How to Find your Side Hustle

One step towards financial stability, which I’m still working to achieve, is a successful side hustle, or the 5-9. A couple of hundred dollars in your pocket each month is worth more than you think.

Instead of actively looking for a side hustle, I somewhat stumbled upon mine. In high school, I began writing for free for a student-centered political editorial, but at the time I had no idea people got paid for their writing. As I developed better writing skills, I transferred to paid freelancing, and therefore was getting paid for my opinions! I never even remotely planned for a stint in journalism, but it is now giving me a few hundred extra dollars a month.

Since beginning freelance journalism I’ve branched out into other services such as website writing, content creation, and social media management.

Here I want to help you utilize your skillset and turn it into a side hustle you may not expect.

One thing I want you to remember is ‘passion equals success’, no matter how experienced you are if you’re not passionate about an aspect of your side hustle you will burn out. Taking on your 5 to 9 after your 9 to 5 will be hard work.

This brings to my second point, one you’ve heard a million times, ‘patience is key’. Working on the side is not a get rich quick gimmick, but if you stick with it and use your earnings wisely you will reap rewards.

Now, how do you find the right 5 to 9?

1. If you have a resume, study it.

Resumes are a cheat sheet for all your skills and can help you find a suitable job that utilizes experience you already have. Examples can include basic administrative tasks such as email writing, transcribing, and more personal skills such as social media use.

2. Examine your hobbies.

What do you like to do during your free time? Do you scroll through Instagram, walk your dog, write fiction, read?

3. Match hobbies and comparable skills from resume.

Skills you already possess can most likely connect to any hobby. Writing reports at work can help you freelance as a copywriter, editor, or content creator. Do you edit your photos? Having that basic skill can help you branch into more complex editing software for designing websites or social media posts. The sky is the limit, you just have to connect the dots.

4. Research, research, research.

Don’t let ‘Rich in One Year’ videos trick you. Do your own research into what it takes to have a certain side hustle or business. What works for one person might no work for you. If you need a new skill, youtube videos can be an excellent source of information as a part of your research.

5. Try and Try Again.

“I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” – Thomas Edison

Mistakes are a part of the game. It’s going to take a while to develop your brand in whatever side hustle you choose. Be patient, make mistakes, and try again.

Examples of side hustles:

Lawn mowing – Proofreader – Freelance writer – Pool cleaning – Canva templates – Low content books – Merch by Amazon – Website designer – Ghostwriter – Dog walker – Nanny – House sitter