Choosing a Product - Considering Burn Out

 My daughter loves to bake.  She bakes quite often but not in any sort of routine. (I should have seen this but I didn't.)  Her baked products are delicious and she often gets complements from others who have eaten her creations.  One day she was complaining that she needed to earn more money.  I suggested she bake muffins and cookies for sale.  We could sell them in our farm market and she could receive all the proceeds.  She baked and her baked items sold out quickly.  She enjoyed the money in her pocket.  I asked her to bake on a regular basis for our farm market.  In her excitement of her new earnings she agreed, I think. 

When it came time for her baking to happen, she didn't bake.  We went to market with no baked goods.  Customers asked about them.  I asked her to bake again for us.  She never did.  It turns out that she has to be in the "mood" to bake.  The pressure of baking on a regular schedule was too much for her, even with the promise of cold hard cash in the end.  The motivation wasn't enough.  Baking on a schedule sucked out the joy of the process. 

Her burn out came quickly, almost immediately  Baking had been a relaxing activity. When pressured to bake on a regular basis, her stress level increased, and baking no longer was relaxing. It was stressful.

A few months ago we were set up at a pop-up market in a local neighborhood.  Along with us was a lady who baked breads, muffins, and other baked goods.  She and I got to talking.  Come to find out, she used to own a pretty popular bread bakery in our community.  I had bought breads from there and eaten in their lunch café.  their breads were delicious.  I asked her why she sold.  She told me that after several years she got tired of getting up at 5 am each morning to go into the bakery and bake bread for that day.  She said the business was profitable and she sold it.  This bakery is still open and thriving in our community.  But she just couldn't do it anymore.  It consumed her life and she found she had no more energy for it.  It no longer was enjoyable, but all consuming and sucked the life out of her.  She now works in data entry and bakes on the side.  She sells when she wants in farmers markets and other venues.  Her baking hobby is an enjoyable hobby again.

Back when I was making face masks for the pandemic day in and day out, I was on a roll.  I loved sewing and hadn't sewn in a while so the act of sewing was exciting to me again.  I was motivated not only by the money I was making but also by the urgency of getting the product out to as many people as possible who were desperate for them.  My mornings were packaging and delivering the masks to my various stores selling them.  I then went to the fabric store for more fabric if needed and back home to cut, sew and package for 8+ hours each day.  I sewed into the night stopping around 11pm each night.  This new business gave me something to focus on during the stress of the pandemic.  I was DOING something about warding off this virus.  While the pandemic was extremely stressful, this act of sewing was relaxing to me.  I was productive in the prevention of this virus for my community.  This routine went on for quite a few months.  Eventually demand for the masks tapered off and my routine slowed.  I filled my days with other things.  When I would receive an order for masks, I found myself having to build up the motivation to sit back down at my sewing machine.  I found that I was beginning to procrastinate until the last minute to fulfil the orders.  This was when I knew I was getting burned out.  I was no longer excited and motivated to do the work to make these masks.  Eventually I was glad to pack up the material and put away my sewing machine for a while.  Today, I still love to sew and I continue to sew items for sale, but I have to pace myself, knowing that too much of one thing will burn me out.

When choosing a product to sell, if you choose to make your product, consider the possibility of burn out. 

Ask yourself a few questions:

1.  Is this potential business a current hobby? 
2. How does this hobby make you feel? 
3. Do you think that by making this hobby a business, it will change the way you feel about this hobby?
4. Can you keep up with potential sales?
5. Will you be hiring help to create the item(s)?

If your item you choose is labor intensive, or requires a heavy routine to create, you may find yourself burning out.  Managing your time and efforts is important to the longevity of your item. 

Look for your passion.  Find a product that will continue to motivate you, perhaps challenge you.  Look for how this product sparks your joy.  Is it in the process?  Is it seeing your customer's excitement or fulfillment by buying this product from you?  Is it in the money that you will make?  Is it in the process of the sale?

Your product/service should continue to bring you fulfillment each and every time you sell.