You might be wondering how to follow your passion and start a side hustle this New Year?
Well, now is the perfect time!
What Did You Learn from This Year?
If these last few years have taught us anything, it’s that we are more resilient than we realized. What else did you learn about yourself this year? Were you able to form stronger bonds with people in your life? Did you have more time to do the things you wanted?
For me, this was a year of tremendous personal growth. A lot that happened made me realize that the little, stupid things that I usually stress about are not worth a thought.
I used to ask myself if I’m getting close to fulfilling my purpose or if I should just switch paths altogether. This year has confirmed that I’m on the right path and one step closer every day to reaching my goals.
You can reach yours too! Starting with something as simple as… having a New Year’s Resolution to follow your passion and go after that side hustle you’ve always wanted.
[This post was originally posted January of 2022. Updated December of 2022]
What is Your Dream Side Hustle?
It’s time to redefine what “New Years Resolutions ” mean to us so we can actually follow our dreams! We can do anything we set our minds to!
Sometimes going after big dreams are scary though… especially when we’re faced with the daunting task of planning them out. It’s almost as if a sneaky devil pops in and toys with our brains a little. We begin to wonder whether we’re capable of such a tremendous life change. It’s a leap of faith after all.
New Year, New You!
Ask yourself if your life could be better spent doing something more meaningful to you!
It’s not too late to make your dreams come true. You’ve got this! New year, new you! Let’s go!
“A-a-ay, I’m on vacation
Every single day ’cause I love my occupation
A-a-ay, I’m on vacation
If you don’t like your life, then you should go and change it….”
“Vacation“, Dirty Heads
Follow Your Passion
What does that mean for you? Maybe it’s time to turn your passion into a side hustle?
More than ever before, people from all different professions are working remote. That gives many of us the opportunity of a lifetime to pursue what we’re passionate about… professionally.
It’s great because you don’t have to commit to it 100% by quitting your day job… Do it on the side until you make enough money that you can do it full time.
Don’t worry if your year is getting off to a slow start. You have the rest of the year to see progress. Remember, life is short. This blog is like an exercise to train your mind to follow your passion.
If You Could Get Paid to Do Anything, What Would it Be?
Why does anyone do what they’re passionate about? Because you probably can’t live without it!
Get Inspired, Then Go Do it
It is so important to find that thing that you love to do the most and just do it… Even if it initially starts with you seeing someone else doing it and then, being inspired to go for it yourself.
As a young girl, I maintained a collection of my favorite articles from magazines.. like obsessively so.. anyway I could get them.. doctors offices, libraries, you name it… Yes, I realize that technically means I was stealing them…
Then, in my free time, I would sit and flip through the pages… skipping all the BS ads and phony photoshoots. I just wanted to read every article.. one by one.
I’d rearrange the articles into a binder… basically creating my own magazine minus the “other stuff”…
Eventually, when I caught up with the times of my techie generation, I would get e mags through platforms like Zinio and eventually found a way to get them all free through my library.
It was pretty evident that I cared more about what the writers had to say than what the clothes, shoes, or accessories in the photoshoots did.
It always amazed me that the writer seemed to know exactly what they were talking about and seemed really passionate about their chosen subjects.
It inspired me to become a writer too.
What Do You Get From Your Passion?
The best job in the whole world is the one that doesn’t feel like work. What doesn’t feel like a job to you and how does it fulfill you?
One thing I love about writing is that my words allow me to connect with people to who I wouldn’t have had something to relate to otherwise.
If I can share a story or an idea that inspires someone, helps them feel good, or motivates them to reach their goals, then my purpose is fulfilled.
I’ll immediately know if I feel good about an article I’ve just written if I don’t have to read it again. My heart is just pouring out with a feeling that I want to get through to someone on the other side of the screen.
I love that words are unlimited and you get to share them whenever, wherever, with whoever.
Are You Doing it For the Love of Money or the Love of the Job?
One important thing to ask yourself when you pursue a different path is whether you’re doing it for passion or money. It’s okay to want both but not such a great thing when you’re solely basing your decision on money unless you love the job.
I write because there’s nothing else I’d rather do. I’d do it even if I didn’t get paid.
There’s nothing more gratifying to me than when I receive a comment or message from someone that something I wrote was entertaining or helpful and allowed them to make a decision that benefited their lives.
Nothing in this world makes me happier. Not money, not cute clothes, perks from the job, nothing. I could do this for the rest of my life and be incredibly happy.
I spend a lot of my free time thinking about how to be a better writer, how to get across to more people, how to connect with them more deeply and genuinely.
Writing was always and still is… my dream job. It’s my most prized possession. If everything I owned was taken from me or burnt to the ground, I’d still have my words.
No one can take your passion away from you but you. So, follow your passion.
Get Curious, Ask Questions, Research
So you know what you want to do with your life. But, how do you approach the daunting task of planning out your new path?
When I first started reading magazine articles, I would often wonder how the writers got the job.. It’s not exactly like “freelancer” was in my 11-year-old vocabulary. Just kinda assumed that the writers had a cozy office at the magazine’s HQ. I was so cute back then.
Little did I know… that “cozy office” was in the writer’s own home or on the road. Bonus for me! I love to travel! And hate sitting at a desk job.
But, as intimidating as it was to “little me”, it was also really motivating. I realized going after a dream job like that was possible. After all, if the writers from my magazines could do it so then, could I.
Years later, I would learn a lot more about what goes into writing professionally by way of simple Google searches and reading “how-to” books.
Eventually, I would get my first piece published in Sexual Health Magazine under my pen name. It was then and only then, that I could officially call myself a writer.
What are the steps to turning your passion into a side hustle?
Don’t Wait to Turn Your Passion into a Side Hustle
If the pandemic has taught us anything, it’s that life is precious. Go for what you want from life and don’t think that it’s too far-fetched. You can always go further than how far you’ve already come.
There’s no time like the present to pursue the thing you’re most passionate about.
What’s that one thing that you can’t go a day without doing? For me, that has always been writing.
I think I always instinctively knew I wanted to be a writer but it was always overshadowed by something else… running my own business or chasing my acting dream as a teen.
While doing those things professionally, I was still writing. It never occurred to me that I could be a writer, it’s just something I did for fun.
I suppose that’s when you know what your dream job is… the thing you do every day while not getting paid or being forced to do it.
Is it Time to Get on That Side Hustle?
I’m not a life coach here and definitely not telling you to quit your job to go after your dream with no backup plan, how irresponsible would I be? All I’m saying is… you might want to start thinking about it.
So, ask yourself now what you should be doing with your life and get to it. Time is fleeting. And you only live once.
Do something that you’re passionate about. Life is too short to just settle for a mediocre existence. Follow your passion!
Instead of wondering what life could be like if we did what we loved every day, why don’t we spend that time thinking about what we want to do and how we could pursue it.
Now is the time to start thinking about what you want to do when you grow up because guess what…. you’re grown up!
What passion would you like to turn into a side hustle this year?
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