The problem is that I'm extremely ADD when it comes to ideas and instead of one idea I came up with four.
I want to be able to create a product demo sometime before the end of January, but with no focus it's very difficult to work on something.
Can anyone who has been through something similar offer advice?
* You will have to deal with the ADD, or you will not get anywhere, speaking from personal experience. In my case, I hit walls and managed to work around them. But sometimes new and easier things came along, and then I would pursue those interests. Unfortunately, when I did this, the work I did got tossed, and I started back at square one on the new stuff. Don't be me.
* In general, I begin an idea that may not be great or novel, but I try to build on it, iteratively, add new concepts or features to it. This process heavily depends on the project though. Generally, as I work along these lines, I am bumping into random problems that need to be solved or need a better solution. (this advice point may not be strong).
* Don't be afraid to fail. Failing is half the battle.
Hope these four points help.
The ADD on the other hand I believe it's just something I'm going to have to deal with.
Do not fear this!*
Accept that it's actually the most likely outcome, and that down the track, never having failed is quite likely to be viewed with suspicion or disbelief. Be smart about it - limit your losses by failing early, but refusing to risk failure means you're also refusing to risk success...
Big
* Well, be smart about it - it the resources you're planning on putting in are such that you're risking _serious_ _long term_ personal consequences in the event of failure, you need to weigh that against the benefits of success and the likelyhood of it being successful. If the "worst case" scenario is that you fail with 5 or 10k of credit card debt and need to move back in with you folks and get a day job to get back on your feet, you can quite likely afford to "risk everything" there...
All else being equal (or just unknown), go with the one you'll get the most immediate real-world feedback on. At least that way you'll know quickly if it's viable, and if not, what made it not viable.
Learning++
And nothing says you can't validate more than one idea, but that is going to cut into your resources.