This transcript was generated from the episode audio and may contain minor errors.
[Music]
Hey friends, what's up? Welcome to Side Hustle School, new episode today, episode 2,340, to be precise, in our consecutive non-stop march, all the way from episode one, January 1, 2017. Now I'm excited because this episode is part of a feature we call your first $1,000. I always enjoy working on these stories of just the origin of the source, how somebody has an idea, how they go from idea to income, what happened along the way, all told in just a few short minutes. So hopefully it can help you get some ideas, maybe just some inspiration, maybe nudge you along.
You might have a different idea, a completely different idea, totally different industry or field than what you hear about through these stories. But perhaps it just gives you that little momentum to take the next step toward your own side hustle. Side hustle being an income-generating project. That's right, not just a hobby, but something that makes money for you. All right, now with that in mind, today's feature comes from Ajit in Baltimore.
He is a photographer by background. I don't think that was his day job. He was just, you know, his hobby was as a photographer, but he decided to turn it into side hustle, making some money, teaching drone photography specifically. So he really found a good niche here. I think he can do a lot with this.
He's still just getting started, but of course he's made that $1,000 and more. So let's hear the story from him. I'll come back at the end with a quick wrap up. [Music]
Hey there, I'm Ajit, a photographer from Baltimore with an act for trying out new things. So there I was a few years back, flipping through a photography magazine when I stumbled upon this article about drones.
The stunning aerial shots caught my eye and I thought, why not combine my love for photography with this cool new tech and teach people about it? And so my side hustle as a drone photography instructor was born. First things first, I had to get the hang of it myself. I bought an entry level drone with a killer camera and spent hours learning the ins and outs of aerial photography, right? Once I felt like a pro, I designed a curriculum that catered to newbies and more intermediate photographers alike.
To attract clients, I built an online portfolio showcasing some cool aerial photos. And then I shared the link with friends, family, colleagues, asking them to spread the word, right? Honestly, Instagram was a game changer. I posted my photos with relevant hashtags and soon enough I had photography enthusiasts sliding into my DMs eager to learn. Pricing was a bit more of a puzzle, but I eventually cracked it.
I scoped out my competition and then decided to offer competitive rates, you know? Also, I sweetened the deal with group discounts and multi session packages, all of those things. And it was a win-win for everyone. I'll never forget one of my first clients, one guy who wanted to impress his tech savvy girlfriend with his drone photography skills. During our very first lesson, he somehow managed to get the drones stuck in a tree.
Then of course we spent the better part of that session trying to rescue the drone. Fortunately, succeeding with only some small cosmetic damage. But then he eventually became one of my most enthusiastic students. And we still chuckle about that day. Now, as I dove deeper into teaching drone photography, I learned that the key to success was adapting to each student's unique learning style and skill level.
By personalizing my curriculum, I made the learning experience more enjoyable, you know? And effective for everyone. The whole experience though has taught me that if you want to succeed in any field, you've got to stay ahead of the game, you know? And you have to embrace innovation. My drone photography side hustle has been a wild ride, blending my passion for photography with some cutting edge tech.
And I'm stoked to see where it takes me next. Here's to more adventures, lessons learned, and the next iteration of side hustling. [Music]
Awesome, thanks so much to Ajit for telling us about his first thousand dollars. Listeners, I hope you found it encouraging. Ajit, I'm glad you got the drone out of the tree.
And as I said briefly in the introduction, definitely sounds like this is a profitable niche. I know some other people who've been into this in different cities. And of course it's a clear need. It's a technology that requires some instruction. There's lots of online instruction, but doing it hands-on really goes a long way for something like drone photography.
So well done, keep up the good work. Listeners, you keep up the good work too. And if I can help you in some way, if you have a question or an update for us about your side hustle, want to be on the podcast, sidehustleschool.com/questions. Let me know what's up. Today's notes, sidehustleschool.com/2340.
And of course new episode coming out tomorrow. My name is Chris Guillebeau. You are listening to "Side Hustle School." [Music]
From the "Onward Project."
