Monetizing Every Passion Can Cause Burnout
Are you sacrificing joy for profit? In today’s fast-paced world, monetizing our passions has become increasingly common. While it’s exciting to earn a living from what you love, research by Deci et al. (1999) suggests that external rewards can decrease internal motivation for activities people originally enjoyed, highlighting the potential downside of monetizing passions.
This dynamic plays out in online spaces, where:
– Creatives monetize hobbies to the extent that they no longer enjoy them.
– Individuals feel pressured always to produce content, which leads to burnout and a loss of genuine, non-commercial interactions and communities.
It’s amazing to build your career and work towards meeting your financial goals, but also allow yourself room to enjoy things without a business plan attached. You don’t have to monetize every skill or hobby. Some things should only bring us joy. Sometimes your hobbies are simply outlets for you to let off steam from life’s pressures. Your worth and identity are more than just your productivity or income.
By Esther O.
