I have put a lot of thought into this for the past few months. I supposed 2022 is better late than never to share a few of my thoughts around what I learned during business school, the US Army, and within the financial services industry. I’ll likely digress into other topics such as adulthood, parenting, and productivity, among other things. For this first post, we’ll talk less about business in the academic sense, and focus on something that is likely much more popular–the side hustle. Now, I won’t get into the merits or otherwise around “hustle” culture, but I will say, if incentivizing people to create, take risks, and ultimately provide a product or service that benefits someone else, who can really be against that?
With that, let’s get into it.
What is a side hustle and will it work for me in 2022?
A side hustle is not a stepping stone. It’s a full-fledged business in itself, and one that’s especially hard to get off the ground. That’s why it’s so important to learn how to create a side hustle that makes money. In fact, creating a side hustle is just as challenging as creating a full-time business. The difficulty lies in the fact that it’s easy to think that the way to make money with a side hustle is to do the same things you’re already doing at your day job. But that’s not the case. You can’t just make the same amount of money you’re making now. You have to make more money. It’s a bit of no-brainer.
The best thing you can do to make more money with a side hustle is to look for ways to get a higher hourly rate. You don’t necessarily have to be a skilled professional to make more money. It helps, but it’s not a requirement. You just need to figure out how to get the most out of your current skills and understand how to effectively market them.
So, how do you create a side hustle that actually makes money?
What follows are 7 key things to consider when creating a side hustle that generates cash flow.
#1 Get Creative
You probably have one or two skills that you’re already using at your day job. But do you know how to use those skills in a way that makes more money? Truth is, most people don’t know how to make money with their skills. That’s why you need to get creative and think about how you can use your skills in ways that aren’t just basic run of the mill offerings. Think about how you can take the skills you have and apply them in ways that are more profitable.
For example, if you’re a graphic designer and you’re already creating ads, logos, and websites for your day job, try creating a portfolio on the side. Then, put together a landing page and reach out to local businesses to see if you can charge them for creating an ad or a logo.
The first step is to get creative. The second part of that first step is to not be afraid to ask for money.
#2 Find a new Skill
If you’re going to succeed with a side hustle, you need to do something that you enjoy. According to one study, 9 out of 10 of people would rather do something more meaningful than have more money. That means that if you’re going to make more money with a side hustle, you need to find something that you enjoy doing. This way, you can earn money while you do something you love, or at a minimum, prefer over something you do not.
And if you’re not enjoying it, then you’re going to want to do it and invest the necessary time and effort to succeed.
#3 Find Your Niche
Finding your niche is critical to succeeding at a side hustle. If you’re going to make money on the side, you need to be able to market it well. Think about it this way. How do you market your day job? You probably market it by talking about your experience or showing your credentials. But what if you were to market it by talking about something else? What if you were to talk about how you’ve helped your clients achieve X, Y, and Z?
Finding your niche can be as easy as answering the questions below…
- What do you enjoy doing that you’re good at?
What do you feel is your special skill or talent?
What do you feel passionate about?
What do you feel most fulfilled doing?
If you can answer these questions, you have already found your niche. All you have to do is take the time and have the patience to do what you love, and you’ll be successful.
To sum up, your niche is what you do best and enjoy most. It’s your ideal lifestyle. It’s your passion, and passion is the key to creating a successful business.
#4 Track your time
If you want to make money on the side, you need to know how long it takes you to complete a task. Use that information to figure out what you should charge for your services.
#5 Take Action
This is likely the most important thing to do in order make money on the side, you need to take action. You can’t just spend all day talking about how you want to make money. You have to actually do it. And if you don’t know how to create a side hustle, then you need to lean on the decisions you’ve already made in your day job.
For example, if you’re a graphic designer and you’ve designed logos for your company, then you already know how to design logos. So, you just need to figure out how to get paid for it on the side.
Fiverr is a great place to get paid to do a range of different tasks like this. You can use Fiverr to earn money by doing things like writing blog posts, creating graphics and logos, editing photos, and making videos. You can sign up to Fiverr and choose the services you want to offer on the website, and you’ll be able to set your own prices for the services. When someone wants to hire you on Fiverr, they will send you a job request to complete for them. You’ll be able to accept or decline the job, and when you accept the job you’ll start working on the project. When you complete the job, you’ll submit it and the customer will then pay you via a payments platform like PayPal.
The great thing about Fiverr is that you can earn A LOT of money. You can actually earn a decent living by completing assignments on Fiverr. One Fiverr seller has earned over $200,000 on Fiverr by offering online marketing services. To be realistic, this likely not going to be your overnight result, however, with a bit of work and ingenuity you can definitely get there.
#6 Start Small
Don’t bite off more than you can chew. If you do, that will likely lead to burnout and ultimately quitting. You really need to start small. This blog is an example. Starting small allows you to test your ideas and prove that they work. Until you can prove that they work, you’re not going to be able to make a consistent income. Test, fail, learn and then try again.
#7 Be Patient
I would say this is as important as #5 on the list. If you want to make money on the side, you need to be patient. That means that you shouldn’t quit your day job in hopes of focusing all of your time and energy on your side hustle. You need to first demonstrate that your business can be successful. It’s all about risk management. Blind risk is stupid. Managed risk is vital. Instead of quitting your job outright, you should set goals and then try to achieve them. For example, if you want to make $1,000 extra per month, then you need to set that goal, achieve it and then build on it. Once you in a position where your cash flow is equal to or greater than your day job, that might be the right time to consider changing professions.
