Did you quit your job yet? Not yet? Good! Before you pack up your desk, let’s make sure we have a plan. Don’t step off the dock before you have at least one foot in the boat.
You will hear many people tell you to “follow your dream” or “find your passion”, and it is largely true. You should find work in life that you love and go after it with your whole heart. But don’t be fooled. Desire is not enough. You must also be competent at that desire. And, most importantly, there must also be demand for what you are selling. Your dream career will be at the crossroads of your Desire, your Competency, and market Demand.
So how to you decide what that is?
In his book 48 Days to the Work You Love, Dan Miller suggests you “gather flowers from those within reach”. Think for a minute – what do you do to relax after work or on weekends? What is your greatest area of service to your fellow man? What activity energizes you, rather than making you feel drained when you are finished? Start there. Do you tinker with old cars? Be a vintage vehicle shade-tree mechanic. Collect guns? Become a gunsmith. Love to paint? Paint small 5×7 landscapes and sell them on Ebay. I know of a woman who enjoyed making gift basket arrangements, so she started a business to serve people on the Labor and Delivery wings of hospitals. Start with things you know about now, and work outward from there.
It is important that you also be good at this endeavor. Trust me, you don’t want me painting landscapes. My brother is a great Emergency Physician, but don’t let him touch your computer. Competency in your field will help set you apart from the crowd. Where do your knowledge, skills, and abilities intersect? What have you always been told you were good at? Look there.
Lastly, having a desire and competency for something is great, but if no one wants to buy it (or if you don’t know how to monetize or market it well – a later post) you will not succeed. The old saying, “Build a better mousetrap, and the world will beat a path to your door” is not only horribly dated, but it is no longer true. You have to demonstrate that your product or service will meet the needs of the market. You need a platform. Serve well, and you could be rewarded with what Rabbi Daniel Lapin calls “certificates of appreciation” that look suspiciously like dollar bills.
So, dream for minute or two. Then, leave a comment below saying what type of business you think fits your desire, competency, and market demand. Writing it down is the first step into that boat. Join the journey.
Please note: I reserve the right to delete comments that are offensive or off-topic.