A miser, to make sure of his property, sold all that he had and converted it into a great lump of gold, which he hid in a hole in the ground, and went continually to visit and inspect it. This roused the curiosity of one of his workmen, who, suspecting that there was a treasure, when his master’s back was turned, went to the spot, and stole it away. When the miser returned and found the place empty, he wept and tore his hair. But a neighbor who saw him in this extravagant grief, and learned the cause of it, said: 
‘Fret thyself no longer, but take a stone and put it in the same place, and think that it is your lump of gold; for as you never meant to use it, the one will do you as much good as the other.’
Moral of the story: The worth of money is not in its possession, but in its use.
Aesop Fable, Sixth Century B.C.
The same is true of talents and abilities. Just knowing you have the ability means nothing. It is only in finding an application that there is any benefit for you or the world. What gold lump are you using for no more benefit than what any common stone would provide? What talent are you sitting on that was meant to be shared with the world?
Do you have a message, a song, an art piece or a book that you’ve kept buried?
I recently talked with a friend a who started painting at age 57. Within 6 months she had a one-woman art show and sold 13 pieces. She also was commissioned to do an additional 8. Her work is breathtaking.
Her response was – “If that was in there all along, I wonder what else I’ve been missing?”
I didn’t start books to sell until I was 45 years old. Just never considered it. Then people started asking for a way to share the content I was teaching in a Sunday School class. I put together a rough 3-ring binder and sold over $2 Million dollars worth in 3 years. Then that content was published as a traditional hardback (48 Days to the Work You Love) and quickly went on to become a New York Times bestseller.
Maybe now is your time to explore and release the gold you’ve had buried.
Great food for thought Dan, just like the story of the rich young ruler in the BIble. But I never thought about applying to my own talents. Thanks!
I would like to know if it’s possible to incorporate my talents with my husband’s dream – ministry and farming. My husband is not on board with my dream and would like to leave the U.S. within the next month so that he could pursue his own dream. My interest has always been in education – teaching and learning. The country he’s moving to does not have many available jobs (a blessing in disguise) so I have no choice but to create my own. Does anyone have any ideas as to what someone can do with a passion/talent for education? I am considering getting a U.S. teaching license, community college teaching certificate and coaching certificate before we move but my husband thinks this is a waste of time and money. I really do not want to move, so he thinks I just want to take these courses to prolong the move date. Not really! I just want to be prepared and have a business going before we leave. Any ideas, please? I am interested in any business that does not require any start-up costs, preferably web-based, since I can do that from any country. My current experience is administrative assistant/office work, homeschooling, teaching (children and adults) – not sure where I should specialize or what my niche is. Is education a viable business idea for someone who does not have much teaching/education experience? Please help!! Thanks.
I don’t know what country you’re moving to but I agree that getting a US teaching license will probably have little value there. The most important thing is that you and your husband come to a solid agreement about this move and your future. It’s going to hard for either of you to begin a thriving business without the complete support of the other. I’m confident there will be opportunities for teaching/coaching wherever you end up. Just be very clear about your Unique Value Proposition and share that readily with everyone you meet.
Thanks for the thoughtful reply. We are moving to the Caribbean – or should I say “I am being dragged to the Caribbean.” We do need to get on the same page. Not sure what UVP is but I am browsing your site to familiarize myself. I am looking at your list of businesses that I can probably do – would love to perhaps open a school eventually or start with homeschool. The population there is extremely small (<65K) so that's one of the issues for me-the market is just not there.
Thank you Dan this is awesome breking things down like this
What i need assistance with would be there is alot of young people in my community who get in to drugs and lots of diffrent things because they have no one to turn to to talk .i am doing a counselling course an have been doing counselling but i want to assist these young people navigate their lives out of darknss to light .i was thinking of doing a coaching course but i do not see your courses being offered in SOUTH AFRICA ? or maybe iam not seeing every thoing correct on the web page !!!!laughing
I want to go to the schools and offer help to the kids maybe start a small booklet with question and answers to commin teenage problems and then sell at at a very affordable price ??? please can you assist me iam a extrovert and love working with young people .