I’ve been doing some reading. Sometimes I think I do too much reading and not enough acting on what I read. And I’m probably right about that — but that is another discussion.
One of the books I’ve been reading for the second time is Rich Schefren’s Internet Business Manifesto (plus the Missing Chapter). I’ll be reading them again soon — they are full of rich (pardon the pun) information. If you haven’t got a copy yet, do it now! If you have, read it now!
The first time through I was looking at the systems vs. opportunities teaching he has in there. It is something that really resonated with me at the time and it is still something I need to work on more.
But this time through his section on strengths caught my attention — focusing on your strengths and getting help for the rest. And it got me to thinking about what my strengths are and how I can better focus on them.
My Strengths
I’ve determined that I have strengths in a few areas that I want to focus on. The first is writing. I’m a pretty decent writer (no Stephen King though) and I love to do it. But I don’t write as much as I’d like to.
Another strength I have is the ability to research and understand things. I am able to discern the way that things work and extrapolate from there.
The third strength that I feel I have is technical. The first time I sat down in front of a Commodore PET and typed in a BASIC program I was hooked. I graduated from university with a degree in Computer Science. I worked as a consultant for decades, writing programs in various languages and operating system environments, using different database tools, etc.
Along the way I had opportunities to teach — 1 to 5 day courses on UNIX, C Programming, WordPerfect, Empress SQL, etc. I also learned to write training material. I’ve even written and performed training for truck drivers to help them understand how various regulations affect them for my wife’s business.
I found that training combined all 3 of my strengths in a way that I really enjoyed. But it does take a fair amount of energy, so I only pursued it as a side business.
My Direction
So here I am at a crossroads in my life. I don’t want to be on the road all the time while my kids are growing up. And consulting and training tend to take you away from home unless you live in a big city — not for me. So I’ve been trying to carve out an internet business that allows me to work from home as much as possible.
After looking at my strengths I’m starting to see the direction that I should be going (and I have actually been heading this way to some extent already). Online training is the business that I should be focusing on.
So you can expect to see some training coming your way at LoneWolf’s Internet Marketing Adventure. The first course offering that is coming should be ready by the end of October. I’ve also picked up the rights to some other training that I’ll be putting up either in the members’ areas or as standalone courses. Some is written and some is video.
I’ll also be doing more training at my niche sites and putting together a webinar and DVD version of the truck driver training that I’ve done.
Your Turn
Well, so far this article has been pretty much about me (I mentioned Rich Schefren and Stephen King though 8=). Now it’s time to talk about you.
Have you taken the time to determine what your strengths are? Have you spent some effort into looking at how you can build your internet business system around those strengths?
If you haven’t, take some time to do that. And read (or reread) Rich’s manifesto. It is one of the few ebooks that I have felt worth while to actually print out. It really is worth the paper that it’s printed on!
Hit the comments below and share what you’ve learned about your strengths and how you plan to focus on them in your business.