Turning Your Hobby Into Business: What You Need to Consider

Perhaps you’re stuck in a nine-to-five job you hate, or are a homemaker bored at home, but you’ve probably thought of turning a beloved hobby into a business which will make some money. Many people have done it before, and have done it successfully, though there are those that fail as well. If you’re thinking of going into business for yourself, here are some things you should think about before taking the plunge:

If it becomes work, will you still love it?

If you enjoy knitting sweaters for your loved ones, will you enjoy doing it for money? Sometimes when something becomes actual work, you may find yourself not wanting to do it anymore. But if you’re enthusiastic about something, then you may find yourself loving it even more, despite the long hours of hard work.

Is it worthy of being a business?

You may love your hobby, have a passion for it, but that doesn’t mean you can make money from it. You may be good at making animals from pipe cleaners, but that doesn’t mean you should go out and open up a pipe cleaner shop. You must be practical as well, and do the necessary legwork to find out if your idea is feasible.

Remember, it is a business!

Being an employee has its pros – you just show up at the office, do your work and you get a paycheck two weeks later. Being a business owner or being self-employed is different. You have to deal with day to day operations, payroll, taxes, clients, receivables and payables – things which are not fun and can be boring. Hopefully, you’ll be able to handle such challenges.

What will happen in the long run?

You’ll be investing a large amount of your time and resources into starting your own business – so you have to think of what will happen in 5, 10 or even 20 years. Although no one wants to think of failure, many new businesses shut down within the first year (restaurants, for example, experience a failure rate of about 59%.) Your goals and plans should include future strategies, as well as back-up plans.

Consider alternatives

Okay, so you tell yourself, if you spend another day at your desk, you might do something drastic, but you don’t have the resources or time to pursue your hobby. There can be other alternatives – perhaps all you need is to change career paths into an industry that’s closer to what you love. So you really love to cook, but can’t leave your accounting job to open up your restaurant. Perhaps you should work for a food company. Also, you may be able to teach what you love. You may never sell your landscape paintings, but perhaps you can apply for teaching positions or give art lessons – at least you’ll still spend your time doing what you love.  And of course, you can teach through online teleseminar, webinars, blogging, video streaming – the sky’s the limit!

Whatever you decide to do, just remember: If you follow your heart and passion, and you are truly on the path that was designed for you -  the money will follow. This is the simplest of all concepts, and really where everything should begin. If you’re passionate about baking, then you should consider doing it full-time. If you’re not sure what your passion is, make an list of all the things you love to do and what you’re good at. Then start to narrow it down until you get a couple that just excites you and you have a burning desire to do.  Then do your research and see if there is a market for your business or services.  If there is, the rest is up to you.

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About the author

Terri Brooks helps entrepreneurs “overcome the overwhelm” of using online and social media marketing for their business. She understands their fears and feelings of confusion when it comes to marketing on Facebook, Twitter and blogs and shows them ways of Tasting The Internet…One Byte at a Time.

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