Also a PhD here—read, read, read. You need to know what’s been done to see what the gaps are and how your project would fit in. You will also build up that intuition.
Sure, it’s also helpful to be able to bounce ideas around your network, but the less well-formed the idea is, the more likely it is to go to friends who aren’t just going to shoot you down or for it to get the benefit of the doubt as “early-stage.” You need to get the idea formed to the point where someone can feel comfortable pointing out issues, which will take independent research. You also see that here at LW, where ideas/points are usually more than a paragraph long.
Also a PhD here—read, read, read. You need to know what’s been done to see what the gaps are and how your project would fit in. You will also build up that intuition.
Sure, it’s also helpful to be able to bounce ideas around your network, but the less well-formed the idea is, the more likely it is to go to friends who aren’t just going to shoot you down or for it to get the benefit of the doubt as “early-stage.” You need to get the idea formed to the point where someone can feel comfortable pointing out issues, which will take independent research. You also see that here at LW, where ideas/points are usually more than a paragraph long.