Part 1, Sec. 2, topic 2 = 27 answers, for comments

[Paul Silva]

Part 1 (So I understand your Dream Business):
1) What exactly is your Dream Business?
My dream business will maximize the use of my God given gifts for teaching and exhortation by helping people become better connected to their purpose in life. It will teach them how to identify their gifting and build a life around becoming fulfilled by doing for others.
2) Why do you believe you should create it?
The vast majority of frustration and hopelessness that people suffer comes from not pursuing what they were divinely created to do. I have received revelation regarding many of the points involved.
3) How will your BIG IDEA change lives?
Futilely chasing happiness by focusing on self will be replaced with the lasting satisfaction that only fulfilling God’s purpose for your life can produce. The “burden is light” that scripture mentions can be consistently enjoyed by staying within your area of gifting. This approach to life leads to being comfortable with NOT being good at everything. There are others with giftings different from yours.
Learning how to allow others to do what they are gifted for in your endeavor frees you to spend more of your time in what has been called your “Zone.” The body has many members, each equipped to do their part. Knowing your place in the body is the beginning.
One of the components will be, “Building Gifted Teams”. Imagine how much more energized people who are in the right seat in the bus will be. (From the old adage in Human Resources that getting the right people on the bus, then getting them in the right seat is the key to a successful enterprise.
It’s not just getting all the cylinders firing that brings satisfaction, or even the accomplishments, but the process itself leads to wholeness in the individuals.

4) How is it different (or similar) to other web businesses that do something similar?
I’ll start by drawing from the teaching on the “Motivational Gifts” as taught by Don and Katie Parsons in their book, Discovering Your God-Given Gifts.
Thousands of people have learned from this over the 30+ years that it has been taught in Churches and seminars. Where my business differs is in implementation. After learning what your gifts are, integrating them into being the focal point of what you do does not come automatically.
Once a teaching has been heard, the seminar is over, but life goes back to pretty much the same. Without on-going support and coaching, the life transformation doesn’t often happen. My business will provide the needed continuity so that implementation can be achieved with consistent guidance.
5) What will be included in your BIG BUSINESS dream site?
My site will give access to sufficient free content to funnel down to those who desire change badly enough to take action. (Identifying who will pay for it.)
A home study course will be made available through a squeeze page designed specifically for that purpose. The site itself will offer a membership to get the tools needed for a successful transformation into an others-centered lifestyle.
Mentoring will be made available in a small group environment to be able to personalize the trainings to each individual. I am experienced in running small church groups that allow the participants to glean from each other’s experiences and struggles.
6) Please tell me anything and everything else about what you dream about in your business
Another component common to each level of participation will be education towards developing a personal philanthropic philosophy. That part will orient my tribe toward being others centered. But doing it with your gifts takes it out of the realm of trading a monetary donation for a tax deduction. (I have over 35 years of experience in counseling couples on the topic of personal finance)
Part 2 (So I understand what your weaknesses are so we can work with/around them):
7) What challenges have you faced in the past in trying to implement your BIG DREAM?
Having a platform requires more legwork than I’ve thus far been able to assemble. I work full time, so that has been a hindrance. My other weakness is that I have been subject to several life threatening medical problems, which limits my energy. The Lord has been faithful to pull me through each adversity, which has both built my faith and equipped me to relate to folks who may not have accomplished what they wanted to in life.
8) If you have never started, why not? What held you back?
Add to the above a load of brain trash that I now have made progress on eliminating. I credit John Assurat and neuroplasticity training for much of that improvement.
9) If you have started, but failed or stalled, what happened?
I’ve always been in research mode. While my primary gifting is teaching, the natural weakness of people with that calling is excess research. Fear of both failure and success used to stand in the way more than they do now.
10) What do you see as your 3 biggest weaknesses?
See above. My secondary gifting is exhortation, but having been in the advice business my entire career didn’t help me apply the same encouragement to myself. Another weakness of those called to teach is the next shiny thing syndrome. It’s very tempting to chase after a new subject rather than seeing something through to completion.
11) How do those weaknesses stunt your growth?
Not implementing for so long eroded my self-confidence. I am also susceptible to sloth, which doesn’t help. I heard, (maybe from you), that to succeed you have to want something more than you want rest. That’s a little more difficult when you have energy problems caused by sleep deprivation. That is made worse when you don’t have any milestones to build from. Still being alive is a great milestone, but your program will give me the feeling of accomplishing something toward my dream of fulfilling my calling.
Part 3: (So we can begin designing your business fast!):
12) Who desperately NEEDS what you are going to teach, share, or sell?
In terms of relatability I feel my audience could be filled with people who are nearing or new to retirement who are finally facing the hard fact…
“In order to hear, “Well done, my faithful servant.”, you actually have to DO something. I don’t believe in works based salvation, yet God gave Noah the wood and the plans, but still expected him to put in the labor.
Those most desperately in need are people who have been reduced to a life of meaninglessness by being stuck in occupations that never made room for their gifting. A much larger audience, to be sure. I’m concerned about not being able to reach them effectively.
13) Why do they need it from YOU and no one else?
No one else is offering it. My being the right person to do this is made clear to me by the particular ordering of my gifts. This business will require a lot of teaching. That’s where I shine. But more telling is the relationship between my primary gift of teaching, and my secondary gift of exhortation. One of the potential pitfalls of a person born to teach is that they often feel they’ve done their job after presenting the truth. “What they do with it is their problem”.
But my gift of exhortation is what is called for to guide a person through the process of achieving a true and lasting transformation. The need for continual encouragement is central to being effective in such a pursuit. People who have a gift for compassion can make great coaches, but may become enablers who struggle with holding people accountable.
Since with me teaching comes first, my encouragement can more naturally require proof of effort on the part of my members. I’d make this distinction…While a coach may lead by saying Rah-Rah often enough, a MENTOR is someone you implement with.
This may lengthen the on-boarding part of the process, and require more free content, because it is built on not just trust, but respect. That’s harder to earn in a distance learning situation. More credibility content perhaps?

14) Is anyone else doing exactly the same thing?
Not that I’ve found.
15) How is YOUR solution different or better than everyone else who teaches what you want to?
In the absence of any competition it’s hard to tell. I’ll need to do testing to determine if the need can be verified. I don’t mean more researching. I mean putting it out there to see who bites. The suffering I see tells me that it will be worth the extra effort to create a new market, as opposed to breaking into an existing one.

16) How is YOUR solution going to change people’s lives?
Desperation>>>>>>>>>>Satisfaction
Meaninglessness>>>>>>Purpose
Work>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Play
Stress>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Peace
Depression>>>>>>>>>>Happiness
Fear>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Lasting Joy

17) Is your solution simpler or more complex than the existing solutions?
I studied a membership recruiting and retention course for associations that said this about simplicity… You must offer your members an immediate pay-off in accomplishing one of their goals almost immediately. So a simple partial solution is key to getting and keeping members.
18) Do you want to be the LEADER in your business concept, or just go along with everyone else and get by?
Until competition arises I’ll have to be a pioneer.

19) Did you make MORE revenue last year online than the year before?
$0>>>>>>>>>>>>>$0
20) Are you already selling your solution in a smaller form, but you want to go big and viral now?
See above.
21) If so, how many units do you sell each month, and at what price each?
22) Do you have an enthusiastic fan base to whom you can tell about your great idea? If so, what is that fan base, and how many are in it?
No, nor do I have a mailing list.
23) If you KNOW you can change lives, but haven’t been able to, what are the top 3 things that have stopped you from doing it?
Failure to launch.
24) Do you want to follow a proven model, or do you want to re-invent the wheel?
I want to follow your model to make a new wheel.
25) On a scale of 1-10, how bad do you want to change the world with your solution?
10 – It’s all I think about. (Besides medical bills.)
26) On a scale of 1-10, how bad to you want to make $100k this year with your solution?
10
27) How hard are you willing to work to make it happen?
I’m willing to put what time and energy I have into it. That includes cancelling cable.
28) What are you willing to drop or get rid of to make $100k this year changing the world with your solution?
Add to the above a stronger resolve to avoid distraction. I now know that the third time I give into a distraction, it’s not a distraction it’s a choice.
29) What will be the 3 biggest things that would change in your life if you get this viral innovative business off the ground?
I’d be able to retire from my salaried position. More free time. Able to move South.
30) Final question (yahoo!!) – what is going to be the BEST PART about working with me on this?
I’ve followed you for quite some time. I have respect for you. Considering your willingness to mix Christianity with business has inspired me to be more upfront about the orientation of my trainings.

[Cynthia Leighton]

Paul,

Welcome! Helping people with PURPOSE will change lives. Best wishes as you take the steps that will launch you into business.

blessings,
Cynthia

[Keye Wu Wu]

Paul,

Excellent list! Hope it helped you clarifying your business goals massively!

Keye

[Rick Smith]

Paul –

Welcome!

[Sean Mize]

Paul,

you’ve got a great concept here, now the next step is to simply implement it all – you will have to be relentless as many things will crop up to try to distract you!

Sean

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