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No matter who you are, you probably have a passion or two (or five!) that makes your life more meaningful. When you’re not working, maybe you’re passionate about the arts, or perhaps you have a lot of know-how with science, history, math, or business to the point you could probably do an excellent job teaching others. It seems like the gap between passion and profit is too large to make the leap for many people. Maybe you feel like your talent is too trivial of a skill to charge for a fee. What blocks us the most from making our “Passion Projects” a reality is thinking, “anybody could do what I do,” or “there are so many people already who charge for what I do in my free time, there’s no room or need for me.”
N-O-N-S-E-N-S-E!
We all have our own unique skill sets; that’s what makes the world so interesting! You are putting your perspective and spin on it. Just because you think what you’re good at is easy doesn’t mean it is. You could be a stellar photographer, manager, artist, writer, collector, or techie. In reality, people are either intimidated by or don’t have the time to become skilled at these things, and they would instead hire somebody who already knows what they’re doing. We all need each other. You have our support; you really can wake up every morning doing what you love and without getting burned out! Read on to learn how to take the first steps towards a more fulfilling, passionate work-life.
"Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world."
-Harriet Tubman
Create a Game Plan & Start With Baby-Steps
The key to getting your business off the ground is to maintain your patience and tenacity. Rome wasn’t built in a day, after all, and it will take time to get into the groove of advertising your services, finding clients, figuring out your rates, and keeping your flow of income steady and reliable. Many businesses fail in their first year without a business plan. You can start there; you will already be ahead of the game. Here’s a good article on what to keep in mind when writing a business plan and its key components. Doing this will give yourself a significant advantage in setting yourself up for success. When coming up with a business plan, here’s what you want to keep in mind:
What products and services will you offer and for what price? Do some research, find other people in your niche, and see how they’re setting up their pricing structures, so you don’t over or undersell yourself.
Do some market analysis. See what’s trending in your industry of choice, and see who the competition is. Take notes of things they’re doing right. Find out what the industry’s strengths and weaknesses are and possibly if you can meet a need that is lacking in your industry. Take Warby Parker, for example, an eyeglass e-commerce business started by a few students. They noticed Luxxotica monopolized the eyeglass industry, and the company had a 60-80% market share in the U.S. They own Lenscrafters, Pearle Vision, and have licenses for Prada and Chanel and were able to produce eyeglasses and mark them up for 3-5x of what they cost to make. The Warby Parker team set out to create stylish and affordable glasses for all. Ten years later- their company is worth 1 billion!
Create a marketing strategy. How will you attract your customer base, and how do you plan to reach out to them? If you’re wanting to sell courses or offer coaching services, consider a Youtube channel so you can establish yourself as a knowledgeable authority on your topic. Giving free advice and valuable content is also a great way to get people to trust you enough to buy what you have to offer. Maybe you’re a visual artist- these days advertising and building a fanbase on Instagram and TikTok can generate a good following and steady business. If applicable, you could even reach out to your local community for business by going door to door, creating a reputation for yourself through the power of word-of-mouth, and utilizing local Facebook groups as well as claiming your service/business on Google My Business to literally get yourself on the map! Find what’s right for you.
Create a financial plan and budget. Figure out your startup costs. How much will you be spending on the initial tools you need, development, manufacturing, marketing, and possible staffing? Set your initial budget and create some projections or scale on what you could feasibly expect to earn in profit in your first year. This process would help solidify and make your goals feel more attainable.
Keep Your Day Job (For Now)
The key to not burning yourself out is to make sure that you’re financially secure when you start building your business. It may be tempting when you first start getting sales- you may feel eager to move all your eggs into one basket. You may think to yourself, “Now that I have the ball rolling, I should quit my job so I can fully focus on what I love.” That mentality is understandable, but it’s crucial that you’re 110% sure that the business you’re getting from your passion project is consistent and sustainable enough for you to quit your day job. The last thing you want is to leave your job, find yourself not getting enough business, and become stressed out thinking about the very thing that you love to do. To ensure that doesn’t happen, you want to ideally have your business making at least 75% of your current salary, as well as have six months to a year’s worth of savings before you quit your job, just in case your business doesn’t grow as quickly as you expect it to. It will be a little hard juggling both initially, and it might make things move a little slower than you’d like it to, but trust us, slowly, and steady truly wins the race on this one.
Focus on Your Strengths
When you hone in on what you’re already good at, you’ll grow exponentially quicker than if you had to juggle your weaknesses on top of it. If possible, outsourcing will make your experience as an entrepreneur much more enjoyable. Most people will outsource services such as accounting, shipping, administrative tasks, marketing, and customer service to focus on what they do best. You can find many reputable freelancers available online on sites such as Paro, Freelancer, Upwork, Graphite, and Fiverr when it comes to outsourcing. You should factor this in the budget you have set in your business plan.
Set Your Hours
When it comes to beginning your entrepreneurial journey, it’s easy to hit the ground running and fill all your time with just working your day job and working on your business. Doing this can feel doable for a short while, but if you don’t set enough evenings aside for your family, friends, and spouse, or set time aside to do things that let you decompress like cooking, cleaning, and exercise (we’ve been there!), it will lead to burn-out, fast. Don’t forget to take care of yourself while you’re tending to your business. Set your hours or arrange a special day aside to allow yourself to take care of yourself and maintain your relationships. A balanced life is a fulfilling life that will fuel your motivation!
Create Accountability
Sometimes, it feels hard to talk about something you’re working on unless it’s 100% there, right where you would like it to be. You might be afraid to announce your endeavors to those close to you. What if it fails? What if it takes longer than expected to get off the ground? Remember, the people you have in your life are there for a reason- they love you, they want to see you do well, and when you share your experience with others, it can be an extra motivator to become the person your friends and family know you can be.
I hope these tips give you a good idea of how to begin going about making the life-changing decision of becoming your own boss. Being able to do something for a living that sparks a fire in your heart is an incredible feeling. Remember, it may be hard in the beginning, or sometimes overwhelming, but that’s totally normal. But if you play it smart and make a plan, make time for yourself, and include others in your journey, it won’t be so stressful. Once you push past the fear of the unknown, change your mindset, you’ll come out the other side, wiser, more capable, and so empowered!
Book a free 15-minute consultation to see how we can help you get started on your journey.
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