Only Fans is a social platform that normalizes sex work, fuels hustle culture, and uses a subscription model to turn social currency into cash. It empowers creators to be in charge of their brand and is part of a growing number of platforms that contribute to The Passion Economy.

Young people have borne the brunt of the pandemic, with many schools closed and early careers put on hold. In the face of disruption, a growing number of Gen Zers are using their hobbies to earn a living, taking advantage of the boom in e-commerce to showcase and sell their wares.

With COVID-19 disrupting traditional education, edtech is stepping in to offer alternative forms of learning. And it’s not only children who benefit – by helping tutors reach global audiences, Scoodle taps into the side-hustle mindset at a time when people are struggling to make ends meet.

It’s a strange time to be a ‘self-made’ human. On the one hand, even the most mundane pastimes have been monetised. Whether they’re scrubbing floors or shaking cocktails, people are cashing in on massive audiences and leaving no niche unexplored. On the other hand, larger-than-life entrepreneurs, from Theranos’ Elizabeth Holmes to Fyre Festival’s Billy McFarland, continue to command attention for their flagrant refusal to play by the rules in the name of personal ambition. While exceptional talent and honest trade may have taken a backseat in the age of social selling, do people still believe hard work gets you far? As it turns out, the self-made mythos is as powerful as ever despite societal upheaval testing its limits. Contending with dysfunctional working conditions and a volatile economy, many people continue to see entrepreneurship – and the ruthless ambition that underpins it – as a magic ticket to freedom and fulfilment. And the dream holds strong even when the odds are stacked against it as inflation and environmental threats add layers of unpredictability to everyday life – in the US, 63% of freelancers consider themselves to be financially unstable. That may well be because popular culture is still awash with success stories, from legacy influencers to ‘bootstrap’ billionaires, while the lines between business and pleasure, personal and professional have been all but blurred out. While some people may resist peak ‘personal brand’, the most mainstream of consumers are honing their passions and persona for marketability. Selling out is no longer a source of embarrassment, it’s just what makes the world go round.