Not Every Insight Needs to Become a Career

Why the question “Why don’t you become a stock market consultant?” misses the point.

A few months ago, I was talking with a classmate— someone who knows I’ve been trading stocks on the side while searching for a UX role. I shared a bit about how I’d been applying UX thinking to market decisions: pattern recognition, systems mapping, hypothesis testing.  

They paused, then said:  

“Why don’t you become a stock market freelancer consultant?”  

It wasn’t meant as pressure. It was probably meant as encouragement. But the moment they said it, something in me recoiled. Not because I hadn’t considered it, but because the question felt like a shortcut—one that skipped over the nuance, the discipline, and the emotional complexity of what trading has actually meant for me.

What Trading Has Actually Been

Trading wasn’t a pivot. It wasn’t a career move. It was a side experiment—something I explored during a long, uncertain job search.  

It gave me structure when I felt adrift. It sharpened how I think about systems, risk, and decision-making. But it also demanded emotional discipline, patience, and a willingness to sit with ambiguity.  

Most of all, it reminded me that not every insight needs to be monetized. Some are meant to shape how we think—not how we earn.

The Misunderstanding

When my classmate asked why I didn’t become a stock market consultant, I realized they weren’t really responding to my process—they were responding to the outcome. A good result, in their mind, meant I should turn it into a service.  

But that skips over everything that made the experiment meaningful:  

- The quiet hours of research.  

- The emotional restraint it demanded.  

- The fact that I was still figuring things out, not packaging them as advice.  

Somehow, we’ve gotten used to the idea that every interest should turn into a career. It’s as if we’re afraid to let something stay personal, or unfinished.  

Trading, for me, wasn’t a performance. It was a way to stay mentally sharp during a long job search. It helped me reframe how I think about systems, uncertainty, and decision-making. But that doesn’t mean it’s ready to be sold—or that I want to sell it.

What I Actually Gained

The most useful thing I’ve taken from trading isn’t some big insight—it’s just the habit of staying curious.  

I read stock market articles almost daily now. Not because I’m chasing trends, but because it helps me understand the world we live in—how companies move, how people react, how systems shift.  

It’s made me more aware of the patterns behind the headlines. And that awareness has quietly shaped how I think about UX too.  

Whether I’m looking at a product or a market, I find myself asking:  

- What’s really driving this behavior?  

- Where are the blind spots?  

- What assumptions are people making without realizing it?  

It’s not about being an expert. It’s about staying sharp, staying curious, and noticing things that others might overlook.

Closing Thought

I’m still exploring this path, and it hasn’t replaced my search for the right UX role. Trading has simply been a side experiment, one that’s helped me stay curious, sharpen my thinking, and feel a bit more connected to the systems around me.  

When people ask why I don’t turn it into a profession, I politely respond that not everything needs to be packaged. Some things are just meant to stretch how we think.  

For me, this experiment didn’t lead to a new job title. It led to better questions. And sometimes, that’s enough.