Find Problems

OK, you already know what to do to create wealth – solve problems and create value.

But you don’t know if you know how to do that. So let’s start at the beginning. Do you know how to find problems?

Of course, you do! You probably find dozens of problems every day. But you probably ignore them or think of them with annoyance. You think of them as problems, but you don’t think of them as the problems you were looking for. You’re looking for BIG problems or exciting problems or technical problems.

No Problem is Too Small

Don’t ignore any problem, no matter how small. Every problem is an opportunity. Write them down. Keep a list. Try to write down at least 10 problems every day. On a good day (by which I mean a really bad day with lots of problems), you may be able to write down a hundred.

Again, no problem is too small. Is it just a small annoyance, worth maybe one cent to you if you didn’t have the problem? If it is an everyday problem occurring say twice a week, that’s a dollar a year. If it is a common everyday kind of problem there might be at least a million people like you. That’s $1 million of problem per year. Solve it and you have created $1 million of value. Every year.

Every day, study your list of problems. Think about them. Most of them nobody has ever thought about before. You’re bound to be able to think of solutions to some of them.

Some of them you can’t solve. Find someone who can. Don’t be greedy. You have lots of problems. Share some of them. If someone can help you solve a problem, share the wealth creation with them.

Education is Important, but a Degree is not Essential

No, you don’t need a college degree. But a college degree or even just the college experience will help. It will help you find a broader range of problems. It will help you find solutions to more problems. Get the best education you can. Always keep learning. If you can’t afford college, teach yourself. Learn as much as you can.

But don’t wait until you complete a degree. You can start now!

Stop Thinking about Wealth; Think about Helping People

Don’t concentrate on the wealth. If you can manage it, try not to think about the wealth at all. Thinking about the wealth blinds you to problems and solutions that you don’t immediately associate with wealth.

Think of other people. Think of helping other people. Don’t worry about whether solving a particular problem will lead to wealth. A problem is worth solving just for the sake of helping others. It doesn’t matter if a particular problem doesn’t give you any wealth. As I said before, you will have plenty of problems. Solve as many as you can. Don’t worry about which particular ones will lead to wealth. Such worrying is an unnecessary problem. It will get in the way. It will make you less efficient. Avoid that problem by not worrying about the wealth. Let it come naturally as a consequence of your total effort.

Be generous. Help people for the sake of giving help.

Be generous. Share your rich supply of problems. Recruit other people to help you even if you don’t need their special knowledge.

Be generous. Teach other people to find problems. They’ll share some of them with you.