Unpopular Opinion: Do What You Love Is Terrible Business Advice

Welcome back to Proof It's Possible! In this conversation, Dayle Sheehan and Jamie discuss the common saying 'Do what you love, and you'll never work a day in your life,' arguing that it can be misleading. They explore the challenges and responsibilities that come with turning a passion into a business, emphasizing the importance of understanding the realities of entrepreneurship. The discussion highlights the need for introspection before making a hobby a career and encourages listeners to approach their passions with realistic expectations. Tune in to discover: 

• Why turning your hobby into a business can be a mistake
• The internet's influence on the "do what you love" mindset
• What questions you should ask yourself before considering turning your hobby into a business
• How to know if you want to be a business owner or an employee 

Have you tried to turn your hobby into a business? How did it go, and what did you learn? Share your thoughts with us — we’d love to hear! DM us on Instagram @dayle_sheehan_designs & @jamiedfrancis! See you next time!

This episode is sponsored by our Ultimate Girls Trip! Be sure to go to www.proofitspossible.com for more info.

For More Information:
• Proof It's Possible Website
• The Ultimate Girls Trip Instagram

Dayle:
• Instagram
• Facebook
• LinkedIn
• Website
• Interior Design

Jamie:
• Instagram
• Facebook
• LinkedIn
• Website 

Transcript

Dayle Sheehan (00:30)
Welcome back, we are so glad that you guys are here. Today we are tackling an unpopular opinion, and I think the unpopular opinion is actually ours. Basically, we are going to talk about why we think that the saying, what you love and you'll never work a day in your life is actually terrible business advice, and here is why.

The minute in my opinion that you make something your job, it has moments of being unfun. It is not your hobby anymore. It is not your passion project anymore. It now requires work. It now requires you to show up when you don't feel like it. Do you agree with that?

Jamie (01:12)
Mm-hmm.

a thousand percent. And I sometimes think that let the fun thing be fun. Like, you know, for instance, after this recording, I'm going pickleballing and like, I think that's fun. Do I need to like become a pickleball instructor, open a pickleball gym, start selling pickleball rackets? No, it's just gonna be my fun little side hobby.

Dayle Sheehan (01:23)
Yes. Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm.

Right, exactly.

Jamie (01:41)
Because the

second I go to pickleball and I'm like, I need to sell 10 rackets today, I'm no longer having fun. I'm now working. Yeah, now working.

Dayle Sheehan (01:48)
Exactly. It comes with responsibility. Yeah, you're working

and there is always responsibility and tasks and like any other job, it has unfun parts. There's advertising, there's social media posting, there's all the things that you don't put up potentially like about the business that you're already in or the job that you already have. So know that whatever it is. And I, I did this, I get

Jamie (02:00)
⁓ my god.

Dayle Sheehan (02:17)
the luxury, the life of doing things that I love as my job. And I'm not saying that I don't love them. I'm not being ungrateful. But what I am saying is I loved interior design so much that I thought, I'll always be interested in the latest paint trends and the latest furniture. And all I want to do is go to furniture stores and, you know, pick out beautiful things. Still true.

Jamie (02:41)
and no

Dayle Sheehan (02:45)
Still true, except now I might go to the same furniture store seven times in one week because we are literally trying to fine tune the fabric or the arm style or the order is not working and they need me to keep coming back and keep coming back because our computer system didn't work. And like by the seventh visit, it's not that fun to look at that couch anymore. I'm done with the couch. wanted the couch to be done on visit one and it's not done on visit one because

Jamie (02:46)
Mm-hmm.

Dayle Sheehan (03:11)
it has a responsibility for me. I don't just get to go in and point at a couch and say, there it is, bring it in and I'll be gone. You know, it, the way that browsing the furniture store, when I envisioned myself as an interior designer, what I thought it would look like, it's not what it looks like. And there's so much as an interior designer using that example that is on your plate. So you are spending

Jamie (03:26)
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.

Dayle Sheehan (03:39)
potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars, maybe millions on a new build, a renovation. So your decisions matter. There's a weight to them that are not, it is not light. It is not fluffy and fun. It is not curtains and velvets and linens. It is, is this the right paint color? Because the paint cost is $225,000.

Jamie (04:03)
Mm-hmm.

Dayle Sheehan (04:04)
What if it does not look well, look great in this particular home, in this particular light? They're heavy, heavy decisions.

Jamie (04:09)
Yeah, it's no longer right.

And yeah, the decisions are no longer light and airy and like, oh, this is so fun. I would on a shopping day with my bestie. And then all of a sudden it's turned into like this like high pressure situation. I mean, like anything, there's big emotions that come with people spending money. So your clients, if they're spending money, they are gonna be highly emotional about it. The more money they spend, the more emotion they're gonna have.

Dayle Sheehan (04:15)
Nope. This is pretty. Yep.

Mm-hmm.

Exactly.

Yes.

Jamie (04:38)
But I do think that like this idea that like you, you know, do what you love has, is somewhat new in the last like, I don't know, 20ish years, maybe even 10 years. And I think it's like the internet's fault. I fully believe that like this idea that you can just, you know, every little thing that you do, every little thing that you're great at should be monetized. And if it's not, what a missed opportunity, you know?

Dayle Sheehan (04:39)
under process.

Yes, absolutely. And it starts with kids. Like kids are told, you know, there's a kid that makes $20 million a year by playing his video games. And you're like, well, what's the thing I could do on the on YouTube that I can make 20 million a year? You know, and like, it works for some and it works. Doesn't work for most. But but it gives the it's proof that it's possible for somebody to do it. So although that's like

Jamie (05:04)
Lose.

Mm-hmm.

Dayle Sheehan (05:30)
We believe in that so much and like I'm, I'm running the business of my thing that I love and do the thing that you love. I just always say to people when they're like, I like you, you know, your example of pickleball that you want to start a pickleball line of clothing or you want to, some things are meant to be your career that you love or have an interest in or your business, but some things are meant to be your hobby and that.

you have to know the difference. And you have to know that you're willing to not enjoy that thing as much if you turn it into a job.

Jamie (06:10)
Well, and here's an example, an unpaid job. Before I had kids, I used to love cooking, trying new recipes. I made all these like fancy elaborate meals and dinner parties and all the things. And now all of a sudden it's this expectation that I'm gonna put three meals a day on a table plus 19 million snacks. And I'm like, man, do I not enjoy that?

Dayle Sheehan (06:18)
Mm-hmm. Dinner parties. Yes.

Need five people every night. Yeah. Yeah.

Jamie (06:39)
It's no longer fun to me. And even when I do have the time, energy and space to like make a good meal and actually think about it and all the things I'm like, it's last thing on earth I wanna do. Because too much of anything or too big of expectations around something turns it from being a fun light hobby to like a burden. I mean that like with all the love in the world, but.

Dayle Sheehan (06:40)
Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm.

Absolutely.

Okay.

Jamie (07:06)
You know, sometimes when everyone's like, what's for dinner? I'm like, are you serious? Again? Like.

Dayle Sheehan (07:11)
Yeah, yeah,

exactly. You're like tonight we have toast because that feels like the effort level I'm willing to put in for dinner.

Jamie (07:17)
Yeah, because it's like my creative juices

on that have run out. didn't, I guess I didn't know that the expectation would be that I'd have to be like something that no one's ever seen before. It's got to meet 58 different flavor profiles. It's got to have certain textures for one kid and different textures for another kid. And all of a sudden something that used to be so fun to me has become the like, well, what, how can I do it quickly that everyone will eat it and someone's going to get some nutrients out of it at the end of the day. And I just feel like that's

Dayle Sheehan (07:46)
Well...

Jamie (07:47)
such a perfect analogy for any kind of business.

Dayle Sheehan (07:48)
Yes.

Jamie (07:50)
Like it's fun and light and airy until it's too repetitive. It's too hard. It's too often. And it's no longer fun. Like if, you know, once a week I get to go play pickleball. Well, if all of a sudden I have to be at that pickleball court seven days a week trying to push my pickleball rackets, I'm no longer there for like joy. I'm there for obligation. I'm there for profit. I'm there for

Dayle Sheehan (07:53)
Mm-hmm.

Well, I-

Jamie (08:16)
all these other reasons. Yeah. ⁓

Dayle Sheehan (08:17)
Well, and every single day, you never get a break from it. And when you're not

at the pickleball court, you're making social media posts about your pickleball rackets and ads for your pickleball products. And to use your making dinner example, the thing that we don't factor in when we're dreaming about our career and our making our hobby into our career is

you have a you have a set of customers there that when you were making dinners for your friends, yeah, your yours are particular assholes because they're like, yeah, I don't eat chicken. And then the next child says, don't eat ground beef. And then the next child says, I don't eat seafood. So it's leaving

Jamie (08:47)
that are assholes.

I wish

I wish I wish the expectations were that cut and dry or like the boundaries that can drive I eat chicken but just not with that sauce I eat chicken but that has a weird texture I eat chicken but you've like cut it too big or too small or too one way or another

Dayle Sheehan (09:07)
it's not.

Mm-hmm.

Yes. Yes.

And it's

a great analogy because it not that our clients are that particular in the real world when you own a business, but they have likes and dislikes and things and expectations that you won't always hit. And that's hard to manage, right? Like it's something that you're like, they don't like my design or they don't like my color palette.

or they don't, you this wasn't what they wanted and I have to go back to square one. And like with your kids, you don't go back to square one. You don't go make another dinner because they're like, yeah, I'm not eating pork at this time. Or I don't like that. That's gross. You don't start over.

Jamie (09:58)
You might, you might. It depends how many

days they haven't eaten dinner. It's amazing what you'll do, but anywho.

Dayle Sheehan (10:03)
Yeah, true. Yeah,

next thing you know, there's a pot of ramen on the counter or on the table, but that's just a side dish. You know, but with your clients, you have the obligation to redo and get them to a point where you've fulfilled what you've said you'd fulfill. And that is another layer of effort and work and expectation that makes it hard. And it's not a bad thing, but you just

Jamie (10:09)
Exactly.

Okay.

Dayle Sheehan (10:30)
have to go into it knowing. Yes. Yeah.

Jamie (10:30)
You don't ever plan for it. When you're in the dreaming phase and the building of your business phase, you

never think to yourself, what is the worst case scenario customer going to be like? I better plan for that, you know?

Dayle Sheehan (10:41)
Mm hmm. Exactly. Yeah. And

it's the it's the interior designer. I mean, the the fitness trainer, as an example, who, you know, you put them on the eating plan, you they work out with you five days a week. They don't necessarily lose the weight they wanted to. They lose weight and they do great by the world standards. You know, they lose the five pounds, but they were hoping for 15 in the 30 days. And 15 wasn't really realistic, but

Jamie (11:05)
Mm-hmm.

Dayle Sheehan (11:08)
They didn't articulate that to you, but now they're mad at you that you didn't fulfill what they wanted. So it's those moments where you're like, I didn't know this would be so hard.

Jamie (11:15)
Mm-hmm.

And

sometimes you can still love what you do. Like, let's just say that I absolutely worship going to the pickleball court seven days a week. I love the pickleball community. I love selling my pickleball rackets. I love it. Everything about that I love, but I hate the back end of the business. I hate learning how to do the books. I hate navigating that. I hate invoicing. I hate collecting payment. I hate doing social media.

Dayle Sheehan (11:24)
Mm-hmm. Yes.

Mm-hmm.

Yes.

Yeah,

lots of things.

Jamie (11:47)
maybe

that's just the one thing that's holding you back. But the reality is, is that you can't just take anything that you love and turn it into a business because there's so much more to a business. But with that said, I do encourage you to pick a business that you love. Like you can't hate it to begin with and then hope you love it. But I also think that you have to be realistic that if you do love something, it doesn't mean you're going to love being in business in that.

Dayle Sheehan (12:06)
No. No.

Well, and the thing for me is I actually am the first person to say, make it into your business, make it into a business, but look at the whole picture and what it's going to take before you do it so that you don't set yourself up to not only lose your hobby, but also be in a business that you don't enjoy on top of it. And as somebody that

runs a business that was my hobby and turned it into the business 20 years plus in. I do love my job. I do love my business, but I can't tell the lie that it is just easy and fluffy and fairy tales at furniture shops with a fancy coffee because there's lots of days behind a computer doing paperwork and not that glamorous side to it.

Jamie (13:04)
Mm-hmm.

Dayle Sheehan (13:08)
And when I tell, I speak at some colleges and things. When I tell interior design students, like, there's a lot behind the scenes that isn't as fun as what you're learning in school. They're kind of look at me like, I don't believe that. And I'm like, okay, see you in 10 years. You know, and it's the reason that some designers get out of school and go work for somebody else because they don't want paperwork. They don't want accounting. They don't want billing. They don't want any of that stuff. They want to do design.

Jamie (13:25)
Yeah. Yeah.

family.

Dayle Sheehan (13:37)
show up to their desk, work with their clients and go home. And that's another key thing to know about yourself. You know, are you that person? Cause that's allowed too. But it's honest conversation.

Jamie (13:46)
Yeah, are you a business owner

or are you a employee? Are you interested in making this a career and creating a business out of it or do you wanna keep it as your hobby? Do you love sewing bags for your friends for their birthdays but you realize there's no profit in doing it as a job? Yes, all of these things need to be like.

So much introspection needs to happen, in my opinion, before you just jump into something. So I do want to say, though, that if you do love it, I'm happy for you.

Dayle Sheehan (14:19)
Yeah, me

too. And do it. Like go for the thing. Even though this whole podcast has told you not to, we're not saying not to. That's what I think you need to hear. we all, the advice is go in with eyes wide open.

Jamie (14:22)
Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm a hundred million percent eyes wide open and talk to people who have done a similar business so that you know You know you have a clear understanding of what it's gonna take or what it looks like or what challenges you might face so if you do have something that you love and You feel like going for it go for it if you you know start the business and if you want to just keep it a hobby keep it a hobby but whatever that Yeah ⁓

Dayle Sheehan (14:38)
Yeah!

Absolutely.

Well, and we want to hear from you. We want to hear what is

the like hobby that you've thought I should do this as a business because. Yeah.

Jamie (15:01)
Or you've even tried it. You even tried starting a business and then were like, absolutely not. That did not

work. I'm so curious. If you have a story like that, please write us a message because I want to have you on the podcast so we can talk about that.

Dayle Sheehan (15:08)
Me too.

Yes. Thank you so much for joining us and we'll see you next week.

Jamie (15:16)
Okay.

Bye guys.