We all have passions and sometimes we may not want to monetize it. Sometimes we just want to do our hobby and keep it moving but what if you do want to make some coins with your hobby? I have a lucrative hobby which is photography and I do not want to be a big business but I wanted to monetize it for me. Keep the coins coming but not make it so that I’m burdened down with marketing it every day. I can still have my passion and make some coins with it. Here is how to monetize without compromising your passion.
Let’s start with me I call my business a lucrative hobby. It’s not something I do full time it’s something I do on the side. I space myself out and only take on a few clients a week. (BTW I have a full time day job) I love photography it’s something about capturing moments that stand still and giving that to others that excites me. I still make some money with it but I don’t get burnt out by doing a lot of marketing, creating social media posts, always having to sell my business, etc. I am strictly word of mouth so you won’t know I do photography unless you read this blog or see me taking photos on social media. No one knows me as just a photographer I’m Kita first. There are people who’ve been following me for years who have no idea I take photos and I also don’t get any clients from social media.
Nothing is wrong with making money in your passion but you don’t have to take it full scale. I don’t have a calendar for people to book, I don’t do a discovery call, I don’t take a deposit, I don’t scale it as a full time business I scale it to fit my lifestyle and I still get to keep the photography part as a passion. Make sense? Let’s do some ideas so you can see how to make it fun for you.
If you love dogs start a dog substack where all you talk about are subjects dealing with animals and to monetize you can sell a t-shirt (just to your substack followers no need to start a whole website unless you want to) and then put some affiliate links in that substack. Or you can even start a blog like one of my blog buddies did.
Love sports? You can start a podcast that talks to people who love sports. It can be your dad and you can ask him how that game went on Sunday and let him tell you his perspective. Monetize by getting an ad going that highlights sports and maybe have someone pay you to mention their name in the episode. People will pay for a mention and you can charge as little or as much as you want.
If you love to cook maybe start a blog or a tik tok. Do affiliates for products mentioned in your blog post and have fun. One recipe a week is fine and it doesn’t have to be fancy a simple starting paragraph, the recipe, then your ending comments. You can turn your followers into newsletter subscribers and have them pay for the rest of the recipe or a meal plan weekly.
Here are some other tips
- Affiliate marketing can be quick and easy and you can monetize by just adding a link
- Offer your expertise selectively and at premium rates to maintain exclusivity and prevent burnout.
- Schedule regular just for fun things that you can do with your hobby. (I do a project 365 every other year just for fun)
- Set boundaries between paid work and personal enjoyment
