Career Resource for New Members:
One Easy Way to Explore Your Passion AND Develop Your Skills
People always ask the question, how can I get paid for my passion? This is one of the more difficult questions because there is not a “one size fits all” solution. Realistically, you may or may not be able to get paid for your passion, but that shouldn’t stop you from trying.
The complexity with passion projects and getting paid for them is simply a question of demand. And I would argue that passion projects have a chance of turning into a full-time job or even a small business based on the marketplace. It’s all about your skills, your approach, and your timing. However, one easy way to explore your passion and develop new skills outside of work is to volunteer with a nonprofit. Even more, you may find that the skills you hone outside of work may come in handy for a stretch assignment or your next role.
Did You Know:
Some people use hobbies or side projects to feed their passions and develop skills that are unique and often times transferable to their jobs.
I Pursued One of My Passions and Here’s What I Learned
I produced my first video. Although I work in the media industry, I never had the opportunity to produce a video until now. I led a video project for Mercer University’s STEM Education Lab and was very excited to create something to help educators. For the work that I do, creating a video of this magnitude would not happen during my daily routine. However, after understanding the scope for the project, I realized that I had the transferable skills to do it. In addition, I learned how I could expand my knowledge of video production by working with professionals who design, shoot, voice and edit content.
So what exactly did I learn about my skills?
Visioning — In this instance, I had the pleasure of envisioning what the final product could be. I use visioning in my current job to help define learning strategies, but this project was more creative and allowed me to invoke my imagination, something I don’t use often enough at work.
Script Writing — I am adept at business writing, academic writing, blogging, and technical writing, so how hard could it be to write a script, right? Wrong lol! Scriptwriting was an adventure that I had to quickly learn. My writing skills served as a foundation, but the techniques and nuances I learned while writing the script gave me new insights for what was needed.
Interviewing — I have interview skills, but this was not like a job interview or an interview for a panel event. It was more like an interview for a news story. There were a lot of technicalities I had to ensure were covered while allowing the interviewees to be authentic.
Refining — Revisions, revisions, and more revisions. Reworking video content can be a tedious process, especially when the client has a different view and your goal is to capture their expectations in a way that is aesthetically pleasing. Listening, attention to detail, organization skills, and patience are required!
Creating — For my deliverables, I kept it simple using Google docs for the collaboration on the content plan, Youtube Studio, Zoom, WeTransfer, Temi and Canva supported my workflow. My production team are professionals and had their own equipment they use for shooting b-roll, editing video & graphics, and recording voice overs.
Producing a video was a good experience that gave me insights into the creative and technical processes for a project of this size. I had an opportunity to meet and work collaboratively with people different from my usual work setting. I felt accomplished when the project was complete, and now I have the option to do more educational video projects…maybe.
Major Takeaway:
Exploring your passions in a practical way can give you variety but can also help rule out roles or tasks you don’t like with low risk.
Wherever you are on your career journey, start thinking about your skills holistically, not just the ones you use on the job.
Look for ways you can explore new areas of interests and challenge yourself to get out of your comfort zone.
Schedule time for an extra curricular activity that you can handle. This might be just what you need to shift your mindset and engage in a creative outlet.
Develop relationships with people who have similar interests or who may complement your areas of focus. OR, you can join a nonprofit or professional organization to volunteer on a project.
Make technology a core part of your learning. Tech skills are integral to becoming more marketable and a nice enhancement to your resume.
Take a quick course or check out videos, books, and podcasts to gain the insights you need for your topic area.
Once you have completed your project, reflect on the skills you utilized and how they may relate to other areas.
Can you use these skills on the job? How are the skills or knowledge you gained transferable?
How does this experience enlighten your perspective about a certain area?
What new ideas emerge for your career plan as a result of your experience?
Remember, learning is growth that can be applied in many ways. Starting with your passion is a great way to use your transferable skills and enhance your career plan.
~Stacey