Find your
niche,
sell better.
Welcome to my guided DIY workshop! It can take between 15-30 minutes, and it’ll help you actually think through a direction you like before you spend another 3 months working on content for no results.
Here’s what we’ll cover:
The Reframe
Before you do anything, let’s get something out of the way: niching down feels terrifying because your brain is doing its job trying to protect you. Problem is that it’s reasoning without the full picture, so let’s address the lies it’s telling you one by one.
Finding what
you care about
Here’s the framework we’ll use: the Hedgehog Concept by Jim Collins. We’ll work with the overlapping circle and the intersections will help us understand your niche direction. It may sound academic, but it’s a useful framework to reflect on what you’re passionate about.
I use this regularly with my clients to find patterns that will make them happy with their business and build something they not only work with, but also care for.
Start with a few words per circle, then try to brainstorm to go deeper. Who are you? What can you do? What are you good at? Where is your heart?
Consider overlapping passions with marketability too (eg. If I love music and I’m a designer, I might want to work with artists, or even more specific with bands.)
Something connects passion, skill and market, even if it’s not perfect yet.
There are a few directions that could work, which is making things a bit confusing.
Something’s not clicking or I’m not excited about what I got.
Good! Here’s your next step.
Don’t over-refine it yet, just write down the direction in one rough sentence (even an ugly one.) Something like “I help [who] with [what].” The next steps will stress-test it.
A good problem, actually! Here’s how to think about it.
Multiple good directions means you have enough good stuff going on. Pick the one where your passion circle is strongest. Because skills can be sharpened, markets can be found, but passion is the engine!
Don’t worry, this is quite common. It usually means one of two things:
Either you’re prioritizing what you do rather than what you love, or you’re listing what sounds marketable rather than think freely. Try these:
Monday morning test → Imagine your business is entirely focused on one niche. You wake up Monday. Your first thought is ___. What feels good?
Energy test → Think of past clients or projects that left you energised. What did they have in common?
Resentment test → Think of a client who drained you completely. Describe the exact opposite to have an idea of your ideal client.
If it still doesn’t click: just pick the direction that looks best and keep moving. You still need real-world data anyway.
Imagine and see
how it feels
Now that you have a rough direction, before you validate it in the market, do this first: imagine a random Tuesday.
Let’s see how your gut reacts to a detailed, specific future scenario.
Light validation
NOTE: This is NOT real market validation. That requires actual data and AI can’t do it for you. But this is a useful quick way to test waters before you invest more time in a direction. Let’s find out if there’s market for it at all.
The market check prompt
Copy and run this with the data you just found.
1. Are there [your service type] already working in this space?
2. Is there an existing market for this?
3. What are typical earnings for [your service type] in this niche?
Careful: When the AI starts giving you advice beyond these three questions though, stop it there. AI tends to want to push further but it won’t be able to give you a real picture, so you’ll risk falling into speculation rather than validation.
You’re one step closer to sharper marketing.
Give yourself a pat on the shoulder, you’ve just done what most people avoid indefinitely. Niching down is really hard for most small business owners because the fear of “saying no” to potential work is too strong. Truth is that you’re not losing anyone, but you’re making yourself relatable. In fact, when you talk to everyone, you’re talking to no one because your communication is too weak.
This is not the end of the road though, keep reading.
What comes next
Real market research
Real validation
Find your edge and differentiators
Define your value proposition
💡 These four steps are what separates an idea from real business positioning. If you’re not sure how to navigate them, I created The Quiet Rebels Program exactly for this, and the first module covers all of it, in a small group, with my direct support.
Tell me more about the program →You fill in a form, I send you a personal 5-minute video with my honest take on your current situation, offer and positioning.
The Reality Check • €49 →