How to Monetize Your Skills – Nana Akua Amofa

Monetizing one’s skill is the new cool for many millennials and a major source of creating several streams of income. In order to monetize one’s skill, there are various steps to undertake.  

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1. Know Who You Are

The first step to monetizing your skill is knowing who you are. By doing so, you will find what you love doing with ease. What’s that one thing you find less stressful to do? Is it creating design concepts, designing clothes for women to feel stylish, or helping SMEs to implement necessary structures? A helpful tip for discovering your passion is by asking these questions:• What do I live for?• What do people think I am passionate about?• What problems do people ask me to solve?

2. Identify and Develop Your Skills

Now that you have found what you love to do, how can you monetize your passion? Some skills are innate, while others are learnt over a period of time. No matter which skill you possess, you need to build it up. You become skilled at your craft by being consistent. We are a sum of what we do repeatedly. In order to monetize your passion, you must be good at what you do, and make a conscious effort to evolve in your offering when the trends change. People are looking for value and once you can create the value they need, you will be able to monetize your knowledge or craft. To hone your craft, several resources, such as online courses, YouTube videos, internships, and volunteering opportunities, may be helpful.

3. Identify Your Audience

The next step is to determine who your target market is. Does your skill solve a problem? If your skill solves the relevant needs of your target market, then you are on your way to monetizing it. People who need your solutions will be willing to pay for the services you render in order to solve their problems. Your product or service may be a relevant need for a big or niche market depending on what you provide. Knowing this will help you position your business strategically.

4. Create relevant products

So after you have developed your passion into a skill, what next? The next step is to find ways to monetize your knowledge. Apart from selling your product or service, you can also teach people what you know at a fee by organizing workshops, creating e-books, or teaching online courses. In Ghana, workshops and YouTube videos are two of the most popular products. You can start with the basics for growing a business in your field, such as starting a business, raising capital, and getting clients. Technology has provided unlimited ways in creating resources for people across the globe and various platforms to leverage on building your brand.

5. Promote your hustle

Recently, Will Smith shared one of the most profound pieces of advice. If we want people to buy into our vision, we must show them why they need to buy into our vision. We need to consistently put ourselves out there and show the world what we are good at doing. No one can advertise our products or services better than we do. People love aesthetics. Create relevant content and share. With time, people will notice what you have to offer.

Once you find what you love doing and start creating value, there will be no compromise on what you offer.