How to Turn Your Knowledge Into a Thriving Business

Posted on: August 31st, 2017 in Mindset by Pat Mesiti | 2 Comments

According to the latest statistics unemployment fell to 5.6% in July, but dig a little deeper and the figures reveal that 20,300 full-time positions were lost last month. The only reason unemployment appeared to go down was because more part-time positions were created.

The truth is that there is no such thing as job security anymore and full-time permanent jobs are getting harder and harder to come by. Also wage growth has stalled in Australia. So what is the solution? I strongly recommend you look at diversifying the way you earn your income. That means exploring multiple ways of making a dollar through your knowledge, or what I call turning your passion into profit.

Identify your Key Interest

First identify your passion or key interest. Are you great with interior design, taming toddlers or even connecting household devices to the internet? Do friends and family regularly come to you for advice about a certain subject? Could you offer your expertise in this field as a consultant? I know someone who used to work for local government in the environment section, then he retired. Today he works part-time as a consultant helping people prepare development applications for councils. These council forms bamboozle most people and local government expects you to submit multiple reports when applying for development permission. Consultants in this area make fantastic money. My friend charges $200 an hour, but you do not need to have a professional background to become a consultant. Perhaps you did a great job raising your children. What about starting a parenting consultancy to help other mums and dads raise happier, more confident children? Or what about a clever-shopping consultancy? Could you teach a family to buy their food for under $100 a week and cut down other expenses?

Leverage your Professional Background

If you have a professional background, think about diversifying into a slightly different area. Maybe you worked in accountancy, but now it’s time to shake it up! What about a consultancy helping people plan for their retirement? You are still using your accountancy skills. Perhaps you have done some training or teaching. Have you considered setting up a consultancy for career changers? Everyone from university graduates to recent retirees to women with teenage children are looking for a way to get back into the workforce. A career consultant assesses people’s skills and helps with curriculum vitaes, cover letters and the responses to the essential questions most companies ask. A career consultant can also conduct simulated job interviews and assist job seekers search the internet for job vacancies.

Help People with Common Challenges

When you think about it, people are struggling with so many areas of their lives and are willing to pay for a bit of extra support. Could you set up a consultancy helping people cut down their energy use and live greener lives? Everyone is talking about the price of electricity in Australia. What could you do to help people cut down their electricity usage?

What about a consultancy helping people manage competing demands? The reality is that fewer Australians are working full-time than ever before. About 50% or 12.5 million Australians are aged between 25 and 64. The unemployment rate is 5%, meaning only 45% of the population works, and of those one-third work part-time. That means that about 24.5 million people live in Australia, but only about 8 million work full time, while another 4 million work part-time. But the people with full-time jobs are often expected to do the work of two people and they do not have the time to do their shopping, walk their dog and spend quality time with their family. What sort of consultancy or business could you set up to help them? Could you establish a consultancy helping people or even small business owners become more efficient with their time? Many businesses hire consultants to help them run their operations more efficiently. Remember business consultants make more money than consultants who work with private individuals.

Be Creative

But consultancy is not the only way to turn your knowledge into a business. Many people teach or tutor for a fee. Be creative in your approach to what you could teach. There is sewing, dancing, computer literacy, even fishing! You may be an expert in an area but not even know it. My friend wanted to teach her daughter how to knit, but her child was left-handed and she was right-handed. She ended up searching the internet for a tutor to teach left-handed people crafts like knitting and crochet, but she couldn’t find anyone. Hey, there’s a business opportunity!

Start a Blog

For a long while I’ve been raving about the advantageous of having your own blog. On your blog and Facebook page you can demonstrate your knowledge and establish yourself as an expert. That really helps when it comes to working as a consultant and tutor – you’ve already proved that you have the knowledge. If your blog takes off and develops a following you may one day be able to charge a subscription fee. There are numerous other products that stem from having a popular blog. You could self-publish your own book with a company like Amazon and sell it online. A book compliments your blog and enhances your reputation as an expert. Alternatively you could set up an E-course. E-courses often use online videos or webinars. You basically are setting up an online classroom to teach other people what you know. The subject may be something as simple as woodwork or as complicated as web design.

The workforce is changing rapidly and traditional jobs are disappearing, but people with an entrepreneurial spirit will thrive in this new environment. The trick is to identify your strengths and then find a market. There are new millionaires today who have made their money by starting up innovative businesses. These people have begun online businesses in areas such as holiday house-swapping, dog walking and personal styling. And they have made a fortune! Wouldn’t you like to join them? Be brave, take the plunge and turn your passion into a profit.

ABOUT PAT MESITI

Pat Mesiti is a best-selling author, coach and educator in the area of personal development. Having built some of Australia’s largest people-driven organisations, Pat understands the power of harnessing human potential. He has shared the stage with some of the world’s great business minds and has sold over millions of copies of his books and materials.

 

  1. Elio Marrocco says:

    Hi Pat, how are you? Hope you are doing well.

  2. Elio Marrocco says:

    Hi Pat how are you? Hope you are doing well. Good article.

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