​Hands-on business instead of saas

I’m a software engineer who’s spent years chasing the startup dream – SaaS ideas, side projects, hunting for product-market fit. Nothing stuck.

I’m seriously considering a pivot into drone photography and videography services. Real estate, commercial clients, that kind of thing. Something where the value is obvious and customers pay without a 6-month sales cycle.

But I’m wrestling with something strange- it feels like a downgrade.

I’m somehow failing by moving from “building scalable software” to running what is, essentially, a local service business. I keep hearing that voice that says: you’re a software engineer, this isn’t what you’re supposed to do.

So I’m asking people who’ve actually been here:

Did you make a similar shift from a white-collar/tech path into something more hands-on or “unglamorous”? Did you regret it?