How to get startup ideas – Paul Graham

Solve your own problem
Deep and narrow, starting with small targeted user
Live in the future, then build what’s missing. Hack everything
“That’s an interesting idea. I’ll try building an initial version tonight."
A good way to trick yourself into noticing ideas is to work on projects that seem like they’d be cool. If you do that, you’ll naturally tend to build things that are missing.
Live in the future and build what seems interesting.
Beware of research, topics of research are unlikely to startup ideas
Competition is okay and small market is okay also, if in the future this market will grow up
Ask users and be them, making you have a viewpoint from them
ask what you wish someone else would build, so that you could use it