What's Inside the Book?
A brutal, structured system to kill bad ideas—fast.
You won’t find fluff here.
Just six no-nonsense Tests—each built to challenge your idea the way real customers, investors, and markets will.
From identifying your customer to validating real pain…
From proving your value to making sure you’re not just building a product, but a business—
this book shows you what matters, and what doesn’t.
Each one challenges a different part of your idea. Pass them, or pivot.
Six Tests That Will Kill—Or Prove—Your Idea
Customer-focused, problem-first
Designed for real-world application
Used in MBA classrooms and startup workshops
Who is This Book For?
This book isn’t for people who want to fall in love with their idea.
It’s for people who want to know—brutally and honestly—if it’s worth the obsession.
Whether you’re an aspiring founder, a startup builder, or an educator trying to teach disciplined entrepreneurship, this book gives you a battle-tested framework to filter bad ideas fast—before they cost you years and a fortune.
First-Time Entrepreneurs
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Avoid wasting years chasing an idea that was never going to work.
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University Entrepreneurship
Students​
Learn the difference between a cool idea and a viable business in the real world.
Repeat Startup Founders
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Pressure-test your next idea before you commit to building it.
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Educators & Facilitators
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Use a structured, no-fluff framework to teach idea validation and kill the hype.
Startup Teams & Builders
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Align your team around one clear customer, one real problem, and one sharp value proposition.
Angel Investors
& Venture Capitalists
Use this framework to evaluate early-stage startups—and avoid backing the wrong ones.
Accelerator & Incubator Participants
Sharpen your pitch and validate your concept—before demo day.
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Corporate Innovators
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Use this framework to kill internal “zombie projects” early.
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What Readers Are Saying… Soon
The book just launched. Early feedback is rolling in—and when it does, you’ll find it here. No fake blurbs. No fluff. Just real reactions from founders, educators, and investors who’ve used the framework.
About Yoram Solomon
Bo fluff. No hype. No BS.
Yoram Solomon is a trust researcher, serial entrepreneur, angel investor, professor—and the guy with the words “no BS” tattooed on his right arm. Because that’s how he makes decisions, invests, and teaches.
He’s one of the original founders of the North Texas Angel Network and served on the investment review committee for the State of Texas Emerging Technology Fund, evaluating early-stage ventures across multiple industries. He’s built startups—some that took off, and some that didn’t. He’s been on both sides of the pitch: raised money, and sat across the table deciding whether to write the check.
Since 2018, Yoram has developed and taught the course Evaluating Entrepreneurial Opportunities at SMU’s Cox School of Business, helping MBA students and aspiring founders figure out not how to build—but whether they should.
He didn’t write Is It Really a Great Idea? to sell copies. He wrote it for the same reason he teaches that class: to stop smart people from wasting years—and millions—chasing the wrong idea.
“You don’t need someone to tell you what you want to hear. You need someone to tell you the truth—before the market does.”
Six Brutal Tests Every Idea Must Survive
Every idea sounds great in your head. These tests are designed to expose what the market will destroy later—so you can fix it, or kill it, before it costs you years (and a fortune).
1. Customer
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Who exactly is this for?
If you can’t describe your customer precisely, you don’t have a real opportunity—you have a guess.
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4. Validation
(Field Test)
What happens when real people try it?
If you’re not testing in the field, you’re just daydreaming. MVPs are for learning, not for selling.
2A. Pain /
2B. Gain​
Are you solving a real problem—or creating a result your customer deeply wants?
Ideas that don’t solve a real pain or create tangible gain won’t survive contact with the market.
5. Sustainable Competitive Advantage
Can others easily copy it?
If you can't protect what you're building—through switching costs, network effects, or brand trust—you’ll lose to whoever shows up with money.
3. Value / Differentiation
Why you? Why now?
Test whether your idea actually matters to your customer—and whether it stands out in a way they care about.
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6. Profitable
Business Model
Can this actually make money?
Is everyone in the value chain motivated?
No matter how brilliant the idea, if it won’t generate revenue and margins—it’s not a business.
The Podcast That Kills Bad Ideas
This isn’t a motivational pep talk. It’s a weekly gut check.
In each solo episode, Dr. Yoram Solomon shares unfiltered insights from Is It Really a Great Idea?—and from years spent founding startups, teaching MBA students, and evaluating early-stage ventures.
You’ll learn how to test assumptions, avoid startup myths, and kill bad ideas before they waste your time, money, or credibility.
No guests. No sugar-coating. Just the tools, mindset, and brutal honesty you need to stop chasing the wrong idea—and start building the right one.
Listen to the trailer (1:40)
Not a hype show. A reality check.
Get the Books
Whether you're reading it solo or working through it with a team, everything starts with the textbook. The workbook is your tool for applying it.
Textbook Version
The complete system for evaluating ideas—based on the class taught at SMU and used by founders, investors, and educators. Includes all the core content, the six brutal tests, and detailed instructions for using the worksheets.
Workbook Version
The companion workbook includes all the guided worksheets in color—organized to match each of the six brutal tests. It’s designed to be used with the textbook, which provides the thinking and instructions behind each step.
(Not meant to be used on its own.)
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Contact Us
Want to ask about bulk orders, media, or speaking?
Email: yoram@yoramsolomon.com
Call: +1 (972) 332-1490
© 2025 Yoram Solomon. All Right Reserved.
Designed with no fluff, no hype, and no BS.