Whether you enjoy reading books, watching mixed martial arts (like myself), or collecting hockey cards we all have a hobby that could potentially cost us thousands and thousands of dollars as years go by. There is nothing wrong with being passionate about your hobbies, but do you ever check your bank account and find out that a nice chunk of your money in the last month has gone towards your hobby? The problem is that sometimes we get so attached to our hobbies that we lose track of all the money we spend on them. Granted, we all need to stay sane and have hobbies that keep us mentally stable, but there is no reason we should spend all of our money on a hobby. This is why I have come up with a list of way to ensure that your hobbies do not become a financial burden:
1. Try obtaining for free. Don’t go around engaging in unethical or illegal activities because I told you to obtain your hobby for free but try to find free alternatives. Instead of ordering every UFC pay per view try watching them for free at a friends place or local bar (they may force you to buy a beer). Instead of ordering a new book every week off Amazon check your local library to see if you could read it for free.
2. Reassess the hobby. If you are a shoe collector buying new $200 shoes every week or paying $50 for a UFC pay per view every month then maybe you should take a closer look at the situation. If you find yourself spending hundreds of dollars on your hobby weekly/monthly then you immediately need to reassess the situation and ask yourself whether this is the best hobby to be filling your time when money is tight?
3. Limit Usage. If there is no way you could enjoy your hobby for free and there is no chance that you are willing to even reconsider this hobby then trying limiting your usage. Find the will power to purchase less comic books, less shoes, or even try to attend less concerts. I don’t want to come off as a preacher with this article but I just want you guys to try and see how much money you could save just by limiting the amount of money you spend on your hobbies.
4. Share with friends. As touched upon earlier, try to find ways that you could still indulge in your hobby while splitting the cost with friends. Rather than having both you and your friend purchase the same magazine only to let it collect dust after reading it, participate in weekly exchanges where you guys can trade magazines/books. There is the slight possibility that you share no common interests with your friends but realistically speaking there has to be at least one person you know that shares similar hobbies.
Photo credit: Danwtmoon
I'm a 24 year old dude that studied finance in school and now wants to make it fun. Over the past three years I've been helping readers like YOU make more money and keep more cash in your pocket. I've appeared live on Fox Business News and I've been mentioned in the NY Times.
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In high school one of my hobbies was computers and audio/video work.
So I ran a little side business hooking up peoples personal computers, home offices, wireless networks, new tvs, stereos, and car stereos.
I made some decent money doing that.
I have continued to do that throughout college and into my professional life, but I feel the first example really stemmed from a big passion of mine.
@Stephanie Oh I agree with that but making money off your hobbies is a separate post to itself. It’s also something that I’m always working on. Whenever I spend money on a hobby I think to myself, how could I potentially break even or even earn some money off this?
@MyLifeROI Making money off your passions is an excellent source of income and I’m sure the best part is it doesn’t even feel like traditional “work.”
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