How to Take What You Like and Turn It Into a Business

One good thing about a global pandemic? Many of us have a lot of time on our hands right now. Time we can spend catching up on a hobby or discovering something new that we love.

Maybe you like how your days are going at the moment. You like having time to spend on what you enjoy. You like the way you feel when you’re doing that thing you’re doing.

You might even be dreading the day when life returns to “normal” and it’s back to the daily grind.

But what if you could turn your hobby—your passion—into a business? What if what you love became your job? What if every day could feel like it feels right now?

Sound impossible? It’s not. People do it all the time.

This doesn’t mean it’s easy. Or everyone would be doing it. But, in this day and age, there are so many ways to go about it and make it happen.

You know what’s amazing? That thing you like to do? You’re not alone. There are tens of thousands of individuals who like it too. The difference is that, typically, you just don’t know who they are or how to reach them.

Fortunately, today’s technology makes that easier, and we’re going to talk about some simple steps you can do to put yourself in a position to permanently do the things you like to do.

The first thing to do is get clear. One of the most challenging things is developing clarity, an understanding of what it is exactly that you want to do.

Clarity leads to power.

It leads to power to do two very specific things: decide and act. When you decide, you literally cut off all other options with conviction. Then you are free to act and move forward in the direction that you actually want to go. Without clarity, that is very difficult to achieve. Without clarity, I wonder if I’m missing out on something. Is it okay that I like this and this becomes my thing to the exclusion of all others?

The truth of the matter is yes. Not only is it okay, but the world needs more people who like what they do. People like you.

Once you have that clarity, what will your action steps be today? What action steps will put you in a position to be able to do what you like to do and turn it into something you get to do consistently, maybe even long after the emergency situation is over?

Let me share a simple three-step process for turning your passion into a business.

Step 1: Let other people know.

You’ve got to make people aware that your business exists. Promote it. Tell people about this thing you like. You can’t keep doing it—and also eat—unless people are aware. Awareness puts food on the table.

One of the easiest things you can do is connect with individuals who like what you like. The internet gives you the world at your fingertips. Go start a Facebook group around your interest. There are other people out there who share that interest. They just don’t know you want to connect. You’ve got to find them and make that connection.

You are capturing their attention.

Attention is the currency of the day—and especially right now. Once you are able to capture someone’s attention, and people resonate with you, you become the person who is facilitating connection. You can connect and raise awareness via audio, video, or the written word. It doesn’t matter. However you connect best, and however others connect best with you.

In its simplest form, you’re just saying, “Hey, I like to do this. Do you like to do it too? Let’s all do it together.”

Once you begin to do this, you are effectively letting the marketplace know that you are there and you are building an audience. When you create content, and create a space for your people—your community—to hang out in, you become a centerpiece of value for that audience.

Step 2: Gauge people’s interest.

Once you build your audience, then you need to figure out what it is they’re specifically interested in. Oftentimes people will volunteer this information. That’s easy. Or you can ask them. Connect with people, then ask them to tell you more about what they want, what they’d be willing to pay money for.

You can also get creative with your research and figure it out on your own. Blogs, YouTube, podcasts are all ways to find out who’s interested in what.

Once you gather and gauge their interest,

Step 3: Offer it to them.

The marketplace is all about exchanging value. Figure out what you’re going to sell, how you’re going to sell it, who you’ll sell it to.

Then offer it to your people. Spread the word that you’re ready to exchange value.

Is this scary? Of course.

Is that a reason to put it off? Absolutely not.

How many times have you had a great idea and thought to yourself, “One day…?” When I look at the calendar, I see seven days. None of them are called “one day.”

So why not today?

Get started sooner rather than later, especially if you’ve got the time right now. Even if you don’t. Begin building now. Even if you don’t quit your day job tomorrow, you’re putting yourself in a position where you no longer have to have a single point of failure. You’re paving the way for a more resilient income, a more resilient lifestyle.

The future is uncertain. If, for some reason, something happens to your plan A, you already have a Plan B. You can’t build a business in theory. It has to be done by lots of experimentation. And now is the time to make it happen.

Take that leap. If you don’t try it now, when will you? What if you give it a shot for 30 days in a row and see what happens? Promote the fact that you like what you like, and let the whole world know. You might be surprised at who you can connect with—and what you can build—if you just try.

Go ahead. Take the risk.

What have you got to lose?

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