Well, yes and no,
According to Simon Sinek, bestseller author and an amazing source of inspiration,
People dont buy WHAT you do or HOW you do it, people buy WHY you do it.
With this in mind, we can answer this question.
Is it really that hard to make money with my passion?
From one side, Yes, if your passion is actually not a passion and it's more like a time to time hobby. This will lower the value of your passion which will decrease the level of WHY people should buy WHAT and HOW you do it.
On the other side, No, if your passion is really that passion, you actually don't feel you are "working" on it, which subsequently makes your passion a consistent passion which increases the value of your passion and increases the level of WHY people buy WHAT and HOW you do it.
Let me put this with an example:
Your passion is painting. Is it really that hard to make money with painting?
From one side, Yes, If your passion for painting is not actually a passion and you try to monetize it, you will end up in a maze of anxiety, missed shots, losing money, and eventually quitting your "passion" because you nobody actually bought from you.
On the other side, No, if your passion for painting is really a passion of yours, when you try to monetize it, you will see that every single thing you do has an added value that will make people feel WHY your passion is your passion. From the light touch of your Kolinsky sable-hair brush to the smell of your Winsor & Newton Winton Oil paint, to even the way you sit on the chair while painting in your 24 X 30 Darice Stretched Canvas. Not only by knowing which brand is best but also feeling every single detail of painting, you understand how strong is your passion which will eventually translate into people buying Painting related products or services offered by you.
Of course, there are more parameters inside the answer or this question.
But my point is to show you that understanding if your passion is really your passion makes monetization easy.
Note for me: I really love talking about businesses and monetizing passions. Damnn, so good.
Big hug,
Andres