Commissions =/= Compliments
Not sure where this sits on "popular opinions" but I'm going to come out and say it: please don't insist on commissioning someone that is not open for commissions.
I am not just talking about people that have done commission-work and are simply not open for them at the time of your asking--I'm also talking about people that have never taken on commission-work and have no intention of getting into doing commission-work. It's very similar to the hypothetical that I'm sure everyone is familiar with: kid is good with technology and suddenly everyone and their mother flocks to them for free IT help and/or parents volunteer the kid to solve everyone's technology issues without the consent of the kid. Being good at something does not/should not mean that the individual is then obligated to do it for everyone around them.
My example involves handicrafts. I dabble in sewing, knitting, and crochet, among a few other things. I have crochet some amigurumi that I am decently proud of. I've sewn basic clothing and cosplay items. I have knit and crochet(ed?) items that I use in daily life (scarf, hat, handwarmers, etc.). A lot of the time when I wear some of my creations, I end up with friends and/or family coming up and insisting on commissioning me (friends) or outright demanding that I make them one and/or teach their kid to make them one. It's honestly given me anxiety and I think carefully about who I'll be seeing before I decide whether or not to wear or use one of my creations when I go out.
I learned to make the item because I wanted one. I didn't learn with the intention of starting my own shop or doing commissions for other people. I learned to make the item(s) because I wanted one. Unfortunately, some people refuse to understand and come at me with phrases like "wasted talent" in the same breath that they insist I monetize my hobbies.
Pushing someone to monetize their hobby or talent isn't the compliment everyone seems to think it is. Suggesting, insisting, or outright demanding that they do the thing for other people isn't a compliment. It's annoying. If the person with the hobby/talent isn't working on monetizing their thing of their own accord (after being made aware that it is an option), then odds are that they don't want to. Stop shoving the idea down their throat.
Insisting on commissioning someone that isn't doing commission-work isn't the compliment people think it is. In the last month I have had two people come at me for different items that I have made, insisting on commissioning me on-the-spot for the items. It made me really uncomfortable, especially when they continued to insist after I clearly said "I am not confident enough in my skills to make things for other people, paid or not. I'm not comfortable with the idea of taking-on commissions." It didn't feel like a compliment to me after that point.
