Do You have a Passion for 8 Track Tapes
Simple question right? Pretty straightforward I would think. Personally, I hated 8 track tapes. I grew up right in the middle of their inception and even though I was just a kid, I knew they were the dumbest fad ever to have come along, right next to the pet rock. yet both of them were a huge hit for a time.
Passion is the most overused, misused, and misunderstood term in our industry. It is so bad that most have created this concept in their mind that if I am passionate about something I can instantly or over time turn it into a thriving success. WA even uses that for its tagline. I am guilty of using it too it is a great line but I caution you not to believe your own hype or at least the hype part of that statement. "Turn Your Passion into a Thriving Online Business."
Don't get me wrong, I believe the statement, I just know what it entails and it is not merely "a state or outburst of strong emotion," which is what the definition of passion is.
Passion or Fleeting Interest
What we do is a business, unless of course, you are simply blogging for the fun of it. If not, we have to consider much more than just our passion. Most of the time it is a fleeting interest and not a passion at all. That is the first obstacle we need to get through. I have wanted to do many things in my life. I will not bore you by listing them here but suffice it to say once I actually gave them a try, I found that the romance of that particular interest was far more exciting than the reality of it. There is nothing wrong with finding that out, in fact, it is apart of the process of narrowing what it is you truly have a passion for. So experience as much as you can, once you get to the hard work part, the things you stick with you might have a passion for and not just a fleeting interest.
Pragmatism over Passion
I have passion for certain things. I know because I have gone through the prior paragraphs process to assess what is a passion and what is a fleeting interest. However, I am also pragmatic about my passion when it comes to creating a business around them. In other words, I considered many aspects of a particular journey, passion is only one of them, before I actually decided to and acted on the effort that would be necessary to continue that journey or business.
Back to the 8 Track Tapes
So when you consider your passion give it the 8 track tape test. Ask yourself, "Is this market an 8 track tape market? Don't get me wrong, I am sure there are several markets within the 8 track tape industry. I am also sure they are extremely small and specialized and you better be an expert or just be doing it for fun.
Again, I have no problem with this type of niche, just don't be blind when it comes to how commercial it is and what revenue you are trying to generate from it, if that is your goal.
Here's an Idea
Don't give up on your 8 track tape niche but realize it for what it is and maybe have two passions, one to explore, write and share your thoughts on your 8 track tape niche and one to make money.
Wealthy Affiliate has even gone so far as to create an entire training on this possibility, giving you amazing structure, content, and tools to execute an extremely pragmatic approach to making money online. It's called the Bootcamp and if you are looking to generate revenue you might want to consider putting your 8 track tape niche on the back burner or at least 2nd priority get to work on the Bootcamp.
Now obviously if you have an established 8 track tape niche and you are simply creating a web presence around it, this is a whole different story. If you already have clientele, expertise, products a following and you just want to exploit it online, by all means, do that. However, if this is your first go at it, consider the marketability as well as your "passion" for what you are doing.
My Job Pays the Bills
I am going out on a limb to suggest that most here work and this is a side venture with the goal of it becoming full time. That is what it is for me and I have supreme confidence that I will achieve it, in fact, I am beginning to see the fruits of my labor.
I still love my job and believe me it is a blue collar job. However, I go to work every day knowing I can come home to this and the dream of building a passive income slowly and methodically online. If I build this right, this will be my retirement along with my retirement, if that makes any sense. That is my passion!
Think about your 8 track tape passion and consider it's relevance and priority in your passion to create your own sustainable and recurring income business. You can always build and 8 track niche, I do it right alongside my Bootcamp, just put it in perspective.
Can you dig it,
Damo
Recent Comments
11
Hi Damo and thanks for article, hit home several times Brother. Some where in one of our storage buildings, I am sure there is a box full of 8 tracks too, lol.
Bless You,
Sam and Deb
Thanks for this Damo, does get you thinking and makes a lot of sense. I think for a lot of us just starting out that it is easier to start with something we are passionate about, i have done this! But I also know this is because it is something i am more comfortable writing about. I want to use it to build confidence in my writing skills and in working in this field. I will however be pushing out my comfort zone with future sites I create.
Michelle
Yes, Michelle, you have the absolute correct perspective and focus. You obviously know what you want to accomplish here. This came out of reading tons of posts about people not satisfied with how fast they are moving and that their niche is not producing.
Thanks for the comments and best of luck to you.
Damo
A well written disclosure of passion! Passion could be lifelong but usually transient to reflect how an idea could bring something, spiritual and physical - possibly good for me at a time in a location under a circumstance.
For online business, it is good idea to identify a passion sustainable for an active ongoing e-marketing.
Much appreciated for sharing,
Chin
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Food for thought!