Developing Products for Your Future

Apr 21, 2014 | Profit

A Sad Story

You’d recognize his name. He’s an old friend and he’s had a successful career by many standards. He’s made a good income. He’s written a couple of books that provide him with an income stream. But he’s making most of his money from speaking and consulting. He’d like to spend less time on the road, but he can’t.

Information entrepreneurship can be a subsistence business

Being a speaker or author or independent consultant can easily turn into a subsistence business. You can generate enough money to live well. But it’s easy to spend up to your income and not prepare for a future where you might want to do something different.

The Billable Hour Treadmill

It’s easy to get trapped on the Billable Hour Treadmill. That’s what happens when every dollar you make comes from time you put in. You have to find a way to generate some income that doesn’t depend on you being there.

Good financial management helps

Set aside some money for savings and for investment. Every investment guru tells you that because it’s good advice and it’s the first thing you should do. Then start thinking about developing new income streams that don’t require your presence.

Books alone are not enough

I love books, but books alone are not enough. The big money possibilities for your book are the ones that go beyond the book.

Information products beyond the book

Use the material in your book to develop products that add value to the book and revenue for you. Think about training programs, workbooks, apps, or games. Brainstorm to add to that list.

Think about the second tier of products. Certify trainers. License the use of your material.

It will take time and commitment.

It won’t be easy to create products that will increase your income now and provide passive income for your future. Develop a product plan. Then devote half a day a week to working on your future.