Business Model You: A One-Page Method For Reinventing Your Career

CHAPTER 1

Business Model Thinking: Adapting to a Changing World

Why Business Model Thinking Is the Best Way For You to Adapt to a Changing World

Let's take a wild guess: You're reading this book because you've given some thought to changing your career.

You're in good company. According to one survey, five out of six adults in North America are considering changing jobs.² And according to our co-creators (who represent 43 countries), it's like this across the globe.

Many of us, though, lack a structured way to think about the complex and — let's face it — messy subject of switching careers. We need a simple, powerful approach — one in tune with the modern workscape and our personal needs.

Enter the business model: an excellent framework by which to describe, analyze, and reinvent a career.

No doubt you've heard the term business model before. What is it, exactly?

At the most basic economic level, a business model is the logic by which an organization sustains itself financially.³

As the term suggests, it ordinarily describes businesses. Our approach, however, asks you to consider yourself a one-person business. Then, it helps you define and modify your “personal business model” — the way you engage your strengths and talents to grow personally and professionally.

Changing Times, Changing Business Models

Much of today's job market turbulence is driven by factors beyond our personal control: recession, sweeping demographic changes, intensifying global competition, environmental ...