Can I Turn My Hobby Into A Business?

Can I Turn My Hobby Into A Business?

Whether you’re dealing with burnout or mounting workplace tensions, you’ll likely know when it is time to change careers. After all, there comes a time when you must address the root cause of your stress as opposed to simply considering it part of your job description. And, if you’re consistently stressed and unhappy at work, this is a clear indication that change is necessary.

The good news is that this leap of faith can open you to a world of opportunities - especially if you find a way to centre your new career or business venture around your passions or hobbies.

With that in mind, here are some steps you can follow that will enable you to turn your hobbies into a career!

Start small. In many cases, turning your hobby into a career revolves around starting your own business. However, this often requires a significant investment of both your time and money, which comes with an element of risk if you are unprepared. As such, you may want to kickstart this venture by treating your hobby as a side hustle. For example, you could use it as an opportunity to earn a little extra money during your free time. Then, when you understand the business world a little better, you can begin to turn your side-hustle into a full-time career.

Invest in training opportunities. A 2018 study found that 50% of people long to pursue their Hobby as a full-time job, but are unsure of how to bridge the gap between their professional and personal life. Thankfully, gaining some extra qualifications or participating in training schemes is a great way to achieve this goal. After all, this ensures that your passion is backed up by skill and industry knowledge. For example, if you’re a pilates pro and would like to start a fitness company, you could work to obtain a pilates certification. Not only will this help you develop useful teaching skills, but it will also add to your credibility.

Be prepared for bad days. While building a career of your hobby sounds like a recipe for fun, it's important that you do not forget that it is now your job. This means that it requires more of your time, focus and attention than ever before - and you’ll also have to do broader work outside of this to grow your business. For example, if you were running a clothing store, you can’t spend all your time designing clothes - you also need to respond to customer inquiries and work on your marketing campaign. In short, you need to work to understand the realities of running your own business. You’ll likely have a lot more boring days than exciting ones.

On a similar thread, you must also be prepared for setbacks. Don’t let a roadblock startle you - instead, treat it as an important lesson that you can later use to your advantage. For example, bad reviews don’t necessarily mean your products or services are terrible, they just need to be refined further to meet customer expectations.