How to turn your hobby into a thriving career

Are you a closet coder? A secret social media whizz or an AI nerd? Do you ever question whether your hobby is really your true passion?

You’re in the right place – at the right time. About 37% of UK entrepreneurs have turned their hobbies and passions into successful enterprises. If you feel like you’re struggling to realise your career dreams, have a think about some of these points.

Are you enjoying what you do now?

If you’re reading this, probably not. Perhaps you’re looking for a sign that it’s time to move on. If you’re not loving your job, or worse, it’s probably time to think of a career change anyway. If you’re going to risk leaving your job for something else, why not make it something you love.

Do other people make money from your hobby?

Whether it’s crafty, digital or just-for-fun, there may be someone else out there living your dream. Do some research on job-seeking sites and see if anything is doing your job. Check out the top Google results for that field. If it exists, you’re onto something. If it doesn’t, can you see a gap in the market?

Are you good enough at it to sell it?

We’re not trying to offend you by asking this, but are you really good at it? If you’ve made a couple of nice cakes and decide you’d like to be a baker – you might be jumping the gun. Work at your hobby, show it off, gather feedback.

If your hobby is considered a professional skill, could you get accredited to give yourself that extra umph? Have a look at some courses and see if any of them might tick a box for you.

Get started

Register as self-employed and get started. Once the ball is rolling you’ll get a real idea of just how much you want this to be your new career. If you’re dreading Monday at work, but can’t wait to get home and work on your hobby – you’re on the right track.

By getting your business off the ground whilst still doing your 9-5, you won’t need to worry about bills. A little-lost sleep for the cause will seem like a small price to pay in the long run.

Get the word out

Now you’ve got started and you’re practising your hobby/new career whenever you can, it’s time to give it a little push. Do some competitor research or ask someone in marketing how to get your product or service out into the big wide world.

The response you get and the skills you hone in the process will tell you a lot about your earning potential and whether you’ll need additional help to get started. This is also a great way of working out how much capital you’ll need to have saved to get going.

Get inspired

This is when the going is going to get really tough. If you’re still in your day job, you’re going to be pulling some unsociable hours. If you’ve binned the 9-5, the fear of failure is present and the stakes are high. Take a look at those who have come before you and follow their success tips. If they can do it, why can’t you?

Change is scary – but eternal boredom is scarier. This is the perfect time to take advantage of the gig economy. 1.1 million people in the UK are already doing it. Going out on your own has never been more common and with a wealth of resources online, there’s no reason not to give it a go.