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Just because you haven't been struck with inspiration yet doesn't mean you can't start a business.
You don't have to think up the next $4 or Paypal or LinkedIn. In fact, the best place to start is with the things you already know.
That's according to GrowthLab and I Will Teach You to Be Rich CEO $4. "I know it's difficult to imagine that you might have profitable skills already - but you do," he writes on his site.
$4, here are the four questions you'll want to ask yourself to isolate said profitable skills:
- What do you already pay for? We already pay people to do a lot of different things. Can you turn one of those things into your own online business? Examples: Clean your home, walk your pet, cook your meals, etc.
- What skills do you have? Now, what do you know - and know well? These are the skills you have that you're great at - and people want to pay you to teach them. Examples: Fluency in a foreign language, programming knowledge, cooking skills, etc.
- What do your friends say you're great at? I love this question. Not only can it be a nice little ego boost - but it can also be incredibly revealing. Examples: Workout routines, relationship advice, great fashion sense, etc.
- What do you do on a Saturday morning? What do you do on a Saturday morning before everyone else is awake? This can be incredibly revealing to what you're passionate about and what you like to spend your time on. Examples: Browsing fashion websites, working on your car, reading fitness subreddits, etc.
"Spend about 10 - 20 minutes now writing down five answers for each of the four questions above," he writes. "Once you're done, congratulations - you now have 20 potential business ideas that you can grow into a flourishing side hustle."
In a previous interview with Business Insider, Sethi said that "$4$4" is the most common question he gets from aspiring entrepreneurs, and that it's flawed.
"What's the assumption behind it?" he asked. "The assumption is 'I'm waiting for a magical idea to fall down from the sky.' And that's not how it works. If you want to start a business, you find an idea. And it's not the perfect idea; it's one of many."
Once you start generating potential ideas, then you can test them to $4, and if they'll make any money. But, Sethi says, just because you haven't been struck with inspiration doesn't mean you can't start a business.