Strengths-Based Evergreen Niches: What it is, what it isn't and Charlie Brown.
You have probably heard of niches. You know, that sweet spot where passion collides with talent. Or so you were told.
I'd like to take that idea a step further and refine it a bit but first I'd like to tell you a tale to illustrate my point.
Choosing between a plain old niche vs a strengths-based evergreen one is a lot like the decision Charlie Brown was faced with in A Charlie Brown Christmas.
Charlie Brown was given the opportunity to choose a Christmas tree for the nativity play. Of all the lush and colorful options on the tree farm, Charlie picked the scrawniest, smallest tree. He loved it, but no one else did. He thought, with a little love, he could make everyone see that his tree was a great choice.
You know what happened.
“I guess you were right, Linus. I shouldn’t have picked this little tree. Everything I do turns into a disaster.”
Can you relate?
Have you ever been at that point in your business where things just aren't working out like you thought they were going to? It looks like you are in the right place-yep, there are Christmas trees. You've been entrusted by a client with a job- just like Charlie. But when you deliver, there's just disaster. You try to clean it up, maybe put a Christmas bauble to make it not look so bad but it just makes your scrawny little business topple over more.
What could have prevented Charlie from being set up for failure?
He was sent out to do a task that he was not well equipped to do. He was sent to pick out a beautiful tree for the big Christmas program but Charlie saw beauty where there was none. His tender heart's judgement was not suited for meeting the standards, expectations and pressures of commercial theatre production and stage management.
The takeaway?
Your strengths may not be suited to the commercial market that you are pursuing.
For example: You might love making and blogging about garden gnome homes because you are soooooo crafty but is there really an evergreen market and audience for that? Can you monetize it (meaning get it to make money for you) and make passive income from it? It's definitely a niche based on your artsy fartsy strengths but is it just a trend? Can you grow it into something more? Maybe.
Probably not.
The point is, don’t be like Charlie Brown and just pick whatever you like without considering the evergreen markets. To be successful, you need to be strategic about turning something you enjoy into a viable business based on your strengths.
I’m not saying don’t make gnome homes. I’m saying let me help you with some strategery because I’ve been there, making metaphorical gnome homes.
I was a Charlie Brown. I started out with a vague dream of being able to work from anywhere in the world and still remain profitable but all I was blogging about was the latest book I read and mostly random thoughts.
I started to focus in on wanting to monetize my blog, but I was wishy-washy for years about how to go about doing that. I really just didn’t know how. I had too many ideas. There were so many options. I couldn’t decide on anything.
I was paralyzed by the options.
That might be where you are at right now. But don’t worry. Like I said, I’ve been where you are and I can be your guide from dream to your launch. Sooner than you know it, you’ll be blazing your own entrepreneurial trail.
If you don't already know about my course Mark Your X: How To Find Your Strengths-Based Evergreen Niche, you should enroll in it here. Even if you've already got a business going, it never hurts to refine and make slight course corrections.
Don't be Charlie Brown and caught unawares when folks don't like what your providing. Just take the course. It's free. It's a small investment in your business foundation daily. It's five days. It'll be worth it.
Have you struggled with your niche or finding success in it?
