How to Turn Your Biggest Parenting Problem Into Your Biggest Business Opportunity
When my son, Sam, was 3 years old, I began to notice that his language wasn’t developing as quickly as his sister’s had. A doctor diagnosed a hearing problem that could be fixed via surgery and (after giving Sam an IQ test where he scored in the 37th percentile) pronounced that Sam would “never be very smart” and there was nothing I (or anyone) could do to change that. I couldn’t believe what this doctor was telling me.I had dreams for Sam, and now I didn’t know what his future might be.My mother, a PhD in Early Childhood Development, disagreed with the doctor. After we fixed Sam’s hearing, Mom showed me how to teach him through play so he would have the skills he needed to function in a regular kindergarten classroom. With her guidance, I worked with Sam for about 30 minutes a day. We’d snuggle in bed together while we “played”. To him, it was fun-time with Mommy, but everything was designed to help him grow cognitively. A year later, Sam scored in the 94th percentile on an IQ test. He was admitted to a competitive school in Manhattan and became an excellent student. After this experience, I informally began showing other parents how to help their own kids catch up when they were behind and get ready for important early childhood tests. I became so inspired by this calling that I made it my career. I now work from home running a highly profitable online company that I am incredibly passionate about. Best of all, I’ve been able to advise thousands of parents in helping their children build skills for school readiness and testing, the way my mother guided me when I needed it for Sam. This experience taught me that your biggest problem could actually be your biggest opportunity.Here are the five key lessons I’ve learned over the years that I hope can help you turn your biggest problem into a business that will help others:
1. Know that if you have this problem, other people do as well
If you create a solution that works, other people will pay for access to your solution. Ask yourself: how can I turn the answer to my problem into a product or service?
2. Create for others what you wish had been available when you were trying to solve the problem yourself
If my current business had existed when I was struggling to help Sam, I would have paid anything to have it! That’s how lost and alone I felt when that doctor wrote Sam off. Today, every aspect of our website, from its simplicity of use, to the fact that parents can ask us questions, to the site’s affordability, to the fact that it’s so much fun that kids don’t even know they’re learning – these are all benefits I would have jumped at when I was trying to help Sam all by myself. With your problem and solution, ask yourself:What do I wish I could have purchased when I faced my own big problem? That’s what you must create for others.
3. Get your product out there, but be open to surprises
The first shared solutions to my big problem came in the form of a book and a board game. It wasn’t until I was trying to get the word out about those products that I unexpectedly found a business partner who proposed an online solution. When we started our online business, we created the site we thought parents would want. It turned out, parents wanted many different features than we envisioned. In the last four years, we’ve revised and upgraded our site in response to what they’ve asked for, and it is now quite different from where it began. Get your product out there even if it isn’t perfect, and be open to the unexpected – that’s the only way your business can start to unfold and become what it was meant to be.
4. If you choose a partner, pick someone who is different from you
Our business works well because I love creating content, while my partner is adept in operations, technology and marketing. I once had a partner in a different business where we both excelled at the same things, and we had to hire outside experts to do everything we couldn’t do. When you start a business, you have to do everything on a shoestring. If you and your partner have different skill sets, you will get a lot more done for a lot less money.
5. Make it personal
If your business is born out of a personal problem you solved, never forget the feelings of struggle and being at wit’s end that you had before you found your answer. I believe that my business success is because my partner and I have been in our members’ shoes We know how they feel and care deeply that they are able to help their kids the same way we were able to help ours. You will spend so much time working your business after you launch it – it is that profound caring for what you do that will carry you through the enormous challenges of building a business. Last May, Sam graduated from NYU. It was one of the proudest moments of my life. Even after all the years that have passed, I still remember the feeling of helplessness I had when the doctor told me my son would never be very smart. When I look back on the time we spent snuggling in bed as we worked on Sam’s skills, those are some of the happiest memories I have of the two of us together.Are you facing what feels like an impossible challenge right now? When you solve it (and I know you will!), think about how many others might benefit from your solution and how you can create a business that will bring your hard earned knowledge to those who need it!In the comments, tell us how you convert problems into opportunities in your business.