Making Work, Work for You

Making Work, Work for You
By: Susan Schaffer

It’s been said that finding a job is a full time job. You can spend hours pounding the pavement till your legs ache, looking through want ads till your hands are permanently stained with newsprint, surfing the net till everything looks like a big blur, typing and mailing resumes till you have carpal tunnel, and interviewing till you become mute. You could follow every bit of advice ever given and still not be successful. Well, there’s another suggestion to consider- create a job for yourself using one of your talents.

Entrepreneurship is a good way to make money for those who take the initiative, like people, and are ambitious. It rests on the principle that everyone has something to offer and everything can be turned into a money making venture. Take a personal inventory by sitting down with a pen and paper and consider some simple questions:
What do I like to do?
What am I good at doing?
How can I earn money doing that?
If you can’t come up with anything that seems worth writing down go through a typical day and write down what you did. Then look at that list and consider the skills necessary to do whatever it was that you did. You may be surprised by how much you discover about your skills and abilities. Although they may not be wonderfully marketable skills in the traditional marketplace, “yes I can make an excellent omelet but no I don’t want to flip burgers,Ethey could be valuable to starting your own breakfast delivery service for people who don’t want to get up early but want a good meal at 9am on Saturdays and Sundays.

Next is to begin your marketing strategy because even if you have the best products or services known to man, they are worthless if you are the only person who knows about them. You may advertise online, offline or both. In the first scenario you may wish to develop a website visit chat rooms, message boards, newsgroups, to discuss your business and/or ask questions. You may start an affiliate program to get others to advertise for you and pay them a percentage, you may create banner ads, you may place classified ads, you may runt a contest, start a newsletter, start a contest, the ideas are endless. If you aren’t one for computers, you may advertise offline. Rely on word of mouth, distribute flyers on community bulletin boards, visit church groups or small interest groups, take out an ad in the newspaper, etc. the ideas are endless. Before you begin your marketing strategy, consider these questions:
Who do I know?
Who do these people know?
What organizations and groups are these
people involved in?
What about your immediate family and
friends? Your children?

There are numerous other issues to consider such as:
projected resources needed- time, money,
gas, etc.
resources available- many people go into
debt trying to make money
family obligations- small children who
need your attention
projected market value for your product
or service- who would want it?

These are only some things to consider before deciding whether or not to create your own job. If traditional employment isn’t for you, I encourage you to consider these alternative ways to make work, work for you. If you would like to consider this option but you don’t know where to start or you want someone to get you organized, let me help you help yourself ssschaff9@aol.com.

About the author:

Susan Schaffer received a MSEd from Hofstra University in Vocational Rehabilitation Counseling. She has worked in the field for over 10 years. She believes in the powering of empowerment.

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