For many of us, the dream is to turn our favourite hobby into a fulltime job, enabling us to spend all of our time fulfilling our passion while also making enough money to live on.

So, how can you achieve this dream? Let’s take a look:

1. Strategize & research

Before anything else, the first thing you have to consider is how exactly you can turn your passion into a profitable endeavour. Fortunately, there are plenty of options and routes you can take regardless of what your hobby may be. 

Let’s say you’re interested in baking and cooking, for example, you should begin by choosing a speciality that will help you stand out from your competition. From there, you have plenty of options: you could start a blog or YouTube series where you share recipes, opinions and interviews with other chefs, all while gaining a dedicated audience. Alternatively, you could start locally by offering your speciality goods and dishes to your neighbours, thereby getting plenty of home-grown support. Over time, this could even lead to you opening your own shop or making enough money from home to quit your day job to live your dream.

Or perhaps you love clothing, accessories and fashion?  You could learn how to start a clothing business with buying wholesale goods and where best to sell them online to make a profit.  Or it could even be your own bricks and mortar store or a thrift market if you want to sell vintage clothing.  There are all sorts of different options for how to have a business that you are passionate about that links to your hobby.

That said, let’s not get carried away too early as, in addition to a solid strategy, you’re going to need to do plenty of research. Ensure that you know everything there is to know about the market you intend to enter, how others in your field got started and whether you’ll be selling something people actually want. Then there are the financial aspects, such as counting up the major costs you can expect and whether you think you’ll be able to make enough money to stay afloat. These beginning stages may be quite an ordeal but it’s better to build a strong foundation than to go into the world of business with no preparation. 

You'll also need to check whether you need permission to run a business from home before you even get started!

2. Sell yourself as well as products

Now that you’re well researched and have more plans in place than the average James Bond villain, it’s time to make your first sale. Chances are you won’t have a huge, well-funded marketing team behind you, so it’s entirely up to you to attract customers. Fortunately, a lot of this stage is creative and fun. For example, you’ll need to come up with a name, a brand portfolio and logos. 

One of the best places to start is online, as having an internet presence will open you up to a much wider audience of potential customers. If creating a blog or YouTube account is part of your strategy then you’ll need to ensure your name and logo is plastered all over it, giving your brand a recognizable look. This is also true for social media accounts, eCommerce shops and any other site you plan to make a name for yourself on. Don’t forget to make sure you’re listed on Google My Business as well, as this is a step even big companies seem to forget. 

3. Be the business

Last but certainly not least, you’ll have to learn to see yourself as a business rather than as someone just enjoying their hobby. Gone are the days of dedicating maybe one or two hours to your passion; now it’s a profession and you have to treat it as such.

Make sure you are always aware of the numbers, that you present yourself in a professional manner and treat customers with the utmost respect.  There are many successful ways to communicate with customers as a home business and you need to learn them.

You’re the business now, so make sure you’ve got everything under control. 

Final word

Turning your hobby into a business is a wonderful thing.  I’ve managed to do this with blogging as a business and my husband is in the beginning stages of doing it with furniture making, as well as being a successful local handyman.  We've both managed to ditch the 9-5 office life and follow our passions. 

With thanks to the internet, it’s possible to make your dreams come true, reach a wider audience and target your niche!

Not sure where your passion lies?  Here are some tips to find an online business you are passionate about.