When choosing the type of company you want to operate, selecting from an area where you have previously worked or studied can be extremely advantageous. This can save you considerable time and will obviously hold more of your interest. Yet, if such an area does not offer the highest long-term financial gain, it may be best to choose another path early on.
From a business perspective, training to work in a field that you are passionate about would be your initial Best Bet as opposed to investing your time in something where you have no personal affinity.
Peter Lynch of Fidelity Magellan Fund put forth the mantra, “invest in what you know or what is near to you.” Ostensibly, to invest in something you do not understand would be folly. Warren Buffet invests in the same way, as you can tell from his investments in See’s Candies and Dairy Queen.
Spending your life training for one particular type of business would probably not be easy or always fun and this may not be the right path for you. However, if you were to do so, there is usually a significant financial benefit. But if you did train for much of your life in one area, there is no assurance you wouldn’t abandon that field for any number of valid reasons. Fortunately, there are additional great options.
If you haven’t trained your life for one business (i.e., your Best Bet), your Second Best Bet would be to go into a line of business that you are naturally attracted to even if you are not currently experienced in that area. For example, if you have a natural affinity for motorcycles, and identified an under-served market, then starting a motorcycle dealership could be a good choice for you. Choosing an area of personal interest is likely to be a fulfilling option. As a result, you will be adept to learn more, work harder, and stay with the industry longer.
Finally, a third option, which fits most new business candidates (if you are not applying your First or Second Best Bet), would be to choose a relatively random line of business but only after exhaustively studying research and financial projections, preferably on emerging industries, even if you have no personal interest or history in one particular area.
Be creative; pick an industry that is not fully developed but has a lot of potential; think about less sophisticated or glamorous business niches since they are more likely to be overlooked by potential competitors.
Another option would be to consider niches of big industries. For example, instead of trying to be the leader of the “widget” industry, strive to be the leading analyst of the industry or the leading supplier of specialty marketing services. You should be spending huge amounts of time considering every creative thing that might suit your future interests, and then you can bet on the most realistic of those options. Fantasize about your future, and then come down to earth and carry on with business.
We also recommend that you read profusely, so you can better understand your opportunities: namely business periodicals; trade journals like The Economist, Fortune Magazine, Forbes, Wall Street Journal, Business Week, and Fast Company; the local business sections of major city newspapers, and even fluff magazines like Entrepreneur and Inc, which can still hint at emerging opportunities.
Financial television and radio shows like Bloomberg, CNBC, and Fox Business can also uncover many emerging business concepts worthy of further review. They regularly interview the world’s richest and smartest business people, TiVo them.
Nowadays blogs, newsgroups, email lists, social networks, and other Web 2.0 communications media are the most up to date areas to learn about business and share information.
Most importantly, you should study the industry publications that are dealing with the specific business areas you are considering. Over a long period, you should keep your eyes and ears open for all types of ideas. This informal research will lead to areas worthy of more intensive research.
