Don’t you wish that becoming successful was as simple as a good idea? SitePoint’s marketplace is full of “good idea” websites for sale by webmasters who created a project, only to sell before that project developed into something successful. The drudgery of development, is often not a fun task, and for some developers, this becomes their biggest hangup. They no longer enjoy what they’re doing.
Thomas Alva Edison once said that “success is 10% inspiration and 90% perspiration.” When I read that statement I have to wonder if Thomas Edison ever enjoyed the work he did? 90% perspiration doesn’t entail any sort of enjoyment to me. Yet I know that effort must be used in developing websites. So how do I counteract the drudgery that can be involved with online development, and bring enjoyment to the process? The answer for me, may be found in my sweet spot.
Max Lucado is a writer of inspirational books, and a recent read of mine was The Cure For the Common Life. The basic premise behind the book is that each of us are unique and specifically placed here to carry out God’s purpose in some useful and unique manner. In order to be successful for God, Max claims that each of us should find our sweet spot, and he depicts that as:
Use your uniqueness (what you do)
to make a big deal out of God (why you do it)
every day of your life (where you do it)
While that has a religious point to it, I wondered while reading it, how each of our sweet spots play in the web development world?
My success online may come from the fact, that without knowing it at the time, I harnessed my ability (what I do) with earning an income (why I do it) and still managed to enjoy what I was doing (where I did it). The supposition is that I have found my sweet spot in the development world, and that by doing so, am able to be successful. How can you translate that into making yourself successful?
Ability
What are you best at? For some it may be in web design, for others in SEO, while others may be good at developing a million lines of code. Learn to use the abilities you have, in creating an online presence for yourself.
Profit
There’s nothing wrong with earning a living. You need to find a way to leverage your abilities to make a profit for yourself. If you’re not making a profit, then what you’re doing becomes less fun and more like work.
Enjoyment
Those most successful enjoy what they do. I was able to take my hobby, something I would spend hundreds of hours a year for no profit, and turn it into a profitable venture. I enjoy what I do. Do you?
At the convergence of all three, you’ll find the cure for your internet failure: your sweet spot.
