Would My Photo Job Idea Work?

Back when I was a teenager, I had a dream of starting a photography business. I never got it off the ground because I didn't know much about either photography or business. However, I do think that the basic idea that I had was a good one.

Essentially, I was looking to combine a travel agency with a photography experience. I would book trips for people and then attend the trip with them as their vacation photographer. This would allow them to have personalized professional photos for their special vacations.

For example, let's say that a couple was interested in going on a Fiji honeymoon. They might want to have that vacation documented with professional photos. I would set up their travel to Fiji, assist them in booking the hotel and then come along with them on the trip. I would attend the events and activities that they wanted photographed and leave them alone to enjoy their honeymoon the rest of the time.

This idea seems like a good one. It meets a need that I think a certain set of travelers might have. And it would allow me to get paid travel to do a job that seems really fun. But I'm not honestly sure if this is a viable business. What do you think - would people pay for a combination photo / travel service?

Look Before You Leap In Business

I recently took a class about starting a business. One of the key points that was made in this class is that you should "look before you leap". That is definitely good advice - and it's advice that I wish I would have taken before I started getting into business.

All that this really means is that you should do your research before you leap into an industry. This allows you to form a solid business plan so that you can be financially successful in your line of work. Perhaps more importantly, this gives you insight into whether or not you actually want to do this work.

For example, you may be thinking about opening a boutique clothing store specializing in the design and manufacturing of pettiskirts. Your research would probably let you know that this is a great niche market that would be smart for you to get into. However, once starting your clothing line, you might discover that you don't like making and selling pettiskirts at all. If you started slowly, you'd be able to back out of the job with very few losses.

Of course, there are some benefits to just leaping right into something new. It's more exciting and that momentum can really get you going in your work. Nevertheless, the smart thing to do is to get the information that you really need before starting any type of business.

Things I've Learned Online

I did the majority of my undergraduate degree through an accredited online program. Doing this helped me to realize just how many different things there are that can be learned online. Since graduating, I've continued to get an online education.

Here are some of the things that I've learned online over the years:

• How to deal with taxes, budgeting and other financial issues. There is a lot of great information available online for people who need help learning more about money. I love all of the financial organization tools that are online these days!


• Everything I needed to know to buy a home. You can get a really great mortgage education online. I learned a lot about selling a home from the Internet as well.


• How to communicate better. Ironically, working online has helped me learn how to communicate better with others. I communicate well in writing which I definitely learned online but I've also gained a lot of online tips for communicating in person with others.

Something interesting about all of this is that I think I learned this stuff better online than I would have from taking classes in person about these topics. There's just so much more access to information on the Internet! What have you learned online that you might not have learned so well in a classroom?