From an early age, many of us have been conditioned to pick “just one thing”: ONE sport, ONE musical instrument, ONE main hobby, ONE bedspread in our room…and then stick with it for a long time.  As adults, this trend continues in the form of expectations of ONE college major, ONE line of work, ONE area of expertise in the professional arena.

Having a narrowly focused, clearly-defined area in which to focus has many benefits: colleagues and clients quickly understand exactly what you do, and you can build a strong, and specific following in your targeted niche. Or, you may be on a career track that includes a pre-determined series of milestones as you move up on an established path.

Not For Everyone

There is nothing wrong with the Just One Thing approach—but it doesn’t work for everyone. There are those professionals who thrive on an extremely varied diet of topics, endeavors, and projects – often starting a new business, unveiling another launch or reinvention, or insatiably learning about yet another topic. All of this is done with tireless energy and passion, dished out equally among these many areas.

If you are a Multi-Passionate Professional™, you enjoy a variety of experiences, people, and topic areas, and you see change not as a threat, but as your lifeblood. The worst threat may be the idea that you could become “trapped” by the wrong decision, or by committing to one area at the expense of another (which you are equally passionate about!).

Multi-Passionate Professionals™ (MPPs) often succumb to external pressures to pick their Just One Thing, but this can be agonizing. In fact, MPPs often excel at nearly everything they attempt, since you only attempt what you are passionate about…thus making it more difficult to “decide” which direction fits best.

The Pressure to Pick

The outside world tends to pressure MPPs to specialize, or else dismisses you as “Jacks of All Trades, Masters of None.” And those networking events – they can be the worst on the self-esteem of an MPP. How many times have you thought, “How can I possibly express all sides of myself in one 30-second ‘commercial’ to all these people? There is so much more I have to offer – this is just ONE of my businesses!”

So what is the multi-passionate, multi-talented, multi-interested individual to do? On one hand, you want to become known for your expertise so that you can be recognized for your talents and advance in your career, or build up a loyal following of clients. On the other hand, the marketplace can become easily confused by multiple messages surrounding the same professional. (“Wait, so are you an artist or a business speaker?”)

Good News

The good news is that MPPs do not have to choose Just One Thing. Expressing a multitude of profiles is a unique asset and can absolutely be done successfully. Be proud of your many talents, your inquisitive nature, your numerous interests—your continuous zest for life and learning! You do not need to keep your inner artist, entrepreneur or chef (or whatever brings you joy) in the closet, thinking you are already known as the financial guru, the lawyer, or the wellness coach.

There is no limit to unleashing and maintaining a series of multiple streams of passion. Each of your passions is as much about who you are as the next. Expressing them all simply takes conscious organizing, selective compartmentalizing, and deliberate strategizing, so as not to alienate your specific markets.

Gilat Ben-Dor, MBA, CSW is an author, speaker, coach, and the creator of GUSTO POWER™, a success strategy program that helps Multi-Passionate Professionals™ maximize their many talents through personal and professional development. Visit GustoPower.com for your FREE report,“The 5 Mistakes Multi-Passionate Professionals Make.”

© Gilat Ben-Dor, 2010-2011.

REDISTRIBUTION: This article may be redistributed if all information, including top by-line, complete content, and author bio/ resource box are included in full.

As a Multi-Passionate Professional™, you have many ideas, passions and talents. It is not surprising that the entrepreneurial path of business ownership – or in your case, multi-business ownership—calls out to you. Contrary to certain societal messages, there is no rule against having multiple businesses, as long as you feel you can manage the load, and you feel passionate about each endeavor.  The beauty of having multiple businesses is that you create a repertoire of outlets that profitably express the different sides of yourself. Your businesses don’t even have to be related to each other!

But here’s the best part: You do not have to compartmentalize your different businesses, keeping each a “secret” from your different customer bases. Doing so can be exhausting, splintering, and can make you feel as if you are keeping up two, three or four separate personas. 

Instead, consider cross-promoting and cross-marketing your various businesses among each other. There are several benefits to cross-marketing among your own businesses. Not only will this approach add a cohesive thread to your various businesses, but you can foster additional growth and opportunities for each business this way.  And that is healthy for any bottom line.
Let’s say that you maintain a family business that provides hiking and adventure tours.  You have also recently launched a coaching business to help young female executives feel balanced and empowered.  At first, these may seem like two disparate businesses that would have no overlap among their clientele.

Even if your hiking business has historically attracted males ages 22-34, opportunities are wide open for you.  Could you design a women’s empowerment retreat in which young, professional women experience a customized team adventures, while blending the content of your hiking tour and your coaching program? Here, nature or physical endurance could serve as a metaphor to your coaching message.

Like many Multi-Passionate Professionals, you might be thinking “Just two businesses? That’s easy! What about my online art business? And the novel I just wrote? How would I bring those into the mix, too?” Although not every business combination can be effectively cross-marketed all at once, there are surprisingly numerous possibilities and combinations therein.  The trick is to find some areas of overlap in terms of your target market’s demographic, interests, or lifestyle habits. 

Once again, with the hiking tour example, there may be opportunities to use that as the foundation business in which to offer additional themed retreats, based on your other businesses. You could offer a writing and hiking/nature retreat, while featuring yourself as the “writing leader” and the featured author. Why not include your book in the retreat fee, and provide a copy to each participant (instead of hoping that participants will also purchase your book during the event)?

Let’s say that you love working with children and helping the community, and you value health and fitness. You have founded a non-profit for disabled teens, and you also run a marathon training business. While your marathon business may not be a direct match to those teens (and vice versa), think of all of the fundraising and cross-promoting potential between your runners, such as runs and events to benefit your non-profit organization.

Just as there are known benefits to strategic partnerships and joint ventures with other people’s businesses, why not do yourself—and your own businesses—the same favor by considering how each of your ventures can help the other one. Get creative, and remember to think outside of the box. It is all about target market overlap and the recombining of existing elements in appealing ways, regardless of whether the products or services are normally offered under the same “umbrella.”

Gilat Ben-Dor, MBA, CSW is an author, speaker, coach, and the creator of GUSTO POWER™, a success strategy program that helps Multi-Passionate Professionals™ maximize their many talents through personal and professional development. Visit GustoPower.com for your FREE report,“The 5 Mistakes Multi-Passionate Professionals Make.”

© Gilat Ben-Dor, 2010-2011.

REDISTRIBUTION: This article may be redistributed if all information, including top by-line, complete content, and author bio/ resource box are included in full.

You are a successful professional with all the trappings. Perhaps you have an engraved award sitting on your office shelf. You are regularly interviewed for your industry’s journals. Bottom line: You are well-established in your field, and you are widely known for That Thing You Do.

And yet…

You are starting to grow restless. You are ready to move ahead, branch out, explore additional options. Perhaps you even feel pigeonholed by the recognition for this one narrow topic. Why? Because you know that there is so much more to who you are, and you would truly like to share these other talents—and become known for them, too!

The good news is that you do not have to turn your back on that recognized Thing You Do to in order to expand into new territories. If you are employed with an organization, then you already have a built-in “laboratory” in place for your self-expansion strategy. Here are some tips to get you started on branching out while still maintaining your current position, organization, or industry:

1. Get extremely clear. Figure out what it is you want to do more of:  Which additional talents or interests would you like to express? Be as specific as possible. If you say, “I love people,” or, “I want to use my creativity,” what types of roles or projects might that translate into?

2. Choose your adventure. What will this initiative look like on your career map? Do you want to branch out but stay within your company? Go a bit broader, but stay within your industry? Do you need to change industries altogether to accomplish this goal?

For example, Elizabeth is an accountant at a major pet food corporation, but she longs to use more of her marketing talents and her people skills. She realized that public relations would be a great outlet to showcase her desires. Some of Elizabeth’s options may include:

a. Staying in her accounting position but get to know the company’s PR department, and see if there are any openings available in the future.

b. Staying in her accounting position and explore volunteer opportunities in PR outside of work. For example, since Elizabeth also loves dogs and is already working for a pet food company, she might enjoy joining the PR or marketing committee of an animal welfare charity.

c. Phasing into her own PR or marketing firm as a side business in addition to her current job.

While you may start out assuming you will stay in your current track, it is important to keep all options open when brainstorming. If an entrepreneurial option calls out to you, explore it accordingly.

3. Establish strategic alliances at work. Once you have decided on your goal, work backwards from your desired outcome and see who and what you will need to get you there. Which departments would you like to become more involved with? Which individuals could be key contacts for you? Build rapport with individuals over lunch or coffee, but remember to avoid appearing as if you are unhappy or restless in your current position.

4. Network, network, network. Read local calendars, publications and online networking websites to find quality events. Your time is precious, so choose carefully which events appear to serve your purpose.  Don’t forget to consider professional associations, which typically have monthly meetings and are usually open to guests. Remember: have fun with your exploration! Allow yourself to attend an association event for a niche of interest, regardless of whether it is part of your current role.

5. Find a mentor. Mentors aren’t just for newbies in the field; a mentor can be a trusted peer who is established in another department or industry, who can share knowledge and advice about your endeavor. Even if you regularly network, a mentor can provide you with the in-depth connection that a whole slew of acquaintances might not. If you desire even greater involvement and accountability, seek out a qualified professional coach who is accustomed to facilitating successful transformations.

6. Map it out. There is evidence that seeing your goals in writing or imagery can greatly help it become fact. If you enjoy the written word, write down this career goal, in very specific terms: What will your ideal responsibilities include? What types of projects will you be working on? How will your lifestyle change by incorporating these new roles? Remember to include deadlines or timeframes with your goal-setting.

 If you prefer the visual method, create a vision board with cut-outs of photos, quotes, and meaningful words, which you can collage as a mosaic of your ideal outcomes and new roles.

No matter which path you choose, know that branching out and revealing more sides of yourself is something to be celebrated!  You are a key player with many valuable facets that can become just as recognizable as the one on your office trophy.

Gilat Ben-Dor, MBA, CSW is an author, speaker, coach, and the creator of GUSTO POWER™, a success strategy program that helps Multi-Passionate Professionals™ maximize their many talents through personal and professional development. Visit GustoPower.com for your FREE report,“The 5 Mistakes Multi-Passionate Professionals Make.”

© Gilat Ben-Dor, 2010-2011.

REDISTRIBUTION: This article may be redistributed if all information, including top by-line, complete content, and author bio/ resource box are included in full.