Adam RicoTo do work we enjoy there must be three components in place.
401(K) 2012 via Compfight
Your work needs to be in alignment with:
1. Your personality
2. Your best skills and abilities
3. Your passions and dreams
We must have all thee components to fully enjoy our work but we must also have a fourth component – a paying market.
An employer, a customer base, someone willing to part with their money in order to get a greater perceived return.
You may have a passion for collecting chewing gum wrappers but there may not be a paying market for your passion.
Often this element is one that discourage us from pursuing work we might enjoy. We think our mad skills in identifying a 1963 Wrigley’s spearmint gum wrapper just isn’t going to pay the bills.
So here’s how to know if you have a paying market.
Begin to think like your potential customer.
If you want a traditional employee job then think like an employer.
How will your skills and abilities assist them in reaching their goals? How will what you offer fill a need or close a gap for them?
The same holds true if you want to be self-employed. How does your product or service solve a problem, fill a need, or provide enjoyment for your customers?
Then test your market.
Call some employers and make your sales pitch.
Even if there isn’t a job posting. It might actually be better if there’s not a job posting – less competition.
If you want to be self-employed set up a booth at a trade show to see if anyone bites.
If your passion is collecting chewing gum wrappers maybe set up a booth at Comic-Con to see if anyone is interested.
Those are just a few examples but hopefully you get what I’m saying here.
Find a way to determine if someone will pay you to do what you want to do.
Then when you have that fourth piece in place you are ready to begin doing work you enjoy.
