This is so inspiring to read!! Congrats! I'm a hobbyist photographer. I don't want to go pro, but feel like I should be able to squeeze some (tangible) value out of this skillset.
I think my tips would be to think of what content people will buy. Lots of people near me focus on beaches or random public places which have limited commercial opportunities. One of my focal points has been wineries[1]. You can sell the content to the winery, to the local wine association, to tourism authorities, to wine trade, wine tours, and so on. And there are ways to do it where you come across like a helper rather than a salesperson. Then you persist until people are approaching you to commission shoots.