Make a living again: your first income step

Tend & Restore™, a Tee Leaves™ brand.

Founderist™ inside Tend & Restore™: your first income step. Founderist is the Tee Leaves™ brand for building a business and an income from what you already know.

A turning point, like a layoff, a pivot, a big decision, or a place you have been stuck in for a long time, can leave you wondering how you will make a living again. One way is to start something of your own. You only need one first step. Here it is, in four moves.

1. What you already know. Write whatever comes to mind, on paper or in your notes app. There are no wrong answers.

  • What people ask you for
  • What you did at work that others could not
  • What you would do even if nobody paid you

Circle the one that shows up in two lists. If nothing shows up twice, circle the one that feels most like you.

2. One offer. An offer is one thing you do or make for one kind of person. Keep it small and clear. Start with the one you circled. Build it for all that you serve: write down who in that group could get left out, like somebody with less money this month, a different ability, or a different way of using what you made, and make it work for them too. That's equitable innovation.

  • Who it helps (one kind of person)
  • What they get (one result, in one sentence)
  • What it takes from you (hours, tools)
  • Your first price (a number you can say out loud)

Your first price is a starting point. It can change.

3. First customer, first place. Think of one person who might need what you offer. Not a crowd. Just one name. Then pick one place to say it, write the one sentence you will say or post, and choose the day you will do it.

  • One person who might need this (name)
  • One place to say it (a group, a page, a phone call)
  • The sentence you will say or post
  • The day you will do it

4. Your first AI teammate. You do not have to do this alone. Any AI tool you already use, such as Claude or ChatGPT, can be your first teammate. Copy these in, and fill in each [bracket] with your own words.

  • I did this work for [number] years: [the one you circled in move 1]. List five services someone would pay me for, in plain words.
  • Write a three-sentence offer for [who it helps] that gives [the result] and names a first price of [your number].
  • Write a short, kind message I can send to [one person] telling them I now offer [the offer] and asking if they or someone they know needs it.

Read what it gives you. Change anything that is not true or does not sound like you. You are the one who knows. Then say or post it on the day you chose in move 3.

If you need money this week, the free Safety-Net Survival Guide covers unemployment, SNAP, and 211. This article is for the first step after that.

For educational and informational purposes only. Not medical, legal, financial, tax, or business advice.

Tracy Easter, founder and CEO of Tee Leaves, the company behind Tend & Restore