It’s been rolling around in the back of your head for a while now: You know you like to make things and you’re pretty sure you could start a small business. Maybe you want to make a few extra dollars for your family or save a few extra bucks at the end of the month. However, there are some thoughts that keeps you from getting started – What EXACTLY could I make to sell? What can I make that someone would buy? What do I have the skills to make? What do I WANT to make?
If you are an all-around creative person with more ideas than time, this one little thought can leave you stuck for a very long time. So, how do you get started?
Here are a few things to consider:
- What is one thing you make that your family and friends request as gifts? Maybe your sister always asks for a certain handmade item on her birthday or your mother requests a few to give to her friends.
- What would someone would be willing to pay for? Maybe someone has offered to pay you for handmade items.
- What is one thing you make when you are watching TV at night? Night after night, you can’t help but find yourself making this thing over and over again…
- What is the thing you make that you MUST make? What fills you with joy, laughter or peace? You have so many of them around and have given oodles away but you just can’t stop yourself from making MORE.
- What do you make that you find useful? Do you make something that you use in your household often? Do your family and friends use it and ask you to replace soiled, broken or used up ones?
- What can you expand on? Could you create a line with a fall theme or a line of baby items in addition to general wearables?
- Who is using your item now? What are they using it for? Maybe they are using something you gave them in an completely new and unique way.
- How can make your world a tiny bit better? Does your coffee get cold before you are ready to drink it? Do you need help organizing your jewelry? Are you always losing your reading glasses? Find a problem and create something to solve it.
- Do you have a whimsical, fantastical imagination? Close your eyes and go live there for a bit. Who comes by? What thoughts, fantasies or stories crop up? Use your childlike imagination and create creatures, art or other items that no one has ever seen before.
If you’ve let yourself become stuck trying to think of just what you would like to make I hope that some of these questions will help you narrow down the ideas.
By: Vicki O’Dell, The Creative Goddess
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