I was doing a reading for a woman recently and we were talking about her making a transition in her career. She was working as a project manager for a tech company and she was miserable but she had no idea what else she wanted to do. So when I tuned in to her guides and asked what she should or could be doing that would be more aligned with who she was, they showed me an image of her quilting. Quilting? Talk about a departure from her current situation job at a tech company!
So I asked her if she knew how to quilt. She brightened up and said, “Oh yes, I’ve been quilting for years. Practically my whole life. I’ve made more quilts than I can count.” Interesting. So I went back to the guides and asked them what quilting had to do with her career path. Was she supposed to make and sell quilts or what?
The guides conveyed that just making quilts and selling them wouldn’t be lucrative enough for her. They downloaded an entire business plan to me. This is what they shared with me and what I then shared with her: “They’re showing me you creating an online magazine related to quilting, sewing, and other home economic tips. They’re also showing me you creating an instructional video related to quilting, and information products also. They’re showing me you selling patterns and ideas for patterns, creating an online discussion community, and also offering a ‘quilts for sale’ kind of board like an ebay. They’re telling me also that you used to do some writing and that an online magazine would actually be easy for you to operate. Is that right?”
She was speechless for a moment then said, “Yes, I took a lot of writing classes in college because at one point I wanted to be a journalist but abandoned that idea in favor of something more stable in the tech industry. I never really thought to do anything professional with it, but I’ve dabbled here and there with writing articles, and I’ve also tried blogging about my personal life but it didn’t work out for me as I had no traffic.”
Then I asked her if the quilting business idea resonated with her, and she said, “Absolutely it does. I never would have thought I could make money with a hobby. I thought the only way to make money quilting was to sell quilts and I don’t have the time and energy to do that like I used to. But teaching others and providing a learning forum, and writing about it would be so awesome. And now that you’re telling me this, it just makes so much sense. Plus I could work from home which I would really love to do!”
We spent the next 15 minutes making a solid business plan for her. She realized she could start almost immediately. She added plans to let other people contribute to the magazine so she wouldn’t have to write all the articles herself, she was going to add an expert panel to do some Q&A, and get an outline going of what departments she wanted her magazine to have. She was elated. She was stoked. She had a plan that resonated with her and would make her happy. And her guides explained how she would start this on the side while she still had her current tech job, and once it could replace her income, she would quit her tech job.
And this happens ALL THE TIME in the readings I do with clients. People don’t always realize or see that the things they do for fun – their hobbies and passions – can be turned into a new career. This woman was in her late 50’s. She’d been quilting and sewing for decades. She had no idea that her knowledge and experience would be of significant value to others who were just starting out. She didn’t realize she was an expert.
What skills, knowledge, or experience do you currently have that make you an expert to those just starting out? What’s under your belt?
When I first started my spirituality blog in 2006 I thought, “Who is going to want to hear about my paranormal, astral, and lucid dreaming experiences? Who would want to hear what I have to say about compassion and love? How do my intuitive experiences help anyone?” Five years later, my blog gets more than 100,000 visitors per month and I earn a solid living providing intuitive counseling and spiritual guidance to others. All I’m doing is sharing what I know with those who are seeking.
If you’re in a career that isn’t making you happy anymore, think about the skills, hobbies, and passions you have. Think about what you know that you could pass on to others who are just starting out. Is it of value? Could you construct a business around it that would offer something of value to others?
Think outside the box. Be creative. Don’t discount anything. Are you really good at hiking? Who might want to learn from you? Are you really good at giving advice to your friends? Who might benefit from your wisdom? Are you great at self-defense? Who could you teach? Are you awesome at attracting women? Might there be people out there who would kill or die for your knowledge? Are you extremely healthy and fit? Could you teach others how you got that way?
You’re an expert. At something. And there are people coming along the path behind you who would happily pay you to teach them what you know. It can shave years off their learning curve. Start thinking about who you are and how you got there, and see if you can find a way to help others find what you’ve already found.
