Start a Side Hustle to build up your income as a self-employed person while still having the security and safety of a day job.
Starting a Side Hustle can not only increase your income but also open up career-changing possibilities that you would never have found at your regular job. Some side hustles led to new careers, surprising useful relationships and lifelong friendships. It has also helped me build my business as a content marketer consultant.
It is not easy to build a profitable side hustle with limited time. Prioritization is key, as well as a shift in the way you think about what’s important in your daily life. You also need to be creative and persistent.
There are several reasons why you should build your side hustle from scratch, customer by customer. One of the most powerful incentives is to make more money in addition to your regular salary, especially during a volatile economic climate. You can grow a business based on a long-standing hobby.
A side hustle can be a great way for entrepreneurs to achieve financial independence. You can use your side hustle to pursue what you are passionate about, if you do not find satisfaction in your full-time job. You can use the extra money and flexibility to pursue your passions, travel the world or care for the planet.
Many Americans, including myself, have started side hustles in the form of freelancing and consulting as well as other online businesses. According to a study conducted by LinkedIn ProFinder in 2016, more than 331,941 Americans are currently freelancing alongside their regular jobs.
The flip side isn’t as exciting. While many people have dreams of being an entrepreneur, it isn’t the most realistic. It is not a secret that the vast majority of new businesses ( 9 out of 10 ) are doomed.
You can trust me. I’ve seen it. My first business joined the 90 percent of businesses that failed in a blaze. I’ve learned hard lessons and made drastic changes to my business. Here is a 10-step guide that will help you avoid making the same mistakes. As an entrepreneur, you need to start small and grow with your customers. This is where side hustles come into play.
Here are 10 tips to help you start your side hustle while keeping your main job.
1. Prepare for the Long Haul
Tony Robbins, a businessman and philanthropist, told me recently that “business success is 80% psychology and 20% mechanics”. This means that you won’t get very far without the grit and determination to help your customers solve real problems. Before you embark on a side business (or start any other type of business), ask yourself how much you want to be successful. You shouldn’t expect to be successful overnight if you are just experimenting with an idea or thinking about how to strike it rich.
You’ll lose precious time with your family, friends and other people when you start working a side gig. It takes a lot of effort to be successful with a side hustle, especially if you spend the majority your day at your full-time occupation. You should ask yourself if you are willing to sacrifice in order to succeed. You can build a successful side hustle if you’re willing to make sacrifices, create a system that supports your self-discipline, and put in extra effort.
2. What are your skills and areas of interest?
Never go into a battle unprepared for the challenges that you will face. You must have the relevant experience, skills or knowledge of your industry to support your side hustle if you want quick results. Business success is only possible when the right skills and interests are combined. Mark Cuban, a billionaire investor, recently told me that your business will only succeed if you are “good at what you do and love doing it.”
Many musicians, for example, monetize their talents by offering online lessons in guitar, violin, or piano. Some creatives have lucrative side hustles such as graphic artists and digital storytellers. There’s no time like the present to acquire key skills related to your interests and the side hustle that you wish to start.
3. Validate your side hustle with one paying customer
You may think your side hustle is a great idea, but it’s unlikely that customers will agree. Most likely, they will ignore it as most “brilliant” ideas that have been released and productized.
You need to test your side hustle with a paying client before you get too far in the business. This is to ensure that you are not solving a problem which doesn’t exist. In a CB Insights report, the “lack market need” was cited as the leading cause of startup failures. Be warned: there’s a high chance that you are nurturing an idea which not enough people find valuable. If nobody wants your service or product, all the time, energy and effort you invested in developing it will be wasted.
Validate whether your service or product will be successful in the real-world to avoid this. This can be done by asking potential customers for objective feedback and to sign up on a waiting-list, purchase your solution in advance or hire you. Consider other opportunities and quickly abandon those ideas that don’t get a positive reaction.
4. Distinguish yourself from your competitors
If you haven’t created a product or service completely new and unique, you will likely be competing with other players who are already catering to your target audience. The competition is a part of business. In almost any niche, your competitors will strive to outperform you, grab as many customers as possible, and innovate beyond you.
You can prevent this by securing your value propositions through a competitive edge. Your competitive advantage can be anything which differentiates your company from your competitors. It can be anything from low (or smart) prices, aggressive sales tactics to higher profit margins. Your competitive edge is what will make customers choose you and keep coming back to buy more.
5. Define clear goals
Dreaming big is a good thing. When it comes to making your side hustle successful, you won’t get anywhere if you aim for the goalposts straight from the game. To achieve your bigger goals, you must start small and incremental. It’s now time to bring on your second satisfied customer. Next, your third, then fourth, and so on.
You’ll be overwhelmed if you start by setting a goal of 1,000 customers, instead of one. There are many things to do before you can handle that number. I have found that setting daily, weekly, and monthly goals is a great way to develop good habits and prepare yourself for success. The SMART Goals Criteria is a good framework for formulating goals. The acronym SMART was developed by Peter Drucker. It stands for Specific, Measurable Achievable Relevant Time-bound.
6. Set Milestones that Force You to Launch
It is important to launch, monetize and iterate a good, viable idea for a side hustle. Do not obsess about building the perfect solution if you do not know exactly what your customers want. You’ll waste time if you remain in a perpetual dream state. Draw up a simple plan of action that will guide you through the entire process, from the beginning to the launch date. Keep your deadlines. Tell friends and family, be accountable, and avoid making excuses. Follow the steps necessary to reach each milestone. Never aim for perfection as it will slow you down and stop you from launching any product.
7. You can delegate work that is not your expertise
You know what your strengths are. You cannot be great at everything and you should not want to. You’ll have weaknesses if you start a side business. This means that you will need to find other skills to run your side hustle efficiently.
You might excel at management and accounting, but your graphic-design skills may turn your audience off instead of attracting them to your message. Do what you’re good at, and outsource the rest. I would advise against learning new skills unless it is directly related to your interests and business needs. Outsourcing is an effective and easy to implement alternative. In the long term, it’s more affordable as your time is worth more.
8. Ask for Real Customer Feedback
You’ll put your side hustle at serious risk of failure if you don’t get feedback from the first customers. You might be planning to create a product which doesn’t solve your customers’ problems in the best way possible. You’re more likely to execute your plan without objective feedback from an external source, and then invest time, effort, and money in the process. You’ll be forced to improve your solution by internalizing harsh criticism.
9. How to Avoid Being Fired from Your Job
You shouldn’t use company resources or work on a side hustle when you are at the office. It’s not only unethical but also likely in violation of your employment agreement that you signed when you started working. It’s important to adhere to all the terms of your contract and deliver consistently excellent results at your job, even as your side hustle gains momentum. If you compromise your work quality and reputation at the office, you will be unable to re-engage with or even partner with your former employers when you become a full-time business owner. Non-compliance with contract terms may lead to disciplinary or even legal actions. I learned this the hard way.
10. Create a sustainable flow of customers before quitting your day job
I would never recommend leaving your day-job until you have a side hustle that provides you with cash flow that is sustainable and growing, which is at least 75 per cent of what you are paid by your day-job. You should not take on a risk unless you have a good chance of success.
You should also have enough savings to last at least six months, both for personal and business use. This will help you in the event that your side hustle doesn’t take off as fast as expected. In the beginning of your side hustle, you will be able to tell if your business is successful by how many customers are excited and how they convert into revenue. You should resist the urge to quit immediately if you are supporting a family.
How to Make Your side hustle a success
The data shows that the chances of most new businesses succeeding are still low. This shouldn’t stop you from doing meaningful work as a self-employed person. When you are employed full-time and your expenses are covered, it is the best time to start a business. Consider your full-time job as insurance against the risks that you will be taking to test the viability your side hustle.
