Day 7 30DC - Tools of the Trade

The podcast and videos today in the Thirty Day Challenge demonstrated how to begin to evaluate the niche ideas we have accumulated over the initial days of training. We are beginning the winnowing process, continuing to obtain statistical information about the niches from the various research tools Ed introduced. Our niches will either make it through the gate to the next round of evaluation, or they will prove to be unreliable risks that do not deserve any further effort.

There may be a few that are borderline -- some of the stats don't quite add up to form a perfect picture, but there may be other characteristics that give us reason to keep them in play for the time being. They would certainly involve further market research, and the application of some wisdom gained through our experience with this process.

For now, however, it is more important to focus on the niches that meet all of the stated criteria.

In addition to these techniques, Ed brought up an important point that is relevant to every field of endeavour. If you are planning to make your fortune (and my NAT132 students will know that one's fortune includes not only wealth and prosperity, but destiny and development of character) in any trade or profession, it is vitally important to have the best quality tools for the practice of that trade or profession.

He reminded us that top chefs have sets of knives worth thousands of dollars. If you are going to be making your living (and making a life, too) online, then you deserve and have an imperative for getting the fastest broadband connection you can get as well as the most powerful computer you can afford.

Precision tools allow your genius and your skill to be realized in the things that you create, fashion, repair, or reshape. They allow you to spend your time on the things that matter instead of wrestling with the tools. In the time/money equation (NAT132!) the time you save when you work efficiently goes toward growing your business and building your wealth, instead of cleaning up messes or finding workarounds for inadequate tools. How effective is a carpenter who has a substandard drill and is relegated to turning every screw by hand?

Beyond that are the limitations poor tools place upon your performance in other ways. If a carpenter only has a hammer, then every problem becomes a nail. You've heard that before, I'm sure. What it means is that creative thinking or innovation is not possible; the potential outcomes of all problems are constrained by the tools available for their resolution. This is a death knell for business, because you cannot react adequately to the issues that arise.

It may seem simplistic to state that tradesmen are only as good as their tools. What about knowledge workers? When the product of your brain is more important than the product of your hands, your tools need to be fast and sophisticated to process information effectively. Data gathering and data manipulation are increasingly the way to building one's wealth in the 21st century. Do that faster and better than your competitors and your success is assured.