Starting a business when not particularly money-motivated

[patch45]

Wondering if anyone else has this quasi-issue:

I'm 30, have a solid nest egg (~580k invested), and make good money (~290k/yr pre tax). I work in software, and feel pretty confident I can maintain or increase this earnings level for the foreseeable future.

I've got my frugal habits down, finding jobs has always been easy, and as such I don't really think about money that much any more. I don't pour much energy into my career. Mostly just do my job, then focus on spending time with my friends, family, and hobbies.

One think I'm envious of with MMM and a lot of people here is the entrepreneurial streak many seem to have. They can't seem but help making money. I'd love to come up with a part time business that I could run, that would solve some problem people deem worth paying to solve. But I can't seem to get my head in that space. I don't really need the extra income right now, I more want to apply myself a bit more than my career demands, and ideally have something fun to do for a "soft retirement" that still brings in some cash. My hobbies are all outdoor sports, and the software market (my only marketable skill AFAIK) is quite saturated.

Not trying to humblebrag or anything, just wondering if anyone else has found themselves in a similar situation, and if they learned anything out of it?

[ixtap]

DH taught personalized coding classes for about half what the parents were paying for group classes for all their kids' other extra curriculars. He bought so many arduinos and support materials that it took him six months of teaching these classes to break even.

As a teacher, I can always find volunteer positions to use my skills.

Some people talk about how they can't help but make money, some of us just aren't motivated enough by it.

If you have an idea, follow through with it. If you see a problem that intrigues you, pick at it. See where that leads, rather than wracking your brain for a way to start any old business. I am pretty sure this is actually how MMM got going, it just really, really took off.


As for never having trouble finding a job, I'd your career is only 8-9 years old, I sure hope so, as we have had record unemployment and job growth in that time. Make sure you are putting effort there so that even if you end up laid off it is clearly not due to being an underperformer.