Nic’s blog
I write about building businesses, failing and building a life, not a legacy.
Your Side Hustle Should Be Additive Not Subtractive
It’s so easy to start something that you end up hating:
Start something new without much thought behind it
Do it for a short time
Watch vanity metrics only and become frustrated with your lack of likes and followers
Keep going but hate the work because your goals are not defined or badly laid out
Eventually quit but not after pain, suffering and loss of capital
That’s it, that’s how easy it is to start something and hate it very quickly.
It’s so easy to start something that you end up hating:
Start something new without much thought behind it
Do it for a short time
Watch vanity metrics only and become frustrated with your lack of likes and followers
Keep going but hate the work because your goals are not defined or badly laid out
Eventually, quit but not after pain, suffering and loss of capital
That’s it, that’s how easy it is to start something and hate it very quickly.
I believe that side hustles are a fantastic way to make some extra money and also live a bit more of life. Find project, problem or business that interests you and then slowly start turning it into something that other people might want to spend money on. That’s the dream but it often doesn’t work out that way.
Here’s a small tip that can make a huge difference to how you build out your side hustle income streams:
Side hustles should be ADDITIVE to your life and not SUBTRACTIVE.
When you build anything of value it should add more to the life that you live, not subtract from it. Yes, of course, it will be difficult but ultimately it should not be bad or subtractive.
If you decide to start a side hustle and you commit the time and attention to do so you should also be patient and consistent without adding negative pressure to your day to day life.
To make your side hustle additive you should consider the following:
How much time do you really have to commit to your side hustle?
Most people believe that they live full lives and don’t have any extra time in their day to allocate to a new project. The litmus test for this statement is to count how many hours of your day you spend watching TV. For the average person, that figure is anything between 4hrs and 8 hrs PER DAY!!!
If you watch two hours of TV a day then you have two hours a day to build a side hustle. If you can only afford two hours per week, that’s great, segment that time out, put it in your calendar and spend focused, dedicated, non-distracted time building that bad boy out! But remember, do this consistently and be patient. Work in the allocated time and don’t let yourself get distracted.
Have you defined your success triggers?
What does success look like for this side hustle? Are you trying to make a shitton of money or just a little? Are you trying to build an empire or a small and steady stream of income? This part is so key to allowing your side hustle to be additive.
If your goals are too lofty and unrealistic then every minute spent on it will seem like it’s not enough and that you’re letting yourself down. Make sure to scrutinize your success triggers so that they fit in with your life.
Do the people in your immediate life know you are starting this project and understand how much of your time it’s going to take away from them?
If you don’t tell anyone in your life that you are starting something new and big that is going to sap your time then they are going to flip out when you disappear. And that’s on you.
Communication is imperative when it comes to your side hustle so do me and yourself a favour and talk to your kids, your friends, your partner, your parents and whoever else you have commitments with and let them know what you’re planning. They don’t have to like it but you do have to talk to them.
Are you mentally and physically fit enough for this new challenge?
Sure, the main reason most people start a side hustle is to make money but that goal alone isn’t enough to drag you through the mental and physical anguish that a side hustle might cause you. There is no quick way to make extra money (if anyone tells you there is then they are probably trying to sell you Herbalife or Amway pyramid schemes) and if you come to terms with this fact then the most important thing you can do to make your side hustle additive is to get your mind right and treat your body with care.
You can’t stay up until 2 am every morning, eat shitty food and never do any exercise but still expect to stay healthy, mentally fit and ready for the stresses of an extra project on the side.
Take care of yourself first and the rest becomes much easier.
