Passions to Niches - A New Member's Journey

I read a comment from another new member about her search for a niche. She was also recently retired from a life long career, just as I am. Here is my heartfelt response. I hope my story can help others find their first niche, and 2nd, and 3rd, and ......

Dear New Member,

Like you, I worked long hours my entire career and can identify with you. I went back to work immediately after my son was born, and also started back to college when he was 3 months old. It took me 11 years part-time student to get my degree, and another 2 years for my CMA, & CPA certifications, all while spending less time with my 2 kids than was reasonable. My husband is obviously a saint. :)

For health reasons, I found myself suddenly, unceremoniously "retired" after 35+ years in that field, way before anticipated. Due to the nature of my health issues and the effect they had on my ability to think quickly and keep complicated IRS code always in mind, I couldn't continue to work in my field at all. I was miserable. (sound familiar?)

Because I was spending all my time at home for the first time in my life, I was willing to try things that were foreign to me just to keep from going crazy and to help me adjust to my new life at home. Having dreamed for years of staying home, the way I got here sort of took the joy out of it at first. New interests have become passions that I think will serve me well in my Wealthy Affiliate career.

Surprise #1! I love bird feeders and watching the visiting birds in my backyard from my den & breakfast room windows. The bird feeders are carefully placed to maximize seeing the birds close up from inside the house or from the patio. I even want to take bird feeders for campsite bird watching on vacation. This was the first passion I discovered. Bird Watching Made Easy is my first niche and I have started blogging for the first time in my life.

Surprise #2! I love flowering plants. I had never had a flower bed in my life until I was 63. Now I am passionate about my flowers, especially the ones that attract hummingbirds and butterflies! Time is spent at the nursery looking for interesting flowers, or maybe ones I have already identified for my flowerbeds and pots. Then, I research, plant, water and (drum roll) Enjoy the Blooms! I can see a possible future niche here.

Surprise #3! My grown kids introduced me to the BBC TV series, Doctor Who. I had seen older episodes before, but thought they were stupid. Watching it initially as a family activity over the holidays was so much fun. I ended up watching the entire Doctor Who TV series filmed since the restart with the 10th Doctor Who in 2005, and can hardly wait for the 2018 season to begin. Maybe all things Doctor Who will be a future niche. Nerdy? Cool.

Retirement Camping! This passion is not a surprise. I have long dreamed about traveling in a RV/Camper 100% when we retire. Together and with our parents, kids and grand kids, we have camped in tents, pop-up campers, Class B campers like in the picture, and even a van camper. Camping is not a new passion for us. Our first summer in retirement we will be making a slow drive to Alaska and back, which is a dream I've had since my parents made not one, but 2 such trips in the 1970s. I definitely plan to make a niche out of my retirement travel when I get there, and maybe even before as I prepare for it.

I don't know if my story will help you think about and find your first niche. Everything I am seeing as possible Wealthy Affiliates niches, except retirement camping, are things I was introduced to after I "retired" 3 years ago.

It took me several days to come up with my first possible niche when I started this process. I eventually rejected that first niche, but it got my creative juices flowing. I wasn't even aware I had creative juices. The above niches are my favorites, but I have even more in the back burner, mostly health products related.

Good luck to all of you niche hunters! You will find it. Blogging on things I love and am passionate about is so much fun. That was another huge surprise for me.