You Know More Than You Think
Is there something in your life that you absolutely love doing? Do you have a passion for something, like a hobby that you would love to make some money from? Have you ever told someone you would like to go into business doing one of your hobbies, only to have them say: "You can't make money doing that"? If your like me, then you have answered yes to almost all of those questions.
I'm a firm believer that you can make money doing the things that your passionate about. Usually the things you are the most passionate about are the areas where you know a lot about the subject. To enjoy something typically means that you immerse yourself in it. Naturally that means you'd likely have a lot of knowledge on this subject.
What you may not know, is that others most likely desire the information that you already know, and you probably know more than you think.
This is probably best explained with an example, and I have the perfect example for you.
A friend of mine was a graphic artist for a large building company that worked primarily in commercial construction. AJ, liked one aspect of his job, but everything else he hated. He disliked getting up in the morning and having to report to a boss. He hated the tight deadlines that he never got to set, and of course he hated the fact that basically there was no room for growth. However, there was one thing that he liked. He loved to draw and he saw this as the best part of his day. Not only did AJ draw at work, but he also sketched during most of his free time. He's a great artists and what makes him so interesting is that he lives and breathes his passion.
One day, AJ and I were helping a friend move, and he noticed that our friend had a large stack of drawing books. You know the kind you get that says "How to draw a perfect cartoon head" or "How to draw the funny captions". After asking about them AJ made the comment that, "Those books are ok, but there are so many things they aren't telling you". I said to AJ, if there is so much they aren't telling you, then why don't you write "that" book.
I know what your thinking, AJ went home, wrote the book and became a millionaire and I'm typing this post from his private jet? Yeah, no that didn't happen. In fact AJ almost never wrote the book. It wasn't until three years later when he got his hours cut and had to find other means to support his comic hobby did he start thinking about monetizing his passion for comics and drawing. AJ had something sitting at his fingertips that he had no idea would make him plenty of extra dough. Not only did he frequent many formus, blogs and online comic sites, but he got to be known in the community. He had a blog and kept it pretty much up to date, but never published any book material.
I was able to push AJ into creating an eBook that was designed to help others produce their own comic and learn some insider tricks that others didn't do a good job of publishing. Today I'm happy (proud in fact) to tell you that AJ is making a rather handsome amount of money off of his blog and eBook sales. It has also helped him line up some freelance contracts with local companies doing comic style art for ad campaigns. He's done a good job, and so can you.
Think about the things you know, and the things that you do on a daily basis. Now take that list and pull out the ones that you do because you enjoy them, not because your boss is making you do them. Take this revised list and see if there is niche that you would fit comfortably in. We'll write more about niche markets in another post, but what your looking for is an opportunity in an area you enjoy that someone else isn't already fulfilling.
Take your time, think hard and I bet you'll find something rather appealing to you. For AJ is was a struggle, but he eventually found it. Nothing in life is easy, but nobody said life doesn't have to be fun.
Posted on: Jan 18, 2010
Filed in: Business
Tags:
Business, Passive Income, Supplemental Income
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