Reader Question: Turning a Hobby into a Business

Posted by jennybhatt under Startups
From http://freeagenteconomics.com 153 days ago
Made Hot by: tallpoppy100K on December 23, 2012 12:55 am

Over the weekend, I received a question from a reader, Rachel, about turning her hobby into a business. We’ve traded a couple of emails and, with her permission, I am publishing a summary of our exchanges, with her initial email first.

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Comments

Written by lyceum
147 days ago

Jenny: You are welcome! :) Please keep up your great work, turning hobbyists into business owners!

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Written by lyceum
147 days ago

Jenny Bhatt: Inspiring piece. I will show it to my business minded friends who have hobbies that could turn into a business.

I agree with your recommendations on business plan tools:

Alex Osterwalder’s Business Model Generation and Tim Berry's Bplans.com

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Written by jennybhatt
147 days ago

Thanks, Lyceum. Appreciate the comments and the sharing.

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Written by Herby
148 days ago

Jenny, that’s very good tips. I personally had really good experience with Score they really are a great organization. One of the best ways to get free business advice. Thanks for sharing.

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Written by jennybhatt
148 days ago

Thanks, Herby. Yes, I also had a personal good experience with SCORE early on. I recommend them to everyone. The retired businesspeople who give their time are genuinely interested in helping.

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Written by HeatherStone
148 days ago

Great advice, Jenny. I'd add that people who have been working on something as a hobby really must think in a totally different way when they convert that hobby to a business. Some might find that the hobby is less enjoyable when the pressures of business are superimposed. Others may feel suddenly liberated by doing something they love full-time.

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Written by jennybhatt
148 days ago

Thanks, Heather. Yes, I agree that running a business is going to require a different mindset to that of a hobby. This is why I generally also recommend that people start their hobby business part-time first - decide if they are going to like it enough to go full-time. Appreciate the comments.

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