So, what's a Side Hustle?

Date: 30th September 2020  |  Author: Sean Toomer

A side hustle (also called a ‘side job’, ‘side gig’) is something that you do alongside your current (usually full-time) job in order to make some more money.

Why start a side hustle?

Break away from the 9-5, in the hope for it to grow into a full-time business and quit your job.

Having a side hustle could be for a temporary measure – maybe to save for that big purchase, like a house, car, or holiday home.

Starting a side hustle can be a good ‘test’ to see if your business idea would work.

Just a bit of extra cash – perhaps you’re not earning enough, or you’ve been hit by the covids pretty hard.

Benefits of starting a side hustle

Starting a side hustle leads to a massive increase in skillset – running a business, even a small one, comes with a huge learning curve and a decent diploma in kicking-ass from the school or hard knocks. This will benefit your CV massively.

Having one reduces risk – what if you lost your job? With a side hustle, your earnings wouldn’t totally disappear. It’s important to have multiple streams of income as you’re not quite so reliant on one source.

You can learn new skills which could benefit your current role.

More money means less problems (contrary to what the Notorious B.I.G made popular)

Where could your side hustle take you?

Some of the biggest businesses out there started as a side hustle. One awesome example is

Innocent Smoothies which began as a side hustle, started by two friends with comfortable jobs.

They began by selling smoothies at a music festival. Innocent put up a large sign asking if people thought that each of them should give up their day jobs to make smoothies, giving individuals 2 options – they had a bin saying ‘Yes’ and a bin saying ‘No” in front of the stall – getting people to vote with their empty bottles.

Many people, like an old school mate of mine, resell products online to make some extra income. Items which have a lot more demand than supply sell out quickly, and enthusiasts are willing to pay a premium price to get their hands on them. This is where resellers come in, they pick up items from limited edition drops and sell at a much higher price because demand is so high.

Generally speaking, the more ’hyped’ the shoe, the more that it goes for. Some shoes, you may lose money or just about break even. In my friend Jack’s case, he once bought a pair of Ben Jerry’s Chunky Dunks for £95 and sold them on ebay for £1500; he tends to invest in the likes of Jordans or Yeezys (sneakers) as they are pretty popular. Yeezys sometimes sell over 500,000 products on a single drop and sell out but other drops may not even sell out.

When it comes to selling, social media platforms can be used to promote goods and build trust with potential customers. However, resell apps such as StockX, GOAT or KLEKT are often used.

Others are reps for companies like Avon or The Body Shop where income is commission based. Another common one is Valentus – selling healthy drinks and recruiting people into your team.

However, these are often done under the model of ‘network marketing’, which can have a bit of a dodgy side, so be careful!

What side hustle?

Your side hustle could be the simplest of things and could even be done from your phone in the comfort of your own home.

Put your skills to good use!

Your side hustle doesn’t have to reinvent the wheel, it could even be an extension of your current full time role (just make sure you check your contract of employment to make sure you’re allowed!)

If you’ve got lots of knowledge about social media or if you’re a wizard at DIY, you can offer your skills to others – whether on or offline.

Given the state of the world right now, online side hustles are becoming pretty popular, and are so easy to start.
Here’s some Online Hustle Ideas to get you thinking:

  • Tutoring (english etc)
  • Online Blog
  • Online coach – fitness, nutrition, lifestyle etc
  • Ebook
  • Create an Online Course – eg on Skillshare
  • Affiliate Marketing
  • Online store – Shopify, Redbubble or Etsy
  • Writing text – from videos/audio etc
  • Freelance sites – eg Graphic Design
  • Online freelancing – Providing basic digital services to businesses through freelance sites.
  • Re-selling almost any product

Starting a local service business

If perhaps your skills don’t allow you to move into the online marketplace as well, you’ll need to look into selling your services locally. Here’s some ideas to get you thinking:

  • Lawn care
  • Gardening
  • Tree surgeon
  • Window cleaning
  • Car washing
  • Dog walking
  • Pet drop in visits
  • Babysitting
  • Pre prepared meals
  • Fitness instructor
  • Make face masks etc
  • Shopping trips
  • Hairdressing/beauty
  • Tutoring – maths, english etc
  • Taxi

None of these are difficult to do, takes years of skill building to master, or costs thousands in qualifications to start. You could literally start today!

What to do now?

We’ll be releasing a lot more content on side hustles over the next few weeks, so look out for all our hints and tips. If you have an idea right now, give us a call to chat through with a friendly member of the team.

Lots of love from the Dream Team at Diverso

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