“To be happy in life, develop at least four hobbies;
one to bring you money, one to keep you healthy,
one to bring you joy, and one to bring you peace.”
Stan Jacobs, The Dusk and Dawn Master.
Dear Colleagues,
Following my last article on this column; self-titled: “Hobby: An Opportunity to Network” where I adopted the definition[1] which considers hobby as an activity or interest which is pursued for pleasure and relaxation and not as a main occupation. I thought some more and asked myself 2 (two) questions which has now birthed this article. What if an activity or interest is being pursued for pleasure and relaxation and same brings in financial gain, does it become less of a hobby? Does it transcend to a main occupation?
These posers jolted some undergraduate memories, when I engaged in some entrepreneurial attempt (now the practice of law has taken over), we called those entrepreneurial attempts, side hustle. What makes a job or venture a side hustle? Bearing in mind the previous article on (Hobby: An Opportunity to Network)Is there any similarity between a hobby and a side hustle?
Here is what a Side Hustle means, it is a piece of work or a job that you get paid for doing in addition to doing your main job[2]. So, just like a hobby presuppose the existence of a main job, a side hustle equally presupposes that there is a main job. It’s a hustle that is done by the side, it is not the ‘center’ nor the main job. One thing I have come to realize is that a side hustle may emerge from a hobby i.e. a hobby may become a side hustle. I trust you have heard such phrase as ‘monetize your hobby’ ‘make money from your hobby’ and so on and so forth. By making money from your hobby, you’re engaging in a side hustle and it’s a welcome effort.
In the wake of the Covid-19, some lawyers who had long ago monetized their hobbies or transformed their hobbies to side hustles were exempted from the harsh economic impact of the Covid-19. Few of my dear friends shared their respective thoughts on the benefit of a side hustle among others:
Olawale Babatunde Ibitoye
Wale believes that with the state of the Nigeria economy coupled with the way and manner professionals (including lawyers) are being treated, it is highly encouraged to have a hobby and more importantly to monetize the hobby to become a side hustle. Such that the cash generated from the hobby can augment the income from the main job. He also shared the story of an Optometrist whose hobby for photography now earns him good income by the side. His side hustles are Estate Management and Teaching, they are derivatives from his hobbies.
Khairat Basorun
Khairat sees side hustle and hobby in the same light and she is of the opinion that a hobby and side hustle must be pursued with a purpose in mind; be it for financial gain, good health, joy, fulfillment and/or peace. She resonates Stan Jacobs’ view with a qualification to the effect that sometimes a hobby or side hustle provides emotional stability to effectively work in an environment that has ceased to be fulfilling or happy.
Buraimo Oluwaseyi
Oluwaseyi has effectively derived a side hustle from her hobbies. Her hobbies are reading and meeting people, while her side hustles are promoting social causes and empowerment of the ‘girl child’.
She refuses to sacrifice the ultimate goal of making impact for monetary gain.
MojalaOluwa Mof’Oluwawo
Mo, is pro side hustle, she encourages the creation and sustenance of multiple streams of income which can be achieved through side hustles. Financial gain, joy, peace and compatibility with wellness are some of the factors she would consider in engaging in a side hustle.
She also believes in volunteering and participating in causes that wakes and fuels her passion. For her, hobby suggests something done at leisure for pleasure. A stream of income won’t always pass for that. Even though it should bring joy and peace, sometimes those things are in the end, not in the process. In her words: “For instance, I love to write, to create content from scratch, it brings me joy, peace, money and keeps me healthy. But there are times I’m trying to meet a deadline or doing an extensive research in a new area, if you ask me at those times, it’s not a hobby, it’s something that needs to be done so that I can have joy, peace, health and money in the end.”
You have heard from my friends, do you have a side hustle? Is it a derivative of your hobby? Are you getting financial gain, peace, joy and wellness of health from your side hustle?
I would love to from you.
Kind Regards.
[1] https://www.dictionary.com/browse/hobbies
[2] https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/side-hustle
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