EnTrends

into two types: intrinsic and extrinsic. Intrinsic values relate to
what you will be doing in a day to day sense and how valuable
an activity you perceive that to be in the overall scheme of
things. For example, if your business provides a service to your
community's elders and you perceive this as being of high
importance to society, then your business meets your intrinsic
values.

Extrinsic values, on the other hand, refer to the external features
of your business such as your physical environment and profit
potential.

By identifying those intrinsic and extrinsic values that are
important to you, and identifying the types of businesses that
will satisfy those values, is an important step in deciding
whether a business of your own is something worth pursuing.
For YOU.

=> Personality

Various personality tests have been devised to determine your

personality "type" with the idea that people belonging to
certain types do particularly well in certain careers and
businesses. Perhaps the most prolific basis of personality tests
is Jung's Personality Theory, dividing people into eight
personality types: extroverts, introverts, thinking, feeling,
sensing, intuitive, judging and perceptive.

If this interests you, you'll find no end of information online
about the types of occupations and businesses suited to each
personality type. Don't let the results of such a test play a
disproportionate role in your decision-making process, though.
Just use it as one of several factors you take into account.

=> Interests and Hobbies

This one's a real no-brainer but it bears stating. Try and create a
business around something that you're interested in. Although
not a certain rule, you tend to perform better at what you enjoy
and to enjoy what you're good at.

Be sure to look at the other side of the coin too and inventory
what you're NOT interested in. Sometimes knowing what you
DON'T want to do makes it easier to see what you DO want to
do.

=> Resources

These include not only financial resources but others such as
your personal relationship network (who do you know who
could help you in your new venture), office equipment and
other facilities.

=> Attitude

Do you have a "can do", optimistic attitude? Are you

determined to succeed whatever it takes? Do you believe you
control your own destiny or is life a series of random events
that happen to you no matter what you may have planned?

=> Other Personal Qualities

Finally, think about the personal qualities that make you, you.
Are you energetic and motivated, are you resourceful, are you
resilient, realistic and practical, a hard worker?

Once you have completed your personal inventory, sit down
and rank your positives from highest to lowest. Then do the
same thing with your negatives. Once you've ranked your
strengths and weaknesses in this way, you'll have something
of a framework within which any prospective business idea
must fit. If your idea requires great strength in an area where
you're weak, toss it. If it requires strength in an area where
you're strong, keep it. This is not a black and white exercise.
Any idea you have will require any combination of skills and
strengths. You must evaluate objectively whether your
particular combination of skills and strengths is enough to
compensate for your particular weaknesses and make a
success of the venture.

IDEA GENERATION

So, where are you to get the ideas against which to measure
your skills and strengths? First off, bear in mind there are a
number of approaches to starting a business of your own. You
may provide a service; you may manufacture a product; you
may distribute a product manufactured by someone else.

A well-known schematic which sets out all the possible
combinations is as follows:

1. Existing products/services and existing markets.

2. New products/services and existing markets.

3. Existing products/services and new markets.

4. New products/services and new markets.

If you focus on option 1. you face stiff competition. If you
focus on option 4. you have to invent the wheel first. So pay
most attention to options 2. and 3.

Take your skills inventory. What do you know and enjoy the
most? Are you a specialist? Think about what you know.
What do people buy? What do people want but can't buy?
What do people buy but don't like? What are people buying
more of? Where do they buy and when and how?

When you've considered that, look at how you can change
existing products or services to meet an unmet need, to meet a
need in a different, more convenient way, to improve the
quality or service. Be particularly observant and on the
lookout for emerging trends (an aging population, an
increasing number of people working from home