I heard the voice of George Clooney say this in an Instagram Reel of all places, and it made me stop. How much did “they” pay you, meaning, what did you settle for in life, to give up on something that set you on fire inside? Who told you that wasn’t worth pursuing because it didn’t make sense to THEM?
IF you have an entrepreneurial spirit, working a job that isn’t in your zone of genius feels life-sucking. But ideas and personal joy don’t pay the bills, and girl, bills NEED to be paid, so here you are.
THESE DAYS, DREAMS CAN PAY SOME OR ALL OF THE BILLS
I’m not going to sit here and say it’s as easy as saying it or wanting it. I am living proof of that. The dream I’m currently turning into my dream job isn’t paying any bills at the moment, but I believe that it will one day. I’m also not going to recommend you quit that consistent paycheck as soon as you have a notion to try.
I do, however, want to give you hope! In the age of internet jobs, CAREERS exist in niches that were never even a remote possibility a decade ago. Doesn’t that just blow your mind? I think more people could turn their dream into their lives’ purpose for both financial gain and personal joy. But as we all know, while it may seem simple, it is not at all easy.
HEAR ME OUT FOR A MOMENT…
I’m in no place to tell anyone to “just go for it”. I’ve been knee-deep in growing my blog, my email list, my social media presence, and now my 1:1 client and brand relationships for nine years, so that I can create a financial future for Method39. And even though I’m a full-time Stay at Home Mom, that doesn’t mean I have all kinds of time to devote to a passion project. In fact, my biggest struggle is prioritizing tasks and time discipline. Which, should quite literally be my superpowers in this scenario! UGH (anyone else feel me?)
It’s hard to be in between all the Momming, home business, and a couple of international moves, so out of anyone you talk to, I will be the one encouraging patience more than anything!
FIND YOUR PEOPLE, THE ONES WHO DREAM AS YOU DO
That said, when a side hustle starts to plant its seed in our entrepreneurial hearts, we need a tribe. Every single time I network, somehow I create an opportunity, and I believe that is the same for any of us. When we surround ourselves with like-minded people, all of a sudden, we feel more motivated, encouraged, and just willing to give “it” a try!
But if we stick around people who don’t understand why or what we are passionate about, any excitement around it can fall flat. Taking our initiative and ambition with it. Don’t be taking advice from people who are not actively doing what you are doing, they won’t know how to guide you and ultimately, they aren’t YOU. Read that again.
Remember, networking isn’t about getting to know people to see how they can benefit YOU, it’s meant to see what you can do for THEM, and growing your network to potentially recommend them to others in your circle. If you are networking to get immediate satisfaction for yourself, your intentions might need a refresh.
There are so many ways for you to create financial stability and freedom for yourself, whether it’s a side hustle you love, or just using your time to create new revenue streams to hit a financial goal within a certain time frame. That said, motivation doesn’t have to be financial. Maybe you just need something that gets your creative juices flowing and is a complete change from your day-to-day job. Meeting other people who are considering or actually doing the same, will be of great value to you in the future!
I DID SOME DIGGING, HERE ARE SOME DREAMS THAT CAN BECOME DREAM JOBS
While I certainly spend my fair share of time surfing the net, scrolling Insta, and all the bad things that come from having a smartphone, I ALSO spend time looking at ways I can do things I like. Here are a few that stuck out to me and might just get you curious too!
- COPYWRITING / FREELANCE WRITER – do you love writing? Did you know about all the massive platforms out there that you can create an account for and use your skills to do anything from creating social media posts for someone, writing others blog posts, doing research papers for publications (but be very careful the client isn’t a college student looking for you to do their papers for them….it is COMMON and can get you kicked off the platforms). You could even ghostwrite novels or any kind of book an expert wants to write! ALL from the comfort of your own laptop. You choose your hours, you choose the projects, you just created a new revenue stream! Look into platforms like Fiverr, Contra and LinkedIn Marketplace which is apparently coming Fall 2021.
- TEMPLATE DESIGNER -Â do you like to create images on your laptop or iPad? Did you know you can create cute backgrounds that can be added to sites like Canva, or create a website theme that can be bought off a site like TemplateMonster? When you are scrolling through your social media, look for creatives that are selling their art to represent someone else’s brand!
- PROOFREADER / MULTILINGUAL WRITER -Â if punctuation, writing etiquette and the ability to catch small mistakes is your superpower, there are also jobs on the same copywriting platforms mentioned above, that you can earn an income doing! Do you speak multiple languages? Even though there are plenty of programs that can interpret languages, there is a ton of opportunities to write one message in multiple languages, since so many brands are able to go global so quickly with this fab internet we are currently sitting on!
- PHOTOGRAPHY – While you might be thinking weddings/families/people photography, I’m talking photos you can sell for content. And by content that could be brochures, posters, brand graft and so much more. Think cityscapes, rural images, creative use of objects to tell a story in an image, flat lays with blank space on the side or in the middle so a brand can add text to create a professional slideshow that represents them and what they are talking about. It could be flowery, editorial, boho, calming, or crazy! Here’s a link to an article on pixpa.com that has a few suggestions on where to sell stock photography.
- NARRATION / VOICEOVER WORK -Â do you have a great speaking voice and can read the text without much trouble? Why not look into places where you can do voice recordings for brands? Voice recordings aren’t just for social media. There are all KINDS of businesses and organizations that need voiceover work done. Maybe a site like Upwork is the place for you or someone you know!
DREAMING ISN’T JUST FOR THE FUTURE
I think they are called “dreams” because they seem out of touch, almost unrealistic. YEARS AGO I realized I really love fashion and how it can totally transform the way a person feels about themselves when done right, for them. What I DIDN’T know I could have a blog and build an audience to serve with this thing I love.
While I WISH I had started all of this sooner, I know it’s because I’m not the kind of person who pursues more than one thing at a time. I’ve always been the “I give it 100% or I don’t do it” kind of gal. Turns out that was my brain keeping me “safe” because I’m just as afraid to fail as anyone else.
Let me tell you, life has shown me I don’t give ANYTHING 100%! I don’t have the ability to solely focus on ANY one thing so that’s a crazy, ridiculous standard or expectation to set on myself. Nothing in my life gets all my percents! If I give ONE thing all my available time and attention, I get REAL ticked when something interrupts me. Sound familiar? So instead of getting riled up, I have realized I need to compartmentalize certain things and give them time blocks. So I can give it 100% in that specific time frame. Not ALL THE DANG TIME.
DON’T GIVE UP ON YOUR DREAM
Expect wrong moves. Learn to PIVOT! Let go of the idea of perfect timing. No guarantee that the thing we think we love/want/need, will always feel that way. AND, it’s ok to change your mind.
But before you drop everything, just know, building up your dream is a shit ton of hard work. Hard work you may never have had to be responsible for before. I’m talking motivation, creativity, consistency, initiative, gumption, never give up attitude, always learning, always developing new skills, being organized, and also, being realistic.
DREAMS MAY HAPPEN AT NIGHT, BUT NOT OVERNIGHT
You know what I’m sayin’? Building anything, no matter how sure of it or how passionate you are, takes so much more time than you think. It’s crucial to go into anything with no timeline; but just the expectation that every day, you’ll learn something new and get 1% better than you were the day before.
Think of it this way…in a year, you will be 365% better than you were when you started! But you can’t do it all in one day, so celebrate all the small wins…they are taking you to something greater. So use those evening hours a couple of days a week to hone your skill and learn something new. It will ALL be worth it.
DON’T STOP WHEN THE HARD PARTS COME AT YOU, OVER, AND OVER, AND OVER
Let’s face it, if you are like me, tech stuff intimidates you! If not that, it will be something to do with your dream job that will stop you in your tracks. Something that won’t come easily and will feel really hard. It will bring self-doubt, imposter syndrome, and sabotaging thoughts along with it.
You have to be able to block that, to keep your mindset RIGHT. If you can do that, you have the most powerful weapon at your disposal. Don’t be in a rush, who are you trying to impress? Are you making this a race? Stop…this side hustle/dream chasing is for YOU, not society, your parents, or your manager, remember?
Make progress every time you work on it, be consistent with your content and message, and just be you. Everyone is so sick of a perfectly curated feed and image. Relatable and realistic win out in the end. Halleluijah!
This isn’t my typical blog post; but I really believe that how we feel about ourselves affects how we treat ourselves, and if you are frustrated financially, creatively or career-wise, maybe using some of that “scrolling” time for YOU is a better use of your time. You may have given up your dream to work that day job that isn’t feeling right but don’t let that paycheck convince you that you can’t do “that thing” you love. Opportunities are endless, and so is your potential.
I’m not just here to help you look great on the outside….I want you to face the world with confidence and a very clear sense of self and purpose. Let’s get dreaming!
xoxo Taryn