This transcript was generated from the episode audio and may contain minor errors.
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Welcome to the new and remixed Side Hustle School. My name is Chris Guillebeau. This is 2020 and we're calling it the year of interaction. All year long we're taking your questions and I'll attempt to provide some sort of answer. Let's jump right in.
I was so glad to get this question that I got today. It's a bit of a problematic question, but I often hear it. I hear these variations of it. And so if you have ever thought, oh, I have a certain amount of money, what can I do with it? Well, this question is for you.
And the thing is, if you go on a vacation, let's say thinking about a particular budget is perfectly reasonable. You might say, oh, I have a thousand dollars to spend whatever the amount is. So you ask, okay, where can I go for a thousand dollars? Like what kind of vacation experience can I have or travel experience, whatever it is, for X amount of money. Now that makes sense for things like travel, but this thinking doesn't apply to your money-making side project, or at least it shouldn't.
And I'll tell you why, along with a better approach. But first, I have to thank Oliver for bringing up this question. Thanks so much, Oliver. Let's hear that question, a message from our sponsor, and then an answer that I feel pretty strongly about. [Music]
Hi, this is Oliver from Brisbane, Australia.
And I've been listening to this show for a little while now. And I don't have a side hustle yet, but I'm wondering what the possibilities might be for my situation. I don't have a lot of disposable income right now. So I always like hearing stories with low startup cough. I could probably spend about 300 to $500, but no more.
What's the best business or side hustle for me to pursue? [Music]
- Thank you again so much, Oliver. Shout out to Brisbane, Australia, great city. I love getting to Australia every chance I can. So hopefully I'll be back there soon.
Now let's look at this issue. And I said this question was a little bit problematic. The part that's problematic is not at all about hearing stories with low startup costs. That's great, that's our goal, in fact. So I'll come back to that.
What I wanna look at here is this notion of starting with a particular amount of money. And to do so, it might help to think about a larger amount. Because in this example, it was $300. And for most of us, $300 is in the category of, well, I don't wanna throw it away. Like it's not an insignificant amount of money, but my wellbeing or my quality of life isn't threatened if I lose it, okay?
And what if Oliver or anyone else with this question said, I have $3,000 or even $30,000. Now in the startup world or even a retail store or some manufacturing businesses, $30,000 isn't considered a lot of money. Like people spend their life savings or max out their credit cards for business opportunities all the time, which I do not recommend just to be clear. But in that situation, if someone doesn't have a specific idea in mind, but they say, well, I have $30,000, what's the best way to spend it? You can probably spot the flaw in the reasoning.
Now, when you're going on that vacation and you have a fixed amount, a fixed budget to spend, it makes sense to plan with that constraint in mind. But with side hustle ideas, you may actually not need to spend any amount of money. So that's why I think it's so much better to focus on the idea, not the budget, let your idea lead the way. Because when it comes to making a website, let's just say you can spend $50 on making a website or you can spend $50,000. The range really is quite broad.
So what you spend on anything related to your money-making project, it should connect or relate to what is required, not just what is available to you. 'Cause I don't want you to spend money for no good reason. There are so many stories we've had. I was just thinking of this one, episode 1066, electrical engineer rides demand to dog collar empire. Okay, so that story, she had $500 in startup costs, $500, and it's now a multimillion dollar business, okay?
So you hear this thing from time to time about how it takes money to make money. And I'm always like, where does that come from? That sounds like it comes from people who waste a lot of money. So as for what the idea is, okay? Now we've got lots of other examples in the archives.
You're welcome to steal one of those. I will also be looking at the whole process of idea generation in the classroom series. The first full episode of that will come out tomorrow and then once a week for the rest of the year. Last but not least, remember that a low-budget idea is something to be proud of, not something to be ashamed of. We've had a lot of $0 startup stories on the show.
You can spend a very small amount of money with the right idea. That's why it's all about ideas and making them happen, not about how much money you have to spend. All right, listeners, do you have a question? Come to sidehustleschool.com/questions. We're gonna be featuring them throughout the year, along with updates from listeners as they launch their projects.
Today's show notes are at sidehustleschool.com/10981098. We now include transcripts there and you can sign up for a newly updated email series. So many good things in the works this year and I can't wait to hear about your project too. All right, more to come tomorrow. My name is Chris Guillebeau, this is Side Hustle School.
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