Should your family support your career, no matter what it is?

There are so many ways to make money in this world, and not all of them are expected career paths. More than ever, we’re learning about all the ways that you can make money that aren’t so easy to list on a resume. The person in this story, who was shared to a subreddit, certainly had an unconventional job. There are gigs, niches, and avenues that exist now that didn’t exist 20 years ago, and just because they’re unexpected doesn’t mean that they aren’t legitimate or lucrative. Plenty of people might not fit into a certain bucket, but they still have vibrant careers. We should celebrate this, not diminish it. We can all learn from each other’s career paths, and we don’t have to do what’s expected of us. That doesn’t mean that everyone is going to understand, though. Sometimes our careers are just too far-out for the people in our lives, and that’s okay. 

But just because you don’t understand something doesn’t mean you shouldn’t respect it. We all deserve to feel like our ideas and contributions are being treated seriously and not dismissed. Maybe you have a hobby that the people in your life don’t understand. If they make you feel bad about it, that’s their fault. It’s not your fault for failing to have a legible career path. It’s their fault for making you feel bad about it. That’s what happened here, to this woman who found an unconventional way to fulfill her dreams.