Business Model You: A One-Page Method For Reinventing Your Career

CHAPTER 9

Test Your Model in the Market

KEY POINT:

CYD TESTS HER MODEL

PROFILE:

THE RECYCLING COORDINATOR

Cyd Cannizzaro had finally defined her Purpose: Help others learn to recycle and to responsibly dispose of trash.

For years, she'd thrived on deep discussions about garbage and recycling with a friend who shared her passion for environmental issues — the two laughingly dubbed their sessions “talkin' trash.” But when Cyd was laid off from her job as a customer service trainer, she decided “trash talk” should be more than a pastime; it should be her vocation. Cyd vowed to find work teaching others about recycling — “work that makes a difference,” she called it.

Cyd immediately started testing her new personal business model idea.

She was unable to find Customers willing to pay for recycling training services, so she revisited her plan and took a job in the deli of a local organic grocery store to improve her knowledge about responsible waste disposal.

Because she was unaffiliated with a recycling organization, she created a memorable “Talkin' Trash” calling card that defined her Purpose.

To learn about the requirements for a new personal business model in the recycling field, she started attending green product conventions, public forums on solid waste disposal, and community recycling meetups.

Following interest in her “Talkin' Trash” message from one organization to another, ...