When you were just a kid, you’ve probably been told by your parents or teachers that after long years of studying and working long hours, you might one day be promoted to a position that is somewhat enjoyable. We don’t claim that this scenario won’t necessarily be true, but in today’s world, you can find a successful career even without a long time spent at the university.
It doesn’t mean that hard work no longer matters – it’s just that some of the ways to make money might not have existed a few decades ago, and as such, most people don’t even think about them. With a little bit of luck, you could convert one of your hobbies into a career! If all of this seems interesting, but you have no idea which of your hobbies could help you make a living, don’t worry – we’ve got your covered.
Driving
If you love driving your car on the interstate, with loud music blasting from the car speakers and without a worry in the world, you could easily turn it into a career. Though you won’t necessarily be paid to listen to loud music, you will receive money for driving. Well, not just driving, to be more specific, but delivering, either food or people.
Ridesharing companies, like Uber or Lyft, which have millions of drivers worldwide might be an interesting choice for those who aren’t entirely sure what they want to do in their lives. Even if you might not necessarily get rich, working for one of such companies would allow you to go through a rough patch more easily. If driving people around the city and sharing with them the music you love seems like something that you would like to do, then you could check out how much money Uber drivers make.
Writing
If you’ve always enjoyed writing stories, whether just for yourself or for a couple of your friends as well, you might be under the impression that it’s a mediocre way to make money. Well, we aren’t going to promise you that if you try long enough, eventually your novels will attract the attention of major publishing companies. Most writers don’t achieve huge success in their lifetime nor posthumously. Does it mean that it is all for naught then?
Not necessarily. Even if you don’t sign a contract with a major publisher, you could still make quite a lot of money if you decide to self-publish your works via Amazon’s KDP service. Sure, it wouldn’t help you much if no one ends up buying your book, but if you take into account the fact that with KDP, authors earn up to 70% of royalties in most countries, it is definitely an option worthy of consideration.
Alternatively, you could post stories on your website. If you go with this choice, you won’t even have to sell books to make money – you could earn thanks to the ads. Or, if you would like your audience to be able to read without being interrupted by flashy images, you could always sell merchandise.
If you’ll have thousands of individual users visiting your page each month, it is enough if only a fraction of them buys a t-shirt or a cap with a print of their favorite hero. This way, you would be able to continue doing what you love without having to worry about finances.
Gamemastering
On the other hand, if you enjoy creating stories, but at the same time, you would prefer to have regular contact with other people, then you should consider becoming a gamemaster. Although when most people hear about tabletop RPG games, they think of D&D or Warhammer 40k, the times have changed, and now there’s plenty of options, even if you aren’t a fan of fantasy worlds.
Instead of leading a group of cultists of chaos trying to infiltrate the Empire of Man, you could create a scenario with the action taking place in the 1920s in New England, or who knows, maybe 18th century Romania. Regardless of whether you are fascinated by orcs, vampires, or the history of Revolutionary France, remember that you are in charge.
However, let’s not forget that gamemastering isn’t easy – you’ll have to respond to unexpected developments, play different roles, and your story will have to be captivating enough for the players to forget, if only for a minute, that it is just a game.
YouTube Channel
If you love listening to the sound of your voice, and if your friends think that a great majority of the things you say are rather interesting, you should consider starting a YouTube channel. It is certainly true that there are millions of YouTube channels out there, but it doesn’t mean that it’s impossible to attract viewers if you present interesting enough content.
Sure, you could start streaming your playthroughs of the most popular games, and if you have charisma, and your remarks have always been at least relatively funny, you will attract some users. Will it be enough to make a living? Most certainly not right from the start, but if the number of your subscribers steadily increases, eventually you’ll reach a level where you’ll be able to pay all your bills with the YouTube money.
Although the old rule of the showbiz applies, meaning that any controversies are likely to expand your fanbase, we think that preparing the best content on this platform is a much better idea. It doesn’t matter if you know a lot about ants or if you consider yourself a skateboarding expert – if you know how to keep things interesting, viewers with similar interests will flock to your channel.
Conclusion
If you have recently lost a job or are just looking for a career that wouldn’t bore you too much, you might be wondering what the job market will look like in the near future. With the developments in the field of A.I., it seems that no profession is safe, although some will certainly disappear much earlier.
However, it is hard to predict how much time it is going to take. In the meantime, we recommend considering if one of your hobbies could not be turned into a job. This way, you would do the things that you enjoy, while at the same time getting paid.