How can you make your passion profitable as an entrepreneur?

Who are the people you want to serve? What is the issue you want to help them address? (the problem you want to help them solve?) Why/How are you qualified to help this person with this issue? NOW _ Imagine you are successful. Your days are filled with helping these people address this issue. How does that feel? If you are stoked by that thought experiment ... you are on track. Then the decision is whether you want to do this for fun or attempt to build it into a right livelihood?

I have a different view and experience when it comes to passion. Not every passion can be turned into a business or profit. I have seen firsthand many times people trying hard to monetise their passion only to fall flat. I tried this earlier in my life and my parents quickly guided me in the right direction. I wanted to do drama and direct film production. ℹ eventually took a different career path that I enjoy today and at the same time I have taken my passion as hobby. Now I enjoy both my passion and the career I chose. Not to say if you pursue your passion things won’t always work out, I see it as a big career gamble.

The most helpful work I did before I launched my first product was create an ideal client questionnaire. I reached out to several folks who were the ideal client in my niche and asked them to either complete the interview self-paced or hop on a call and answer the questions verbally. I compiled all of the words and phrases I heard through those interviews to craft my product and the communications strategy surrounding it. When I launched, I felt confident that I was speaking in a very tailored way, directly to my niche of female nonprofit consultants.

Your niche is less important than your superpower fueled by your super passion. What get you excited? What do you have the potential to be amazing in/with? If you know or can identify the answer to this, your niche will find you.

I see this everywhere and I don't agree with it. ❌ For most of my life, I was miserable, thinking you have to be an expert at something in order to succeed. 🥲 ➡️ The truth is, I've always been passionate about so many things. So I decided to explore many of them. Not gonna lie, it might have taken me longer that someone that specializes. But today I am a proud generalist that has a great overview on many industries and aspects of business. 👍 That's my differentiator element and what allows me to be a good CEO. So if you're like me, please don't get discouraged and believe there is a place for generalists in this world. 😉

This is a MUST do. I start every concept not with a business plan, but a 1-page sales sheet or a short customer pitch deck. I share that with the potential target market and see how they respond. If the idea gains traction, then I start to build it. I remain in that “sales mode” AS I am building it. As I’ve coached new entrepreneurs over the last decade, and challenged their thinking about this, they share that they feel as if they have to build it first, before pitching it. Even the smallest idea like a program, course or some other service. Their fear is “what if someone buys it and it’s not perfect?” The truth is: It’s never perfect. Period. So… “Figure it out as you go, and fix it as you figure it out.”

The most important thing apart from the product is the cash flow. Assuming worst case scenarios for sales (lowest that you think you could do) and highest estimates or costs, especially the ones that you don’t know about. Even with these, if you think you are cash flow positive or can turn positive soon and have enough cash to sustain at least twice your estimated time.l, possibly it is good to go. In our assessment, we assumed very high sales and far too low a customer acquisition cost (CAC). CAC is real and is a killer - always remember this while working out your costs, price and profits.

There's so much noise around how to validate your idea. In the end, what remains is - "Will people pay you for this?" Personally the book "Mom Test" by Robert Fitzpatrick (YC Partner) has helped me craft unbiased questions and conversations that 1. Make me feel only more clearer about whather it's a good idea or not. 2. What possible pivots would be needed. 3. What will customers pay for with closed eyes. 4. How would I sell my product to them. This book has helped me imagine pivots without any hesitation. More often than not pivots aren't earth shifting but we get scared only because we see critical feedback as loss.

When it comes to validation, always remember, validation is not a one-time event but an ongoing process. You should continue to test different aspects of your product or service, and be prepared to iterate based on what you learn. This iterative approach will help you build a product that truly meets the needs of your customers.

To validate your assumptions, get out of the building and talk to stakeholders that make the ecosystem you want to serve. These include end users, influencers , gate keepers and decision makers. Conducting customer interviews and Customer centric design thinking allows you to de-risk your idea and develop something people want.

I leveraged my expertise in interdisciplinary subjects to co-found Stoa, radically redefining business education. Brand-building was central; my established LinkedIn and Twitter following served as an initial audience base, making the daily newsletter an immediate credibility booster. Networking with fellow entrepreneurs and influencers amplified our reach and trust quotient. Having an engaged online community not only funneled leads but also validated the quality and disruptive potential of our offering. Every testimonial became a beacon, heralding a new educational category and solidifying our brand's impact.

This is often the most important and critical component, and one that many entrepreneurs get wrong. You need to be known as someone who’s able to actually solve the problem you’re setting out to solve, and people need to know what you’re doing and care enough to follow your journey and support your efforts. You need to be known as the “(whatever) person” in broad circles and build social proof and capital to propel your vision to the next levels.

As a new entrepreneur many of your first sales are going to be through existing relationships. Having a significant personal brand can usually remove much of the objections around credibility or ability to deliver the product / service you are selling. Plus in the early days you may not have money for marketing and your personal brand creating organic content might be the only thing getting the word out there.

In the healthcare and human services professions we don't consider ourselves a "brand" - until we start to create "products". "Products" don't have to be physical objects that we sell. They can be resources, presentations, consultation time... and all of these need to be connected to your authentic self. Are you conservative? A nature-lover? Artistic? Uber professional? This can be communicated through colors, fonts, symbols, images, and tone of voice in your social media posts. But you will need to deep dive into your personal characteristics and make decisions on how you want to portray yourself. We are always working within a personal brand and the more you connect your passion with your profession - the more you can be your true self.

We are at an unprecedented time where you can scale your business without being tech savvy. There are many AI tools that entrepreneurs can leverage to save time, money & scale their business, allowing them to do more of what they love. These tools include Language models such as ChatGPT along with automation tools such as Zapier to automate many processes in business. If you like this, 👍💡

Scaling can be done in multiple ways. Let me give two examples keeping product and services ie both type of businesses in mind. If you are into product business then you can implement “Multiply” strategy where you standardise the product, produce it in large quantities to keep the cost low and distribute to maximum people keeping the price low. You will have many customers who are paying you low but producing volumes. Eg - Retail products If you are into services buisness then you can implement “Magnify” strategy where you gather subject matter expertise in your business and try to charge more as your authority and knowledge grows in that subject and business. You will have limited clients who pay you premium. Eg - Training buisness

Partnership can be one of the best way to scale up your business. As it can provide access to new customers, technologies, and markets. Look for complementary businesses that align with your values and can offer mutual benefits.

There are some really great comments here about NOT profiting from your passion. If there is ONE place where your passion for your business can be EXTREMELY profitable it's creating scale. Scaling your business-making more revenue for the same or fewer inputs--is leverage. And when you are passionate about your business and that passion catches fire in others, who become mavens, zealots, advocates for your business (its results) you can scale quickly & with ease. It's the passion you ignite in others that can keep your business open during a pandemic, have people on line (& online) for hours to get in your store or nab a ticket to your event. Passion is most profitable when it's shared!

Assess and mitigate potential risks associated with scaling, whether they be financial, operational, or market-related. A proactive approach to risk management can help protect the business as it expands.

It's cool to realize that our passion can bring income. Perhaps this is a product related to what we like to do, and in order to understand this, it is necessary to conduct a thorough investigation to correctly identify the niche, respectively, the audience and the best way to meet its needs. The latter most often succeeds in step-by-step testing of the product in various ways to find the most in demand. All this requires time, commitment, creative thinking and the ability to take a break when something doesn't work out. In this case, we have every chance to achieve the desired result by doing what our passion is.

Passion is something you strongly believe in what you are doing. It is never started to make a profit but with a purpose to create huge value for others. You may or may not transform into a business. It depends upon that strong belief in Value Creation using your passion. If someone starts any profitable business that is not necessarily a passion. Working hard is not a passion. Passion is the utmost strong belief in value creation and changing the world for betterment. To make it profitable you need to understand and learn the finance of a profitable business.

Sometimes the fastest route to killing your passion is to turn it into a business. I know too many people who did so, and it led to their losing their passion, in some cases for decades. Following your passion is a "want to." Business turns that into a "have to." It also makes you spend a ton of time on things that are NOT your passion. The baker didn't get into baking because she wants to learn marketing and accounting, but there she is, spending nights and weekends doing the stuff she is NOT passionate about. So think long and hard about turning what you love into a job. Because entrepreneurship is a lot more drudge than glamour.

One critical consideration is the importance of adaptability. The business landscape is ever-changing, and flexibility is key to navigating unforeseen challenges. Being open to new ideas, staying agile in decision-making, and continuously learning from experiences can make all the difference in the entrepreneurial journey. Additionally, seeking mentorship and learning from experienced entrepreneurs can provide valuable guidance and perspective. Building a support network can help in overcoming obstacles and staying motivated throughout the entrepreneurial path.

Believe in yourself whatever circumstances happens. You can only change present. You cannot change future nor the pastm it is due a physical law because you are living in present moment. I am thinking to do a great debate on this with my AI CHILD. What an awesome idea.