My working life has been a transition from one side hustle to the other. Most of the time I have at least two hustles going on at the same time. As of today, I teach dance, I do event photography in Montreal, and I create brochure style websites.
Another example of a serial side hustler in my friend Mona Andrei who is a communication specialist, an award-winning humor blogger, a columnist, a ghostwriter, an author, and a podcaster.
Here at three tips for starting a side hustle while keeping a full time job
You don’t have to quit your job to start a side hustle. In fact, I wouldn’t recommend it. You can start out slow, and keep the security and comfort of your job while starting something new. If making extra money on the side isn’t for you (and it’s not for everyone!) then you can easily stop and go back to your normal routine with little or no loss and regret.
Where to Find the Extra Time
You wake up early, go to work on time, and come home late. How the heck are you supposed to find time to earn an extra income on a side hustle? If you’re single, maybe you can spare a couple hours each night to work on a project. If you’re married and/or have children, finding even a glimpse of free time can be near impossible.
Here are 3 tips that will help you find some extra time:
- Notice Your Free Time. Even though you have long days, you do have some free time that you can use to your advantage. If you add up your morning commute, your morning break, your lunch break, your afternoon break, your commute back home, time at the gym, and some of the free time you have at home (after the kids are asleep?), you might find an extra 2 to 4 hours in there.
- Compound your Activities. We often don’t realize how we can prudently use our time. On your commute to and from work, what do you do? Do you listen to the radio? Do you read if you are in the metro? I listen to an educational or informative podcast every time I am out and about. If I am on the metro, or waiting in line I always have something to read. I often see people playing video games or scrolling on social media while in the metro and I think about the wasted opportunity to learn something new.
- Stop Watching So Much Television. If you do a quick Google search, “Average Time Americans Spend Watching TV,” you will get about 4 to 5 hours per day. That’s a lot of TV watching. When I came to Canada (1998) I gave up watching TV all together. I haven’t owned a TV since then. Occasionally I watch a movie on my laptop, but in general I rather read or write. If you give up your TV, for sure you will have more time to work on your side hustle, or work on other self improvement parts of your life. A bit of boredom and emptiness opens the door for creativity or taking some kind of action in your life.
Do you have any tips to start a side hustle? If so, share it with the rest of us.
Previous Side Hustle blog posts
- 071 Azfan Jaffeer, How to Become Dangerously Efficient
- 069 How to start a photography business with a $500 camera
- Side Hustle Series #2, Cheryl, the Dance Teacher.