How about making money from the hobby that you love the most? Whether you knit, or write, or do photography, or do gardening, you can make money from anything that you love to do. I believe earning money from a hobby is a nice way to get paid because you will love to do it anyway. I am writing this article to help you explore how to turn a hobby into a source of side income. Here are some ground rules for making money:

• Be focused on something that you love the most

If you are passionate about something, there’s nothing wrong to pursue it. Don’t choose a hobby thinking that it will allow you to make money because in that case there won’t be any passion left towards the hobby. Let the side income resulting from your hobby be a secondary factor.

I am fond of writing. I was struggling with debt in the past. I started reading personal finance books and then started documenting everything in my website. This way I have a good website and it helps in earning money. This is a side income but the primary thing was learning when I was in debt and putting it on the website. I don’t mind the revenue that is generated through this website. Keep your hobby as fun. Don’t let it become a chore.

• Be creative

If you are not sure how to get started and decide about a hobby that will help in generating money, come outside the nutshell. Think about the skills that you have which others don’t? Go through the definition of the term “hobby” broadly. There is something in you which you only can do it and others can’t. And people will be willing to pay you for the services that you can offer.

I have a friend who loves to cook. She turned this hobby into a part-time job as a personal chef. She prepares meals when she gets orders in bulk. She is always enthusiastic to spend a few hours of her day preparing a week long menu for people who are ready to pay her handsome amount for her hard work and time devoted.

There’s another friend who loves to travel a lot. One day he realized that he could subsidize his journeys by writing about the places he visited, and by taking photographs. Now, he is often going to different places on all expense paid vacations. He is into something that he will do anyhow and has never to spend a dime.

• Don’t force it

Your hobby is not going to make you rich in a day. Or in some cases, it won’t pay you enough that you decide to quit your day job. So don’t force yourself into something that can become a strain on you after some time.

• Don’t underestimate your ability

Its always easy to discount your abilities. When you have a deep love for something, your prolonged experience can make you more knowledgeable and skilled that you somehow don’t appreciate. Start doing something on a small scale. Then, there is enough time to make it large. Don’t sell yourself short.

• Market yourself

This can be quite tough at times. You need to have customers to be actually able to earn. But like I said earlier, most people have a tendency to underestimate their abilities, and because of this, they somehow can not do self-promotion. There is no shame if you are talking to your friends and discussing about your money making hobby with your friends, family or neighbors. You don’t have to force yourself to make a point. Just find the right time to say about your hobby and insert it in your conversation. If you have decided to turn your woodworking hobby into cash, mention it to anyone who is interested to buy a book shelf or anything similar to that. You will find a way to earn from your hobby.

Marketing can be subtle, but it’s an absolute necessity if you hope to earn money from your hobby. People need to know you’re available before they can hire you.

• Hone your skill

Practice, practice, practice. The more time and energy you’re willing to devote to your hobby, you are better trained. And there is possibility of making more money. For example, if you are nurturing into photography and are willing to make hundred images a day, you can improve your skills quickly, because you will find a way to learn about composition and figuring out the perfect image. Chances are that you will become a professional photographer someday or even if you don’t, you will actually be able to sell images to stock photo agencies, or enter (and win) photography contests.

• Conclusion

Some people are born with natural talents and the rest of us have to work hard. Always remember the fact that whether you make money from your hobby or not, enjoy the time you spend with it. Hobbies really do a lot in making life more fun and meaningful.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, February 20th, 2008 at 12:05 am and is filed under Money and Banking, Personal Finance. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.