Here's an exercise that anyone can do that should help you come up with some great and personalized ideas for the subject of your new online business.
Spend some time and find a niche that takes advantage of the areas of specialty for which you are uniquely skilled or qualified, but which also keep your interest and stoke your passion.
The steps are fairly elementary. I would recommend doing this exercise with your spouse or a close friend that knows you well - that way you'll be able to get a second opinion about your suitability to enter this niche.
Step 1: Sit down with a pen and paper and list the three things you are most passionate about in your life right now. If one of these subjects is also the subject of your career or professional life, give it a star.
Step 2: Next, list the three events or circumstances that contributed most to you becoming who you are. These events don't have to be life-changing or monumentous, but they should be memorable and will have partially defined your character or life's mission (if you have one.)
Step 3: Then list the top three skills that you possess - the three things you can do better than most other people you know. The skills could be physical, mental, social, etc. You are looking for those things that people who know you would say, "Yeah, he is quite good at . . ." If this skill is related to your career path, give it a star.
Step 4: Then list the hobbies, educational pursuits, recreational activities, or cultural events that you engage in regularly and that you thoroughly enjoy (list them all, there's no set number here - we're brainstorming to lay everything out on the table).
Step 5: List any special training that you've had (aside from your education) and place a star by the entry if you currently hold a professionally recognized certification or credential of some sort in that training. The training should be something advanced enough that the skill you have as a result is not generally possessed by the masses.
Step 6: List the subject of any college-level course work you've completed (being as specific as possible to include sub-categories and specializations) and place a star by the entry if you have an advanced degree. Also place a star by the same entry if it is also the subject of your life's work (career).
Step 7: List anything that your friends, family, neighbors, co-workers, and others regularly seek you out for - whether advice on a topic, showing them how to do something, asking your opinion or suggestion, etc. This category is a little nebulous but it's here to catch anything that you know or have experience with that other's recognize you as being an expert for.
Step 8: List any specialized knowledge you may have. It could be anything but it should label you as being "highly qualified" in the subject matter. Get creative here and think outside the box. Maybe you are an expert at disciplining children because you raised ten of them in your own family. Maybe you know all the best places to stay or sight-see on Cape Cod because you've vacationed there each of the past twenty-three years. You see, this isn't formal training like we've talked about in previous steps, but you may still be considered an expert in something because you have "learned the ropes" by extensive past experience. Let your imagination fly!
Step 9: When your list is complete, look it over and cross out any items that you don't really like to be involved in, that you have no passion for, or that you don't wish to pursue - your heart just isn't in it anymore. This business shouldn't be a drudgery for you, so don't even consider subjects that you can't get excited about!
Step 10: Review what you've written down, add up your lists counting stars as a "bonus point" for any subjects that are especially prominent in your life, and see which niche markets you might be qualified to enter as an "instant expert" and a passionate business owner.
Yes, there are other ways to check to see if the niche market holds income potential which we will cover elsewhere. This quick exercise is designed to help you see what you may be uniquely qualified to teach or share with others.
