View Single Post
  #17  
Old 05-15-2008, 09:23 AM
Alan L's Avatar
Alan L Alan L is offline
Master
 
Join Date: Feb 2004
Location: Johnson City, Tennessee
Posts: 988
One other thought, and I say this from the perspective of having been full-time for two years: It's great to get a market niche and to be in demand for a product, but beware of burnout!

I got good at pipe hawks, and got quite a waiting list built up for 'em, selling them at a decent price for the quality. After turning out 3 or 4 of 'em a month for two years, I couldn't stand the sight of them. And I still had 36 left to go...

I did get them done, but after that was over I didn't make another one for two more years. Of course, in that time I moved, got a full-time job, and went shopless for a year. Now my making is back in the realm of a serious hobby rather than a business venture, and I am happy with that. You should never get to the point where you feel like you HAVE to do it. The work will suffer for it.

It may be that I'm just not cut out to be a full-time maker yet, and I know my business sense is very poor. The point of all this is, you need to make sure you're physically and psychologically up for it for the long haul before you make a go at full-timing it. I'm not there yet.
Reply With Quote