After running this site for a while, I've started to notice an interesting trend when it comes to the ever-popular idea of running a side hustle. Most people talk about it, but rarely ever take the jump into actually doing it.
Now, I could go on and on about how important it is to have an extra income stream. For the most part, everyone understands that part of the equation. Making more money typically makes life easier, especially if you're also really good at not spending very much.
There may be a little survivorship bias here because my side hustle (aka this site) turned out to be a pretty lucrative full-time job, but I firmly believe that every millennial that understands how to use a computer should at least try a side hustle even if it doesn't work out.
When I asked the members of the private Millennial Money Man Community on Facebook (which you can join here) about what was holding them back from starting a side hustle, the answers were pretty much what I expected them to be: Fear of failure, lack of time, and not knowing what to do.
Here are some things to think about if you want to start a side hustle, but haven't jumped in:
1. Fear shouldn't ever hold you back
The reason that I actually left my teaching job to run M$M was a pretty personal one. A lot of people know that I rented a room from my wife's parents while I paid off my student loans. Owning that story was the biggest reason that this site became popular in the first place.
But unfortunately, there was much more to it. My father-in-law had been diagnosed with a disease called Inclusion Body Myositis a year or two after I met my wife. It's a terrible disease honestly. Your immune system essentially attacks your muscle tissue, and over time it has a very similar progression to muscular dystrophy.
Read also: The Real Reason I Live Debt-Free
At the time we moved in, he had already started to lose the ability to walk. Later on, he became wheelchair-bound and was almost in bed full-time when we moved out.
We didn't actually move in with the goal of helping my mother-in-law take care of him, but it just evolved into that and we were happy to do it. That's life.
Eventually, it just got to the point where too many hospice nurses were coming in and out of the house, and the situation started to put a strain on our marriage.
What seems like an easy choice of moving out of your in-law's house was one of the hardest ones my wife and I have ever had to make because they needed us.
So why am I getting so personal? It's just side hustles right?
I watched a healthy, proud, and still young man lose the ability to walk and eat right before my eyes. He passed away shortly after we moved out, and it was gut-wrenching.
Ever since then I've always tried to keep the reality with me that life is finite. We get one shot, and it usually won't end the way that we imagine it will. That's just how it is, and no matter how much you choose to push it to the back of your mind on a daily basis, it won't change.
Most people say they don't want to start something new because they are afraid.
Fear robs you of opportunity. If there's something you want to do, you need to do it regardless of how afraid you are that it will fail.
I would so much rather get to the end of my life and feel good that I tried everything I wanted to, instead of wishing I would have done something that I skipped out of fear that I would fail. That's why I started this site and eventually why I left my job to run it full-time.
The best strategy, in my opinion, is to embrace failure. It's going to happen whether you like it or not, and every entrepreneur (full-time or side hustler) fails all the time.
It's just not that big of a deal once you get used to it.
2. Is it that you don't have time, or you haven't found the time?
Look – we're all guilty of saying we don't have enough time. And with some people's current schedules taking care of their kids and working full-time, it very well could be true as your day is currently constructed.
That's when you need to modify your schedule. We can't control how much time we have in life, but we can definitely manipulate the way that we utilize it during the day.
Personally? I did my band directing job from 6:45 am – 7:00 pm (sometimes 8:00 pm), and then came home and taught myself about blogging, websites, and marketing until midnight or later.
Then, I rinsed and repeated every day until I knew what I was doing.
If you want to start a side hustle (or anything) and are waiting for time to magically present more of itself like the physics unicorn it is…it won't happen.
Read also: How I Prepared to Leave My Job for This Site
3. Passion is always the answer
For so many people, it's not the fear or lack time that is causing the problem. They just don't know what they want to do.
Everyone hears the classic “find a need and fill it” advice, but if you already have a job it's a lot harder to dump your remaining energy into something that you don't care about just to fill a need.
I actually went through the same thing when I was trying to figure out what I wanted to do as a business! I spent a lot of time during my summers away from teaching trying to learn about the swimming pool business from a friend.
We would go out into his customers' back yards and he would teach me how to cut pipe, install pool motors and heaters, etc.
I didn't actually care about swimming pools…I just knew that you could make a bunch of money running that type of business.
Every time I imagined my life as a pool company owner though, I realized that it didn't excite me. Money can't ever be the only motivator for what you want to spend a large part of your life doing.
That's when you need to evaluate what you're passionate about. The only reason that I feel this site has been so successful is that I love opening up my computer and writing about personal finance and entrepreneurship every day.
I get a blinding amount of emails and notifications daily, and I stay up way too late every night answering and liking every comment because it's what I'm passionate about.
Luckily, we live in the internet age that makes whatever your passion is a legitimate business possibility.
Straight-up, there are people that post videos of their pets on social media for a living. If that is possible, then you can definitely attempt to build a small business around whatever it is that gets you excited during the day, right?
It comes down to this…
If there's something you want to do in life, you need to do it today. It doesn't matter if it's a blog, e-commerce business, pet sitting, whatever. If you have an idea already, make the time and jump on it. Be excited about failing a few times (it helps you figure out how to do something right and make more money).
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For those of you in the “soul searching” phase – don't overthink it. Business doesn't have to be complicated, and you don't need the million dollar idea. If you work hard enough and the market likes what you're doing, it will evolve into that naturally.
Question for you:
What's your side hustle idea, and what do you need to do to get started today?
Wow, it sounds like your father-in-law had a very profound impact on your life and your attitude. I’m sure he’d be proud.
My big thing at the moment is time; I know I’m not maximizing my time effectively. I am getting my blog going and it’s coming along slowly but surely, but I haven’t even really tried to monetize it yet. That’s my next step I think.
I also would like to pick up some freelance writing gigs, but struggle with finding that first client. Once you get one, I’m sure the rest keep getting easier…but that first one is daunting. I need to put a bigger effort toward it if I’m serious about it.
Some good advice; keeping it real as always.
Only way I know how to keep it 🙂
I learned a lot from Bill – we miss him a ton. I guess if there was a silver lining to the situation, going through all of that has given me a pretty good perspective on life.
If you have a passion that you want to pursue, just go do it! Don’t be afraid of what might happen, go make it happen! Love this post!
Thanks and I agree!
#2 is very true. I was just thinking about that the other day… if you had told me a few months ago before we started the blog that I would be committing many hours a week to this passion project, I would never have started. I thought I had “no time”. But like you mentioned, I just hadn’t found it yet (its amazing what you can do when you wake up at 5:30am every day… 🙂 )
Haha yeah blogging takes a surprising amount of time once you really dive into it! Luckily it’s fun or else this would totally suck.
This is one of the best posts I’ve read from you. Thank you for sharing! I hope someday I will have a story to tell that can likewise encourage and motivate others the way you are!
Oh wow – thanks Jenny and no problem!
Great read. I just started my first ever side hustle this week. I have invested a fair amount of money and put in a lot of work, and am not seeing results yet. I have heard to keep with it for months before you consider it a failure, but it is still very intimidating. This post was encouraging. Anyone can check my blog out at albobco.com.
Nice! Congrats on getting started – that’s the hardest part. Patience is definitely key when you are experimenting in business.
Hi Alex, checked out your blog! Nice post about debt and buying cash! I did notice that the Amazon links are not integrating like they should. Are you aware of that?
Thanks for the post! Agree 100% that without passion you’ll have a very hard time finding success in whatever side hustle you choose. It took me years of cycling through ideas for companies before I finally reach a point where I knew what I truly wanted to do. Having a kid certainly helped prioritize my time and direction as well and really provided that passion to begin moving forward to start something real.
Yeah I can definitely imagine that having a kid would bring some clarity and drive.
I LOVE this post! Exactly what I needed today. It’s like my grandpa always told me, “Don’t fear failure. Fear being in the same exact place you are today a year from now.”
Keep up the amazing work MM!
So glad you liked it Brooke!
I have a day job and 2 kids, so I work on my blog and learning the endless information that comes with that either early in the morning or late at night. I get so frustrated at times at the slow progress, but I know each hour I devote to moving forward, I do just that, and it excites the snot out of me.
I’m careful not to devote so much of my time to my side hustle that I miss out on my kids and current happiness. If I ran myself completely ragged, I fear I would lose the passion, and that would be the downfall of my pursuing this whole-heartedly.
I’m definitely on the slow and steady route, but I have a vision of being a work-from-home writer/blogger making enough money in 5 years from now to retire.
Thanks for your constant words of wisdom that you’ve worked hard yourself to accumulate!
I’m in the process of figuring out a side hustle now. My oldest will be in kindergarten this year and the youngest in two years. I have a degree and a few years experience in chemical engineering. I’m currently volunteering as a preschool teacher for Bible Study Fellowship and really like certain aspects of it. My personality type is ENFP, so geared more towards teaching, but I’m not ready to completely discard my love of science and technology. Current ideas include blogging (I don’t feel qualified, though I love to share my opinions!), substitute teaching (flexible, pays ok), or teaching for VIPkids (teaching English to Chinese students – the peak demand schedule doesn’t necessarily line up with when I want to work). I know they all have benefits and drawbacks; choosing is hard! I feel like I’m ok at many things, not great at one particular skill set.
Have you looked into teaching science classes for homeschooled kids? You can set your own schedule and do it as much as interest allows. Check out homeschooling groups to get your name/business out there. There are even conventions you can “sell” at. Most he groups are “closed” so talk to the admin to get clearance. Good luck!
I haven’t thought about that, thanks for the suggestion. I like teaching, but don’t have a degree in it. I need to figure out what certifications or training will qualify me for this. I’m not completely opposed to more school or training but I definitely want to be sure before I go spend a bunch of money.
Great post. Thank you for sharing all the details about your family stuff. I am very familiar with the “one day I’ll…” feeling that I think a lot of us have!
Thanks Beau!
There are interesting parallels in our family story and motivation. My mother had an aneurysm and stroke at 52 years-young. Previous to that she had been healthy, worked full-time and had a vibrant social and volunteer life outside of work. She spent a year wheelchair bound before passing away at 53, and spent much of that time with us as we cared for her as best we could.
Her untimely death has shaped many of my feelings on retirement, emergency savings, spirituality and a host of other things, but most importantly it has renewed in me a sense of carpe diem – seize the day! There are many things I know she wanted to do, but let fear and anxiety hold her back. She would encourage me not to make that same mistake.
It’s crazy how much it changes your life when you go through that with someone isn’t it? Shifted my entire view on everything.
For me, I thought that starting a side hustle required a certain level of preparation – of having “arrived” But how wrong I was! Because of this mindset I wasted months, and once I realized that enough was enough, I let the rubber hit the road. I am now learning and tweaking as I go, and the passion that is fueling the effort is motivating all sorts of mindsets.
This, coming from a working mom of two! If I can do it, you can too!
I think many, if not all of us are guilty with the “I don’t have the time..” excuse. I am sloowwly taking steps in building my blog and pursuing other side hustles. Good tips and best of luck to all of us beginning our journey! 🙂
This was an amazing read! My wife is talking about starting her side hustle and it was very encouraging! I started my side hustle, flipping/re-finishing furniture, about 6 months ago. I don’t think I will get rich from doing it but the work is something I enjoy doing and is relaxing after a long day in the office. Thanks again for the encouragement and the great read!
Glad you liked it Mark!