Years ago I got the advice to figure out how to get someone to pay me to do my hobby. My hobby is reading. For awhile I thought about various professions that would pay me to read. The more I thought about it the more I realized that it wouldn't work for me.
When I read too long my eyes start to hurt, if it's a good book that won't stop me but what if I'm reading drivel? After a few years of it would I start to get bored with books? Would I not read for fun anymore? Then I had an epiphany. I was reading an okay book and I put it down to rest my eyes. My brain is spinning on how the book could have been better, why the author wrote it the way he did and various other questions. Then it hit me, figure out how to get paid for doing something you can't stop doing. I can't stop thinking. How can I get paid to think?
A buddy of mine is going to open a pub and I said I would give him some ideas and advice. He's offered me a job twice now. The first time because I know what I'm doing. The second time because every night I send him a few paragraphs about something (table coverings, wall decor, promo ideas, and even menus). He called me up and said I seem to be really into it, would I like the job? Nope.
I explained to him that I'm giving him these ideas because I can't stop thinking about them. Once I wrote a business plan for an idea. It took me forever to write; partly because I've never done it before and partly because I wanted to add this idea to it. And this one. And this one. Etc.
I gave this advice to a high school senior recently, figure out what you can't stop doing and then figure out how to get paid to do it. He was in high school and had already figured it out. He was even working on getting a scholarship for it. Lucky bastard.
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