Every so often I see this type of message and it’s always irked me. I might be taking them too literally—but just in case—here’s a reminder that you don’t owe anyone your hobby. Create whatever you want, whenever you feel like, including nothing at all.
Source: Mastodon
That’s very important to keep in mind, and it’s something I often have to remind myself of. It’s easy to burn out when you don’t feel like doing a particular thing but still do it to “please” others. Especially in today’s social media environment, where engagement and likes and followers are often kind of a measure of your worth, which is really messed up. Of course, not every post like that means that someone thinks others are entitled to their time. Sometimes, it’s really just a heads-up that someone was gone for a bit and is now back. But it’s easy to fall into that mindset, I think, especially when your goal is to turn your hobby into a job.
Yeah, that’s pretty much it. It’s easy to fall into the gamification of social media and push yourself in harmful ways. While this comic is exaggeration and obviously doesn’t reflect how every person who says this feels, it’s really just a way to have a dialogue about why someone apologizes for not doing some personal thing enough. It’s not like I’m “immune to propaganda” either here, as I’m also a people pleaser; it’s something I have to actively contend with because of my upbringing. Art is just one of those things I’ve managed to put my foot down over because of what it means to me.
As for the hobby to job thing, I feel a good life lesson would be to never go down that path if possible. You don’t get a hobby that is a job, you simply lose a hobby and gain a job. I know this world is disgusting and some may see this their best way to survive in capitalist hell, but that just makes the journey sadder. This is also why when I encounter hobbyists with ways to pay them, I just donate instead of commission. They already gave me joy with their expression, after all.
It’s definitely tempting to go down the hobby-to-job pipeline, especially right now because it’s really hard for me to find a job. The thought that I’m already doing it anyway and might as well make some money from it is there, but I’d still have to put in a lot of effort to even call it a side gig. But then there are days when I’m really tired and don’t want to do anything, and on those days, I’d feel bad if people gave me money and I didn’t deliver, so maybe it’s for the best not to monetise hobbies, at least in my case.
In addition to the gamification of social media and the constant desire to make “number go up,” it’s often kinda pushed on people, too. Payment providers specifically address small artists in their advertisement, and so do websites like Etsy or Redbubble. It’s important that full-time artists have the tools and options they need, but these websites’ adverts make it sound so simple and hide the mountain of work that lies behind having any significant amount of success.