The trade show season brings with it a lot of opportunities. Your work is being seen by more people than you can imagine, and they are people who can help raise your profile in the industry. I know several of my clients came back from Quilt Market with new opportunities to consider, including a sales job offer from a thread company, the chance to create quilts for fabric company booths, a potential distributor connection, interest in fabric design, and the opportunity to write a book.

Pretty cool, right? That is what we all think right away — all these opportunities that could lead to fame and fortune. That is, if they actually pan out how we think.

The problem is that all those opportunities do sound cool, and they are for the person making the offer. The opportunity fits their business agenda.

But, the real question is, does it fit your business agenda?

I know how easy it is to get caught up in possible potential and forget to take a look at how the opportunity really fits with your business goals. I have had my turn at this.

So, how do you decide what to do with the multiple opportunities? I think that you ask a series of questions for each opportunity?

1. Is this something that you want to do, be or have in your life? Sometimes just thinking about the opportunity in that light allows you to realize that perhaps it sounded really cool on the surface, but it is really not something that interests you long-term enough to work at.
2. Is this something that will move you closer to your goal? Again, lots of opportunities are exciting, only they do not always move you towards the goal you want.
3. Is this a one-time opportunity or will it be available at a future date? Perhaps this is something that will be an option at a later date when it fits more in line with your long-term goals.
4. Can you afford to put the time and energy into this opportunity at the present time? And, what will you give up to make room for it?

If you have really looked at the opportunities and decide that any are right for you, then go for it and make a plan to fit them in to your schedule.

What questions do you ask when you get a cool opportunity that you don’t want to miss? Let me know below or leave a comment on the Facebook page.

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Morna McEver is the founder and CEO of the International Association of Creative Arts Professionals where creative arts entrepreneurs craft business success. Her weekly e-zine offers tips, techniques and inspiration to help you craft business success from your creative arts passion. You can sign up for a FREE subscription at http://www.creativeartsprofessional.com.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, November 12th, 2014 at 10:10 am and is filed under Business, Goals. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.