I had to kind of take a break from my "for profit" stuff this week. I was starting to be bogged down by the idea of trying to make money off of something I love. While its a good thing to invest time in this area, I began to focus more on becoming "known" and having a presence in the fiber arts community than on actually crocheting. I started thinking constantly about what I've sold and how many people had visited my blog and whether or not anyone liked what I was doing instead of how to bless others with what I do. God has given me a skill, one that others appreciate and can benefit from, and I have been taking advantage of it for personal glory. I don't think its wrong to use the skill for profit, but it is wrong to let it consume me.
Realization of this lead me to spend some time working on "charity squares" for the
Prayer Afghan Ministry that I found through
Crochetville. It made me remember why I love crochet - its simple, easy to take places, and such a stress relief. These squares are not for my profit or my gain, but they did produce something in me - a change of heart!
Any others out there struggle with this? How do you balance working on things for profit/gain and things simply out of the love of crochet and blessing others? How do keep from being consumed by the whole process?
I'd like to do some crochet for profit too, but I get overwhelmed when I think about it. So I just haven't done it yet. I like to help with charities...feels like I'm able to be "selfish" and do my favorite craft while not being selfish at the same time by donating it. Your squares look so soft!
ReplyDeleteI also like crocheting for RAOKs and chairity. I try to have a basket ready with scraps and patterns so when I need a quick project or a break from something, the yarn is right at my fingertips. I'm not always that organized, but I try to keep the basket crochet-ready.
ReplyDeleteThinking about how to make a profit isn't such a bad thiing, but it's very easy to become a number-watcher!