Here’s why you should wait until you start your business to get the right skills

“But I’m not an expert. I don’t have a degree or credentials. How can I start a business? No one will take me seriously, let alone pay me.”

I hear this. all of them Time from my students. I patiently remind them that I’m a high school dropout and, on paper, my only qualification for managing Facebook and Google ads is a seven-figure agency that manages Facebook and Google ads.

It doesn’t sink in often, so I’ll refer to them later Wall Street Journal An article that tells the all-too-familiar story of a group of graduates unable to find high-paying jobs. This unique story shares the struggles of students enrolled in the MFA Filmmaking program at Columbia University, a prestigious Ivy League school in New York. These students took on six loans to earn an MFA degree, but not all students learn that they can’t be Scorsese right out of the gate. An Ivy League education couldn’t save him from low-paying movie jobs as a man. Take out a condo-sized loan.

We are facing an epidemic of overeducated and underpaid wage earners in this country because the equality of achievement is completely backwards..

What I want to share with you is not only for starting a business, but also for people who are looking for a profitable and fulfilling career. I’ll explain how most people approach talent acquisition, and tell you how successful it is. People come to acquire skills.

If I do my job well, you’ll be convinced that you don’t need to be an expert to start a business. In fact, you better not be an expert now.

Related: 8 keys to becoming an expert on anything you sell

how much People acquire skills

“Go to college! Get an advanced degree! That’s how you’ll succeed.”

It’s amazing how people don’t want to believe what’s in front of their eyes. Colombian filmmakers are no exception. According to a study by PayScale, 46 percent of American workers say they are “underemployed.” Meanwhile, 76% of those respondents said they did not use their degrees in their careers.

But people still blindly follow the same old routine, which looks like the following.

1. Invest time and money into education to acquire skills.
2. Go to the market place with newly acquired skills.
3. ???
4. profit?

Let’s discuss two things about this approach. First of all, it puts all the risks in front. You are sinking a ton. The ability to earn the time and money you hope for The market will reward. In fact, many graduates enter the market only to find that the market does not require their skills. Worse, many find that their advanced education has left them overwhelmed. They priced themselves out of the market.

Related: 5 steps to establish yourself as an industry expert

How entrepreneurs Acquiring skills

Entrepreneurs and other intelligent people take a backwards approach to what I described above. Here’s what it looks like:

1. Go to the market and ask them what problems they have.
2. Find out how much you would be willing to pay to solve that problem.
3. When you find a problem that the market is paying more for, go out and get the skills you need to solve that problem.
4. Find your first customers.
5. Test your offer using your first customers as practice training.
6. Market your offer.

An entrepreneur starts With the market – listen to what you want, and then only He acquires the necessary skills.

There is also much less risk up front. Yes, it can take time and money to acquire the skills you need to solve a market problem. Maybe he needs a degree? Maybe not? But maybe not. Books and online courses can do wonders.

But no matter how much time and money you invest, you’re investing knowing there’s a payday waiting on the other side. why? Because they are responding to the market.

You are the solution to the problem. And, at the end of the day, that’s what people pay money for. Columbia filmmakers have learned that there’s no big problem to overcome—and just because they have an expensive degree doesn’t change that.

Related: 7 ways to position yourself so people see you as an expert

Next steps

Here are the reasons why you should start your business before now. You have skills to deliver. Once you’ve started your market research, you’re in business.

Here’s how to get started:

1. Pick a location, pick any location. Don’t be tempted to follow the money – everyone He is looking for consulting services, doctors, lawyers and so on. Usually, the more obscure and mysterious the place, the better.
2. Talk to the people in the hall. Find out what their biggest day-to-day problems are.
3. Ask them how much they will pay to fix the problem. If you say anything less than $2,000, you probably don’t have a viable business. It should be worth your time.
4. Want more bonus points? If you feel like it, ask them to take out their credit card and pay you for the solution before you figure out how to deliver it! It’s a bold move, but that’s how you know it That people are willing to pay for the solution. It is the ultimate proof of product-market fit.
5. Now – and only Now – go out and get the skills you need to solve the problem.

No need to master 10,000 hours. You need to know a) more than the customer and b) enough to solve the problem.

Solving the problem is everything. Thread that needle, and you’re only as good as you’re paid to be.