BBC Radio – Should I Turn My Hobby Into My Job?

Corrine Mills joins Stephen Jardine on BBC Radio Scotland. Listen again or read the transcript below:

Stephen Jardine:

Lots of people would love to turn their passion into a paying job, into the way they make a living. Is it easier now because of the online world?

Corinne:

There are some things that are easier. I think technology makes it easier. You can find your audience and your customers more easily. I think a lot of people are doing their passion as a side hustle, alongside their regular job and building that into a big enough business so that hopefully they’re then able to step into it a bit more full-time. 

I think that there are some things easier however it can still be quite tough. You’ve also got to be able to earn money from it – unless you are ridiculously wealthy then you’ve still got to pay your bills. There is a bit of a risk – you’re going to have to have a comfort level with risk, if you’re starting your own business.

Stephen Jardine:

That’s good advice Corinne. So, if you are somebody who’s got a real passion for something in life, say, mountain biking for instance. That’s what you do every weekend, and you would just love to do it all the time. Maybe lead people, or offer tours, or repairs, all that sort of stuff, but you spend your day working in the bank. How can you make the switch? How can you make the jump? 

Corinne:

Dabble – by dabbling you can find out; What’s the appetite here? What’s the opportunity? What would people potentially pay for? Then start something small, start something as an experiment, a pilot, maybe there’s a group of people I can organise an event for, will people pay for tickets, and see how that goes.

There’s an awful lot of learning that needs to be done along the way of running a business. I think if you start small, you experiment and then you upscale from there. I think it’s always start small rather than with the big ambitious plan. A side hustle means you can put in a toe in the water, see if you’ve got what it takes, but also if there is a market for what you’re offering.

I think it’s also to see if you like it, because the thing is even though you’ve got a passion for something, you love talking about it, but running a business and making money from it means there’s also lots of other things involved; There’s lots of admin. You need to set up a website. You need to do your marketing. You need to do your accounts. Things you might be less keen on, so dabbling enables you to say, well, it’s not just about talking about your passion, it’s all the kind of a boring business development type stuff to consider as well.

There’s also the risk that maybe that thing that has been your absolute passion won’t be when you devote your entire life to it, maybe the joy of it, is the escape that offers you. If you can and you’re still enjoying it. Fantastic! You just need to experiment and try it…

Stephine Jardine:

…And you need to pay the bills!

Great to speak to you and thanks Corinne

Ends.

Article by:

Maria Stuart

Article by:

Maria Stuart

Maria Stuart is the Marketing Director for Personal Career Management, she has a BA (Hons) in Business and is experienced in both the Automotive and the Education & Childcare sectors.

View Articles by Maria Stuart