In short
The Marie Forleo Podcast - Episode 389: Could Your Weird Business Idea Make You Rich?
Episode Overview In this episode, Marie Forleo explores the potential of unconventional business ideas and how they can lead to significant financial success. She shares inspiring stories of individuals who transformed their unique concepts into thriving enterprises, alongside practical advice for aspiring entrepreneurs.
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Key Points Covered
Introduction
- Challenges in Starting a Business:
- Many individuals feel their business ideas are "too weird" or that it's too late to enter the market.
Real-life Inspirations
- Stacey Ann: From Tragedy to Triumph
- Transitioned from selling handmade ornaments to creating a million-dollar business through strategic marketing and a shift in mindset.
- Key Lesson: Transforming a hobby into a sustainable business by embracing larger ambitions.
- Sina: Selling Fish from Alaska
- Overcame limited resources to grow her sales from $500 to $5,000 per email through effective use of an email list.
- Key Lesson: Focus on a single impactful strategy rather than trying to market everywhere.
- Atoya: The Curly Hair Salon
- Specializes in curly hair, attracting clients nationwide despite the competitive salon industry.
- Key Lesson: Niche down and cater specifically to a target audience for greater success.
- Lucas: Mobile Pet Grooming Success
- Established "Rough Revolution," a mobile grooming service that emphasizes client care and comfort, generating $40,000 a month.
- Key Lesson: Improve on existing business models by addressing their shortcomings.
- Tennille: From Projects to Celebrity Cakes
- Started a successful cupcake business, showcasing how self-marketing as a premium brand can lead to significant opportunities.
- Key Lesson: Overcome imposter syndrome and recognize the impact of your work, even if it feels small.
Overcoming Common Barriers
- Imposter Syndrome:
- A prevalent belief that individuals lack the qualifications or capabilities to succeed.
- Marie encourages listeners to shift focus from self-doubt to learning effective marketing strategies.
Actionable Takeaways
- Identify Your Unique Value:
- Recognize what you understand better than others based on personal experiences or skills.
- Marketing as an Essential Skill:
- Learning how to market effectively is crucial for business success. Focus on showcasing your unique offerings.
- Pushing Beyond Comfort Zones:
- Embrace the possibility of failure and the fear of not being good enough. These feelings are common among entrepreneurs.
Conclusion
- Encouragement to Pursue Unique Ideas:
- Marie emphasizes that the world needs the unique contributions of each entrepreneur, regardless of how "weird" their ideas may seem.
Resources Mentioned
- Links to Marie Forleo’s online courses and tools for aspiring entrepreneurs are provided to help listeners take actionable steps in their business journeys.
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Final Thoughts Marie Forleo's episode serves as an empowering reminder that unconventional business ideas can lead to success when approached with creativity and resilience. Aspiring entrepreneurs are encouraged to recognize their potential and take the leap into their unique business ventures.
Written by AI. May contain mistakes. Listen to the episode to check what was said.
Transcript
Automatic transcript. May contain errors.0:00Are you ready to bring your dream business to life? Is it finally time to make the difference you were born to make? Good, because I can help. I want you to join over 80 ,000 other small business owners from over 650 industries in over 165 different countries in our legendary online business course that will teach you step-by-step how to make more money, a bigger impact, and have a better quality of life too. You can get started right now at joinbschool.com. That's joinbschool.com.
0:37There are two things that hold people back from starting a business and making a lot more money. Number one, you think your business idea is too weird. Like nobody's going to pay me for this. Number two, you think it's all been done before and it is way too late for you. Wrong. And you're going to thank me for saying that. You know, after helping over 80 ,000 people grow their businesses, I've seen it all. There are plenty of weird businesses out there making serious bank, and yours can too. In this video, let me show you five surprising businesses that nobody's talking about that are killing it.
1:11Then I'm going to show you how to take your weirdo business idea, no matter how quirky or niche it is, and turn it into a money-making machine. Imagine you're a young stay-at-home mom of two kids. No college degree, no work experience, and around the holidays, you make a little extra money for your family selling handmade ornaments on Etsy. Then suddenly your husband is killed in a tragic motorcycle accident. You're left with nothing. What do you do? You're thinking of going all in on your business, but people around you are saying things like this. You want to turn your little ornaments hobby into a business right now?
1:47You need to go get a real job. Now, thankfully, Stacey Ann had been watching my videos for a really long time. And here's what she did. She started to think bigger about herself and her business. And she learned how to turn some of her best free giveaways into a full-on paid membership. And guess what a paid membership is? Recurring revenue. So fast forward, Stacey Ann never gave up on herself. And now her business brings in over a million bucks a year. Yes, you heard that right. It all started from fabric Christmas ornaments. What do you already do for fun that maybe you could turn into a business?
2:25Do you love watercoloring? Do you love to organize your home? Do you love walking your dog? If you're thinking, Marie, nobody's going to pay me to do that. Not so fast. Look, Stacey Ann took her cute little hobby and she turned that thing into a million dollar plus business, all when she was in the depths of despair. How did she do it? By approaching it in a very smart and strategic way and by training herself to master the art of modern marketing. Now imagine you are living in the middle of nowhere, Alaska, raising three small kids. You barely have an internet connection, but you do have a wacky business idea.
3:03You want to sell fish. Sound crazy? Well, Sina thought so too, until I showed her one little strategy that literally changed everything. Look, with small kids and not a lot of time or resources, Sina had to be ruthless about where to put her focus in her business. She had no advertising budget, no social media presence, and no clue what to do to grow her business. I had no idea what an email list even was when I started, but Marie told me to do it, so I set it up anyway. Fast forward to today. Our average sales per email have increased 10x from 500 bucks per email to 5 ,000. Guys, did you hear that?
3:42Sina is literally reeling in the big bucks from one simple strategy. To be clear, she is selling fish. She doesn't have a million or a gajillion followers on TikTok or Instagram. None of us need all that. What every business owner does need is to stop trying to be everywhere, everything, all at once, all the time, especially when you're first starting out. Instead, you gotta train yourself to show up consistently in the one place that moves the needle the most. So ask yourself this, where is that one place for you that you could focus that would have the biggest impact. Whatever your answer is, focus your attention there and you're going to be great.
4:22And as they say, the riches are in the niches. And that's 100 % true. In fact, that's the secret to creating a totally unique and profitable business, even if you're in an industry that is totally oversaturated and competitive. So for example, did you know that there are over 1.5 million salons in the United States alone? so many places to get our haircuts and our highlights and our blowouts. But did you also know that 8 out of 10 salons fail in less than 2 years? So how come a small salon in Oregon is making bank and they've got a 6-month waiting list? Here's your clue. It's called the Curly Hair Salon.
5:04And yes, they only serve people with curly hair. And it's run by a badass woman named Atoya Bass. So women regularly fly in from all over the country to go to her salon just for the opportunity to work with someone who really gets them. Here's what the founder, Atoya, said. I went from poverty level income to six figures, from begging for clients to having a six month wait list. Now they call me Oregon's queen of curls. My business grows every day and now I live in abundance versus lack. I mean, think about this, right? For someone who grew up in poverty, think about how scary it would be to just turn clients away because they don't have curly hair.
5:41But the business lesson here is clear. Stop trying to be everything to everybody. Speak only to the people that you can help best. Yes, it's scary, but it works. I mean, just think about Atoya. Nitching down blew her business up in the best damn way. So ask yourself this. What's something that you understand better than most people simply because of who you are. So maybe you know, I don't know, the travel hacks for tall people because you're 6 '4". Or maybe you've got a gluten allergy like I do, except you've got some dope-ass recipes for bread. Please send them my way. Actually, better yet, just send me the loaf.
6:17Little pop quiz here. Why do you want to start a business? Is it for more money? Yes, please. Maybe it's because you can't take one more freaking day of your soul-sucking job. If so, you are definitely not alone. But what if your escape plan involves a business idea that's already been done like a gajillion times? Here's one entrepreneur who felt the exact same way, but not only did he ditch his toxic day job, but he went into a boring ass industry, made it way better, and turned it into a$40 ,000 a month business, where get this, he has to hang out with cute dogs all day long. Lucas says, I was burning out from the stress of grooming dogs in a hectic salon.
6:59The wear and tear on my body, the lack of brakes, and neglect of my mental well-being, it was too much. Plus, I had this gnawing feeling that I'd never be satisfied if I didn't at least try to start my own business. That's when Lucas decided to go rogue and founded Rough Revolution, a mobile pet grooming business that is booming. Now he's making more a month than his entire salary at his day job. And yes, that's after expenses. He also gets to run the business his way. He sets his own schedule, he hires people that he loves to work with, and he even gets to tie-dye poodles. But here's the thing.
7:35Rough Revolution definitely wasn't the first mobile grooming company to hit the streets, but Lucas took everything that sucked about the dog grooming business and he rewrote the rulebook. You know, this is just like Virgin Atlantic. They were nowhere near the first airline company, right, to fly commercial planes, but Lucas used the same exact strategy that Sir Richard Branson used to shake up an old, stale industry. He literally wrote down everything he hated and he fixed it. The lesson? You don't have to reinvent the wheel in your business, but you also don't have to do it like everybody else.
8:10That's the coolest thing about business. You get to write the rules. So I want you to do this now. Write down everything that you hate about your industry, everything that irritates you, everything that pisses you off and now take that exact list and do the opposite and boom, there's your business. You're welcome. Did you know that there's one tiny belief that crushes almost 78 % of business owners and you probably have it right now? It's called imposter syndrome and it's that awful feeling that you don't know what the hell you're doing, that you have no right to do or try the thing you're going after.
8:47And at some point in the future, everyone's going to see you for exactly what you are, which is a fraud. Now, maybe you just think, well, you're not good enough or that you don't have the right pedigree or the right education. You don't look a certain way and therefore you don't have what it takes to succeed. I got to say, I felt that way a million times, which is exactly why I love Tennille. Tennille was born and raised in the projects of Spanish Harlem. She didn't see a lot of people like her running businesses, but she had an idea for a cupcake truck and she decided to go for it. Now, one of the most transformative things that me and my team taught her was how to market herself as a premium brand from day one.
9:26Was she scared? Of course, we're all scared. But she did it. And it worked. Today, she bakes dope-ass cakes for celebrities like DJ Khaled, Alicia Keys, and Miley Cyrus. But here's what really lights her up. Tenille says, a few months ago, a woman who still lives in Wagner Projects went all out to buy the biggest cupcake package I offer because she wanted her daughter to see what a successful businesswoman looks like. I was so moved, I cried. The little girls treated me like a celebrity. At the end of the party, the birthday girl hugged me and said, my mom told me you grew up in the same building where I live.
10:01I want to have a business like you one day. I am to that little girl what you were to me, Marie. Now, even if you don't believe that your business idea will quote unquote change the world, I promise your work is going to change someone's world. There are people out there right now who have a problem or a desire that you have the solution for. You owe it to them to not only believe in yourself, but to learn how to effectively market the hell out of yourself. Why? Because when you hold back, because you think you're not good enough, or you're not qualified enough, or you're not old enough, or you're not young enough, or whatever, guess what?
10:38You are stealing from those who need you most. And yes, I said stealing. The lesson here is this. The fear that you have that you're not good enough, guess what? It never goes away. I don't care how much money you make. I don't care how many celebrities eat your cupcakes or how many five-star reviews you get on Amazon. It's always gonna be there. You're never, ever gonna feel good enough. And you know what I say? Welcome to the club. So stop focusing on feeling better and start focusing on marketing better. Marketing is an art and a science that I believe every business owner can and should learn.
11:14Just imagine how much more money are you going to make? How many more lives are you going to change when you finally learn how to position yourself like the top shelf brand that you actually are? I literally have hundreds of stories just like these. Folks who've launched really successful businesses all over the world in every kind of industry you can imagine. Over 684 to be exact. So I know not only is this possible, but it's possible for you. Don't let anyone tell you what you can and can't do in this life. Don't let anyone lead you to believe that your business idea is too weird or that you don't have what it takes or that you should just go get a real job.
11:55You know, I got to tell you, in the beginning, I had so many people doubt me and belittle my dreams. They thought I was crazy pants for what I was trying to do. And I am so grateful that I kept my crazy pants on and I literally have never taken them off. And neither should you. Now, if you want to come join Tenille, Lucas, Atoya, and literally tens of thousands of us who work on growing our business together every single year, go to MarieForLeoBSchool.com or click on the link below this video. No matter what, stay on your game and keep going for all your big dreams because the world really does need that very special gift that only you have.
From the publisher
Could your quirky idea ever make REAL money? Check out these real-life stories of "weird" businesses making bank. Plus, 3 secrets to turn any idea into a profitable business.
WHAT'S COVERED IN THIS EPISODE:
00:00 — The 2 things holding you back from starting a business
00:43 — Transforming "cute" arts and crafts into a million-dollar side-hustle
02:16 — How a stay-at-home Mom makes $5,000 every time she sends an email
03:46 — A simple way to beat "impossible" odds in a highly-competitive industry
05:39 — The $40k /month business that lets you play with cute dogs all day
07:52 — One tiny belief that crushes 78% of business owners (and how to beat it)
08:30 — The secret to making your "ordinary" idea into an extraordinary business
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DISCOVER YOUR WINNING BUSINESS IDEA: This free tool helps you find your winning business idea — one that's highly profitable and enjoyable. → https://marielovesyou.com/bizidea
B-SCHOOL: The ultimate system to grow your business and own your freedom. Get started now → https://www.marieforleobschool.com/enroll
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