How come Pinkie never decided to join the circus and become one of the clowns or even a ringmaster? I know she throws parties because she thinks it makes people happy, but don't circuses do the same thing?

I think she needs to see the smiles directly. She wants the smiles and the joy she brings to others to be unique.

It’d be really hard to throw parties when you’re always traveling.

7751552
She probably wanted to settle down and stay in one place most likely. A permanent home of her own.

That being said, we've seen her in a Clown's guise before, and I would not object to having had more of it.

7751552
I think it’s because she likes where she lives as Ponyville’s Permanent Party Planner.

Spreading joy nationwide would be fun, but there’s no place like home for Pinkie.

7751552
I chalk it to fate. She could have been a clown but perhaps she was hungry so she felt inclined to make a party. If she saw a circus maybe she would have wanted to be a clown.

I can see her being a clown in an alternate universe.

7751552

Probably because she's a pony who wants a hometown and friends; a traveling circus is a pretty limited social environment.

It would be a pretty interesting AU for a fic, tho.

7751552

Most likely it's because throwing parties isn't just one of the main ways Pinkie makes others happy, she's passionate about parties (she got her Cutie Mark from throwing a party), so there wasn't much point in her going out of her way to give up parties and join a circus. Although it does seem like something she might would want to do from time to time, or in an AU where she made her family laugh by doing some clown act and got her Cutie Mark that way.