Provides practical strategies for understanding target markets, conducting market research, and evaluating competition.
Gives readers the confidence and tools needed to minimize the risks of starting a new business and increase the chances of success.

Best quote from Will It Fly?

If you can define the problem better than your target customer, they will automatically assume you have the solution. - Jay Abraham

—Pat Flynn

Who should read Will It Fly??

Entrepreneurs who feel unsure about a business idea
Business owners who want to expand their companies and attract new customers

About the Author

In his professional career, Pat Flynn made the journey from a 9-to-5 job to successful entrepreneurship. Now he advises others on how to build their own successful and ethical online businesses through his website and podcast, SmartPassiveIncome.com.

Categories with Will It Fly?

Entrepreneurship

Book summaries like Will It Fly?

Leadership Blindspots

Robert Bruce Shaw

How Successful Leaders Identify and Overcome the Weaknesses that Matter

How to Find the Work You Were Meant to Do

Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Entrepreneurship

How to Start Conversations that Get Results

15 min

4.1

The Algebra of Wealth

Scott Galloway

A Simple Formula for Financial Security

17 min

3.9

Nail It then Scale It

Nathan Furr and Paul Ahlstrom

The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Creating and Managing Breakthrough Innovation

A History from Socrates to Social Media

27 min

4.4

Creativity, Inc.

Ed Catmull with Amy Wallace

Overcoming the Unseen Forces That Stand in the Way of True Inspiration

The Art of Standing Out in the Age of Artificial Intelligence

20 min

4.1

The 12 Traits of the Greats

Dave Martin

Mastering The Qualities Of Uncommon Achievers

The Science of Success and How to Use It

19 min

3.8

The Creative Thinking Handbook

Chris Griffiths & Melina Costi

Your Step-by-Step Guide to Problem Solving in Business

19 min

4.0

The Fine Art Of Small Talk

Debra Fine

How To Start a Conversation, Keep It Going, Build Networking Skills – and Leave a Positive Impression!

19 min

4.0

Don't Make Me Think, Revisited

Steve Krug

A Common Sense Approach to Web Usability

20 min

4.3

13 Things Mentally Strong People Don't Do

Amy Morin

Take Back Your Power, Embrace Change, Face Your Fears and Train Your Brain for Happiness and Success

40 min

4.6

Maximize Your Potential

Jocelyn K. Glei

Grow Your Expertise, Take Bold Risks & Build an Incredible Career

13 min

4.1

The Hidden Habits of Genius

Craig Wright

Beyond Talent, IQ, and Grit – Unlocking the Secrets of Greatness

The Formula for Sustained High Performance in All Phases of Your Life

17 min

4.3

A Handbook for New Stoics

Massimo Pigliucci and Gregory Lopez

How to Thrive in a World Out of Your Control

Stop People Pleasing, Staying Silent, and Feeling Guilty... . and Start Speaking Up, Saying No, and Unapologetically Being Yourself

Own Your Morning. Elevate Your Life.

The Financial Diet's Guide to Abundant and Intentional Living

The Biology of Humans at Our Best and Worst

Iterate from a Plan A to A Plan That Works

Make the Vital Change That Will Level Up Your Business

24 min

4.4

Beyond Entrepreneurship 2.0

Jim Collins and Bill Lazier

Turning Your Business into an Enduring Great Company

Turning Fear and Doubt into Fuel for Brilliance

18 min

4.3

The Self-Driven Child

William Stixrud and Ned Johnson

The Science and Sense of Giving Your Kids More Control Over Their Lives

How Decisive Leaders Execute Strategy Despite Obstacles, Setbacks, and Stalls

21 min

3.9

How Economics Explains the World

Andrew Leigh

A Short History of Humanity

The Art of Doing Twice the Work in Half the Time

17 min

4.4

How to Take Smart Notes

Sönke Ahrens

One Simple Technique to Boost Writing, Learning and Thinking – for Students, Academics and Nonfiction Book Writers

18 min

4.4

Becoming a Person of Influence

John C. Maxwell

How to Positively Impact the Lives of Others

Better Business Decisions with Human Personality Science

16 min

4.3

I Thought It Was Just Me (but it isn’t)

Brené Brown

Making the Journey From “What Will People Think?” to “I Am Enough”

15 min

4.4

Sun Tzu and the Art of Business

Mark R. McNeilly

Six Strategic Principles for Managers

The Psychology of Persuasion

33 min

4.5

How to Talk to Anyone

Leil Lowndes

92 Little Tricks for Big Success in Relationships

Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future

23 min

4.3

Zero to One

Peter Thiel with Blake Masters

Notes on Startups, or How to Build The Future

26 min

4.6

Blue Ocean Shift

W. Chan Kim and Renée Mauborgne

Beyond Competing – Proven Steps to Inspire Confidence and Seize New Growth

24 min

4.4

How to Stop Losing Your Sh*t with Your Kids

Carla Naumburg

A Practical Guide to Becoming a Calmer, Happier Parent

18 min

4.1

Building Your Money Machine with ChatGPT

Larry Wheeler

Use AI to Generate Ideas, Automate Marketing, and Build Profits

A Compelling Introduction to Philosophy

18 min

3.8

Help Me, I Have No Discipline and Zero Self-Control

Vaughn Carter

The Secret Formula to Breaking Bad Habits, Mastering Mental Toughness, and Reaching Your Goals

18 min

4.3

Women, Food, and Hormones

Sara Gottfried

A 4-Week Plan to Achieve Hormonal Balance, Lose Weight, and Feel Like Yourself Again

16 min

3.6

Habits of a Peacemaker

Steven T. Collis

10 Habits to Turn Toxic Conversations Into Healthy Dialogues

18 min

4.7

The Hive Mind at Work

Siobhan McHale

Harness Group Intelligence to Drive Meaningful and Lasting Change

18 min

See You on the Internet

Avery Swartz

Building Your Small Business with Digital Marketing

21 min

4.0

Ultimate Guide to Local Business Marketing

Perry Marshall and Talor Zamir

How to master local online marketing

13 min

4.0

People ❤️ Blinkist

Sven O.

It's highly addictive to get core insights on personally relevant topics without repetition or triviality. Added to that the apps ability to suggest kindred interests opens up a foundation of knowledge.

Thi Viet Quynh N.

Great app. Good selection of book summaries you can read or listen to while commuting. Instead of scrolling through your social media news feed, this is a much better way to spend your spare time in my opinion.

Jonathan A.

Life changing. The concept of being able to grasp a book's main point in such a short time truly opens multiple opportunities to grow every area of your life at a faster rate.

Renee D.

Great app. Addicting. Perfect for wait times, morning coffee, evening before bed. Extremely well written, thorough, easy to use.