In a previous blog entry I talked about “finding your passion, or faking it until you make it.” Another popular phrase in the home business world is… “if you love what you do, the money will follow”. Well, although that makes a great motivational poster or Hallmark card caption, it isn’t always that easy.
When I look back at my at-home career, the catch phrase would more likely be, “If you do what you can tolerate, the money will follow…eventually.”
One of my absolute favorite things to do in my spare time is to play with clay. I make magnets, tiny creatures and ornaments. I am like a little kid with a fresh pile of play-dough.
Unfortunately, I am not quite talented enough to make money doing what I love. I have yet to find a large group of people that are anxious to purchase lumps of decorative play-dough sculptures. I also am passionate about watching reality TV programs. I doubt anyone will pay me for that little hobby either.
On the other hand, I made great money doing something I wasn’t crazy about. In my first at-home gig, I sold makeup, perfumes, lotions and foot care products. While I don’t mind an occasional bubble bath, I am certainly not the person anyone would expect to see peddling skincare products.
Fortunately, that was only the first part of my journey. From there, I joined a company that sold craft products. My first thought was, “does it get any better than this?” I loved crafting. I was passionate about glue, paint, glitter, stickers…and all sorts of other crafty things. I thought I’d found something that I’d truly loved to do.
Unfortunately, within a few months I’d realized that I wasn’t actually “crafting”, I was *selling*. I wasn’t crazy about the selling part of my job, and I wasn’t really that good at it either. The other part of my job involved motivating, inspiring and training my team and customers by creating promotional materials, marketing fliers and more.
Suddenly, I found myself doing some “virtual” crafting, and I loved it. Once I figured out how to create a team website, e-mail newsletter and team chat-room, I found myself working on some personal ventures including creating several websites, a networking forum and a few blogs. While it wasn’t playing with clay, I was suddenly doing something I loved, and making money to boot.
I’ll never forget the advice my favorite high school teacher gave me nearly fifteen years ago, “Traci, you obviously love to write…why don’t you go to college and get a journalism degree”.
“Are you kidding me?” I thought. “Journalists don’t make that much money.” It still amazes me how a decade (and two children) will change your career perspective. Nearly two decades later, I find myself *finally* doing what I love and making good money doing it.
I never, ever would have gotten here had I hadn’t explored the work-at-home world by doing a few things that I wasn’t crazy about. Had I not tried the jobs I wasn’t so excited about, I never would have had the financial ability to “test market” doing the things I love.
While I hope that those of you who are reading this will be able to make money doing what you love right from the start, I also hope that you will start exploring options that might not be your first choice as well. Often the “not-so-fabulous” opportunities are the ones that will help you unlock the door to finding the career you love.
When I think about my personal “at-home” journey, I am reminded of a wonderful quote…
“It is never too late to be what you might have been.”
– George Eliot
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Unfortunately, I have yet to find the “get rich quick” WAHM job.
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