Everyone has a side hustle these days. Hello? Later Ever After! It’s my newest side hustle. But did you know I had another side hustle before this one? I sure did, and it’s one that kind of found me…well…I married it. No, my side hustle is not Mike :), it’s being a landlord. Together Mike and I manage condo investments in the city of Chicago. We’ve been doing this for awhile now and it has provided a great passive income for our family and we actually enjoy doing it. You can read about my journey to saying I do to becoming a landlord here.
Now what if I told you my original side hustle inspired another side hustle? You may be thinking how many side hustles does this girl have and what is this new none? Well, this one is a pretty huge accomplishment for me and Mike. We wrote a book and it’s currently selling on Amazon! You can check it out by clicking HERE!
The book; “How to Manage Condo Investments: Best Practices for Real Amateur Landlords” is based on our experience of being real-life amateur landlords. We figured out the best way to make real-estate investing a successful side-hustle. Through our own trial and error, we offer the best tips to minimize your efforts while maximizing your returns. Now investing in real estate isn’t for everyone, but writing a book can be for everyone. In fact, it can be a side hustle for you.
So the count is up to 3 side hustles for me right now. You may be asking “why” and how do I have time for them all? To be fair, the first side hustle of managing condo investments takes very little time each day. It does take time when I have to renew a lease, fix a problem or secure a new tenant. Those activities for the most part are pre-planned and I handle the unexpected problems as they come. Over all the time spent on these activities is well worth the money we make each month.
My second side hustle, writing and publishing a book, did take a decent amount of time up front. We spent approximately 18 months writing the book, and took our time doing it. Some weeks we would do nothing but write and other weeks we wouldn’t even look at the draft manuscript. We went at our own pace and worked through it.
My third side hustle? Well, you are here reading it! All of these side hustles started from ideas, and you too can find a side hustle. Its easy to do. You just have to figure out what it is.
Why I Love The Idea Of A Side Hustle
This might be a shocker, considering I have 3 side hustles right now, but I used to not be a believer in the side hustle. I would use excuses like “you can’t really make money doing something that isn’t your day job” or “I don’t have time for that” or “I have a day job and should concentrate on that.” These were all excuses I told myself because I was afraid to try anything outside of the box. Or better said, I was terrified to fail! I think we all are at some point.
Over the years I learned one thing. If something terrifies you, then you have to take a leap and just do it. Fear can cripple you or it can drive you. Choose to let it drive you. For me, failure fuels my fire. I try so hard not to fail that it propels me to achieve anything I want. I’m not only talking about huge things like starting a business. I’m talking about little things, like completing a whole Pure Barre Class. I take a Pure Barre class every morning and I’m fearful that I won’t be able to complete it and that I will look like an idiot during class. That fear motivates me to try harder to complete it each day. For the record, I have yet to complete the full 90 second plank, but I’m there trying everyone morning!
Why a Side Hustle is Necessary
Having a side hustle that brings in money allows you to diversify and have multiple sources of income. You diversify your 401K, so why not diversify your current income. If something were to happen with one of your sources of income, you’ll always have a backup. Well a back up to the back up, because you should be saving money every month for an emergency. Check out my post on how to create a monthly budget.
The multiple income sources allows you to save more money, or buy things above what your normal lifestyle can handle. That vacation to Positano could be paid for with the income from your side hustle. Think of it as extra money for a rainy day.
A side hustle challenges you and keeps your mind active. Do you ever feel like you don’t have to think too hard at your current job? Trying something new will change that. If your side hustle involves setting up a website and you don’t know how, you will need to learn that skill. Teaching yourself something new and seeing the results provides a great sense of accomplishment. Everyone loves to feel accomplished…right?
Finally, you won’t know if you can be successful until you try. You won’t know if your good at something if you never do it. This point holds true in everything in life, not just finding your side hustle. You have to try in everything you do.
How To Find A Side Hustle
The best side hustles involve something you love to do. If your going to be spending your spare time doing it, you might as well love it. Because if you love it, it won’t seem like work.
You may be thinking that you have nothing that you love to do that could be a business. Well, you actually do. You just don’t know it. Do you love makeup or skincare? There is a side hustle for that and probably most of your friends are selling it to you right now. Join them and see how lucrative it can be. Do you like paper products and stationery? Start making invitations for events and see where it takes you. Do you like clothes? You can sell clothes online; sites like Poshmark make this very easy. Do you like writing? You could always write a book and self publish it! I know someone who did that 🙂
What I’m trying to say is we all have things we love. Take those things and turn it into a money-making business. You may not make thousands of dollars right off the bat. But if you keep working at it, you will become successful, and you will enjoy the benefits of the passive income.
Maybe you already have a side hustle, if you do let me know about it in the comments below!
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