C10 - Skill Income
A skill is a set of trained manoeuvres through which you achieve a meaningful and valuable goal. Everyone has one or more skills. Every skill is money. Therefore, everyone can make money. We acquire skills consciously through education, training and practise. Everything can be immediately used to make money.
We acquire seeds of skills unconsciously through birth, environment, society and other sources. These seeds can be easily converted into money making skills through bridging education, self-training and practise.
There are different types of skills and different levels of skills. Your income from your skills are influenced by the type and level of your skills.
Mental skills, Vital skills and Physical skills are some of the types of skills. Mental skills earn more than vital skills. Vital skills earn more than physical skills. Though we classify the skills into different types, almost all skills require mental, vital and physical activities in varying measures.
Learner driver, professional driver and race driver are examples for different levels of skill in car driving. Obviously race driver can mint money, professional driver can earn regular income and learner driver can earn nothing.
The book is about making money, not about skills. So, it uses the words skill, semi-skill and seeds of skills interchangeably. If there is a seed of skill, make it a tree through training before you launch your business.
One cannot have all skills because there are millions of skills. It's enough for you to discover just one hidden skill to make money.
Secret Skills
Bruce Lee had a skill in Kung Fu. Because of his movie Enter the Dragon, the entire world became aware of martial arts like Judo, Karate and Kung Fu that have been in existence for more than one thousand years in China and Japan. Kung Fu masters criticized him for taking the knowledge to the masses because they thought people would misuse it. Do you think the martial arts are more dangerous than firearms? Any instrument can be used or misused. Now, even in primary schools children learn karate and judo. Martial arts provide self-defense skills and physical exercises to the learners. Millions of martial arts tutors make a living out of the arts.
Varmam is a powerful self defense martial art that has been practised in India for more than two thousand years. Varman, the varmam artist, uses his fingers on his opponent's key nerve centers to control him. This art uses mind and nerve centers more than body. So, it is supposed to be more effective than other forms of arts. There are hundreds of such skills in India that can be taken to the masses.
Rare Skills
There are many rare and precious skills that can be commercialized easily. For example, there are artists who have the skills to engrave on grains, rice or wheat grains. They can even write a complete sentence on a single grain. There are artists who draw beautiful pictures inside the unbroken empty shell of an egg. They make a small hole, suck out the content and draw pictures using thin brush. The author has seen such artists in Indian villages. With the help of such a grain artist, you can make thousands of pieces with messages like, 'Happy Birthday' and sell them all over the world through internet just like greeting cards.
However, secret skills and rare skills are difficult to acquire. There are thousands of other skills you can make money with. It is easy to master them.
Common Skills
Writing a piece of software code that sends rocket to Jupiter and making a soft toy for toddlers are both skills. The book concentrates on low-tech, everyday, common and easy skills.
Go through the questions in the chapter Hidden Treasure and make a list of skills you think you have. Use the chapters Income Strategies and Storm Your Mind to generate or identify as many business ideas and income opportunities as possible. Read the chapter Reality Check to see whether your business concept will work in the real world. Prepare a business plan after reading the chapter Mind Your Business. Now, do it. You will make money.
Skilled Worker
Rosy is a virtual secretary and knows everything about Outlook Express, a simple email software program. She can send ten long emails with attachments and notification flags in twenty minutes. She learnt how to use the email program through self-paced training video, practised the lessons, uses it every day and earns money. At the end of twenty minutes, she does not feel tired because she has not wasted her energy on wrong commands, wrong clicks and typos. She does only what is required and does not do what is not necessary. Rosy is a skilled email worker.
Semi-Skilled Worker
John knows many things about Outlook Express. He learnt it on job through online help system. Whenever he does not know something, he seeks help from Rosy. He can send five long emails with attachments in twenty minutes. Occasionally, there will be errors, nothing serious. He earns less than Rosy. After sending five emails, he feels a bit tired and needs some rest before he can resume his work. He is a semi-skilled email worker.
Unskilled Worker
Kate knows to send email through Outlook Express. She knows to open the program and click on send button. Every time she scans the screen to find the right button and by mistake clicks on wrong button. At the end of twenty minutes, she will manage to send one email without attachment. She again sends the email. She does not learn on her own or through others. She is happy if others send the email on her behalf. She is not a skilled email worker. After sending just an email, she decides to send others after a few hours or days. She can't make any money.
The passion to learn, the willingness to work hard and the systematic training make the difference in the level of skills and level of income.
If kate and John care to train themselves in email program, they too can earn as much as or more than Rosy. However, they have decided not to train themselves and so have set a limit on their income. They have the potential to earn through the skill. They have the capacity to acquire the skill and they have the seeds of the skill.
How can Leo, who does not know anything about email program, can earn? It's easy. He can use his organization skills, hire three Rosys and run a firm of Virtual Secretaries. Or he can use his social skills to get work for Rosys and earn commission for finding work. So, even if you think you don't have money making skills, you can use your skills to help others' money skills and make money.
Obviously the person who prepared the email, the mental worker, will earn more than Rosy, the physical worker who types the email.
You must understand that almost all skills have the mental, vital and physical factors in varying measures.
In the following pages, you will see how people converted an ordinary skill into an income opportunity. If these people can make money with such simple skills, can't you make money with your more valuable skills and talents?
Family Skills
We believe that our genes have the physical appearance and physical traits of our parents and grandparents. Imagine that you have the skills and knowledge of your parents and grand parents. Think of their occupation, hobbies, skills and knowledge. You may discover high income opportunities.
Miracle Maths
Sarala did not believe she had any marketable skill though she had plenty of free time and a heart with passion to work for herself. However, when she remembered that her father and grandfather were accountants and that her son always got the highest score in mathematics, she thought about her numerical ability. She had been a housewife for the past 18 years and had always maintained her household accounts accurately. Every month she prepared budgets and compared it with actual performance happily. These activities gave her joy.
Suddenly, Sarala realized she had a skill - numerical ability. But, what she had was some raw material. It could not be marketed as it was. So, she bought pocket books on mental mathematics and novel methods of solving every day numerical problems. She learnt the principles and worked out innumerable practice problems. Within three months, she felt she was ready for a discussion with Shakuntala Devi, the prodigy mathematician over dinner.
She created workbooks and manuals to teach business calculations for small business persons and sales persons. She offered one to one or one to four course that had seven sessions for Rs.700.
The initial response was not great. People did not see any value in her service. Then, she announced that the first session was free and if the participants liked it, they could pay and complete the course. Immediately, she got more than 300 participants who could keep her busy for the next 6 months. In the first session, she used powerful yet simple techniques to demonstrate amazing solutions for real life problems. For example, she demonstrated how a salesman could arrive at an approximate quotation without using lists and calculator. Business persons realized in the first session how much positive impact this could have on customers.
By the end of first free session, 25 out of 300 joined her course. She earned Rs.13,000 after expenses. Now she lives in Malaysia. Every month she offers free sessions to attract new participants. She charges 200 Ringgits (Rs.2,000) per participant. She trains just 30 people a month.
Community Skills
Sometimes we acquire the skills and knowledge of our community or the people in our hometown unconsciously. Think about the skills and knowledge that your community and hometown have. Then find out opportunities based on them. You will make money.
Alternative Medicine
Vinitha wondered whether her house had become almost a club. All elderly members of the community assemble every evening and spent time till late night. Her father-in-law enjoyed the host role. She could do nothing about it.
Not really. She could do something positive about it. She realized the truth when she decided to make money.
The elders always used to end up their chat with the remark how great their community was during the Mogul period. They believed their community supplied medicine to the royal families of Mogul emperors. They took pride in it even though no one from the community works in that field now. Vinitha became conscious about another fact. Whenever a need arises, her first thought was to use alternative medicine rather than allopathy. Most of the time, it worked for her wonderfully.
So, she decided to become a dealer of alternative medicines. She consulted an advocate and her family physician about legal requirements and safety measures. Once everything was cleared, she set up her shop. She intelligently named her business after her community and moguls.
It was an instant hit with the community members that had more than 50,000 members in her town. On seeing the crowd she was able to pull in, her family physician suggested that she could sell allopathy medicines also. But she refused to do so as she would lose her niche status. A wise decision.
Hobby Skills
Generally we don't like the work that gives us food. But, we enjoy hobbies that cost money because we love to do them. Whatever makes you happy has the capacity to give you money. Analyze all your hobbies and skills associated with them. You will find out income opportunities.
Chess Tutor
Raman, a good chess player, is an employee in a private company. He earns Rs.3,500 a month. Sneha, his wife, learnt to play chess from her husband and has become a good player. Like us, they found their income insufficient to meet the demands of decent living.
To have an additional income stream, Raman began to teach chess to school children in the evenings and week ends. He was able to earn Rs.2,000 from teaching this game to children. Ken requested Raman to teach chess to his daughter at his house as he felt it would be convenient to him. Ken offered two times his normal fees for less hours of work as he had to come all the way to Ken's house on a bicycle. Raman accepted the offer.
On realizing the convenience, some other parents also made similar offer. Raman wanted to accept all the offers but was worried about his other students.
At that moment, his wife stepped in to support him. She began to teach the existing students at her home so that existing income would not be lost.
To attend tournaments, many students must buy chess clocks. Cost of a clock is Rs.2,500. Students usually buy them from sports shops. Sneha met a shop keeper and became a reseller for chess clocks and other chess gear. Naturally all her students buy only from her.
Sneha has plans to organize one month concentrated chess course for school children in the summer vacation.
Now, she teaches chess at home in the evenings and earns Rs.2,500. Sale of chess gears generate an additional income of Rs.1,500. Raman goes out to teach chess and earns Rs.2,500.
It's big extra money for a low income family.
Household Skills
We do many personal and household activities that involve neither employment nor hobbies. We have to do them. Over time, these activities become part of us that we don't even think about them when we do them. It is possible to discover marketable skills from these household and personal activities.
Food Supplier
Lavanya is 37 years old and has three children. Sudhakar, her husband, was working in a town far away from her place. The family had to generate more income to manage two setups and to meet the ever increasing expenses. Lavanya did not even complete her school finals. She does not have any technical skill. Would she ever be able to be a business woman?
She knows to cook well and there are billions of people in the world who eat three times a day. What a market!
Someone told her that she could become a food supplier. Her cousin was a Chartered Accountant and had contacts with small scale industrialists. Through him she sent her proposal to supply home made food to the workers for lunch.
Three businessmen immediately accepted the offer as the expense on food to workers would come down substantially. Besides lunch, they asked her to supply breakfast and light dinner for the workers who worked on weekends and overtime.
Lavanya rented out a small house and hired three helpers. She bought a few big vessels. She hired an auto on monthly basis to deliver the food. She developed her own quality standards.
Within a month she began to earn more than Rs.10,000.
After a few months, she decided to expand her business. She met shopkeepers around High Court and General Hospital and persuaded them to sell her freshly cooked and packaged home made food like curd rice, tomato rice and lemon rice at Rs.7 a packet. It became an immediate hit. Her income soared to Rs.25,000 a month.
As all housewives face the problem of preparing lunch packets for their school children in the mornings, Lavanya is working out a business plan to supply freshly cooked and packaged home made food to them. After that, she wants to concentrate on office workers.Ken believes that she will succeed in all her ventures.
Recently, Ken met her husband in a book exhibition. He told Ken that he had resigned his job and was happily helping his wife. A great family reunion.
Employment Skills
If you have ever gone for employment, you have a saleable skill. A skill got you the job. If an employer did not derive benefits, then why did he give the job to you and pay you every month? You earned money in the form of salary from one employer. Using the same skills, can't you receive money as income from many customers? Do you think it is impossible?
Travel Planner
Barbara Whiteman was an assistant in an international school in London. Though she always wanted to pass the registration examination and obtain Registered Teacher License, her family commitments made it a distant dream.
Her work involved receiving students and their parents, briefing them about the procedure and helping them in finding suitable accommodation. She worked for four hours in the mornings.
Every day there would be some confusion as hotels and airlines were not in the students' or Barbara's control. There would be frequent changes in plans due to unexpected developments. Invariably there would be unnecessary expenditure. Though Barbara really wished everything should go as planned, in real world such wishes were seldom fulfilled. Barbara never thought such a fugitive wish had the power to make her financially independent.
She lived in Eastham, a budget residential area in London. On a December evening, when she was returning home by walk, she met Rajesh. He was standing on footpath with a travel bag and fear in his eyes. On seeing Barbara, he approached her and said, "Good evening. Do you have a moment, please?"
"Yes?" Barbara said and got ready to handle any unpleasant situation. She knew that Eastham was not pedestrian friendly area at evenings and late nights.
"I am from India. My friend used to live in this area. But, he is not here anymore. I've been standing here for more than an hour. I don't know what to do. I tried to find out some budget accommodation. But I'm unable to find any in this busy season. Do you have any idea that will solve my problem?" Rajesh asked her.
Barbara smiled and said, "I think I can help you." She called a few numbers on her mobile phone and fixed an accommodation. She arranged for a cab to pick Rajesh from that place. Then, she told him, "Don't worry. A cab will be here within 3 minutes. I've booked a room for a week. If you don't like the place, give me a call." She gave him her number. Rajesh was relieved and thanked her again and again. Even before he could finish his finest thanksgiving speech, a cab came to pick him up. Suddenly, Rajesh opened his wallet and pulled out 50 Euros, that's lots of money, and pushed it into her hands and said, "Thank you. You are a professional travel planner." Then he got into the cab and disappeared. Professional Travel Planner!
Would there not be thousands of people like Rajesh? If each of them paid her 50 Euros, how much she would earn? Waves and waves of energy began to enter her.
As soon as she reached her house, she began to research the web for information on travel planning. She got hundreds of useful websites and details about many software. She particularly liked a Travel Plan software.
The price was 50 Euros. Barbara was thrilled and ordered it. Within a fortnight, she launched her part time business as a travel planner.
She knew she would not be able to compete with tourist operators. So, she decided to specialize in making travel arrangements for small business persons and students. She had contact details of hundreds of students who had left the school. After taking permission from the school principal, she sent snail mails and emails to all of them.
Most of them remembered Barbara as she was the first person to receive them in London. Within a month she began to get regular business. Many hotels and airlines offered her referral fees.
She needed only 15 clients a month to match her salary. When she began to earn more than her salary, she quit the job. Now, she is studying for her teacher registration exam. Once she is a teacher, she'll sell her business for a big sum
New And Old
Every day dawns with a new technology or new invention. The developer or inventor tries to solve a particular problem. However, the newbie can be combined with old goldies to create new products or services. In the first chapter, we learnt how Aridi combined Arabic art and Illustrator software.
Charmed
Members of a thousand year old community from a certain country - Ken will not give more details - believe that pebbles, ash and sand from their holy place have the magical power to solve their problems. But, most of them have gone to different countries for different purposes. Though they have changed countries, their beliefs have not changed.
A resourceful young man offered to deliver the charms to the customers for a fee. Members can order by email, fax, telephone or snail mail. He will fulfil the order by Fedex.
It was easy for him to collect the contact details from the community organization. Within three years, he has become an icon in the community. Despite his financial success, no other man from the community have thought of setting up a similar business. This lack of interest may appear strange as no special skill is required for the project. That's life.
Opposite Views
Our community has many opinions and beliefs. We respect them and follow them. However, if you review opposite ideas, you will discover profitable business ideas in no time.
Tamil Tutor
Ramu met Nirmala, his tailor's sister in 1996 in Chennai at their shop. She had completed a course in Tamil, a South Indian language. She did not have any job. Her brother told Ramu that she did not know what to do about her career.
"Have you ever thought of teaching Tamil to school children in private?" Ramu asked her.
Nirmala smiled and said, "Parents want their children to be good in English, Hindi or French. Tamil is almost dead." "Believe in the opposite. Parents want their children to learn Tamil, their mother tongue. First you believe this and then advertise your service. There is nothing to lose," Ramu said. "I'll try," Nirmala said.
Ramu went to their shop again to collect his new shirts after a week. Nirmala was there.
She said, "You are right. Now, I have twenty students and earn Rs.2,500 a month."
"Oh, Congratulations," Ramu said.
"We are living in Sowcarpet. Most residents belong to North Indian business community. They want their children to integrate with the local community as such integration is good for their business. I think I will get many more students next month," Nirmala said. After a pause, she said, "I think Tamil is still alive."
Values Are Money
When you see that a value is missing, try to find out how you can add value to that person, company, situation, process, business, product or service. You will come out with profitable business ideas. For example, harmony is a value. If there are quarrels, disputes and disharmony in your area, then try to find out the cause for them. You can make money by providing a service or a product that can restore harmony.
Noisy Neighbors
Kanaka told Vijaya that her life has become miserable because of the neighbors.
"What's wrong with them?" Vijaya asked her.
"The couple were generally quiet. For the past one week, something has terribly gone wrong. The moment the husband returns home from his office, I hear only insults and abuses from both sides," Kanaka said.
"Perhaps they have some financial problems," Vijaya said. "No. Though I don't know the exact reason, it could be because of their kids," Kanaka said.
"What do they do?" Vijaya asked.
"Just now summer vacation has started. My neighbor finds it difficult to manage her three kids. By the time her husband comes home, she is tired and picks up quarrel. But, it is my guess," Kanaka said.
"I think she must send her kids to the village or to some summer camp," Vijaya said.
"Yeah. But, in our area there is no summer camp," Kanaka stopped without completing the sentence and said, "I have a new idea. I have a spacious first floor. I don't use it. Can we start a summer camp for kids? We will split the sessions and profits." Immediately Vijaya and Kanaka converted the vacant first floor into a summer camp that had enough space to keep thirty children occupied.
They made Rs.12,000 within a month. Whenever there is a long school vacation, they conduct camps.
Kanaka's neighbors don't quarrel anymore.
International Copycat
Many small business that are carried on successfully in another country can be modified and carried on in your home country successfully.
Maid Money
In 1992, Dinakaran had to visit Tiruvalla, a small town in Kerala, for bank audit. The Bank Manager introduced Sunitha Nair, a beautiful Keralite lady to Dinakaran. After a few minutes, Dinakaran asked Sunitha, "Do you work or a homemaker?" "I am a businesswoman," said Sunitha. "What business do you do?" Dinakaran asked. "I supply maids," said Sunitha. "Maids?" Dinakaran was curious.
"Yes. This town is full of middle class and upper middle class families. When I wanted to do something on my own, I realized that the maids were not happy with wages and the housewives were not happy with the honesty of their servants. So, I decided to become a supplier of servants," Sunitha said. "How do you get maids?" Dinakaran asked.
"I approached some housewives I personally knew and told them my plan. I promised to supply sincere servants. They said they would be happy to pay Rs.200 more to a good servant. Then I contacted a few orphanages. I gave the guarantee that the places where the women would be sent would be safe. The orphanages were delighted because they were trying to find out some employment for the women. I conduct orientation classes and training classes for them. Then, I send them for work," Sunitha said.
"That's great. But how do you make money?" Dinakaran asked. "The housewife would pay me a subscription fees of Rs.700 a year. This ensures that they will always get good servants and if they are not happy they can get replacement. If a servant takes off, I send a temp," Sunitha said.
"How did you get the idea?" Dinakaran asked.
"My sister is in Singapore. When she visited me last year, she said she had to hire a servant through an agent. This made me think of the business," Sunitha said.
"Good business?" Dinakaran asked.
"When I launched my business, my husband said that no housewife would pay subscription fees. Now, I have 120 customers and 130 maids. If I have more maids, I can expand my business," said Sunitha.
Before Sunitha left, the Bank Manager said, "Madam, please don't forget to give us a fixed deposit of a big amount before the end of this year."
Language Skill
If you know two or more languages well, you can use the skill to earn money. Computer aided translation projects are ideal if you know to read and write many languages. Or you can work as a translator for business visitors.
Birthday Party
Kadambari is a 45 year old housewife. She had plenty of free time. She learnt to read and write Japanese using CD-ROMs and tapes just for fun.
A few months ago, she attended a birthday party with her husband. A Japanese visitor, who did not know English, was trying to explain something to the host, the managing director of a big company. The host did not understand a word and was misinterpreting what the visitor said. Both of them were anxious to communicate well because they had future business deals in mind.
Kadambari felt sorry for them and offered to help them as a translator. Of course, she did not have any idea of taking money for helping them. Within ten minutes, the exchange of ideas between the visitor and the host was smooth and they became good friends.
After a month, the host called Kadambari and told her that the Japanese businessman had agreed for a joint venture. Because of this development, there would be regular visits of Japanese businessmen. The host offered to hire her whenever the team came to India. He offered Rs.800 a day and a retainer fees of Rs.2,500 a month.
Now, Kadambari earns Rs.8,000 a month for a week's work. What she learnt for fun has become a cash cow.
There is another field that has not yet been explored by businessmen. The author believes this area holds potential for creation of millions of self-employment opportunities in the near future. It is spirituality.
Please, don't immediately think of psychology, religion, flowers and incense sticks. What the book talks about in the next chapter is entirely different.
