On today’s solo episode, I’m going to be chatting all about how to pick a side hustle, and all of the decisions that go into determining if one is right for you!

pick a side hustle

We’re back with our 193rd episode of the Fed+Fit Podcast! Remember to check back every Monday for a new episode and be sure to subscribe on iTunes!

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Episode 193 Links:

Visit the Nutritional Therapy Association HERE.

Find out more about joining Beautycounter HERE.

To see what Etsy is all about click HERE.

Find the Forbes Article on Side Hustle HERE.

Episode 193 Sponsors and Featured Partners

  • Nutritional Therapy Association – The NTA trains and certifies Nutritional Therapy Practitioners and Consultants with a nutritional foundation that emphasizes the bodyโ€™s innate intelligence and bio-individuality, because they know that a โ€œone size fits allโ€ approach to nutrition does not exist.  Head HERE to learn more about becoming a NTP/NTC through this incredible program!
  • Pride of Bristol Bay – Sustainable, hiqh-quality, nutritious, and wild-caught Alaskan Sockeye Salmon delivered right to your door!  Use the code “fedandfit” to get $40 off your first order!

Episode 193 transcription

Cassy Joy: Todayโ€™s show is brought to you by the Nutritional Therapy Association! The NTA trains and certifies nutritional therapy practitioners and consultants with a nutritional foundation that emphasizes the bodyโ€™s innate intelligence and bioindividuality. Because they know that a one-size fits all approach to nutrition does not exist.

The NTA curriculum focuses on the importance of properly prepared, nutrient-dense whole foods, paired with a well balanced lifestyle. Sound familiar? I love this program so much. Throughout their program, students learn a wide range of educational tools and techniques to identify and correct nutritional imbalances and deficiencies. And students graduate with the education and skills needed to launch a successful career in holistic nutrition.

May enrollment for the NTAโ€™s nutritional therapy practitioner program, or their fully online nutritional therapy consultant program, is currently open through April 26. You can head to www.NutritionalTherapy.com to get more info. The NTAโ€™s annual conference, Roots, is also happening March 1st through the 3rd in Portland, Oregon. Iโ€™ve attended in the past, and can honestly say it was one of the most educational and inspirational nutrition conferences I have ever been to. No joke. You can go to the NutritionalTherapyConference.com to register. You do not have to be an NTP to go; all are welcome.

Cassy Joy: Welcome back to another episode of the Fed and Fit podcast. Today we are going to chat business. Ae you ready? Are you ready for this? {laughs} Business has accidentally become my favorite thing to chat about. Diane Sanfilippo and I, and Juli Bauer Roth, and Lexie Davidson, my friends and colleagues in the industry. Of course, Amber Golden and Jessica Gertner, who both work with me here at Fed and Fit. All of these people; weโ€™re all birds of a feather because we all cannot stop talking shop. It doesnโ€™t matter where weโ€™re at. If itโ€™s someoneโ€™s birthday; we just want to talk shop. And itโ€™s my favorite thing ever. I love it so much.

Because itโ€™s just the landscape of business these days. Itโ€™s just changing so quickly, and itโ€™s so fascinating. And what it means, really, if you want to boil it down, is there is just a heck of a lot of opportunity for everybody right now. And that is just really dang exciting. You get to essentially; itโ€™s the world that I feel like is coming into reality is the world that my parents promised me growing up. And Iโ€™m sure everybodyโ€™s loving parents said the same thing. But it was; โ€œYou can do anything you want to do.โ€ My parents told me that over and over again.

And maybe not everybody hears that. But I did. I heard it a lot growing up. And it was definitely during some very formidable years. I took it to heart, and I really believed it. {laughs} I do believe it. I can do anything I want to do. And todayโ€™s landscape of business really makes that apparent. You guys; you can do anything you want to do when it comes to business. You can build the business you want to build. Of course, there are barriers to entry. Some of that is time. Some of that is a little investment. Some of that is education. Some of that is just building and giving things and trying to refine your craft. But at the end of the day, you can do it.

So that kind of airs in; that was a little mini sidebar at the very beginning. But that airs into what weโ€™re talking about today. Weโ€™re going to chat specifically about side hustles. And weโ€™re going to talk about how do you pick a side hustle? First, weโ€™re going to talk about what the heck a side hustle is. How do you pick one? How do you know if itโ€™s right for you? What are some options out there? Whatโ€™s probably required in the side hustle business. So weโ€™re going to dive into it all.

Because at the end of the day, those of us listening to this show, we have it somewhere deep down. Weโ€™re like; you know what, I like what Iโ€™m doing. Maybe you have a full-time job. You go to an office somewhere. And maybe you were in a lot of school for that job; right? Maybe you feel really committed. You are, whatever. Folks who did a graduate, post-graduate, all kinds of school probably feel a little bit; I personally know people who took, gosh, in addition to their undergraduate an extra 10-12 yearsโ€™ worth of school to learn how to do what theyโ€™re doing now. And they kind of want to do something differently.

You can feel trapped a little bit. Or even if you didnโ€™t throw yourself into that much school, and you donโ€™t feel trapped in a career. Maybe you’re just ready for some kind of a change, or maybe you’re just ready to do something that you get to be the boss of. Or maybe you’re at a point now, and youโ€™ve been home with the kids. Youโ€™re just ready to sink your teeth in. You’re like; you know what? Iโ€™ve got 10 hours in my week. I have 10 hours that I could put into something. And yeah, I like what Iโ€™m doing with those 10 hours right now, but I think I can put it into something that slowly builds over time.

All of these kinds of scenarios and points of life is where a side hustle can be perfect. So a side hustle is essentially; you’re hustle on the side. Whatever your main gig is. Letโ€™s say your main gig is being a stay at home mom. Maybe your main gig is you’re a lawyer; you’re a practicing lawyer. Maybe your main gig is you’re a doctor. Maybe your main gig is you are physical therapist. An accountant. A tax preparer. {laughs} Itโ€™s obviously the beginning of February, so thatโ€™s where my brain has been going.

Maybe your fulltime gig is; what are jobs that people do? {laughing} I really should have come prepared with some example jobs. Because Iโ€™m blanking! Anyway. All the things that you could be and could be doing out there, you’re doing those things. Maybe your work in business development for an engineering company. Maybe you are an engineer. Who knows? Whatever your trade is. Youโ€™ve got this fulltime gig, but thereโ€™s still something gnawing at the side of you that you want to do something also.

Maybe you’re not ready to commit that you want to do it instead of what you’re doing. But you would like to; youโ€™ve got an extra 10 hours a week. Youโ€™ve got 10, 15 hours a week that you could pour into something. And you’re not saying that you want it to replace your main gig as an architectural engineer, but youโ€™d kind of like to throw a little icing on top of that cake. You know? Maybe just explore another industry. Maybe see where it goes.

And thatโ€™s essentially what a side hustle is. Itโ€™s something that you invest 10 to 15, maybe more, hours into that into a totally different leg of income or a different leg of potential business opportunity for you each week. And it is something that you do on the side.

So think about this. Everybody has probably taken a Lyft or an Uber at some point in time. Iโ€™m that person that Iโ€™m a chatty Cathy. I obviously have the gift of gab. I have a podcast {laughs} that Iโ€™ve been running for years and years now. But I love chatting with my Lyft or Uber driver. I like asking where are they from? What keeps them busy? How did you get into Lyfting or Ubering?

I always find itโ€™s fascinating that a lot of the people who have driven me around have full time jobs doing other fabulous things. And Lyft and Uber; itโ€™s their side hustle. They do it at night time. They do it on the weekends. They do it on occasional days off. It provides some extra income. It provides them something to do instead of sitting at home and doing whatever they would have been doing. Whether thatโ€™s watching TV or folding the laundry. I love a good excuse to not fold laundry.

So thatโ€™s kind of what it is. Thatโ€™s what weโ€™re talking about. Sometimes side hustles are very quickly monetized, like if you want to go drive for Lyft. Obviously you get paid for that right away; I think. Iโ€™ve actually never looked into it. But I would assume you get paid for that right away. And some side hustles require a little bit of buy in. Like I said before; there could be a tiny barrier to entry. Whether thatโ€™s extra education or just some sweat equity in terms of building the foundation for what you want to work within.

Whatโ€™s interesting is Jess, who helped me source some of this information for the podcast today. She found this really interesting fact from a recent Forbes article. It says that according to a bank rate study, about 37% of adults in the United States have a side hustle. That is fascinating to me. Wow. Over a third of United States adults have a side hustle. And they can pay pretty well. This is continuing on with that article, at an average of nearly $700 a month of extra income.

Another study shows that two- third of Americans; so the rest of them, would consider diving into a side hustle business in addition to their current jobs. Right? Because who wouldnโ€™t want that? Letโ€™s say youโ€™ve got a great job. You enjoy what you’re doing. You enjoy your friends and your colleagues, and it takes up exactly 40 hours a week. And youโ€™ve got an extra 10 hours. Very easily, you could spend an extra 10 hours a week doing something else. I can definitely think of a lot of people who would be like; heck yeah. I would love to have an extra $700 a month, doing something else with that somewhat idle time.

So letโ€™s jump into it. Letโ€™s figure out; how do you pick a side hustle? What are some ideas? What are some pros and cons? Letโ€™s get into it.

What do you need to ask yourself to be ready to determine a side hustle, or if you’re ready for one? Number one, I would reflect on what are your hobbies. This immediately makes me think of golf. Because golf has been a hobby of mine for; oh man, coming up on 25 years. That makes me sound {laughs} very much older than I feel.

I have been golfing since I was itty bitty, with my dad. And Iโ€™ll be 33 this year, just to demystify that. But Iโ€™ve been golfing since I was about 7 or 8. And golf always comes to mind as a hobby of mine. I guess I could turn into a side hustle; right? Isnโ€™t that every golfers dream, that weโ€™re just going to go and weโ€™re going to play 18 holes on a Sunday or a Saturday and weโ€™re going to go to the driving range a couple of times during the week with the hope that maybe one day weโ€™re just going to tweak our stroke just al little bit so that we can go ahead and go pro? Or at least playing around in some tournaments.

Anyway. Sorry for that also sidebar. So think about what are your hobbies that you could potentially turn into a side hustle. Iโ€™m thinking of a friend of mine who his hobby was wood working. He loved working with wood. He loved sanding things down. Creating beautiful creations, whether it was a table or a bench. He loved exposing the natural grains of woods. Exploring all of those different finishes. He was so, so good at it. And he actually has a background as a very gifted musician, and had a very successful career and tenure as a musician in mainstream.

Then; I know like maybe 3% of his story. But from what I do know; woodworking was a hobby of his that he kind of turned into a side hustle. So what kind of hobbies are you looking at? Golf aside. Is it woodworking? Is it planting cacti, like my friend Candace? Is it gift wrapping? Is one of your favorite hobbies makeup? Do you just love learning about makeup and watching makeup tutorials? There are all kinds of options out there.

What do you enjoy doing? Is the next one I would ask yourself. What do you really enjoy doing? Do you really love working with your hands? Do you really love socializing? Do you love jumping into a party? Being the life of the party, connecting with people, asking them about their past? Do you love, what are some other options? Do you love driving? {laughs} that one is an obvious plug.

Do you love learning about nutrition? Do you find that to be a bottomless pit of inspiration? In a really good way. What do you really love to do? Do you love working out? And then I would also ask yourself; what are your strengths? What are you really good at?

So what are your hobbies? What do you enjoy doing? And what are you really good at?

Are you really gifted at explaining things to people? Because that is a gift. And sometimes people who are really good at that donโ€™t realize that theyโ€™re really good at that. It takes someone else to tell them. But have you ever been told that you’re really good at explaining things?

Are you really gifted at creating arts and crafts? I just had a conversation with a lady named Amy while I was standing on a yacht at a Beautycounter event in West Palm Beach. It was quite the event {laughs}. Iโ€™ve never done anything like that before. That might be the bougiest thing Iโ€™ve ever said, ever. But she was telling me about how she makes these extravagant birthday cakes for her children. Sheโ€™s got these adorable kiddos, and she doesnโ€™t necessarily cook or bake all the time. But she will make a birthday cake. And if somebody tells her; mom, I want a squirrel cake. She will roll out the fondant, and just throws herself into these really extravagant cakes. And she showed me pictures of them, and they are phenomenal. I was blown away. She is really, really good at decorating cakes. It was really impressive.

So what are you really good at?

I would also ask yourself; what are your financial goals? Would it be really, really helpful to have that $700 a month, or whatever it is? Are your financial goals to get out of debt? What would it take to get out of debt? Are your financial goals to cover your grocery expenses every month? Would it be nice to cover maybe half a house cleaner so you can get however much time you spend cleaning your house back each week?

What are your financial goals? What do you want? And thatโ€™s an interesting one to me. Because it doesnโ€™t necessarily have to be about money. Itโ€™s not necessarily like; I want to make more money. Thatโ€™s not what weโ€™re talking about. But what would change your life?

For me, for example, I would rather spend, because I do work. I would rather spend time playing with my daughter than cleaning my kitchen. Or mopping, or vacuuming, or dusting. I would rather spend that time playing with my daughter. So part of my financial goal is to be able to afford somebody that can clean my house so that I can spend that time with my baby. So what are your goals in that regard?

Do you want to learn something new? Is there something thatโ€™s always intrigued you? Has nutrition, micro; I was going to say microbiology but that might be getting a little bit into the woods. But does nutrition interest you? Does exercise physiology interest you? Does learning more about finishes on wood interest you?

And then what is your mindset? This is another really important to gut check yourself on ahead of time. This is important. I want to level with you here.

If you are going out into the big open world, and you want to create something for yourself. Letโ€™s say you want to create a side hustle; and maybe a part of you wants to believe or hope that this side hustle could turn into your main hustle. And it could be the main gig maybe one day; maybe. Maybe. Iโ€™m sure you’re saying that to yourself. Maybe, I donโ€™t know, but maybe.

I need you to adapt a mindset of; this is going to sound really cheesy. But bear with me and Iโ€™ll demystify it. I need you to adapt a mindset of abundance. I really do. Itโ€™s necessary for the success of your side hustle, possibly future main hustle.

And what does that mean? What does the mindset of abundance mean? It means believing that your neighbor is not your competition. It means that you need to be excited about the wave and the upswell of everybody doing things like this. It means that just because your best friend also decided to start a small business where she is selling gift wrapping out of her house, doesnโ€™t mean itโ€™s bad for your business. It means that weโ€™re going to make the pie even bigger, and weโ€™re both going to be successful.

It means that if you decide that you really are interested in this one network marketing kind of company, it means that you can do it because you’re interested in it. Not; you can do it because you only know one person in your neighborhood that does it. Right? It means that you’re not limited. Your growth of your business is not limited by the number of people in that industry, or the amount of success of those people in that industry. Or their proximity to you.

Because a rising tide; Iโ€™m modifying this quote, because I like to say it may way. A rising tide lifts all boats. Or when a tide rises, all ships come up. I donโ€™t know; whatever. A rising tide lifts all boats. Think about it. When there is more interest in an industry, everybody sails higher. Everybody. So I need you to adopt that mindset before you get into the side hustle business. Because if you want it to be successful, you need to believe that everybody is in this together. End rant.

Cassy Joy: Todayโ€™s show is brought to you by Pride of Bristol Bay! Where you can get truly sustainable, high quality, nutritious Alaskan sockeye salmon delivered right to your door. Pride of Bristol Bayโ€™s wild salmon is sustainably harvested in the pristine waters of Bristol Bay, Alaska. Their focused team of fishermen are committed to the highest quality in handling standards at the point of harvest, creating the unsurpassed quality and flavor youโ€™ll find in every one of their wild sockeye fillets and portions.

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Cassy Joy: Ok. Next one; what are some potential side hustles? After youโ€™ve kind of done your noodling, and your self-reflecting. What are some potential side hustle options out there?

Well, the first one is my favorite one. I donโ€™t want to play favorites. Theyโ€™re kind of all my favorites. The first one I want to talk about is direct retail. Hear me out. I think there is this crazy misconception that direct retail is so smarmy, and icky, and ew. I donโ€™t want to do that. I donโ€™t want to sell to my friends. I donโ€™t want to make money off of my friends.

I mean, Iโ€™ve thought myself. Iโ€™ve heard it a bunch of times. But at the end of the day, if you believe in a company. I donโ€™t care what company it is. If you believe in a company, and you believe in what theyโ€™re doing, thereโ€™s nothing to say that you cannot be a part of that. All you’re doing is sharing what it is you like about them. What it is that you think would be of value to your friends, family, colleagues, and acquaintances. Thatโ€™s all that really means. Direct retail means that you are essentially just referring people to something that you enjoy, and that you like.

Or, if you’re referring to them the business opportunity with that company, you’re doing that as well. You’re referring to them what you enjoy by being an independent consultant with that company, and why you think they would be good at it. Thatโ€™s it. You’re just referring. Thatโ€™s all you’re doing. Itโ€™s not as icky as it sounds.

And the beauty of a direct retail company as a side hustle is that you get to build a business where the resources are already established. You donโ€™t have to formulate a product. You donโ€™t have to worry about distribution. If you choose the right company, you donโ€™t have to carry inventory. There are no minimum requirements for sales throughout the month. And again; every company is made differently. And if you really believe in a company that requires inventory, or that requires a pretty high monthly sales minimum. Because I know there are some of those out there. Or they require that you purchase a certain amount. Take that into consideration, and know that not all direct retail companies work that same way. But, I think that theyโ€™re not as scary as they sound.

And for those of you who might be concerned; oh, I thought all of these are pyramid marketing schemes. These sound so icky. Just so you know; anyone that is still viable today is not a pyramid. Or if theyโ€™re big enough, and theyโ€™ve been in the public eye enough, theyโ€™re definitely not a pyramid marketing scheme. Because those are actually illegal. So there you go. The ones around today are most likely not pyramid because that is illegal.

So direct retail. I would definitely look into that. If itโ€™s skincare that interests you, thereโ€™s that option. If itโ€™s essential oils that interest you, thereโ€™s that. If itโ€™s safer cleaning products that you feel really passionate about. If itโ€™s; what are some of the other ones? Coaching, health coaching. Smoothies. Fitness. Supplements. You name it. Itโ€™s out there. Thereโ€™s something that interests you.

The one that I associate with, which is probably no secret to most listeners here, the one that I chose is Beautycounter. I am a big believer in the Beautycounter business opportunity as a side hustle. I have a team now of several hundred women.

Actually; I take it back. Not all women. Weโ€™ve got some dudes. Welcome dudes to the team, in case you happen to be listening. And they are, the majority of them, are working on this as a side hustle. And itโ€™s wonderful. Itsโ€™ really neat to see them do these things. Iโ€™m a managing director with that organization, so obviously Iโ€™m in deep. I really enjoy it. Which is the top of the comp plan for Beautycounter.

Ok, the next potential side hustle would be nutrition. So, I get asked this a lot. Because I am a certified nutrition consultant. I went through the Bauman College program. But I get asked a lot; what program do I recommend? And to be honest, as much as I enjoyed Bauman, the program that I recommend people that already kind of have a Weston A. Price bias.

Meaning, itโ€™s kind of a whole foodsโ€™ bias to nutrition. If you’re already coming in with that, which I would assume just about everybody listening here kind of has a little bit of that bias. Then I would recommend the NTA program. The Nutritional Therapy Association. Look it up; Google it. They have several options. Some are distance learning. Some are you get together for occasional classes. You can also go, I believe, in person. Learn all about it.

They have a fabulous annual conference. I went to it, and I learned so much by just attending that conference a few years ago. It is a wealth of information. I think they have the best; hands down. Iโ€™m not just saying this. I think they have the best network of former students. And they do the best job of keeping their students up to date with continued education.

So, if you’re interested in a side hustle in maybe starting nutrition consulting. You want to work with people. You want to work with them in a very intimate meaningful way; meaning through their health and through how theyโ€™re making decisions with regard to nutrition, thatโ€™s a really great option. And the barrier to entry is a little bit of education. Go get your certification through the NTA. Look it up; see what the options are. See what works best for you. But thatโ€™s what I would recommend looking into.

Maybe as a side hustle option, you think you’re drawn to coaching. Maybe you want to help people with fitness. Maybe you just love exercise, and you love physiology. And you feel like maybe you have a unique take. Maybe you’re a woman who loves weight lifting, and your favorite conversation at dinner parties is busting up the myth that women get bulky by lifting weights.

If thatโ€™s you; do you love studying proper form on heavy weights? Iโ€™m laughing because I think thatโ€™s so cool. I used to endlessly watch YouTube. Is that you? Do you love studying those things? Do you love yoga? Are you just counting down the days and working so hard secretly on learning the primary series of ashtanga yoga, and next you’re going to work on the secondary series?

What is your passion? What are you good at? Remember all of those questions? So maybe a side hustle could be; go get training as a coach. Go get training in the field that you’re really interested in, and then go start teaching a couple of classes. Spend those 10 extra hours a week teaching classes. And submerging yourself in that community. Who knows where that can go?

Maybe your side hustle could be in visual design. You guys; if I could go back in time, oh man. If I could go back in time and do college all over again; I loved what I studied. I studied entomology for anybody who is new here and didnโ€™t know that. Which is bugs. Well, insects technically. Arthropods. But I did. I studied insects in college. I loved it so much. It felt like the Hogwarts of Texas A&M. I was premed while I was studying insects, so that worked out really well for me. And I loved it.

But, that being said, there are two skills now owning my own business; kind of in this online editorial space. There are two skillsets that I donโ€™t know. I donโ€™t speak the lingo. I donโ€™t know anything about it. I keep telling people when I get on phone calls with them that are experts in this field; youโ€™ve got to put on the kid gloves. Because I have no idea what Iโ€™m doing in this regard. And that is visual design and in web design.

Whether thatโ€™s graphic design; making pretty graphics. Making PDFs. Making things look really visually pretty. Becoming very intimately familiar with how to do; what is it? Adobe, photoshop and all the things.

Or itโ€™s in web design. Maybe you really enjoy doing hobby coding. This is not something I can relate to at all, but I know there are amazing humans out there that are good at this. Maybe you really enjoy coding on the side. Maybe itโ€™s just a hobby of yours. You study it, kind of like how some of us listening studied nutrition breakout articles, you studied coding. You studied the latest trends in graphic design. Why donโ€™t you just go get a little bit more schooling, or start working on a portfolio. That could be your side hustle.

Most graphic designers and most web designers that Iโ€™ve worked with are actually freelance. Which means that it would be really easy to do that as a part-time side hustle.

Some other options that Iโ€™ll quickly rattle off would be crafts. Things you could potentially make and sell on Etsy. Iโ€™m thinking of; what do people make on Etsy? All kinds of things. If you love pottery. Maybe you just really love pottery. You got; Iโ€™m going to make up my own phrases. Terms for these things. But youโ€™ve got one of those potter wheels. The little thing that you step on and it spins and you get to make the smooth lines on the pots with your fingers. That just sounds like so much fun.

Maybe you have one of those, and you just love it. And you have all this pottery that youโ€™ve loved, and youโ€™ve poured yourself into. Whatโ€™s it called, when you bake it? Fire it? With all the different colors and things. And you have these beautiful pots lying around. Why donโ€™t you just collect all those, take some pretty pictures, and then turn it into an Etsy shop? Who knows what could happen?

What if it just blows up? What if you donโ€™t want it to blow up, but youโ€™d be happy to see those 25 pieces wind up in 35 homes.

Lyft and Uber, of course. And then the last side hustle that I want to talk about; Iโ€™m throwing this one in here on behalf of my husband. Because I would be remiss; he would be remiss if I didnโ€™t talk about it in this episode. My husband is passionate in really helping people find financial freedom period. But through that, would be passive income. And a lot of that can be found through real estate.

So, for example. And the barrier to entry here is a financial one. But what if there; let me give you myself as an example. Before Austin and I started dating and got married, I purchased my motherโ€™s house that she grew up in from her family. She is one of five siblings. And after my last grandparent passed on, the house was available. Itโ€™s a modest house in a side of San Antonio that I did not want to live in. Just because it was so far away from everything. But the family wanted to keep it in the family. Itโ€™s where all of these people came home from the hospital. My mom, and her siblings. And it just felt important to hang onto it.

So I bought it. I bought it from the family with what little bit of money that I had. And I then found a; what do they call it? A company that runs {laughs} what are they called? Some of you are shouting it into your radio right now. A management company. Thank you for shouting it. I heard you from the future. {laughing}

A management company I found in San Antonio who essentially came in, they gave me a quote for what it would cost to fix it up and make it rentable. And then they find me renters, and they vet them, and they interview them, and they handle all the rent checks. Itโ€™s a very established company. Iโ€™m sure you have one of these in every big city. So you can find their portfolio, I know, if you’re working with a trustworthy group. I really trust this group.

Anyway. So what happens is they take the first monthsโ€™ rent as payment for essentially the finders fee for finding that renter, and then they keep 10% off the top every month. But that rent that comes in, which I think is around $600 a month, it goes to me. And of course, that went originally to pay off the mortgage. The little mortgage that I took to buy this little bitty house. But eventually, once that mortgage was paid off, which didnโ€™t take too long. Then all of a sudden, I have this passive income.

So itโ€™s kind of like a side hustle, because I spend very little time responding to things that the management company sends to me. But for the most part, it helps provide some extra income. Just a thought.

So some pros of a side hustle to rattle these off; extra income potential. You could potentially pay off debt, go on vacations, have some fun extras. Maybe as an extra; whatโ€™s a good extra? You finally go to that gym youโ€™ve always wanted to go to. The sense of personal fulfillment. How good does it feel to do something for yourself, and go into business for yourself?

The networking and the social connection is priceless. Thatโ€™s one of the reasons why I love Beautycounter so much. Yโ€™all, I get to work with hundreds of people every single day. Granted, not everybody responds to me every day. {laughs} Not all hundreds of them do. But I get to work with these incredible business owners that are owning their own business. We get to work together. We get to brainstorm. I get to travel around. This year, Iโ€™m going to travel around and go see everybody in their own cities. Not everybody. But Iโ€™m going to do a pretty substantial Beautycounter tour, and just go hang out with my consultants around the nation. And the opportunity to know people all over the place. How precious and how incredibly cool is that? And thatโ€™s because of my side hustle.

You get to fuel that entrepreneurial spirit. If you have it, you know you have it. If you know that you have that entrepreneurial side of you, this fans those flames. Thereโ€™s this pride of ownership, again, which goes along with that sense of personal fulfillment. And potentially, you could transition out of a career that maybe no longer serves you the way it once did.

Some cons of a side hustle; of course, weโ€™ve touched on these lightly. But the time investment being a barrier to entry, because sometimes letโ€™s say itโ€™s nutrition. Then thereโ€™s a good amount of time that you’re going to spend, and money, for the schooling. But time it takes to really build your bank of resources. To build your service offerings. And then to slowly work through and build up your clientele. That can take time.

Start up costs; again, whether thatโ€™s education. Maybe itโ€™s a website. Maybe if you’re joining a direct retail company that has very expensive startups. Beautycounter doesnโ€™t have one. I canโ€™t really speak to the other ones out there. I know theyโ€™re out there, because I havenโ€™t joined those. But some of them have more expensive startups.

Definitely a con could be potential failure, or hiccups, or not feeling like itโ€™s going exactly as you thought it would go. Because itโ€™s hard. If it were easy, everybody would be successful at it overnight. So that can sometimes be a con.

And then a con could be just the overwhelm of choosing which one to do. Which one should I do? And help navigating that, I would come up with the ones you think you might be best at. I would answer some of the questions we touched on in this episode. And then I would float it out to your closest friends and your closest family members. And I would be like; what do you see me doing well? What do you see me enjoying? And help them help you.

And once youโ€™ve picked a side hustle, whatโ€™s next? What are some actionable steps to really get started? I would look at securing a website or some sort of presence. I would really think about; what are you going to do for your personal brand? Maybe because you’re a nutritionist now, you want to start a nutrition website. You want a landing page for your rates. You want to put out some of your best content, your best ideas on a website. So come up with a website; come up with a logo.

And my advice here; go ugly early. Do not wait for it to be perfect. You guys; I started my blog Fed and Fit in 2011. And this year, finally, 2019, late spring, weโ€™re going to unveil a website that is much, much closer to what I want it to be. I have not had the logo, or the website, that I really wanted for almost 8 full years. And it didnโ€™t stop me. I was still able to build a brand. So go ugly early. It does not have to be perfect.

I would definitely assess start up costs. If the side hustle you really have your eye on has a really high start up cost, then maybe pick another side hustle that can maybe financially give you leapfrog into the other one. Right?

Letโ€™s say you want to do nutrition coaching. You want to go through that schooling. But you want to figure out where am I going to come up with the money for this? Maybe jump into direct retail. Because those two would work really well together. Iโ€™m thinking like Beautycounter business. Safer skincare, the education on safer skincare in terms of makeup and skincare products in kids and baby and men, and haircare. That conversation pairs so well with holistic nutrition and wellness. Because you’re saying; take care of yourself from the inside out. It goes so well together.

So why not jump into a company like Beautycounter, where you can earn some money just by sharing the mission, sharing the products, getting safer products in the hands of your friends and family members and colleagues. Putting some great content out there. Get a start on being a content leader. And then build up enough income so that you can then go ahead and pay for that nutrition schooling. Right? These things can work together.

Thatโ€™s it! I think weโ€™ve touched on it all! Thank you guys so much for listening. You can find a full transcript for todayโ€™s show, as always, over on www.FedandFit.com. Weโ€™ll be back again next Monday. And if you have any; if you’re puzzling and puzzling with what should your side hustle be; I would love it. Post about it on social media. Tag me in your post. Take a selfie. Tell the world what you’re good at, what you enjoy. What you’re thinking you might want to do for a side hustle. Tag me in your caption. Be like; I listen to this podcast and Iโ€™m thinking about this. Because Iโ€™d love to see it. Iโ€™d love to jump in on the conversation. And we can all do this together. Make the pie bigger. Rise the tide. All ships will float. I believe in you guys. Yโ€™all have a good one. Bye-bye.

 



About the Author

Cassy Joy Garcia, NC

Cassy Joy Garcia, a New York Times best-selling author, of Cook Once Dinner Fix, Cook Once Eat All Week, and Fed and Fit as well as the creative force behind the popular food blog Fed & Fit.


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1 Comment

  1. Love this! And totally agree with working with a company that cares about safer beauty/hygiene products when you’re working towards an NTC career. That’s exactly what I’m doing! I work with Young Living while I’m saving to pay for the program in cash. This was awesome!