How to Make Money from Hobbies

Here are a few ways you can make money from hobbies.

Sell Hobby-Related Products

This is the route I took with my scrap-booking hobby. In fact, I was so enamored with scrap-booking, that I began the business at the same time I started the hobby.

I went the direct sales route, but — thanks to the internet — there are now many avenues for selling hobby-related products. EBay, Craigslist, and Etsy are just a few possibilities.

In fact – if you’re looking for a good selling niche for the internet – hobby related products are one of the best. Passionate hobbyists are known for wanting to collect anything and everything to do with their passion. So finding a way to source inventory and sell to them is a viable business option.

Work for a Business Related to Your Hobby

My husband is fond of saying that when he retires he wants to work as a marshal on a golf course. Since I’m not a golfer, I had to look up what a marshal does. About.com defines it this way:

A person whose job it is to patrol a golf course, keeping the pace of play up and responding to golfers’ questions or concerns.

Marshals are mostly volunteers, meaning they don’t get paid or get paid only in free golf. But someone who is into golf and wants to earn some money while being around the sport could look for a paying job in a pro shop or at a golf store.

In fact — no matter what your hobby — there is probably a business where you could share your expertise by helping customers, and get paid to do it. You probably pass places like bike stores, garden centers, bakeries, and craft stores when you’re out and about. All of these businesses either cater to hobbyists or employ people who are passionate about what they do. In fact, those people tend to make the best customer service people because they know so much about their subject matter.

Teach Others about Your Hobby

I have a community college near my house and twice each year I get a continuing education catalog full of non-credit classes that members of the community can take. There are always a number of hobby-related classes, which tells me that people are eager to learn about their hobbies.

Here are just a few from the most recent catalog:

• Knitting
• Drawing
• Calligraphy
• Painting
• Jewelry making
• Ballroom dancing
• Cooking
• Investing
• Photography
• Writing
• Music lessons

If you’ve been at your hobby for a while and have a lot of knowledge about it, there are probably people who will pay you to teach them about it. You could check out community colleges and extension offices to see if they’re looking for instructors. Or, if you’re willing to market, you could go it alone and offer your own classes or even private instruction.

 Julie Mayfield.