- Joined
- Dec 7, 2000
- Messages
- 5,179
David, thanks for a valuable and enlightening thread. We seem to be in a similar boat with hundreds of other makers, in that the day job pays the bills and provides insurance, and leaves enough time for some knifemaking in between. I have nothing to add to what's gone before to answer your questions, merely an anecdote.
My "plan" too, has always been to use the years approaching retirement getting my skills and shop together. Knifemaking - or "making" in general - is what I "do." My job is what pays the bills. Personally I found the long list of orders to be very constraining. I ended up making the same few knives over and over until I had no passion left, because it's creativity that really feeds my soul. This is what tells me that working until I can support our family without knife income is the right choice. Once I've filled the orders I set aside a couple years ago, I don't think I'll take any more orders. I'm going to make what I want and let it sell if that's what happens. If I depended on knifemaking income to support us, that would not be possible.
I realize this is a uniquely non-market-oriented approach and a terrible business plan. With any luck at all, what I choose to make will be sellable and profitable, and I won't end up with a big inventory of white elephants! So far I've been exceptionally lucky in that regard (my current project is probably going to prove the exception
). The thing is, there are so many knives I want to make that if I were constantly filling orders for knives I've made before I'd go nuts. That's no different to me than the paying job, which has the benefit of regular money and insurance.
Now, I must say that my projected retirement date keeps getting pushed out. Could happen that I work at my uninspiring job and make a few knives here and there until I drop dead. Fortunately, I'll have made those few knives that gave me joy.
My "plan" too, has always been to use the years approaching retirement getting my skills and shop together. Knifemaking - or "making" in general - is what I "do." My job is what pays the bills. Personally I found the long list of orders to be very constraining. I ended up making the same few knives over and over until I had no passion left, because it's creativity that really feeds my soul. This is what tells me that working until I can support our family without knife income is the right choice. Once I've filled the orders I set aside a couple years ago, I don't think I'll take any more orders. I'm going to make what I want and let it sell if that's what happens. If I depended on knifemaking income to support us, that would not be possible.
I realize this is a uniquely non-market-oriented approach and a terrible business plan. With any luck at all, what I choose to make will be sellable and profitable, and I won't end up with a big inventory of white elephants! So far I've been exceptionally lucky in that regard (my current project is probably going to prove the exception
). The thing is, there are so many knives I want to make that if I were constantly filling orders for knives I've made before I'd go nuts. That's no different to me than the paying job, which has the benefit of regular money and insurance.Now, I must say that my projected retirement date keeps getting pushed out. Could happen that I work at my uninspiring job and make a few knives here and there until I drop dead. Fortunately, I'll have made those few knives that gave me joy.
