When I was a kid, I spent countless hours creating original arts and crafts pieces. While other kids were outside playing, I enjoyed being in my room dreaming up new, ingenious things to make.

One of my crafty creations was such a hit that several of my mom’s friends began asking me to make stuff for them.

Initially, I was excited when they offered to pay me.  But after just a couple of weeks, I stopped making the crafts they’d ordered. The pressure to meet a deadline and create a specific deliverable was counter to me as an artist.

As a 12-year-old, I didn’t understand why I stopped.  As an adult, I now understand how money destroyed and complicated things for me. Money took the joy out of what I loved to do. It turned my relaxing hobby into a stressful chore.

Today, I am not motivated by money. I live consciously knowing that all my needs are met. I remind myself of this truth almost every hour of every day. This active thought stabilizes me. It has helped me to eliminate ALL thoughts of worry, fear and doubt.

Live everyday knowing that your needs are met – because they are.

While pursuing your passions and making them a part of your everyday life, consider if you’d like to earn a living doing that thing. Most of us think that we would. We can capitalize on some of our passions, but there are other passions that just cannot be sold.

I am blessed to be able to earn a living by doing something I love to do: tap dancing.

Sometimes I wonder, what’s the difference?  How come I can accept money for tap dancing but not for my other passion: making things with my hands?

I don’t know.  Do you?

To this day, I am still very crafty; I rhinestone, I paint and I make jewelry. For now, I give these items away. Selling them could sacrifice the enjoyment I get from making them. Not every hobby or passion can (or should) be turned into a business. There are trade-offs. Maybe one day I’ll sell my crafts.  But for now, I’m happy just making them.

What’s your passion? What really matters to you? What do you ultimately want to do?

If you want to monetize your passion or hobby, be prepared to accept the trade-offs. If your passion is your way of unwinding, relaxing and expressing yourself, then maybe you should just leave it at that.

“There is no class so pitiably wretched as that which possesses money and nothing else.” ~ Andrew Carnegie