# Can SpeedCubing be made a career?



## YrMyKnight (Dec 6, 2011)

As title states above.
Can we make it a career or is it just a hobby?


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## Hershey (Dec 6, 2011)

Like a professional sport? Well, now both Chess and Gaming are sports so...


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## Specs112 (Dec 6, 2011)

I'd prefer for it to stay a niche hobby. Going mainstream would be terrible for the community.


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## RNewms27 (Dec 6, 2011)

Depends on what type of career. Maybe a low-paying one as a cuber. If it becomes commercial by performance then it would be awful.


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## YrMyKnight (Dec 6, 2011)

I've seen ppl making their hobbies as a career,they enter competition and win and start earning big bucks :O


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## tozies24 (Dec 6, 2011)

I wouldn't think so. Cubing is solving a puzzle against the clock and speedcubing has made it a competition into competing against others times. It is more of an indirect competition. It isn't competing against someone else, but competing against someone elses time. 

You could argue that running a race is kind of like speedcubing, but I disagree since all the competitors have the same conditions and not everyone has the same cube and the same method. Runners "BASICALLY" have the same method and have to run the distance no matter what. (don't flame me for not going in to all the slight differences in runner's techniques). But with chess or gaming, you are playing against someone else so there is a direct competition.

Unless cubing just explodes in the next couple years (which I don't really see it doing), then I doubt that this will happen.


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## Escher (Dec 6, 2011)

'Can', sure. It won't be for a very long time though, unless there is a large injection of money into the sport on some level, in terms of monetary prize structures, commercial awareness, sponsorships etc.


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## TheMachanga (Dec 6, 2011)

I'll interpret this question as "Can one quit his job and be a full time speedcuber somehow, today, where speedcubing is currently at. 

mmm, 
1. Be really really good and travel the world winning competitions for money. However, wca comps do not use money as a prize often, and it's definitely not enough to make a living out of when they do.

2. Be really good, maybe be sponsored by Rubik or something, be in a commercial, and get hired by them in an office job on sales or something, idk

3. Be a serious head of the WCA? Does Ron have another job, or is WCA all he does? 

4. Be a cube tester/assembler/designer/seller for a company like Dayan, mf8, rubik, or whatever.


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## YrMyKnight (Dec 6, 2011)

tozies24 said:


> I wouldn't think so. Cubing is solving a puzzle against the clock and speedcubing has made it a competition into competing against others times. It is more of an indirect competition. It isn't competing against someone else, but competing against someone elses time.
> 
> You could argue that running a race is kind of like speedcubing, but I disagree since all the competitors have the same conditions and not everyone has the same cube and the same method. Runners "BASICALLY" have the same method and have to run the distance no matter what. (don't flame me for not going in to all the slight differences in runner's techniques). But with chess or gaming, you are playing against someone else so there is a direct competition.
> 
> Unless cubing just explodes in the next couple years (which I don't really see it doing), then I doubt that this will happen.


 
What you are stating make sense


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## YrMyKnight (Dec 6, 2011)

TheMachanga said:


> I'll interpret this question as "Can one quit his job and be a full time speedcuber somehow, today, where speedcubing is currently at.
> 
> mmm,
> 1. Be really really good and travel the world winning competitions for money. However, wca comps do not use money as a prize often, and it's definitely not enough to make a living out of when they do.
> ...



2nd and 4th are reasonable but 1st. Nay,feliks still has to work next time LOL


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## qqwref (Dec 6, 2011)

Right now? Absolutely not. There isn't enough money in it even if you are the best in the world.

But in the future, I can definitely see it. As more and more people become interested in cubing, even small competitions will start to have larger and larger prizes. Look what's happened to competitive eating in the past 10 years or so. Eventually, I fully expect top-tier cubers to be bringing in six figures a year.


PS: I don't count commercials, office jobs, working in a cube factory, etc. to count as making a career out of speedcubing. That's making a career out of being a businessperson, not out of actually participating in the sport. Big difference there.


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## PandaCuber (Dec 6, 2011)

Donovan from Lubix has a nice job from speedcubing. Job=Money=Career.


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## mdolszak (Dec 6, 2011)

Haha, my mom think's I will make money from cubing someday... 

I don't think cubing will become a full-time job, at least not in the near future.

But as it's been said before, you could make a career out of cube-related things, like designing cubes, cube lubes (Donavan, anyone?), etc.


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## mrpotatoman14 (Dec 6, 2011)

Can it absolutely yes but SHOULD it absolutely not. While I believe people could make enough money to get by, speedcubing should not be a career for many reasons.


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## a small kitten (Dec 6, 2011)

And those reasons are?


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## Hershey (Dec 6, 2011)

a small kitten said:


> And those reasons are?


 
Most likely that "I did ____ before it became popular" stuff.

Personally I think it would be good for cubers to earn money from cubing. There is corruption and cheating in everything, but many people still have some integrity.


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## Cuberguy21 (Dec 6, 2011)

Definitely not.


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## mrpotatoman14 (Dec 6, 2011)

a small kitten said:


> And those reasons are?


 Money in the end would screw the comunity over more and more people would rely on speedcubing as a career and not a hobby ruining it for those in to speedcubing for the community aspect. Cubing is in no way meant to be a job and anything that is a hobby (besides athletics) that one tries to make a career out of faces problems that at first we can’t think of as well. The point of Donovan making money is completely different as he makes money from a cubing store/product. Almost every hobby has a store and a cubing store as a full career is much more likely to be a successful career as stores are needed to the speedcubing community. But, cubing as a career is in no way needed as a job in the world.


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## Hershey (Dec 6, 2011)

mrpotatoman14 said:


> Money in the end would screw the comunity over


 
Did money screw the soccer, basketball, tennis, etc. "comunity" over?


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## TheMachanga (Dec 6, 2011)

mrpotatoman14 said:


> Money in the end would screw the comunity over more and more people would rely on speedcubing as a career and not a hobby ruining it for those in to speedcubing for the community aspect. Cubing is in no way meant to be a job and anything that is a hobby (besides athletics) that one tries to make a career out of faces problems that at first we can’t think of as well. The point of Donovan making money is completely different as he makes money from a cubing store/product. Almost every hobby has a store and a cubing store as a full career is much more likely to be a successful career as stores are need to the speedcubing community. But, cubing as a career is in no way needed as a job in the world.


 
Money.

If cubing was much much more serious than now, cuber would try to get fast just for the money instead of respect from others or peer pressure. People wouldn't go to competitions if they knew they had no chance I guess, and it wouldn't really be fun anymore, knowing that you'll never win because there are people like feliks and rowe.


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## mrpotatoman14 (Dec 6, 2011)

you could say money corrupted sports in some ways but I'm not going to go in to that. Also I mentioned sports specifically as an exception.


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## Stefan (Dec 6, 2011)

TheMachanga said:


> 3. Be a serious head of the WCA? Does Ron have another job, or is WCA all he does?


 
Lol, I don't think anybody earns money with WCA work. Ron might actually "lose" money with it (at least to pay the web hosting).



TheMachanga said:


> If cubing was much much more serious than now, cuber would try to get fast just for the money instead of respect from others or peer pressure. People wouldn't go to competitions if they knew they had no chance I guess, and it wouldn't really be fun anymore, knowing that you'll never win because there are people like feliks and rowe.


 
Don't be ridiculous, please?


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## Cheese11 (Dec 6, 2011)

Hershey said:


> Did money screw the soccer, basketball, tennis, etc. "comunity" over?


 
No, but they aren't as "close" as the speedsolving community.


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## Hershey (Dec 6, 2011)

TheMachanga said:


> People wouldn't go to competitions if they knew they had no chance I guess, and it wouldn't really be fun anymore, knowing that you'll never win because there are people like feliks and rowe


 
Many people are beginners at basketball, but they are not unmotivated because they think they will never be as good as Michael Jordan. Eventually, Rowe and Feliks will quit cubing after some amount of years and then new cubers will come and start to win competitions.



Cheese11 said:


> No, but they aren't as "close" as the speedsolving community.



What do you mean?


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## Cool Frog (Dec 6, 2011)

If you potentially came in first in all the events at world. Could you live a year off of the money? (Homeless traveling to next worlds by foot and practicing on the way?)

I could see A SINGLE professional, only if they won all the events at worlds and lived a much different lifestyle.


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## Robocopter87 (Dec 6, 2011)

(Cool Frog, your Avatar makes me want to get a blind fold and put googly eyes on it)

On topic, The only money being made off of speedcubing is the producing and distributing of cubes. Or to be more specific, the only money that could support a life is the distribution of cubes. Sure you could make a few bucks solving at competitions. I said yes because I thought he meant any aspect of cubing which includes the making and distributing. 

Thats my opinion. 

However, I'm unsure about the conditions of moneymaking as being part of the WCA. No idea if thats a paid job or simply a volunteer thing., I'm sure many volunteer simply because the community is nice and has lots of integrity. 

Speedcubing is different because it has more homelike feeling because you can't make money off of it. 

People shake hands in Cubing, not fists.


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## RNewms27 (Dec 6, 2011)

Yes, Hershey. Lockouts are caused by greed over money. Football brought it back because the players wanted game. Basketball is a joke to ask for money until the season is half over to start.


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## bigbee99 (Dec 6, 2011)

I think that to make a full time job out of just solving the cube would be extremely difficult, unless competitions got really big and had prizes for runner ups, top 4, etc.

And making a full time out of retail is still extremely difficult right now because the market for rubiks cubes just isn't that big right now.


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## AgentKuo (Dec 6, 2011)

The poll should have more options...it currently has two 'no' options.


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## Specs112 (Dec 6, 2011)

AgentKuo said:


> The poll should have more options...it currently has two 'no' options.


 
Petition to add Worcestershire Sauce as an option.


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## YrMyKnight (Dec 6, 2011)

Specs112 said:


> Petition to add Worcestershire Sauce as an option.


 

I;ll keep that in mind


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## AgentKuo (Dec 6, 2011)

Specs112 said:


> Petition to add Worcestershire Sauce as an option.


Anyone wanna sign?

Lol, no, I'm serious. There should be like a "maybe" answer or something.


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## Mike Hughey (Dec 6, 2011)

It's gotten him in some trouble with the WCA (due to some of the specific things he did in pursuing it), but in a way, I think it might be appropriate to consider Haiyan as having done this, for a short time, anyway. He used his appearances at competitions as opportunities to generate further interest and therefore further sales of his cubes.

For many entertainment careers, it's all about finding a way to package your skill so that you can sell it. Professional jugglers are all about this sort of thing. But at the moment, it's pretty clear the only way you could make a career out of cubing is to turn it into some sort of salesmanship.


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## teller (Dec 6, 2011)

Compare this to how difficult it is to be a professional bowler. It's very similar to professional golf. Highly individual sports, no contact. Golf is popular enough that it made Tiger woods rich. But do you know who the champion bowler is this year? Me either. The PBA is really a tough way to make a living, and it's on ESPN! Cubing is a few rungs below this--too small to attract any kind of sponsors other than some cube manufacturers. No cuber is going to appear on a cereal box anytime soon, and that's where the real money is.

Selling cubing software perhaps. But again...the market is tiny. Ask Dan Cohen. Books and DVD's...same issue.

I do wonder what might be possible if the right evangelist were to come along...


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## mycube (Dec 6, 2011)

I think the only chance to make a career is open a SpeedCubing shop. But it´s just indirectly.


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## Stefan (Dec 6, 2011)

Robocopter87 said:


> I'm unsure about the conditions of moneymaking as being part of the WCA. No idea if thats a paid job or simply a volunteer thing.


 
Again: I don't think anybody earns money with WCA work. WCA board, delegates, organizers, website developers... all unpaid volunteers, as far as I know.


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## tozies24 (Dec 6, 2011)

teller said:


> Compare this to how difficult it is to be a professional bowler. It's very similar to professional golf. Highly individual sports, no contact. Golf is popular enough that it made Tiger woods rich. But do you know who the champion bowler is this year? Me either. The PBA is really a tough way to make a living, and it's on ESPN! Cubing is a few rungs below this--too small to attract any kind of sponsors other than some cube manufacturers. No cuber is going to appear on a cereal box anytime soon, and that's where the real money is.
> 
> Selling cubing software perhaps. But again...the market is tiny. Ask Dan Cohen. Books and DVD's...same issue.
> 
> I do wonder what might be possible if the right evangelist were to come along...



It takes money to make money I guess. Investment in something will yield results. That's why people go to colleges and universities and spend a lot of money so that they can have a career that will make them a lot of money after their schooling is done. Cubing does not cost anything at all to do. With less than 100 dollars, you can buy yourself a nice speedcubing set of cubes and practice and get good but the amount of money that you will get back is barely anything unless you win competitions that offer money. Whereas with school, you go there and learn about a lot of things and then you can go apply them to real world problems. Cubing is just a simple puzzle for fun. Golf courses are too, but many people would rather want to go play 18 then to sit around and time themselves playing with some silly puzzle. I could see it happen in maybe 20 years but certainly not now.


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## TheAwesomeAlex (Dec 6, 2011)

it would be hard to make speedcubing be made a career


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