When the October issue of More magazine arrived, I tossed it into the pile with the other mail. I didn’t remember subscribing to More. But then it wouldn’t be the first time I ordered something and then forgot I did it. Turns out I had forgotten more than I realized.
Two days later I got a call from a producer named Noreen from WPIX Channel 11 in New York City. She was calling about my interview on career re-invention in the latest issue of – you guessed it – More magazine!
In my defense the More interview happened months ago. I’d given several other interviews since then and with writing a book and everything, it just slipped my mind. Anyway, Noreen loved the article and wondered if I could come to New York to do an on-camera interview.
I’m not telling you this to impress you. I’m telling you this because over the course of the next few days I re-learned some valuable lessons about turning passions into profits that can benefit you as well.
Pay Attention to What Excites You
You would think being interviewed by a major New York television station would be exciting enough. But really the highlight of my 3-day romp around Manhattan (besides seeing the fabulous Broadway show Wicked) was the opportunity to sit down with mega-entrepreneur and social media phenomenon Gary Vaynerchuk at his enormous offices in the Village.
Here I am with Gary Vaynerchuk in his office
Talk about turning a passion into profit! While working at his immigrant parent’s New Jersey liquor store, he realized that the average person not only didn’t know a lot about wine. And because of the snob factor, most were too intimidated to ask.
So he set up a small video camera at his kitchen counter and started taping himself talking to the average Joe and Jane about wine. And with that Wine Library TV was born!
If you haven’t seen Gary teaching people about wine, you’re missing out. All too often people think the only way they can be successful is to some somehow turn themselves into someone they’re not. Not true.
Just by being himself – in fact because he was being himself – Gary’s viewership swelled to over 80,000 a day, and his family’s wine business grew from $5 million a year to over $60 million. Since then he’s made television appearances on Late Night with Conan O’Brien, Ellen DeGeneres, NBC’s Today Show, and elsewhere and has been featured in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, USA Today… the list goes on and on.
There was a time when starting a business meant you had to have a big marketing budget. But gone are the days when you have to spend $50,000 on an ad in the New York Times or have a commercial during the Super Bowl to get noticed.
Gary’s latest passion is letting everyone who wants to profit from their passion know that money is no longer a barrier. I’ll let Gary tell you himself…
Gary is about to release a new book called Crush It: Why NOW Is the Time to Cash In On Your Passion. It goes on sale starting Tuesday, October 13th but you should reserve your copy now. In a minute I’ll tell you how you can get a free copy.
Pay Attention to What Excites Other People
If you see other people getting excited about something, it often signals an opportunity. When I was in New York, the winners of the annual Vendy Award were being announced. It’s an award that goes out to the best street food vendors in the city.
The fact that New Yorkers are excited about being able to buy gourmet waffles or falafels from the side of a truck, or that the one-year-old Big Gay Ice Cream truck which sports toppings like toasted curried coconut or wasabi pea dust, was among the Vendy Awards finalists, tells you that people in your community would probably be excited to have a way to get that same kind of fast but good food in your area. (Okay so maybe the Big Gay Ice Cream Truck might be somewhat less popular among some members of some communities, but you get my point.)
Similarly, you’d expect an entrepreneur like Gary Vaynerchuk to be passionate about turning passions into profits. What I didn’t expect was the enthusiastic response from the people at WPIX. It was really just a five minute interview of me sharing many of the same tips I’m sharing here with you and about the importance of dwelling in the world of possibilities.
But when the interview ended, Noreen and Bart the videographer were positively breathless. “That was so inspiring!” said Bart “We never get to talk to people like you!” Then Noreen said, “Have you ever thought about having your own TV show?”
As flattering as it was, honestly, I was more struck by their excitement than by any future fame. Noreen talked about how hungry people are for this kind of information. I’ve already begun to think about how a "Passions Into Profits" make-over show might work! Even if it doesn’t happen, it’s exciting to know that more and more mainstream people are open to the idea of being their own boss.
Hang Out With People Who Are Already Profiting From Their Passions
The whole reason I was going to Manhattan in the first place (besides meeting with my editor at Crown Publishing) was because my friend Carrie Wilkerson AKA The Barefoot Executive asked me to film a segment for her new online TV show.
Carrie Wilkerson the Barefoot Executive and me before our shoot.
Carrie also invited a soon-to-be-new friend and kindred spirit, marketing guru Suzanne Evans.
Suzanne, Carrie and me at the studio
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Someone else along for the excellent adventure was my friend Perry Lawrence from AskMrVideo.com. I got to know Perry when we were both in Aspen on a Maverick Business Adventure trip. To say that Perry is a “nice guy” is truly an understatement. He’s also passionate about helping people create their own online television series, something else we’ll talk more about in the coming weeks.
Take Action
Loving something alone is not enough to turn it into a business. You have to DO something with your passion. If the path is not clear, here are some ways to get started:
Apprentice: Find someone already doing what you want to do and see if you can study under them. You’ll need to work for free or pay for the individual attention or both. Still, there’s no better way to get hands-on training than to learn from a master.
Volunteer: If you want to work in radio, volunteer at a radio station. If you want to stage events, volunteer to help someone stage their event. If you want to start an organic farm, put in some time at an organic farm. An hour a week or one weekend a month can add up to give you valuable experience and contacts.
Take a Course: Most communities have continuing education programs through a community college or the state university system. For example, I recently signed up for a course through my local community college on how to be a talk show host. I could have just as easily registered for cheese making, transforming trash into art, or import export – and come next spring, I just may!
When I take courses like this it’s not so much about me wanting to be a talk show host or make cheese or import things. For me it’s about fueling my mind so I can pass that information along to you and to the people who have taken my Outside the Job Box Career Coach Training program so they, in turn, can share it with their clients.
Pay Attention to Coincidences
Check this out…
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I “just happened” to have been interviewed by More magazine. And Noreen, the WPIX producer, “just happened” to see it and think it would make a cool story…
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I “just happened” to be on my way to New York when Noreen asked if I’d come to their New York studio for an interview…
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I “just happened” to register for a $39 course on how to be talk show host a week before Noreen suggested I have my own show…
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Carrie “just happened” to hear about me because she heard me speak on a recording that was made at an Ali Brown event…
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Carrie “just happened” to set up that amazing meeting with Gary Vaynerchuk…
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Carrie also “jut happened” to invite Suzanne Evans who I am now partnering with to help more aspiring entrepreneurs who hate to market….
Most importantly, I believe that none of this is coincidence. I believe successful people make their own luck. We reach out, we show up, we act – even when we don’t yet feel fully confident – and we put in the effort.
Are you still in search of your passion? Or do you wonder how to turn your passion into money? Trust me, there are “forces” that are trying to communicate with you every day. It could be a bumper sticker on that pokey car you got stuck behind, a random conversation with someone at the hardware store, someone you saw on television, or indeed this very newsletter.
So often you really do know what you need to do. You just need to pay attention to the voices guiding you and allow yourself to go there.
Get Paid to Help Others Turn Their Passions Into Profits
What I’m passionate about is helping people change course to work at what they love. I also love teaching people how to do what comes naturally to me.
Even though I have not met many of them in person, I consider the previous graduates of my Outside the Job Box Career Coach training program to be a part of “my tribe.” It’s hard to meet everyone. Some live as far away as Singapore, Kenya, Norway, Australia, the UK, Barbados, Canada, and even Kazakhstan!
Others I have met only over the phone or through the special “Connect & Collaborate” networking site we set up just for the consultants to meet, share, and support one another. (Like the two California coaches who recently discovered they live in the same town and met for lunch to brainstorm ways they might work together. How cool is that?)
Some of the people who’ve completed the training are taking private clients. Some are doing group coachings. Some are running workshops. Some are writing articles, running blogs, writing books, and creating information products. Some are still in the process of creating their web sites or devising their marketing strategies.
There is one thing that everyone who has gone through the Outside the Job Box Career Coach course shares in common. And that’s a strong passion for helping people see how they too can profit from their passion. In fact, I’m very seriously thinking of renaming the entire program the "Profit from Your Passions Coach Training Program"!
Is This Your Passion?
To date over 75 people have signed up for the Self-Paced version of this one-of-a-kind training program bringing the total number of trainees including those who have attended the Teleclass version and my live program to over 125 people worldwide!
I’m particular proud of the Self-Paced program. That’s the system I developed to allow people anywhere, regardless of time zone or circumstance, to learn how to be an Outside the Job Box Career Coach.
When we met up with some of these people last spring, Lisa asked them to share their thoughts with you. It’s energizing to see people so passionate about their work and about the opportunities the future holds…
Registration Starts Next Week
Starting next week, I’ll once again open registration to another very limited number of trainees. In the meantime, I’m working on some very cool bonuses including even more tools to help you start earning money, faster.
For starters, the first 35 people to register will get a free copy of Gary Vaynerchuk’s new book Crush It: Why NOW Is the Time to Cash In On Your Passion. Plus I have another video Gary did to share with you. As you can see it was a total video fest!
I’ve also got some very cool brainstorming calls coming up just for the people on the Priority List. Being on the Priority List guarantees you’ll also have a head start on registering before I open the course up to all 40,000 people on my list.
If your passion is teaching, coaching, writing about or otherwise helping others turn their passions into profits then make sure you get your name on the list!
Go there now: ChangingCourse.com/firstinline.htm
As Lou Stoops wrote, “It has been estimated that well over ninety percent of the things people worry about never happen! What a waste to spend time pondering ‘what ifs’ when we could be pursuing ‘what might be!’”
A passion is a terrible thing to waste. Find yours, then imagine what might be if you really got serious about profiting from your passion!
To your dreams,
Valerie Young
Dreamer in Residence
Passions into Profits Expert
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