Should you turn your hobby into your job?

"If you love what you do, you’ll never work a day in your life." It’s a beautiful sentiment, but is it really true? Many of us dream of turning our hobbies into careers, imagining endless days of fulfillment and joy. But what happens when the lines blur between work and play?

Turning your passion into your profession can be deeply rewarding—but it also comes with challenges. Hobbies are typically our refuge, a space where we unwind, express ourselves, and feel free of external pressures. When they become our job, they’re suddenly tied to deadlines, expectations, and financial pressures. Therefore it’s reasonable to wonder whether turning a hobby into a profession is really such a good idea.

Should Hobbies Stay Hobbies?

Hobbies bring us joy, fulfilment, and often a sense of identity. But what happens when a hobby becomes your job? Does the passion stay, or does it get diluted by deadlines and deliverables?

While transforming a hobby into a career can bring deep satisfaction, it also comes with challenges. To help minimise these, I recommend:

• Balancing Passion with Boundaries: Turning your hobby into a job doesn’t mean it must define your entire identity. Setting clear boundaries can help preserve the joy that sparked your passion in the first place.
• Creating a New Hobby: When your passion becomes work, it’s essential to cultivate fresh, low-stakes hobbies to serve as a refuge.

This tension isn’t unique to hobbies-turned-careers. Consider startup founders: they often begin with a powerful idea or mission they deeply believe in—something tied to meaning and purpose. But even the most inspired founders can lose joy in the day-to-day monotony of operational tasks, deadlines, and relentless demands. Like a hobbyist-turned-professional, they must navigate the challenge of keeping the spark alive amid the grind.

So how do we preserve the joy and passion that made us love our hobby in the first place?

The Positive Psychology Perspective

Positive psychology offers valuable insights into maintaining joy and fulfilment in a career born from passion:

1. Intrinsic Motivation Matters: Hobbies often thrive because they’re fuelled by intrinsic motivation—we do them because we love them. To keep this alive in a professional context, focus on the meaning behind your work. Why did you choose this path? What impact does it have?
2. Flow and Mastery: Activities that challenge us just enough to grow but not overwhelm us—what Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi called "flow"—are essential for wellbeing. Keep seeking opportunities to learn and stretch yourself in ways that excite you.
3. Variety is Key: Even the most beloved activities can feel monotonous when repeated under pressure. Incorporate variety into your work or find new, unrelated hobbies to refresh your energy.

The ultimate question is therefore a universal one: What does it take to build a life—and a career—that allows you to truly flourish?

What Does a Flourishing Career Look Like?

Positive psychology provides a framework for flourishing, encapsulated in PERMA: Positive emotions, Engagement, Relationships, Meaning, and Accomplishment. Applying this to your career, consider these questions:

• Do you still find moments of joy in your work, even during the hard days?
• Are you engaged and connected to a sense of purpose?
• Do you build positive relationships and a sense of community through your work?
• Are you accomplishing meaningful goals, even in small ways?

For startup founders, this might mean reconnecting with the "why" behind their vision during challenging moments. For hobbyists-turned-professionals, it could mean balancing creativity with structured growth. For all of us, it’s about finding sustainable ways to thrive in what we do.

The key takeaway? Passion, joy, and meaning don’t always flow effortlessly—even from things we love. But with intention and balance, we can cultivate a career and a life that truly flourish.

So, What’s the Answer?

There’s no single answer to whether turning your hobby into your career is the right move. But the key lies in protecting what you loved about it in the first place. It might mean setting boundaries, finding complementary hobbies, or regularly reconnecting with your “why.”

What are your thoughts? Have you ever turned a hobby into a job—or thought about doing so? I’d love to hear your experiences!