Most people tend to dismiss what they're good at. Part of it is that you become so accustomed to having whatever skill you have that you cease to notice it. Sometimes it is out of a sense of false humility. But every single person has innate talents and gifts that enrich people's lives AND provide a source of income for you.

How can you discover what your true talents are? Let me give you a hint. Where your passion is, you will find many of your natural abilities that you probably take for granted.

But it's more than passion. It's profit. Thousands of people have harnessed the unbelievable power of their natural talents to not only enrich others, but literally enrich themselves financially.

Here are some questions to consider. Answer these and you will have the core for a profitable business.

1. Define your ideal client.
2. Who are the people you have been working with if you are already in business? What have you liked or disliked about them? Are there any common denominators?
3. What kinds of people could ideally benefit from your knowledge?
4. If you had all the money in the world, what would you be doing?
5. Interview three people you most respect (friends and family members) and ask them what they see you doing? What are your strengths from their standpoint?
6. What have you always been good at?
7. What did you dream of doing as a child?
8. What needs/values do you care about most?
9. Whom do you admire most?
10. What makes you most fulfilled?
11. What do you love to do the most? What are you passionately against?
12. What have you felt called to do?
13. What legacy do you want to leave for your children and grandchildren? What do you want to be remembered for most?
14. Analyze your competition and find out all about them. This will give you ideas as to your niche and how you can brand yourself.
15. Remember that you want to make sure your target market has money.

Two On-going Exercises

Produce your own personal inventory. This inventory should be focused on the following:
1. What you know: focus on the attitudes, knowledge and skills
2. Experiences you've had
3. Training you have had
4. Destinations that you have been to
5. Titles that you have earned

Create a list of several hundred, even thousands, of descriptors. Note: you will have to keep pen and a pad of paper on you at all times as you will realize all the talents you do have!

Now create a list of "What You Are":

Record a description of yourself. For example, I am a man, father, husband, basketball player, a lover of pizza, wings and Indian food, slightly bald, a resident of Sarnia, have four degrees, play the piano, traveler, speaker, author and creator of the entrepreneurial authoring system etc.

Keep in mind that you want to make sure of two items: 1. the market you are targeting has tremendous wants and desires and 2. the market has money to spend - in other words, it is hungry for your information.

Spend some time journaling for a couple of hours. Let it all hang out. Write as quickly as you can and get in touch with the real you.

Narrow business possibilities to two or three. You can do this by playing the devil's advocate with each of your ideas. Provide as many reasons as you can why you shouldn't go with an idea. Now check by completing a focused target market key word analysis on your top two or three ideas.

My best methods of creating a book and building an online business are three fold:
1. analyze the key words that my target market is using to define their problems;
2. analyze my competition to see how they view problems and what solutions they are offering; and
3. talk directly to my target market about their negative perception of people doing similar business to me.

In doing the above, you will gain a much better grasp at the gap(s) that exist in the market place and you will gain a competitive advantage as you seek to fill this gap.

Put these exercises to work for you and enrich your life and your pocketbook.

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Glenn Dietzel Author, E-Publisher, Mentor, Speaker...Authoring system used with clients the world over. http://www.AwakenTheAuthorWithin.com