To think you can't always follow your heart when it comes to work?

[malificent7]

Largely because of the need to make a living.
For example I love art but i can't make money from it and was not encouraged to pursue it due to the need to make a living.
I am about to embark on a career that will get me good money but I am not as passionate about it as art. Also i would love to be at home working as i hate politics.
When I start working i wont have much time for hobbies. Ce la vie!

I think the pressure of needing to feel 'fulfilled' all the time can be stressful as well. A career that is v unstable (as the arts can be) can be very stressful after a while but some ppl can cope with that, others need more stability.

Eh. I work in the art world. You’ve made a sensible decision and long term will probably be a lot happier, fulfilled and have a more enjoyable life than the vast majority of people who have a crack at full time art.

Tale as old as time.

You can only really give certain industries/careers a decent shot if you have a financial safety net (usually a financially well off family). Unfortunately that’s why certain fields aren’t particularly diverse.

@Sparklesocks

Tale as old as time.

You can only really give certain industries/careers a decent shot if you have a financial safety net (usually a financially well off family). Unfortunately that’s why certain fields aren’t particularly diverse.

Yes, this.

You can still pursue creative careers in your spare time ... but, your brain has been battered and bored for the last 8 hours, you've no energy, you're worrying about how to reply to that awkward email you received last thing on Friday ... half the time, your best intentions just go to wine.

My BIL is a professional sportsman. He started playing full time as soon as he left school. I asked him one time how it works when your hobby becomes your job and he said that, although he still loved it and was very grateful to be able to earn a (just about!) loving front the sport, it was now a job to him. He had a boss and targets and sometimes just wanted a day off. He said he sometimes looked back on being at school when he would spend all day trying to dash through his homework to be able to get extra time to train and thought that that was actually a really nice time.

Here's the thing, to make money making art, you have to also be media savvy, have a strong online presence, do in person shows and sales, and always be hustling.
It's brutal, online reviews can sink you, even if they are totally off base; any time you fail, there is an audience.
Anyone can make art, but to sell it, at a rate that supports your life, is a while other level. It can be done, for sure, but it is not just about producing art.

YANBU. There’s that quote saying ‘do what you love and you’ll never work a day in your life’ - I think it only applies if you can do what you love on entirely your own terms, and still live off it!
Doing what you love on other people’s terms, for not enough money most certainly becomes work and you may lose the love for it as well.

At the risk of a tangent and throwing "class " into the mix- as working class students at a very average school in the mid/late 00s it was made very clear that many doors weren't open to us career wise. Me and my friends went for stable public sector or retail work regardless of our talents or preferences.

I am currently in the process of a huge lifestyle change turning a hobby into a living.
But as others have said, you need some money behind you and be financially in a somewhat "stable" position . Think along the lines of mortgage, dependants and outlay for the thing that you want to do. For art, I expect you need materials and a studio type space.
If you can earn enough to sustain yourself and any dependants, go for it! Realistically you need to earn enough for food, clothes, housing, maybe a car and some luxuries from theatre visits to holidays... But this depends on your own expectations and wants v needs.
Reduce your regular employment to part time first to establish yourself, before completely jumping off the 9-5 hamster wheel!