Written by: Betsy Ramser Jaime
We all want a side hustle.
Maybe for you, it’s for the extra money, to start doing something you enjoy or you’re hoping that down the road that side hustle can become a full-time gig.
Whatever your motivations, you’re not alone. In 2019, Fortune reported that 49% of people under the age of 35 had a side hustle.
If you’re ready to start a side hustle but don’t know how to choose, here are my top ideas for finding the side hustle that is right for you.
Make a List of Options, Then Narrow It Down
At first, learn about as many side hustles as you can, and keep a list of the ones that really resonate with you.
Listen to Chris Guillebeau’s podcast, Side Hustle School. There are over 1,500 episodes, and each episode is really concise.
Most of the episodes are about different side hustles that people are doing, how much they’re making, and what it was like getting started.
There will be a lot of topics that you have ZERO interest in, and others that will get you really excited.
Make note of the ones that sound interesting, and then start researching the ideas on your list, and begin to narrow down your options.
Great side hustle idea resources:
Focus on What Interests You, Not What Everyone Else Is Doing
When I first started “side hustling” one of the biggest mistakes that I made was starting side hustles that seemed popular, rather than what was most interesting to me.
An example of this was my brief stint in the world of direct sales. About ten years ago, I briefly worked with a direct sales company that was all the rage.
However, as an introverted, minimalistic person, with a close but small circle of friends, I can clearly see now that it just wasn’t a great fit for me.
Ask yourself a few simple questions:
What are 1–2 side hustles that I think I would enjoy doing?
What skills do I already have that I could use in a side hustle? (social media management, writing, sales, accounting, marketing, customer service, etc.)
How much time each day/week/month do I have to commit to this side hustle?
Regardless of what side hustle you choose, you’ll be forced to push yourself outside your comfort zone, however, pursuing side hustles that you truly enjoy will make the entire process so much more fun.
Work With Your Natural Personality
Not every side hustle will be a great fit for your personality.
As an introvert, I’ve learned over the years that I prefer side hustles like writing or editing where I’m able to work independently.
However, you might find the idea of sitting alone at your computer boring.
For instance, Harvard Business Review (HBR) shares,
the experience of a side hustle will be best when side hustle motives are congruent with the nature of the activity. For example, someone with a desire for social interactions in a side hustle may be ill-suited to a side hustle entailing completing surveys online but more well suited to bartending a few nights per week. Thus, choosing a side hustle should involve consideration of congruence between one’s motives for the activity and the likelihood the side hustle will fulfill those motives.
The key here is to consider what type of environment sounds most appealing to you.
Then, you can find a side hustle that complements the environment that you’re looking to create.
Know Your End Goal
Most people jump into things before they fully understand why they’re doing something.
Ask yourself, why do I even want to start a side hustle?
Your answer to this question will greatly impact the path you should take.
According to a 2020 article in HBR,
Although the amount of income one can earn from a side hustle is certainly a key consideration, we also found that the features of the work and motives for doing it predict the extent to which workers feel empowered and engaged in their side hustles.
For example, maybe you want to make a quick $500 to pay for a weekend trip over the summer. For this goal, you could sign up on Lyft or start teaching ESL on a website like Italki.
Or, perhaps you want to eventually create an extra $1,000 a month passive income stream to save up for a down payment on a house. A goal like this requires a different strategy.
Maybe you decide to sell e-books, an online course, start a blog, or learn about affiliate marketing.
A side hustle can be exciting at first, but not everyone is able to stick with it. Knowing what you’re working towards and finding the right strategy for you, will make it so much easier to keep going.
Your First Side Hustle Probably Won’t Be Your Last, Start Anyway
So many people are afraid to start.
I get it. You want to find the perfect side hustle on the first try.
In the past decade, I’ve had about a dozen different side hustles. My first few flopped (direct sales, blogging) but fortunately, the more I try, the closer I get to find what works best for me.
As Martin Luther King Jr. said,
Take the first step in faith. You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step.
The more you allow yourself to try and eventually fail, the more likely it is that you will eventually find or create something amazing, and worth pursuing long-term.
Make Your First Dollar and Build Momentum
There is no greater feeling in the world than making your first dollar with a new side hustle.
There are 2 reasons why this is so important:
It shows you the possibilities
You start to build momentum
Blogs are great but many people struggle to maintain them (myself included). Why? Because they are often a long game.
And when you can’t see any money coming in or clear tangible progress, it’s really hard to keep going, especially for months or years.
Just Tell Me What to Do
I know…I wish I could read your mind and just tell you exactly what side hustle would be “perfect” with your personality, skills, education, experience, etc.
However, even though I can’t do that, I CAN give you 2 specific side hustle ideas to start with that I’ve done myself.
Two side hustles that I often recommend for beginners are:
Since you’re already reading this on Medium, there’s a good chance that you enjoy writing, so freelance writing might be a good place for you to start.
I love recommending these two side hustles in particular because they are easy to start and you can start making money quickly.
When I got my first freelance writing job I wasn’t even looking to become a freelance writer. I just saw an ad on Reddit, thought, oh, I could do that, applied, sent 3 samples of articles I’d written on Medium and on my personal blog, and started working with a client within a week. It’s that easy.
A Few Next Steps:
As we talked about earlier, start listening to the Side Hustle School podcast. This will give you tons of ideas for potential side hustles.
Once you have a list of potential ideas, consider which ones you would truly enjoy and are most feasible for your current skills. For example, startup costs, ease of entry, etc.
Choose one and just start. Planning is great, but at some point, you just need to take the leap and start!
Pivot. If you need to pivot with your first side hustle that’s fine, or, if you hate the first one, try something else. You have an endless supply of options! There is something for everyone. You just need to keep going until you find it.