Do You Really Want to Turn Your Hobby Into a Job? Don’t Be So Quick to Envy Me.
One day I asked a close friend, “If you hate your job so much, why do you keep doing it?” He snapped back, “Not everyone gets to do what they love for a living. Not everyone turns their hobbies into a career like you.” I didn’t argue, but his words cut deep. Because that moment made me realize—even someone close to me didn’t understand what it actually took to get here. Image: Grade 7, school outing. Little Johnny wearing a red cap backwards and dark sunglasses sits cross-legged, playing a white recorder. Dressed in a green shirt with a name tag, surrounded by other kids outdoors. [ ] People see me on stage, a blind martial artist winning medals, giving interviews, being featured. They don’t see the hundreds of hours I’ve spent conditioning, doing pushups until my arms give out, fighting through injuries, or navigating public transit alone just to make it to a training session. They see the spotlight, not the shadows behind it. They see me teaching self-defense to blind and visuall...
