Want to start a business based on your hobby or passion?

The first thing you have to know when you are evaluating whether or not to turn your passion into a business is your level of commitment. Having a hobby is a lot like being single—you can work on your hobby (i.e. go out on a date) when you feel like it, or stay home in your pajamas and watch TV if you don’t. Hobbies don’t demand anything of you (just like that casual date you had last night). You can work on your hobby every free minute you have, or put it down for a year, or change your mind and forget about it completely, with few repercussions.

A business, on the other hand, can be very demanding. Deciding to cross the line from hobby to business is like committing to getting married. If you decide you want to make your hobby into a business, you have to commit yourself heart and soul. If you decide to turn your passion into a business, you’ll be making the decision to go from happy-go-lucky hobby kid, to grown-up business adult.

You know what making a commitment looks like. There will be days when you don’t feel like working on your business. But since it’s now a business instead of a hobby, you’ll have to do the work anyway, or figure out how to delegate it to someone else. Your commitment will force you to take actions that scare you; take risks that might frighten you, or do things you don’t enjoy.

But just like with a marriage, if you pick the right work, the work you love, turning it into a business can be deeply fulfilling, not to mention fun and profitable. It boils down to one question. Are you ready, willing, and able to commit? But do you wonder if you have what it takes to turn your passion into profit?

The skill of successfully owning and running a business doesn’t require a specific genetic trait, or possessing the set of secret rules from a small business society that only allows five selected people into their membership every three years. What it does require is:
• A willingness to learn, at a deep level, who your perfect clients are and how to market to them.
• The perseverance to keep going when things are tough.
• The training to understand what your business numbers are telling you.
• The ability to flow with change.

If this all sounds too scary, then you should consider keeping your hobby a hobby. But if you think these challenges sound interesting, stimulating and fun, you’re the right candidate to turn your Passion into Profit. Ask yourself these questions:

1. Do you love your hobby enough that you’d like to do it regularly, as work?

2. Would you like to become a professional at your hobby; to step up your level of skill at it so you would be considered one of the best in your field?

3. Would you be willing to spend time marketing your work?

4. Are you willing to work on it even on days you’re not in the mood?

5. Can you weather setbacks (a client firing you, someone not paying who promised to pay, a downturn in the economy, plus a host of other things that happen to every business owner).

6. Are you willing to learn new things; such as new ways to market, updated ways to do your work, etc.?

Christy Strauch is the author of Passion, Plan, Profit: 12 Simple Steps to Convert Your Passion into a Solid Business. In addition she is president of Clarity To Business and has worked with over 300 small business owners, from artists to real estate agents, helping them do what they are passionate about – and make a profit. Her book is available at Amazon.com at Passion, Plan, Profit: 12 Simple Steps to Convert Your Passion into a Solid Business

Are you a Mom on Maternity Leave? Thinking about Starting a Business ?

Guest Post by Tamara Hancock, author of “Confessions of A Stay At Home Mom”. Her website http://www.wahpm.com/ is geared toward work at home professionals who could use a little support in their business and personal selves.


Are you a Mom on Maternity Leave? Post Partum….boredom? Thinking about Starting a Business?

I was twenty-four years old, and on bed rest awaiting the birth of my second child Rebecca. I’d been on bed rest for approximately three weeks, and she wasn’t due for another two months. My first daughter Anastasia was in preschool for most of the day, and due to my bedrest her travel to and from school was pretty much taken care of my friends and family. My husband, well – he was working an internship in Arizona, and was only home on the weekends.
I was bored.

You see, outside in the “real” world, I was an executive. I was a high power, high dollar sales professional who went out into the world and kicked butt, and took names. Sitting at home twiddling my thumbs most DEFINITELY was not for me. I had two months to go, and then another six weeks before I could even consider returning to work. I was beside myself.

Internet businesses were still in their infancy (and those that were established were – lets just say ‘undesirable’), and working from home was a novelty for most. I wanted to find something that would contribute to my family income but mostly would contribute to my need to interact with the outside world. Living in Utah, there were literally hundreds of opportunities to start my own direct sales business – IE Pampered Chef, Avon, MaryKay, Gold Canyon Candles…but being on bed rest (and once my darling little baby arrived), I knew home parties were not going to be for me. I needed something I could do, that would have very flexible hours and didn’t require a lot of start up cash. I also wanted something that I wouldn’t have to learn many new skills for – because we all know that when you are a mother to a new infant – a fully functioning brain is not one of the first things to regain.

I started to take an inventory of all the things I knew. I was an excellent typist, very organized and efficient, personable with people, and superior time management skills. I then began to think about the job that I held within my company. What did I do at the office, that I couldn’t do from home? I picked up the phone and made a business proposition to my employer. Within a few hours, and two signed contracts later – I was now an independent contractor.

While I didn’t realize at the time that I was starting a new business, this is exactly what I did. Plus, becoming an independent contractor opened up the door for me to take on other clients. I became a virtual sales professional. A few months later I had a business license, several clients, a newborn baby – and something that not only passed my time, but made me feel more fulfilled as a mother, and as a person.

Many women look to start a business while they are on their maternity leave. Usually it’s brought on by feelings of regret for leaving their newborn with someone during the day. A business is definitely within reach for anyone who is serious about it. A few things to keep in mind:

1) Remember, you are the mother of an infant, or soon to be infant.

When looking to start a business keep it simple, business start up can be difficult, and you are going to be losing enough sleep as it is – business doesn’t need to be a worry on top of that.

2) Follow your passion.

Don’t take on a business opportunity just because it’s an opportunity. Make sure it’s something you’ll enjoy.

3) Do your research.

Don’t take the first thing that comes along that promises stress free living and freedom. Every business worth taking on is going to take some work and dedication. If it seems to good to be true, it probably is.

4) Don’t make a decision to work from home in desperation.

Being home with your children (especially if it’s your first) can be a highly emotional experience. Make sure the decision to start a business is made with a clear head and with support from your family.

5) Finally, don’t apologize.

You work from home, it’s your business, and it’s something that you are doing for you and your family. If you have a client that isn’t particularly happy about you working away from an office – or *gasp* with children at home – then it probably isn’t a client or account worth fighting for. Your family must come first.

Since the birth of my second daughter I have worked from home, and I have never looked back. Just remember that your family comes first, and that you need to take time out for yourself as well. Maternity leave is a time to bond with your family, not to get burned out and exhausted (for reasons other than midnight feedings).

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Tamara Hancock is the author of “Confessions of A Stay At Home Mom”.

She is a Work At Home Professional Mom with five children under the age of ten.

Her website http://www.wahpm.com/ is geared toward work at home professionals who could use a little support in their business and personal selves.

Follow Tamara on Twitter http://twitter.com/WAHPM