.orgLesson 2: Expose Yourself
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In my life, opportunity has very rarely found me. Instead, I have had much better success when I’m actively seeking it out. I was reminded of that when I read Frank’s quote about one of the turning points in his life:
In 2000 Schilling happened to read an article in a small town newspaper that would end up changing his life dramatically. “I was visiting my parents who had moved several hundred miles away and read in the local paper about a guy who had sold a dozen domain names for more than $130,000! I was immediately intrigued and started searching the Internet for information about domains.”
That’s why I like to read so much, particularly things like Forbes and Inc. that give numerous examples every month of how people are really making money — not the stuff you get online from “gurus” selling their e-books. Nowhere could I be exposed to so many different ideas. (I was also a huge Business 2.0 fan, too. May it rest in peace.)
If all you do is read stuff online, you’re likely to get stuck competing in the same areas that so many others are in. Look offline, though, and it’s easier to find very active niches that your online competitors haven’t found yet.
You also need to be aware of what’s around you every day. I’m terrible at that. I see examples all the time of people making fortunes off of opportunities that were right in front of me but that I failed to see. That’s the area where I’m most trying to get better.
Seize every opportunity to talk to people, too. Ask them lots of questions to learn about what it is they do. Be sure to ask them out of genuine interest, though. People can tell when you have an agenda.
That’s the biggest difference between me and my business partner, Greg. We can be at the same event and he’ll come out with details on what 25 different people are doing. Me? I can probably tell you which items on the buffet were the best. That’s why opportunity seems to find him all along the way. It’s not that he’s just lucky; it’s that he’s actively searching.
So spend time every week getting some “outside air” and watch how opportunities seem to materialize out of thin air. As with Frank, it only takes one to get you started.
This article, “Expose Yourself,” is Lesson 2 in the Lessons from Frank Schilling series.
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