As somewhat of the more business-minded person throughout my entire family and extended family structures, I’ve always been the sort of go-to person for career advice which extends beyond the business realms. Nephews, nieces and some of the younger cousins and distant cousins I have are made to come and talk to me by their parents and I’m always willing to offer up what little knowledge I have, of course.
I can imagine how different things would have been if I was an artist and was generally seen to be “painting pictures and wanting to get paid for it” as that can often become the perception around those of us who make a living out of creating things.
What usually doesn’t sit too well with me however is how the parents of the kids who send them to me for some career advice often want me to steer them in a specific direction of the parents’ choosing, often discouraging the kids from pursuing careers they deem to be risky or not having too many prospects. I suppose they’re only looking out for their children’s best interests, but that’s no less of the case with the advice I go on to give as well.
So what I always tell them is that both their requirements or desires can be met in the middle. There’s always a link between any two careers or fields you can think of. It’s just a matter of knowing how to discover it or create it in the case that none seems to be in obvious existence.
Take the interior design field for example – there are so many spin-off businesses and careers I’ve seen people branch out into and in some cases completely pivot to, very successfully too! Allow me to discuss a couple of them just to drive my point home:
Real Estate
This is like one or more of those neurons contained in someone’s brain in that the many branches which can develop from a single pathway are only limited by the imagination, developing and expanding as the need arises. Real estate is indeed a spin-off career which is quite common amongst interior designers who realise that they can make a lot more money by selling houses and earning commission instead of just doing up their interiors.
You can start off slowly and small by first referring buyers to an existing realtor for commission and then you can perhaps endeavour to study for your own certification on a part-time basis.
Events Management
A fellow colleague and entrepreneur who was roped in to do something a little beyond her usual interior design work ended up fully going into events management when her condolence gift ideas proved to be a real hit during a memorial service hosted at one of her client’s homes.
In both the abovementioned cases there are plenty more possibilities to branch out into, such as real estate law or gifts distribution maybe, or you can just extend your earnings through sales on a commission basis.
