Different Niches
According to Associated Press food editor, J.M. Hirsch, he started a blog called Lunch Box Blues to help tackle the challenge of preparing daily lunches for his young son, and then other parents began asking for advice. On the other hand, The Lunch Tray has a primary goal of reforming the food served in the Houston school system.

Lesson: Every industry has numerous problems that are experienced by different kinds of consumers, so there are many ways to create problem-solving solutions.

References

Martha Stewart. (2011, November 29). The stay-at-home dad’s show.

http://www.jmhirsch.com/

www.lunchboxblues.com

http://www.thelunchtray.com/about-2/

An Idea Consumers Could Not Refuse
Rumor has it that gangster Al Capone created the idea of putting expiration dates on milk cartons.  Forget about it! However, during the Prohibition era, the mob did have their fingers (udders?) in the dairy industry, and organized crime developed the concept of date-stamping the liquid to alert customers that the product was fresh.

Lesson: A simple new way to promote the feature and benefit of a common product.

Reference
http://www.booktv.org/Watch/11470/Get+Capone+The+Secret+Plot+That+Captured+Americas+Most+Wanted+Gangster.aspx

Fraud on the Internet
Find out what kinds of ventures the postal inspector puts out of business.
Free DVDs or printed material.

Reference
https://postalinspectors.uspis.gov/investigations/MailFraud/fraudschemes/FraudSchemes.aspx

Trade Skill Mini Tests 
Although this site is geared to Canadian apprenticeship programs, the trades listed for jobseekers at apprenticeshipsearch.com include brief self-assessment tools entitled Do you measure up? It’s useful starting point info for visitors outside Canada considering working with their hands in a startup.

Reference

http://www.apprenticesearch.com/Resources/Applicants

Learning by Doing
The reality program The Apprentice has been on the air for seven years, but the concept is centuries old. Apprenticeship was an accepted method of learning a skill. For instance, Leonardo da Vinci apprenticed out at age 14 to a famous artist.

An aspiring entrepreneur might consider the idea to learn about an industry through personal observation and on-the-job training. There are many established apprenticeship programs, but independently finding a veteran business owner willing to teach an assistant is an idea worth serious consideration.

References
http://www.doleta.gov/oa/apprentices.cfm
http://www.apprenticeships.org.uk/Employers/The-benefits.aspx

Invention Workshop for Do-It-Yourselfers
TechShop states that their program is for everyone, regardless of their skill level. I’m not so sure about that. If you’ve ever watched Tim Allen’s Home Improvement, or Bill Cosby’s character, Dr. Heathcliff Huxtable, happily strap on a tool belt and create utter chaos, then you’ll know that some people should be legally barred from involvement in do-it-yourself projects.

However, some human beings learn best by using a hands-on approach to experiment and experience ideas firsthand. Their aptitudes include spatial skills; an ability to visualize projects and problems using a 3-D aptitude. Traditional classroom learning can sometimes cause difficulties for three-dimensional thinkers.

TechShop provides access to every tool, machine, and production process that one can imagine; from industrial to robotic, plastics, or woodworking. The membership organization allows its members to use their equipment to develop inexpensive prototypes for potential business ideas.

TechShop could prove an invaluable resource for the right people.

References

Learning to Use Your Aptitudes. Dean Trembly, The Johnson O’Connor Research Foundation Inc. 1995.

 http://techshop.ws/FAQs.html

http://techshop.ws/index.html

Many Niches in the Laughter Industry

Whether it’s marketing comedy sketches via podcasts, manufacturing
or retailing gag gifts, or writing novelty humor books, the industry
has countless niches. For instance, some comedians use their standup
skills beyond the world of entertainment.

Consider Australian funnyman, Dave Flanagan, conducts Standup
with Confidence workshops for groups of long-term unemployed in need
of a boost of self-esteem. The program is offered through
Australia’s Service to Youth Council & the employment agency.
Flanagan’s program has won acclaim.

In the United States, Michael Pritchard, a former juvenile probation
officer and California probation officer of the year also won the San
Francisco International Standup Comedy Competition in 1980.
Pritchard went to Hollywood then eventually decided to develop
videos for high school, elementary, and middle school students on the
issues that impact their everyday lives. He believes that failure to
address the issues that wound is at the cause of violence in our
society. Pritchard speaks at colleges, schools, and conferences on
a nationwide basis, using his talent for sound effects
and impersonations to provoke laughter and initiate candid discussion
and a message of hope.

Lesson: A seemingly simple talent, skill, or business idea can help solve complex social issues.

References
Goers, Peter. (2011, October 16). A comedian is involved in the serious business of helping the unemployed. Sunday Mail (South Australia).

Hukill, T. (2005, March). Common Ground. No child left unsmiling: comedian Michael Pritchard uses humor to teach kids about grief, pain, and how to take care of each other. p. 15-19.

http://www.michaelpritchard.com/

http://hlmedia.com/

http://www.prankpack.com/

http://www.betson.com/amusement/Novelty/

http://www.houstonclowns.com/clowns.html

http://www.dannabananas.com/

http://www.census.gov/econ/industry/def/d453220.htm

Technology Changes Industry
Voiceover acting is now a tech-driven home-based free-lance business, in many cases. Several years ago, you would travel to a studio to record your auditions, but today you’re expected to have quality home equipment in order to create audio auditions for potential clients. Some agents will not represent you if you don’t have the tools, says actor and teacher David Lawrence XVII.

Websites like Voices .com and Voices.com have sprung up offering online casting services for jobs that don’t require an agent.

Tech-savvy beginners entering the field can get a USB mike for $100 or less on Amazon, but for the high-tech challenged there are costs involved in having a pro set up the software and equipment.

Lesson: When technology is introduced into an existing industry, unfamiliar or different work-related tasks, additional skills or aptitudes are normally required.

References
Vo2gogo.com

Wood, M. (2010, June 17-23).  Art a la Tech: Why rehearsal cubes and a card table are no longer the only acting-class aids you’ll need. Backstage.com, p. A1-A3.

Today, The Scarlet Letter and The House of the Seven Gables
are familiar to many students assigned to read Nathaniel Hawthorne’s work.

It was a different story during the author’s lifetime, in the 19th century. Although he was well-known, his books enjoyed only a measure of popularity at the time.

Hawthorne’s works never sold as well as some of his contemporaries. Consider that Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Uncle Tom’s Cabin was selling like hotcakes at 300,000 copies its first year of publication, while Hawthorne probably sold less than 10,000 copies of his books while he was alive. Plagued by poverty, feeding his family was a constant struggle, according to one biographer.

A marketing guru might say that Hawthorne’s lack of success in the 1800s was caused by the controversial content in his books, which hampered sales. The writer’s subjects were considered taboo by New England standards.

But, based on the author’s plot lines and family history, a student of psychology might argue that Hawthorne’s financial problems, despite trappings of privilege, were rooted in his inability to escape the emotional legacy of his ancestry.

Hawthorne was a direct descendent of a hanging judge from the Salem witchcraft trials.

Takeaway: Unresolved traumatic family history can sometimes wreak havoc on one’s ability to make wise choices and succeed in the working world.

Reference

teacher.shop.pbs.ACorg/product/index.jsp?productId=3963825&cp=1397809.2883325&view=all&parentPage=family

Breakfast on the Go
Watching pedestrians during morning rush hour gave the founders of the Cereality Company the idea for a new concept, according to Jordan Levine, CEO. Mothers with children and executives all shared a common habit while rushing to their destinations: they were usually gobbling down dry cereal that they had grabbed on the way out of their homes.
And so the idea for a café bar offering all the nostalgic cereals evolved, with a menu that moms would love (and probably sometimes hate).

References:
Phone Interview: Jordan Levine, March 2008
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bs5yWoqoaWk