Hobbies are known for being money drains, but they don't have to be that way. Find ways to turn your favorite pasttime into a source of income, and get paid to play.
Need a few ideas to get you going? Then consider these:
Art/Crafts
- Teach art classes, either privately or at a local craft store
- Sell your work at craft shows or on etsy.com
- Sell your work in a gallery
- Design pieces on commission
- Design and submit projects for publication in books and magazines
- Enter your work in contests with cash prizes
- Do graphic design work
- Paint business windows for the holidays
Photography/Videography
- Get work as a freelance newspaper photographer
- Sell stock photos online. Try: Shutterstock, fotolia, and dreamstime
- Sell your videos online. Check out: Video Sharing Websites that Pay
- Sell your photos to magazines
- Do wedding and event photography/videography
- Teach photography/videography classes
- Turn your images into cards, and sell them
Sports
- Umpire/referee. Check out: Officials: Getting Started
- Coach
- Be a scorekeeper
- Be a statistician
- Caddy
- Become a personal trainer
- Become a fishing guide, hiking guide or river guide
- Teach others your sport
Taking Care of Animals
- Walk dogs
- Pet sit
- Offer grooming services
Music
- Give private lessons
- Perform at restaurants, weddings, bar mitzvahs and other events
Cooking
- Teach cooking classes
- Sell your foods at farmer's markets and craft shows
- Cater
- Offer yourself as a personal chef
- Take orders for birthday cakes
Travel
- Sign up for hotel and resort mystery shops
- Sell your travel articles and photos to magazines
Fitness
- Teach exercise classes
- Be a river guide
- Lead hikes
- Teach rock climbing, caving or other extreme sports
- Be a tour guide – all that walking is exercise!
- Become a life guard
- Offer yourself as a personal trainer
Computers
- Repair computers
- Build and sell computers
- Become a computer consultant
- Design websites
Gardening
- Hire yourself out as a gardener/ landscaper
- Sell the extra fruits and vegetables from your harvest
- Sell compost
- Can foods from your garden, and sell them at the farmer's market
- Help a farmer harvest his crops
Writing
- Start a blog
- Sell articles online or to magazines
- Enter writing contests with cash prizes
- Apply for a writing stipend
- Write advertising copy for local businesses
- Produce and sell an e-book
Shopping
- Become a mystery shopper
- Work as a personal shopper
- Shop for things to resell at a profit
