Pro tip: That "follow your passion" advice almost wrecked my finances

An old professor of mine at DeKalb Tech told me to just chase what I loved and the money would follow. So I tried turning my woodworking hobby into a business for 2 years, lost about $12,000 savings. The jobs I actually liked paid crap, and now I'm back in accounting where the bills get paid. Anyone else have a mentor steer them wrong with that kind of dreamer talk?

3 comments

3 Comments

paige_martin1mo ago

$12,000 doesn't seem like a catastrophic loss.

jake_martin161mo ago

I mean, I get where you're coming from but $12k over two years honestly doesn't sound that bad for a learning experience. @gibson.oliver I know what you're saying about hobbies staying hobbies, but sometimes you gotta try stuff to find out what works and what doesn't.

gibson.oliver1mo ago

It's like everyone got sold this idea that passion pays off but nobody talks about how passion projects usually come with a side of ramen and debt... I've seen too many friends crash hard chasing dreams that should've stayed hobbies.