It's not uncommon to reach your 30s, 40s or even 50s and still wonder, "What do I want to be when I grow up?" Few people are fortunate enough to be certain of their destinies early on and the rest of us are forced to do some soul searching.
The desire to own a business is becoming more common as workers grow more frustrated with the economy and working in corporate America. If you're thinking about a Business of your own but you're not sure what to start, here are several exercise to spark some ideas.
Start by Making Lists of Your Interests, Talents, and Skills
Write down what you like and don't like about your current job and jobs you've had in the past. Do you love writing Business documents? Do you hate calculating numbers? By listing your likes and dislikes, you can see with more clarity where some of your interests lie and which tasks you want to avoid.
The trick is to brainstorm Business ideas and find one that you will be passionate about, one that will meet your desired standard of living and your lifestyle criteria. Someone who doesn't like being chained to a desk should not choose a Business that requires her to be stuck in an office all day.
The good news is that as an entrepreneur, you get to make these decisions for yourself. Perhaps you are good with numbers and you're thinking about becoming a mortgage broker, but you don't want to be stuck in an office all day. If you are serving clients in your area, won't you also be required to meet with them? Could you find a way to meet with them at their place of Business or over lunch?
This list should also help you identify your weaknesses. If you hate to write, then you probably shouldn't start a local newspaper (although if you have the right budget, you can hire writers and focus on other aspects of the business). If crunching numbers makes your brain hurt, then you won't find joy in running a bookkeeping business. For that matter, you will probably dread keeping your own books and should build a bookkeeping service into your Business budget.
Spend some time with this exercise and look for a theme in your lists. If you identify a Business that interests you, but it doesn't meet your lifestyle requirements, then expand on the idea and see if there is a different type of Business in that field that would suit you better.
Imagine You Have Just Won the Lottery
So you've just won a lottery for $500,000. It's not enough to retire on, but it's enough to make some decisions about your future. Consider what you would do if you won a large chunk of money. Of course it's fun to imagine paying off your debts and sharing your good fortune with the people you love, but what do you do with the rest of the money? What does your ideal work life look like? What kind of Business would you start if you had endless resources?
Could Your Talent or Hobby Net You Some Profits?
Whether you are a musician, an artist, a writer, a crafter, an athlete, an entertainer or a chef, you may be able to find a business that takes advantage of these talents. Think outside the box. Use the internet to search for ideas. For example, if you are a sports fanatic, you could search for "sports Business" or "sports industry" and see what kinds of topics are returned. Perhaps you could become a sports
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