So, a much more timid version of me decided five years ago that if I was ever going to be a writer, well, I needed to start writing. I got myself a free blog over on Blog.com and I wrote stuff. At least, I did when the website would let me in! I wrote stuff a lot of people never got to see, but I was honing my skills, day by day. And now, in less than a month, it will be the 4th anniversary of my first website, thatsavvygirl.com, my blog that has morphed over the years from a hodge podge of articles about my life to now being a more political, deep thinking kind of place. And in the years between then and now, a few other websites have come and gone, like notjustablondemonkey.com, dawnstilwell.com and dawnings.ca. They served their purposes and then I put them away. It has been just over 3 years since my first published book, and I’ve published 4 more since. All under pseudonyms, all a bit radical in their own way, and this year I plan to publish my first book under my own name. I just have to find the time to finish writing it!

And while I’m doing that, I’ve got The Publishing Shop branching out into website design and hosting, Indigo Bohemian Art Studio has both a YouTube channel and a website to maintain and then there’s this site here on which to tell you all about all of it, lol. I am busy, but I am happy and fulfilled! If you’d asked me 5 years ago where I would be right now, I probably would have said ‘on the couch!’. But here I am, working towards the things that I would love to turn into full-time work at some point. Then, for me, it will feel mostly like full-time play!

I’m not saying you should try to monetize your hobbies. That’s not for everybody. Sometimes it kills the love you have of the things you are doing. It is perfectly okay to enjoy your hobbies just as hobbies. But if you want to turn them into an income stream and you’re willing to hustle for a bit to get things off the ground, do you think you could do it? My answer to that now is, YES I CAN!

Take it from someone who sat on the sidelines of life for far too many years. Years I try not to regret, but rather reframe them as the necessary foundation to getting where I am now. Dear One, if you have an inkling that you’d like to try your hand at a new endeavor, a new business, or anything that’s new and exciting and maybe even a little scary for you, my advice is to go for it. No one will do it for you. And….You will never know until you try!