Today’s post is based on a post by one of our favorite bloggers here at Southern Couple’s Guide, Dan Miller, author of 48 Days To The Work You Love. The post is titled Find a Need and Fill it?, an old business motto that has been helping people find ways to become entrepreneurs and make money for years. Some examples of filling a need would be inventing a wheel, inventing a steam engine or growing a crop that feeds many people, like potatoes or wheat.
Dan Miller has pointed out other products in this post, however, that might not necessarily be able to be pigeon-holed in the need category. He talks of the fancy tennis shoes that have come about in the near past, that help with stabilization and have a broader base, and their new counterparts that are narrower and simulate running barefoot at $245 a pop (I spent a lot of time deciding which way to go on this very topic when I decided to start running)!
Another product, Bling H2O, that has been on MTV is encrusted with Swarovski crystals that spell out “bling” on the bottle. The funny part is that the water comes from Tennessee, and probably isn’t very “blinged-out” on some guys farm. That doesn’t stop them from sealing the bottles with a cork and calling it “Limited Edition”. The funny part is the price! This water can be bought for $441 dollars a case (12 bottles) or $36.75 a bottle. Can we say ridiculous? Funny thing is, people are buying it!
And this is Dan Miller’s point: If you fill a “need” you can make a living. If you fill a “want”you can get rich. I agree with him wholeheartedly, I am simply dismayed at the reason for such a statement to be true. In our instant gratification, want the best, have to be famous society, wants and desires trump needs. We all have desires, and I think that’s OK. But when we start to go into debt to obtain them, something is wrong. When we start to think we “deserve” them, we are out of touch with reality, because the truth is that you don’t “deserve” anything just for being you…you have to earn it! As sad as it is, however, it’s how things work today, so if you can find a want and fill it, go make yourself rich!
Tags: Career, Financial planning, job market, Making money
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