A topic that doesn't get talked about often is the cost of turning a hobby into a career. I've seen it happen both within and outside of the 3D industry - passionate artists turning their hobbies into a career and inevitably falling out of love with both. It's an unfortunate consequence to turning something you dabble in into something you do forty hours a week. It goes without saying, but many 3D art enthusiasts fall for the trap of turning their hobby into their career - I should know, I'm one of them.
While I don't consider it a mistake that I've turned what was essentially a hobby into my primary career, I still do feel the need to voice a warning to those seeking to do so. Let me preface this post by explaining that I don't aim to deter anyone from following their dreams or following a certain career path, however, there are many things that I wish I was told before heading down this path, and I aim to share them here with anyone reading.
If you're already working your dream artistic job, there may come a time where you get the urge to work on a personal project; you pull up several cool references, boot up a fresh instance of Maya or 3ds Max, and... Nothing. No motivation, no drive. You scratch your head and wonder to yourself, 'Why is this not clicking - I can do this, but why don't I feel like doing it?' Well, I have some unfortunate news for you - you might be experiencing some level of burnout.
As you probably know already, experiencing burnout isn't a new concept. It happens to athletes, workers, celebrities, musicians, and even artists like yourself. It happens to the best of us - you're super passionate and driven ready to take on the world, and then one day you're not. Whipping out personal projects used to be an easy feat, until one day it isn't. As discouraging as it sounds, it's not the end of the world, in fact, I'd argue that experiencing burnout is perfectly normal! With that said, here are my quick tips to help you deal with burnout:
Stop overworking yourself. It happens to everyone - you take on a new job and feel the need to "prove your worth" to your boss and your boss' boss. You find yourself working overtime constantly to finish projects early, or maybe you take on one too many projects at once to try to impress your coworkers. Don't do that. Instead, work efficiently - as the saying goes, "Work smart, not hard." Finish projects early and be the best you can be, but don't overwork yourself. You're no use to your employers if you burn out a year into your job and lose all of the momentum that you've had before.
Enjoy your days off. I had to learn this myself, but enjoy your days off. When you're not working, don't work. This ties into my previous point, but I can't emphasize it enough how quickly "always being available" can burn out new artists. Instead, when you're off, enjoy your time off. Spend time with the family, indulge in whatever shows or video games you enjoy, turn off your phone. Do whatever you can to mentally and physically recuperate, then when you get back to work, work your heart out!
Find new hobbies. My boss once told me that because he does 3D work for forty hours a week, he never touches it during his time off. Instead, he indulges in other hobbies. I quickly followed suit and began enjoying other hobbies as well that has nothing to do with 3D or even computers. Currently, I really enjoy weightlifting, and it's something that I really look forward to daily. My point is, is that you should find a hobby that has nothing to do with your career - something to help keep you grounded in the event that you truly fall out of love with your passion and have nothing else to do in your free time.
Ever since I started working in the field of 3D as a career, I truly struggled with starting new personal projects. Every once in a while, I'll visit Artstation for some inspiration, but I never truly get the drive to work on anything new, and if I ever do, the feeling quickly subsides as I dip my toes into any new projects. As stated in a previous point, even my boss doesn't typically work on personal projects in his free time, which is such as huge relief to me.
With that said, if you ever do decide to venture into a career that correlates with your hobby, don't be surprised if you're eventually unable to take on personal projects. It can be a genuine struggle to maintain the momentum needed to get through a personal project, should you start one, but completing one on your own terms can still be satisfying nonetheless. With that said, here are a couple of quick tips that I've learned to help me get through personal projects.
Experiment. Personal projects are meant to be fun and experimental. If you ever take on a personal project, ask yourself if there is a workflow or program that you typically wouldn't use that you'd like to experiment with. See if it succeeds, and see if there's a way for you to integrate this workflow into your standard processes.
Don't overthink it. A trap that I've fallen for in the past is being too "in my head" whenever I work on a personal project. There have been numerous times where I've overthink little things such as lighting, materials, and even the models that I create, leading to a significant deterrence in both my morale and progress. If you work on a personal project, try not to get stuck in your head. Instead, try to make continuous progress in getting the work done.
Use references. If you're an artist, you have probably had it drilled in your head that using references is vital to any project, which is true. If you ever find yourself stuck at any point in a personal project, gather references and cover your bases.
One thing I wish I was told was the imminent fork in the road you'll face when considering the future of your career. I love what I do - I consider 3D visualization to be a very satisfying job with loads of potential in the near future as the demand for it grows. But in terms of my career, I've hit a bit of an impasse - not because I can't move forward, but because I don't know where I want to go from here. Most artists may consider their passion their career, until it isn't, and at that point, they have to make a tough choice. Do they continue pursuing their passion in hopes of finding it again, or cut their losses and pursue something else? I've known many who were faced with that choice, and unfortunately, it seems like it will soon be my turn to make that choice.