Stop Looking For a Job, Start Looking for an Opportunity By Darren Hardy

A lot of jobs that once were, aren’t coming back. Ever. To look for what isn’t there is a waste of time and an insult to your dignity.

If you haven’t noticed, the world has changed — radically. The traditional yellow brick road to success and financial security has imploded. The path to a high-paying job used to involve getting the highest academic degree you could obtain, along with specific technical job skills, to start climbing the ladder. Today, most of the ladders are decimated. If those jobs still exist, the needed knowledge and skills of those jobs have changed… and change again every day.

These are the greatest times of opportunity we have seen in human history — but only if you know how to seize them. To succeed you need to change with the way the world is working now. If you are unemployed, underemployed, or want to take control of your financial future, here are seven strategies to thrive in the new world.

1. Adapt to the new reality.

Over the last decade we have witnessed the death rattle of an era gone by. The corporate structure and monolithic systems of the industrial age have begun to crumble. We are returning to the way we started — as entrepreneurs. When America was founded, the majority of people had their own business, farm, market or trade.

People used their skillsets and hobbies to make a living as entrepreneurs. Then the industrial age flipped the ratio and most people became employed by new systems of repetitive labor and mass production. Technology recently wired all of us directly to each other, destroying heavily controlled and highly valued distribution channels, giving every entrepreneur immediate and direct access to a global marketplace of opportunity, right from their fingertips… or laptop.

This means competition doesn’t just come from the business down the street, but also from every basement or second bedroom of every home in every city or suburb in every country of the world. You better become a continual learner and constantly improve your special skills.

2. Stop looking for a job and start looking for an opportunity.

Take the skills you have as an employee and turn those into a contract services business. You have an expertise, knowledge and experience in something that’s unique to you. Your skillset might be so unique you don’t even recognize it as personal expertise. What is your experience, knowledge or unique gifts? Ask a good friend, colleague or former employer to tell you.

Once you discover your specialization, hire your expertise out, offer it to multiple businesses and entrepreneurs who need what you can deliver. More companies are hiring consultants and contractors for specific projects, specialized skills and services. Bartering services on the Internet are booming — sites like SwapASkil.com, UExchange.com, TradeAway.com and SwapThing.com.

3. What do you have?

What goods do you have that others might want? What goods do you have easy access to that most do not? What goods can you make that people would want? Answer one or more of those questions and take it to market through eBay or an automated Amazon.com store. You also can write about your area of skill or expertise.

You can create a how-to information book and sell it through ClickBank, create a podcast or video blog series and distribute it through iTunes or other distributions channels. Follow through on a great idea. There are probably thousands of people who want to know what you know or how to do what you do.

Plus, it has never been cheaper to build, outfit and market your business than it is today. Vendors are flexible and partnerships are open.

4. Who do you know?

If you want to calculate your potential for increased wealth, don’t look at your current bank balance, cars or property inventory. Look at the inventory of your high caliber relationships. With the Industrial Age over, we are now in the Relationship Age. Unequivocally, the relationships you build will be your No. 1 asset in these expanding and fast-changing times.

Your ability to network is the skill you want to hone, practice and master. Your ability to get to, connect with and establish relationships with important and purposeful people will be your gateway to any goal, destination or aspiration you have.

5. What problem can you solve?

The economic downturn has created a ton of new problems that need solving. Problems are food and oxygen for entrepreneurialism. Those who create solutions to our new problems will become the beneficiaries of these times. Remember, 90 percent of entrepreneurs started out at the bottom, broke or with little capital or savings. Today they are among the world’s wealthiest.

6. Return to self-reliance and self-responsibility.

You make your choices; then your choices make you. Everything in your life exists because you made a choice about something. Choices are at the root of your results. Don’t choose at all and you’ve made the choice to be the passive receiver of whatever comes your way.

Most people think they take responsibility for their lives, but many people operate in the world of blaming, finger pointing and expecting someone else — or the government — to solve their problems. You can’t count on anyone else for your success but you.

7. Take control of your future!

Separate from everyone else by developing the mindset, habits, actions and persistence it’s going to take for personal accountability and control of your future. Your soft skills can give you the leading edge. With the mind-blowing velocity of change and throng of competition, the skills needed for success today are less about academic, industrial, or technical training and more about soft skills — emotional intelligence, adaptability, resiliency, relationship-building, accountability, productivity and leadership skills.

There are no secrets, shortcuts or quick fixes to success. It takes hard work, personal responsibility and positive choices. You already know all the information you need to succeed. You just need a new plan of action. Now is the time.

(c) Darren Hardy, author of The Compound Effect: Jumpstart Your Income, Your Life, Your Success

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Darren Hardy, author of The Compound Effect—Jumpstart Your Income, Your Life, Your Success, is an accomplished entrepreneur, publisher and editorial director of SUCCESS magazine. He’s a peak performance expert and popular keynote speaker. Visit TheCompoundEffect.com.

-Do you agree, or disagree with the ideas above? What would you like to add if anything? Share your thoughts and comments below.

Yamaha Blaster did not start... I feel stupid.

Okay,  we went to Ocotillo Wells for some off-roading and  brought both Blasters and the Raptor 350.

This was last year and I am just now getting around to posting this...

Why do I feel stupid about that trip? The only thing wrong with the one Blaster was that the park brake was applied and I did not notice it until we got home. With the park brake applied the engine would not rev past idle.. I took the carburetor off and cleaned it. I to the spark plug out, cleaned it. Could not get it to run right, so we just parked it and did without.

any comments?

Tis the Season.

December 15, 2010 that's 19 days till Christmas. What are you getting your loved ones for this special birthday?

Why is there now growth in my business?

You have heard this story before...

Bob and Karl are settin on the porch and the 'ol hound dog is lying there besides Karl. The 'ol dog is just moaning and a groanin. Bob asks Karl, "hey Karl, whats wrong with yer dog?" and Karl answers back with "nuthin, why?" "Well Karl, he's a moanin and a groanin. somethins gotts to be wrong." Karl answers back in a low and slow tone, "well, Bob its like this. 'Ol Duke here is settin on a nail and he's not in any hurry to move cuzz it must not hurt that much." Get the picture?

Here is my take on this. Your team or person, in some cases, are not uncomfortable enough to move. They are comfortable with getting up at the crack of dawn. Driving an hour, or more, in traffic, in a car they really don't want to a job or career they just fell into and are just coasting by comfortable enough not wanting to make a change. They like going on vacation once or twice a year that they can barely afford. But its OK... the BOSS will give them some overtime so they can stay later at a job they really don't want just to drive home in more traffic to a house that is too small, rundown and always needs something fixed. etc, etc, etc...

Change is a seen as being uncomfortable. I say, if you want something different, you must do something different. ie. change. The definition of insanity is doing the same things day in and day out but expecting different results. Insane!

Why Work at Home? 8 Benefits of Being a Home-Based Entrepreneur

written by: Lyve Alexis Pleshette www.powerhomebiz.com

Home-based businesses are the trend of the future. Government and industry reports show that increasing numbers of men and women are now opting to work out of their homes. In fact, the latest data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics show that 4.12 million entrepreneurs are now working at home, most of which are in services industry.

Entrepreneurs are rediscovering the benefits of working at home. The continuously good performance of the economy, followed by a change in lifestyles buoys well for the home-based entrepreneur. Many people now wants to combine their careers with families, opting out of the rat race to spend more time with their families and take a more proactive part in raising their children. The technological innovations in the past decades have also made working at home easier and more feasible.

You need not look farther than your kitchen, bedroom, den, living room, or garage to find the foundation on which to build your business enterprise. Here are seven reasons why it pays to work at home:


1. To gain personal freedom. The most enticing aspect of starting a home-based business is the opportunity it provides to gain control over your own life. As a home business entrepreneur, you can shape your work life depending on your goals and environment. There are no bosses to follow, no corporate culture to abide by, and no rigid work schedules nor time clocks. Instead, you have the freedom to work and earn as you choose, in the comfort and convenience of your own homes. Of course, having all the time and freedom to work as you please also has its drawback. Thus, a home business entrepreneur needs to have good time management skills and discipline to push yourself to work.

2. To reap financial benefits. The financial benefits of working at home are equally attractive. The convenience of having your office a few steps away from your bed allows you to save on commute time, gasoline and transportation expenses. There is also little need to buy power suits and dress up every workday as you can work in your jogging outfit or pajama. Since you work at home, you save on rental payments and overhead costs are cut significantly; allowing you to plough all your capital and profits back into the business. Your earning potential is directly proportional to your performance: no more waiting for your boss to give you your raise or promotion before you can increase your income. More importantly, however, a home business allows people who have been frequently shut out of the job market--homemakers, students, retirees, and the disabled, to name a few-to to create new income opportunities.

3. To exploit tax advantages. Using your home as a place of business offers a number of tax advantages. For starters, it allows you to deduct a part of the operating and depreciation expenses on your home. This means that a percentage of your rent or mortgage payment, depreciation, property taxes, insurance, utilities, and expenses for household maintenance, repairs, or improvements is deductible. You can also be entitled to deduct expenses from using a vehicle for your business, including gas, insurance, depreciation, and others. Consult your accountant for a careful evaluation of what can be and what cannot be deducted from using your home office.

4. To be with the family. Many opt to start their business from their homes to strengthen family relationships. A home business allows family members to be involved in the business. Husbands or wives can help in various aspects of the business, while children have the opportunity to see what their parents do for a living. Parents, most especially, can both work and earn, while taking care of their children; although daycare arrangements or babysitter may be needed to help you concentrate on the work at hand.

5. To reduce stress. Working at home can reduce the stress of juggling the demands of your work life with those of your private life. You can work while staying at home to care for a sick child, or continue to work late at night after preparing and sharing dinner with the family. Since you work alone, there is no office politics and deadlines imposed by your boss. You only need to follow the deadlines and schedules you have set for yourself.

6. For job enrichment. As a home-based entrepreneur, you are not boxed into one job and given a label identifying you as a researcher, secretary, banker, manager, or administrative assistant. You are free to learn and perform a variety of work-related tasks. If you are a solo entrepreneur, then you even have to be ready of being all things for your business: the strategy setter, marketing and sales person, customer service representative, accountant and bookkeeper, and other roles. You can vary your activities to keep you from getting bored. While it means greater workload, the plus point is that you develop an understanding of all aspects of your own business. More importantly, personal growth is greatly enhanced as you learn what you can (and cannot do) and your goals become much more achievable.

7. To increase productivity. Many home-based entrepreneurs find that working at home helps them to be more productive. With lesser time dedicated to commuting, there is more time available to work. More importantly, working for your own business - wherein the amount of financial compensation depends on your productivity and business management - increases the level of enthusiasm. Many get so caught up in what they're doing that it's actually hard for them to stop.

8. To harness competitive advantages. One of the biggest benefits of working out of your home is the reduced overhead cost. Lower operating costs can enable you to be more competitive, not just in the prices you charge but also in the quality of service you offer. You can use the money you save on rent to increase your overall profitability, or you can pass it on to customers in the form of lower prices. Competitors restricted by higher overhead costs have no such options. What they charge is predetermined by their rental agreements. The higher the rent, the higher their prices. Moreover, a smaller business makes it easier to provide customers with personal service.

Given these benefits and more, the trend toward home-based businesses is clearly just beginning. As more people recognize the opportunities of working from their homes, coupled by the need to be independent and the drive to succeed, others will soon join this growing movement.


About the Author:

Lyve Alexis Pleshette is a writer for Power HomeBiz Guides.

Is it worth it to have a home based business?

That is a good question. Stay tuned for a listing of all the benefits of owning a home based business. another question to ask is how do I pick a worthy home based business that is right for me?

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Who is Mykgio? You can also find video his life at http://youtube.com/mykgio