From hobby to side hustle
Need extra cash? You have an unlimited source in the palm of your hand – literally. You can take anything that you enjoy doing and make it into a paying side business as long as it is legal, moral, and acceptable. Yes, I had to say it, there is always someone out there that can turn anything positive into a negative.
If you like to do: sewing, knitting, cooking, gardening, woodwork, painting, art, walking, jogging, hiking, photography, sailing – you get the idea, this list can go on forever. Literally anything you like doing can be turned into a paying activity with a little creativity.
You can spend 4 hours, 8 hours, any amount of time on it that you like. There are no rules.
My son in law loves to create smoked meats and cheeses in his spare time. People loved what he did and they told their friends and before you can say Rip Van Winkle he was doing a lucrative full time gig.
Another friend loved gardening, it is his Zen time, he needed a little extra cash so I suggested he go to a few places in his neighbourhood and offer to garden for some elderly neighbours – a perfect win/win.
Another friend of mine wanted some extra cash and she loved walking so I suggested she canvas the area and see if people would be interested in having her walk their dogs. Yup , you guessed it, she now makes over $ 500 a week helping homebound dog owners give their pets some exercise. Not bad for a few hours work a week.
Several friends of mine have products they sell. One in particular, loves to do glass art, and he goes to street markets and craft fairs and he walks away with an average of $ 4000 a weekend.
You can do it too!
Steps to take:
- Make a list of all the things you like doing that can be shared with others.
- Prioritize them in order of most enjoyable to least.
- Pick the top three and come up with as many ways you can monetize each activity.
- From there pick the one that interests you the most.
If you are stuck, you can set up a complimentary chat with me by clicking here to brainstorm together.
- Write a one sentence mission statement about what you want to do. That’s a fancy way of saying a clear description of what your service or product is. I.E. “I bring beauty to you by keeping your yard impeccable.” Or “I give your pet vitality by walking it regularly.” “I offer fabulous 4 hour cruises on the weekend for you and your friends.”
- Come up with a catchy name for your product/service. I find that by making a list of 10 – 20 names I get through all the noise and come up with a name that is a winner. Ask your friends and family for help, they might even know someone who could use your service or product. I.E. “Pristine Gardeners”, “Peppy Pet Walking”, or “Escape the rush cruising”.
- Design a business card. You create your own logo, or design one online, or if you know an artistic friend have them help you, or go to a local school or college and have students’ design one for you and give them a small prize.
- Take the same design and make a 8.5 x 11 poster and go door to door and drop them into mailboxes. Very inexpensive, but effective.
- You can take the same poster and add you phone number on tear off strips on the bottom and post them on billboards.
- If you are making a product you can sell them in several ways:
- Go to markets and craft fairs.
- Sell them online through Shopify, Etsy, E-bay etc.
- Partner with local businesses who will sell your goods on consignment. An artist friend of mine has her cards and small art pieces being sold that way.
- Have student groups or sports team sell your product as a fundraiser. I have a friend that is doing that with a book he wrote.
These are all easy steps that anyone can do, and cost very little. You control that amount of time you want to spend and how much money you want to make.
On the other hand, you can easily turn what you start into a full time gig.
If you need any help set up a free chat by clicking on this line