The humble side hustle is actually a really smart move. Did you know that the average millionaire has at least three streams of income
Whether your goal is financially-motivated or not, there are so many reasons why you need to consider having something else to work on outside of your day job.
What happens if you lose your job suddenly, if illness prevents you from being able to work, or some other totally unexpected bill or payment lands in your lap?
Here is the thing about side-hustles. The point is not to work harder or longer. It is to work smarter.
Your 9-5 is great because you know you get paid a certain amount each hour, and whether you are actually working non-stop each hour or not, you will get your base payment.
However, in the same way that it guarantees you earn your hourly wage, it also limits you. Everyone has the same number of hours in the day, and if you’re capped at the amount you earn per hour at work, then you can work harder than the boss and still walk home with the same wage you would have after a day of half-energy work.
How do You Earn Money In Your Sleep?
No matter which side hustle you go for, you must be leveraging your time. The more times you can be paid for your time investment, the better. Earning money in your sleep is actually not a crazy idea. Lots of people have figured out how to invest their time and money in their waking hours so it pays back overnight, whether that be through international direct marketing businesses, or creating online courses which can be accessed and paid for at any time.
The key to earning money in your sleep is going for something scalable. Most good direct marketing businesses operate internationally and are built to generate tiny streams of residual income which start to add up.
E-book publishing is another example of this. It’s more scaleable than traditional publishing, because you can theoretically sell an unlimited number of e-books in an hour, whereas in traditional publishing, you, of course, can only sell as many books as you actually have printed.
In this post, we’re going to cover the most common issues people come across when considering their side hustle.
I’ll go through how to pick when you have no (or too many) ideas, and how to make sure you are choosing something that can pay you residual income even at the times when you aren’t actually working.
Problem: You Have a Different Side Hustle Idea Every Week!
One week, it’s app development. The next, a bitcoin investment, or maybe writing romantic e-books?!
First up, I love your creativity and passion. Indecision is something you can work with.
It’s a cliché, but the best idea you have is probably the one you are thinking about right now.
At some point, you have to stop dreaming and start doing.
If you haven’t got any one idea which is calling you to work outside your day-job, then your indecisiveness may actually be a gift. You can pick your hustle based on effectiveness, rather than emotional attachment to a hobby that you want to turn into a business.
On the most basic level, this is what you need your side hustle to be:
- Something you are willing to spend time doing. It sounds so simple, but it needs to be said. If you have a friend who’s making good money refurbishing used electronics? Doesn’t mean it’s going to be your thing. Pick something that you would do for fun as well as getting paid.
- Scaleable. This is when it starts to get a bit realistic. If your overall goal here is to make money, then think carefully before entering into a business where you either have to make the products yourself, or you are selling a service 1-1. This model will cause your income to be limited by the number of products you can make, or the number of people you can work with in a day.
- Structured. I’m saying this because you picked the most indecisive option – this means that you are maybe going to have to work harder to stay motivated than someone who is working on a dream job as a side hustle. Consider looking at something which has a path mapped out for you, whether it be training as a coach, or starting a direct marketing business with a reputable company.
Problem: You Don’t Have The Time/Money for A Side Hustle
Welcome to the club, my friend!
Unfortunately, relatively few people start their side hustle as a way to use up all that spare time they have on their hands.
Here’s a tip for you, as you begin to research your new side-hustle life. Whatever you pick, don’t think of it as a one-year plan. Let’s think five, maybe even ten years. If that sounds like too long for you, then you aren’t just looking for a side-hustle. You’re probably looking for a new job altogether.
So many people start and expect to be earning bucket-loads within a few months, but no matter which industry you jump into, that actually isn’t all that realistic.
You can cut yourself a little slack as long as you are working solidly and consistently towards your goals, and you have a path in mind for your business. Yes, we want to create a brilliant alternative form of income for you, but patience is the little-recognised partner of the hustler. It’s all about putting in steady work, planting little seeds for your business, and getting fruit a few years down the line.
Here’s another reality check – you really do have to spend money to make money. Not much, ideally. But there are very few side-hustles out there that don’t involve a bit of expense, whether that be paying for materials, training, a website, joining fees, whatever.
I get it: you’re maybe in debt, not financially in the place you envisioned and calculating that you might be able to afford a mortgage in about 185 years given today’s interest rates. But if you keep on doing what you’re doing, then how much more do you expect to be earning in 5 years?
It’s easy to put off your idea because you feel like you can’t justify spending a few hundred pounds on getting started. Well, it’s another cliché, but the best investment you can make is in yourself. Comb through your finances, work out where you can save up the money, and give it a go. Doubt kills more dreams than failure ever could.
Problem: You Want to Quit Your Job
Some people want to earn a million because of the status.
Others just want to replace their current, full-time, income with something flexible so they can take their kids to school each day.
If you’re currently working full time in something that you don’t love, then it is time to change that. You can earn more money, but you can never earn yourself more time, so the choice on where you spend it is huge.
If your goal is to quit your job so that you can have more control over how you spend your time, then here are the things to consider:
- Reverse engineer. Let’s say you currently earn around £1500 a month working full-time, but you have a passion that you want to follow. Let’s say that it’s candle-making. Now, we need to establish the price of your product (RRP minus making costs to you) and figure out how many candles you need to sell a month to make your current income. Number looking higher than the number of hours that you have? Then that isn’t the hustle for you. HOWEVER if it’s your passion and you really want to do it? Let’s consider things that you could do which would give you more money from less time investment so you can make your candle-business materialise.
- Make sure that you have the support you need. Juggling a job and a family? Your partner/friends will probably think you’re crazy if you start talking about adding something ELSE into the mix. Don’t waste too much time trying to convince them, rather, choose something where you know you can get the support you need. Direct marketing can be a great way to start something where there are lots of training materials available, and make sure that you have an awesome mentor who really understands your motivations and challenges.
Problem: You Want to Learn New Skills
No matter which side-hustle you go for, you can bet that you’ll probably start improving your skills in the following areas without even realising it:
- Communication. Whether you’re a freelance editor or selling art online you will find yourself talking to new people a lot more. This might be potential clients, people who can help you with problems you didn’t have before you started, and maybe even people who are interested in what you’re doing and just popped up to chat. Whether you’re normally a social butterfly or an introvert, this is a pretty cool skill to work on.
- Digital marketing. Whether you like it or not, a whole lot more business is done online these days. If you aren’t au fait with social networking platforms, blogging, Facebook live videos or starting a website, then you will certainly learn more as part of your journey, whether you mean to or not.
- Organising. You might already consider yourself a pretty well organised person but truly leveraging your time means making it work pretty hard. The good thing is, you really don’t need to figure this all out alone. You just need to have a goal in mind and figure out how you’re going to reverse-engineer it.
No Problem! Shall we get started?
Feeling fired up? Even just a tiny bit hot under the collar?
Awesome!
If you have even the tiniest inclination that you want to try working a little side hustle – just go for it. Seriously. The gains, and not just financially-speaking, are huge.
We’ve talked through the common worries people might have when thinking about the best side hustle for their lifestyle. We explored the skills you’ll pick up no matter the hustle, and covered the basics of picking something that allows you to leverage your time and earn money in your sleep.
The final point to really hit home here is that you really don’t have to do this by yourself. Reach out to people you admire who are working a side-hustle. Speak to a coach, connect with people who have the skills you need to build, and give yourself the chance of success.
Personally, I have built a business I am really proud of through direct marketing.
I am also a business coach, and I would love to have a fifteen minute call with you to talk about your goals.
If you’ve read this post and you are intrigued, then let’s put that energy to some good use, shall we? Book your call today, I can’t wait to have a chat!
