If you’ve been wanting to do work that you love, instead of love that you hate, you’re in the right place. I’m helping you, over about a month, with seven lessons to help you move into work you love. So far, I’ve shared two problems: You don’t value yourself and You don’t know what you’d love to do. You can also find my action cures to turn those around.
Today, let’s get to a huge gripe I hear that holds people back from work they love.
Problem #3: You think good work doesn’t pay well
You know this one. It’s when you say: “Oh, c’mon. I’ll never get paid to…”
What’s your version of that story? You’ll never get paid to make cookies? Or surf? Or write?
OK, let’s take that excuse apart… Because you can have work that you love and that pays well.
Action Cure #3: First, you need to realize that if you think you can’t do something, then you can’t.
It’s a huge cultural myth that you can’t make money doing what you love. Especially in the US, we live with the remnants of a Protestant ethic that puts serious value on “hard work,” essentially condemning the idea that you should have fun and be paid. As a cultural norm, those elements don’t belong together, at least in the world of work.
To remedy this situation, look for examples of people who are doing what they love and getting paid for it. Keep a list. Remind yourself that your quest is possible.
Second, once you sever your ties those silly cultural values, put your head into the service of your heart to ask, “How could I make money doing what I love?” You may need to get together with some creative friends to brainstorm. It’s also helpful to put on an entrepreneurial mindset.
As an example, I just signed on a new coaching client. Before she agreed to work with me, she nervously asked, “What happens if we find out what I love, and it’s something I can’t make any money at?” I replied, “You mean, like you discover you love finger painting, and you question how you could make a living doing that?”
That was exactly what she meant. The thing is, you sometimes have to get pretty far out of your current mode of thinking to find ways to make money. Will your love look like a conventional 9 to 5 job? Probably not. So, how could you creatively market your talents?
I once helped Caitlin (not her real name), who had an artistic talent she loved. Caitlin doodled the nonsense that runs around in her head. Sitting in a cafe, drawing with a common black pen on a basic sketch pad, Caitlin drew these elaborate interconnected images of the issues and items occupying her mind – cars, scarves, old boyfriends, beaches, the sun. She did it mostly to clear her head. But occasionally, people peer over Caitlin’s shoulder, or look around her giant mocha, to see her creating these doodles, and would ask to buy them.
While Caitlin loved creating these sketches, and they felt almost too easy to call “work,” she rarely sold these drawings. But, working together, we crafted a way for her to make money in a way that all artists would like to do — sell her work on commission.
I asked her, “What would happen if you offered potential clients the chance to bid on a self-portrait? You’d draw the client’s (or patron’s) silhouette, either in person or via a photo. Then, you’d ask for 100 interesting things about the person, including about their hobbies, possessions, obsessions. And you’d promise to include at least 40 of those interesting elements in the finished drawing of “What’s going on in my head?” And instead of selling an 8 x 10 for $50, this highly personalized art could go for $500 or $1000 a portrait? Caitlin was thrilled.
Caitlin kept her crappy desk job for a while longer as she started learning to market herself and her unique, highly customized artwork. She had fun embracing new financial freedom in what she loved. Yes, she had to learn some new skills, especially marketing (and no, that is not a dirty word). Was it worthwhile to learn those skills? Absolutely. Over time, she would be able to cut her hours at the job she hated, as Caitlin replaced her income with work she loved.
You have the ability to transform what you love into something that brings in money. It’s important for you to break out of your box and create new ways to do this work.
So, who’s going to be on your team to help you brainstorm creative ways to make money doing what you love?
Creatively yours,

PS – I’d love to help you brainstorm and create work that you’ll love. Check out my Working Well sessions, so you can get started reinventing yourself.
PPS – I’m collecting a list of people who are doing work that most people would say, “You can’t get paid for THAT!” So, who do you know who is getting paid to do something that sounds fun, extravagant, or unbelievable? Please share their story, and if they’ve got a website or blog, post those links here, or send me the links to those.
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