Where do startup funds enter into your hobby business?
by Joe Taylor Jr. on June 11, 2008
From looking at this article in my local newspaper, I’m reminded of the first two businesses I launched and how I agonized over raising capital for each of them. The first business required my own savings, Lori’s credit cards, and a round of angel investors. We were, by most accounts, a day late and a couple dollars short with our great ideas. The second business blossomed from the ashes of the first, and gave me the constraints of having little venture capital and nothing to lose, so it felt good to “cash out” by rolling it into a larger company and letting them take things over.
Today, as I look at my “day job” and my freelance writing practice as my main revenue sources, my web publishing projects (my own hobbies) make up the third leg on my career stool. They actually support the other two by broadening my horizons, but still keeping me within the scope of the things I like to do and can accomplish without a lot of cash invested. If I drop a few bucks here or there on server fees or software upgrades, it’s okay, since it’s my hobby and I don’t have to wait for it to produce ROI right away. And if it doesn’t, it’s not like I put everything on the line. Not going to do that again.
So, from the point of view of a new hobbypreneur, what’s “at stake?”
Certainly, you’re not investing any more in a hobbybiz than you would on any other kind of recreation. Spending $9 on a domain name is cheaper than a movie ticket. Spending $10,000 to design a web site means this better be more than a hobby.
By my definition, any income from your hobbybiz should be something you’re delighted to enjoy and something that you can still live comfortably without.
Where do startup funds enter into your hobby business?
by Joe Taylor Jr. on June 11, 2008
From looking at this article in my local newspaper, I’m reminded of the first two businesses I launched and how I agonized over raising capital for each of them. The first business required my own savings, Lori’s credit cards, and a round of angel investors. We were, by most accounts, a day late and a couple dollars short with our great ideas. The second business blossomed from the ashes of the first, and gave me the constraints of having little venture capital and nothing to lose, so it felt good to “cash out” by rolling it into a larger company and letting them take things over.
Today, as I look at my “day job” and my freelance writing practice as my main revenue sources, my web publishing projects (my own hobbies) make up the third leg on my career stool. They actually support the other two by broadening my horizons, but still keeping me within the scope of the things I like to do and can accomplish without a lot of cash invested. If I drop a few bucks here or there on server fees or software upgrades, it’s okay, since it’s my hobby and I don’t have to wait for it to produce ROI right away. And if it doesn’t, it’s not like I put everything on the line. Not going to do that again.
So, from the point of view of a new hobbypreneur, what’s “at stake?”
Certainly, you’re not investing any more in a hobbybiz than you would on any other kind of recreation. Spending $9 on a domain name is cheaper than a movie ticket. Spending $10,000 to design a web site means this better be more than a hobby.
By my definition, any income from your hobbybiz should be something you’re delighted to enjoy and something that you can still live comfortably without.