I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how to branch out my business. The digital products I currently make have been somewhat lucrative and while I’m not able to live just on that income alone, it’s been fairly steady.
However, I do want to grow. So I’ve been pondering…what do I do next?
When I ask myself that question, it isn’t that I get a lack of answers…I have ideas. The problem is more what I should focus on specifically. Multi-tasking isn’t too difficult for me but if I am going to branch out my business with a new product or service, I feel I need to really focus on that one idea. Otherwise, I’ll be all over the place and ultimately too overwhelmed to do anything.
I have a short list of ideas and I’ve been researching them over time. Looking into the positives and negatives of each in terms of what is feasible for me to do. There are a variety of digital art services I know I can offer now but still there are others I’d like to venture into. For some of these, it will require me to learn new skills…which can also feel overwhelming and a little scary.
Another idea I have is selling some tangible items (ie; stationery, invites, etc.) but that, as well, would require some additional things. There’s the whole process of having the items printed, stored at my location, then shipped. Would I need more space to do these things (I don’t have much as it is)? Do I want to be running back and forth to the post office with the busy schedule I already have? Or maybe I look into drop-shipping. These are all the things I have to flesh out in my head before I move forward.
Regardless of the idea, I feel it’s important for me to actually envision myself doing it first. This is how most of us plan, right? We think about how it would work for us before we actually start doing it. There are some that jump into it head first, and good for them, but let’s face it…that doesn’t work for most people. If we’re going to take the leap, we want to have some sense of confidence before jumping.
And yet there’s another part of me that feels what I am doing now is working, so why not continue focusing my attention there? That also requires a lot of thought. There is so much competition in my field that it can be difficult to create a product and have it stand out. So even staying in my lane (so to speak), means continually thinking of new concepts and ideas. And while it may feel more familiar to me, it’s still a challenge trying to create the next ‘big’ thing.
When I start getting too much in my head, I find getting out of it is very valuable. I have talked about this before in my blog. Stepping away from your business (at least to some degree) doesn’t just mean putting the laptop away and going outside for a walk. It also means stepping away from that mindset. Sure, our business is always going to be on our mind somewhat, but sometimes focusing on something that isn’t business related, is just what we need. We come back fresh and ready to get back to business.
My next step in this branching out process is writing down the ideas I have. Putting them on paper, pointing out the pros and cons of each is great for clarity. Through process of elimination I can figure out what area of business is going to work best for me. It doesn’t mean I won’t do all of my ideas (maybe I won’t), it just means I’ll pick one of them to focus on for the moment.
Writing things down puts your head in a more organized space. It not only gives you a starting point, it’s also a great way to help remind yourself of the projects you’re thinking of the next time you’re looking to branch out (you’ll be surprised how easy you can forget).
So if you’ve also been thinking about expanding your business, join me in grabbing that pen and paper (or iPad and ipencil) and start writing those ideas and thoughts down. You’ll gain some clarity, feel more focused and ready to take the next challenge on.
My new motto: get focused, get confident…and move forward.
Until then…