People usually say that you need three passions in life: one that makes you money, one that makes you fit, and one that makes you happy. However, the ones that make you fit and happy tend to be monetized as well and you end up, in the best of all cases, with three passions that make you money. For instance, you can make Youtube videos about fitness and create a monetized blog where you write about your passion for horses and how they make you happy. Usually, it is even worse than that (we will see why it is actually a bad thing for you to monetize absolutely everything you do) because you usually end up with only one passion left: a passion that makes money. Period.
You may end up hating your own passion.
If you ever have monetized a passion in the past, you probably know that it is beyond easy to lose sight of what is important…. and of what is not. Usually, when you monetize your passion, you feel so good in the beginning because feel like it is the biggest accomplishment (yes, we live in a capitalist society). However, as months go by, you end up losing this feeling of accomplishment as the main reason you are continuing what you do is… profit. Profit replaces passion really easily. For instance, when I started writing for a newspaper (my very first job, I was 18 at the time), I felt felt like it was the biggest accomplishment: I would finally get paid to write. However, I ended up writing about topics I did not feel totally passionate about or writing when I just did not feel like it. In the end, that jobs became more a “to do” than a passion, which I think is really sad.
If you feel like you still want to monetize your passion, feel free to read that very helpful post: Doing what we love and still love what we do.
Monetizing everything is a capitalist trend, not a necessary choice.
When I started blogging five years ago, I automatically got comments such as “and how much do you make?” or “is it great financially”? Well, no and no, I was simply blogging for fun, and I truly think it is the only way you can blog well. Actually, it is the only way you can be good at anything: have FUN. Today, I have more opportunities even though I usually get free books &c. and not proper money, which is a really good thing in my eyes. However, I have never done anything on that blog for the sole sake of profit, and I think it is the main reason why I am still here after five years. If you do it all for profit, you will just never make profit, period.
Just a final word when it comes to blogging: you CAN blog for fun. I have read so many things recently about blogging “for money” and “not for pleasure”. The worst thing I have read was “why having a time-consuming hobby?”. Well, a hobby is by nature a “time-consuming” thing, but it ABSOLUTELY does not make it a bad thing. It is just a passion, and a passion is a wonderful thing to have.
You probably do not NEED that extra money, and that is fine.
Do you really need extra cash? Let me rephrase: do you really want to take the risk of monetizing you passion (and eventually losing it) to get $200 a month? I do no think so. If you really need extra money, consider getting a part-time job in addition to your regular job, but turning your passion into a side-hustle is probably not the right thing to do:
- it will probably take the LONGEST time for you to make a profit.
- it will probably not be your passion anymore and if life gets hard, a passion is really, really important.
You may also like: 10 Money Mistakes you MUST Avoid In Your 20’s (in college, especially)
You may want a passion that helps you forget your struggles, not a passion that creates new ones.
As we just said, when life gets hard, a passion is always the way out… even for an hour. The first purpose of a passion is to forget your everyday life for as long as performing your passion lasts. You want a passion that helps you forget about the world: sing, dance, run, cuddle your cats (yes, it is a passion and no, you can’t monetize your cat… well, I hope not).
You may also like: How to: enjoy learning and learn for FREE.
I hope that today’s post helped you put things into perspective. I really think we live in a sick society. Of course, we all need money to live and I would advise absolutely anyone to save money as well in case of emergency. However, our whole entire life does not have, and should not, be turned toward acquiring more money. You have so much more wonderful moments to live and new things to experiment. If you have a passion, consider letting it be as passion is far better for your heart than for your bank account, and it has things to offer that money will never buy.
The English-speaking Frenchie 
I agree with your thoughts here! This is one of the reasons why I did not pursue a writing career. Back then, when I was still starting to figure out my career path, I kind of considered applying in a writing job, but then told myself, “If I’ll push through this, I might end up being frustrated about writing instead of enjoying it.” So I didn’t and I am thankful for that decision.
Recently though, I started monetizing another thing that I love— art. So far, so good, and I hope that I will not fall out of love for it. I love and enjoy every piece that I work on, and try to build a relationship with my client (like sharing stories with them) in order to make the artwork more personal. But yes, I need to keep on reminding myself that I am doing this because they need my help, and not mainly because for my own sake. And of course, one should always have a WHY in pursuing things.
It takes discipline to stay grounded! Hahaha. Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Carla! 😊😊
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Hello,
I really appreciate your comment. Your experience will be really valuable to my readers and gives a lot of depth to the post so thank you.
I too considered a writing career but I soon realized that writing was my passion mainly because I could write about things I am truly passionate about. When I realized I would probably write about topics I do not even like, I realized that job was not for me. Why not monetizing my very own book some day, or writing for clients who really appreciate my work. I would love to work with clients I can talk with the way you talk with your own clients: it makes the work more genuine and true to the passion.
I wish you luck with your art, keep having that necessary discipline to protect your passion,
Camille ♡
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I meant, Camille!!! So sorry for the confusion. I just replied to a comment of a blogger named Carla. Huhu. Sorrryy..honest mistake.
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Ahaha no problem, I myself tend to mistake names quite too much lol, do not worry about that!
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Hi, thanks for sharing this! I think this explains well why I don’t want to use my blog as a way to make more money, rather I want to use my blog as something that releases stress and something I can consider a hobby. I start a full time job in september which pays well so the extra money isn’t worth it for me. Thanks for sharing, i enjoyed reading this!
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I forgot to mention that I do struggle with my mental health and anxiety so I don’t want my blog to me something that makes it worse
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Hello,
I really understand that. I feel like making money online always comes with its fair share of stress and that is a topic that is not discussed enough in my eyes. There are not only glittery things about working from home! I totally agree with you, as I already said a lot on that blog, maybe I would monetize at some point, but not in the “traditional way”. If someone I feel connected to (that is important in my eyes, or passion easily disappears) wants to hire me to learn how to write better posts or to write a synopsis for them &c., I would be happy to do that with them. Nonetheless, I do not want to write for the sake of writing, for people I do not know, about topics I do not master. I totally understand what your meant, thanks for commenting!
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I loved your post! I tried freelance writing for a few months and it kind of took the fun out of writing for me. I love being a blogger, I love creating poetry, writing short stories and sharing it with the world. This is my hobby and an outlet for me! Great post!
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Thanks for commenting! Yes, I totally understand you! As I wrote in the post, I feel like the line between a leisure passion and a money-making passion is so thin. When you start earning, you tend to start stressing out, and then the fun disappears, and with it the feeling of being “passionate”. I am so happy you managed to get out of this circle. ♡
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Very interesting take! I never pursued writing as a career. I used to want to be a reporter but quickly changed my major from journalism to psychology. I don’t use my psych degree either but I apply it to my writing on my blog. I like to have this as a hobby and pursue other interests for income. But I mean, if I did make a bit of money writing I wouldn’t complain either though haha. But I’m content as is.
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A psychology major must be really interesting! I pursued an English major and, at first, I really wanted to become a reporter as well! That is why I started a job in the field of journalism but I understood really soon that writing was not the biggest part of the job, so I ended up quitting after some time. I want to write, and for now, the bet way I found for that is blogging. I think there is so much beauty in blogging, and so much more about it than money.
I feel the same, I would not complain either lol, but I would like it to be genuine writing, about a topic I am interested in and for clients I deeply respect and who deeply respect me. I do not think it is mere idealism, I think it just takes more time to find the right clients.
Sincerely,
Camille ♡
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This is very much the reason why I’m so hesitant to monetize my blog. I don’t wanna be pressured on writing posts just to keep my blog active, I love where I am with my blog right now and I don’t wanna ruin that. Thank you so much for sharing this Camille, your posts are really something I can always relate to. 💖
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I totally understand you! I always see the wordpress ad “monetize now!” and I am like “Well… no!”. If at some point I feel like monetizing, I think I will provide one more paying post a week for a little fee but that’s it and I do not feel ready for it yet and absolutely not ready for ads. I want to experience blogging purely for pleasure first, and for long enough to be able to remind myself it is still an option, and it is great.
Thank you so much for your comment, they always make my day. ♡
Camille
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If you can get paid for doing what you love, you don’t have a job, you have a calling. I would love to get paid for my writing, but right now my writing is very introspective and about recovery mostly. There are people who seem to monetize everything these days, from mental illness to drinking beer. I think on a blog if you chase the dollar, you turn your readers into customers and the sale is all you think about. Like you, I look on my journal as a hobby, and a way to connect with people.
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That is true, it is beautiful to have the possibility to get money from doing what you truly enjoy. Nonetheless, as you said, I feel like everything tends to be monetized those days, which does not have to be “good” or “bad”, it simply is. For that reason, I want this post to work as a tiny reminder that if a little voice inside your head tells you “no, do not monetize it”, it does not have to be a bad news. I personally get questions such as “how much do you earn doing it?” and when I answer “well, nothing”, some people look so shocked and that is a reaction that I now find quite funny but that used to make me quite upset. However, if the same “little voice” tells you that now is the right time to monetize, it is perfectly fine as well. Actually, you 100% CAN monetize, you just do not HAVE to.
By the way, introspective writing is vey beneficial, both on the “writing” side of things and on the “mental health” side as well. Keep doing it, it helps so much and it is courageous to publish introspective writing, you can be proud.
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