I am not looking for a right or wrong answer on this one. I have always the principle "Always be validating". So every idea of mine is shared with the intent of answering questions such as need, pricing, positioning etc.
How often (how many people do you talk to and how long) do folks here validate their ideas?
I talk to a few close friends to get some ideas, but I don't rely on their excitement to give me an indication of how worthy an idea it is. Validation comes from actually getting it done and having people pay/use it.