Discover what really motivates you: Part 2
Can You Turn A Favorite Hobby Into A Profitable Small Business?
I have been asked this question many times, and the answer is … it depends.
Your small business profits depend on your performance, and achieving peak performance depends on your ability to engage your key natural talents and then to develop them into strengths.
You also want to align your business strategy to your core purpose and to your core values. Exactly how you do this is the core of our live and online workshops.
A note of caution …. while interests (hobbies) and strengths are related, there’s danger in believing that an interest can turn into a full time career. For some people it may, and for others it will only ever be a relaxing and enjoyable hobby.
To work out the difference you need to have a clear understanding of what your key natural talents are, and how they combine with what you value. You can identify your natural talents at http://www.MyTalentCode.com and your values at http://www.MyMotivationCode.com
Those two dimensions (talent and values) must be aligned for you to maintain motivation and achieve peak performance and productivity, which will in turn lead to profits in your small business if your business strategy also meets your market’s needs and wants, and your offers are communicated clearly to your target market.
Hobbies and Your Talent Code™
While interests, hobbies and strengths are related, there’s danger in believing that an interest can turn into a full time career. For some people it may, and for others it will only ever be a relaxing and enjoyable hobby. Here are 10 reasons why …
- When you engage in a favorite pastime or hobby, you are motivated by the desire for relaxation or pleasure.
- In hobbies there are usually no tight time frames or standards (other than self imposed ones).
- The parts of your brain used for your leisure/hobby skills (creative mode) are different from the parts of your brain used for professional productivity (work modes) – that’s why hobbies are relaxing. They literally give your brain a break from work!
- You can only achieve peak performance when you have a match between the level of challenge involved in a task and your level of skill – high challenge / low skill leads to frustration and inefficiency.
- You will achieve a very high level of skill (expert status) only through the intense application of time and energy to building your knowledge and skill levels of your natural talents until they become real strengths – worthy of 9/10 or even 10/10!
- You could apply that same level of intensity to a skill set that is not based on your natural talents, and after years you may still rank only a 6/10 or 7/10, even though you really enjoy using that skill.
- If you love what you are doing in your hobby and you would rate at 6/10 or 7/10, that’s a pretty good indicator that you should stick to it as a hobby – high pleasure, low pressure!
- If on the other hand you have a hobby in which your skill levels are 9/10 or 10/10, you lose track of time when you engage in that hobby, AND you still produce excellent results even under pressure, then that hobby may have the potential to become a profitable business for you with the right small business training. You are now motivated by a desire for productivity and profits.
- You can get started by identifying your natural talents at http://www.MyTalentCode.com and your values at http://www.MyMotivationCode.com
- In the meantime, your hobbies are important for refreshing and energizing your brain, so enjoy your hobby, strengthen your knowledge and skills, check out if your hobby matches your your key natural talents and you will end up with either a new career or continue to enjoy your very satisfying hobby!
What REALLY Motivates You When You Engage in Your Hobby?
To summarize the message of this article and to answer for yourself the question “Can I Turn My Hobby Into A Profitable Small Business?” you must honestly look at your key natural talents, and I’ve pointed you to a tool for doing that http://www.MyTalentCode.com
You also want to be really clear about your motivation for engaging in your hobby. Your motivation comes from your values – what’s important to you – and I’ll address that in more detail in my next post, where I will unpack the power of values alignment for maintaining motivation and achieving your professional or small business goals. One thing I can tell you in advance is this:
- All truly successful people know what their values are, and have the skills to live them!