This transcript was generated from the episode audio and may contain minor errors.
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Hey there, Side Hustle School listeners. Welcome back to another day, another episode, another story, a new story about someone who creates a new source of income for themselves, usually a bit more freedom for themselves as well, and often using a bit of creativity. Now, I think it's sometimes fun to ask the question, if you could have a totally different career, what would it be? I don't necessarily mean that you're gonna embark on this career, I just mean if you had to stop what you're doing now, and you had to do something completely different, maybe even something kind of far out, like what would it be? And for me in this fantasy world, one of the things at the top of my list would be, I would love to be one of those guys in the movies who goes to art museums to steal famous paintings.
Now remember, this is just a little daydream, I'm not a real art thief, and also I wouldn't want to damage the art, I would actually want to return it, I just think the process of figuring out how they plan those heists and how they get past the lasers, make their getaway, all that kind of stuff is kind of fun. But maybe that's just me, and perhaps more relevant to today's episode, I've also always wanted to learn to be a DJ, which is perhaps more accessible and easy to learn than being an art thief. In today's stories about someone who learns to do exactly that, become a DJ, she's actually a marketing professional by background, had some experience in the music industry, but not with playing music, which of course is a bit different. So she's found a way to make an extra $30,000 a year on the side, DJing at weddings and other events. I'll bring you her complete story in just a moment.
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Rina Goodwin's entry into the DJ world came about purely by accident. During the week, she handles the marketing for an independent all-girls school, but now on the weekends, you'll find Rina spinning tunes at weddings and events through her side hustle, DJ Goodwin. While attending Ohio State University to become a public affairs journalist, Rina got her first paid job in the music industry, promoting artists on a college campus for Sony Music. After college, she got a marketing job with Columbia Records and moved to New York City. But a few years later, she relocated to Cleveland, Ohio to do PR for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
During her time in Cleveland, Rina attended a monthly rock and roll dance party called The Clamp Down. She became friends with the organizer who suggested she get more involved. He knew I had a passion for music. She said, as well as connections in the music industry and a background in marketing that would be useful promoting the event. Although she has more than 10 years experience working in the industry, Rina never imagined she would actually play music.
But then at one of those Clamp Downs, she DJed her first gig. She had learned some of the basics of DJing from a friend, but most of the technical aspects were centered around becoming familiar with audio mixing software. She uses a program called Traktor, which costs $99. But as Rina said, pretty much anyone can put songs on a screen and transition from song to song. The real challenge and the real skill is reading the crowd and playing songs that they want to hear.
She was so nervous during that first gig, she thought she might never DJ for hire again. But for her second job, she onboarded her then fiance, now husband, to work alongside her. They've actually been a DJ duo ever since. Startup costs were a few thousand dollars and included a laptop, speakers, mixer, and insurance. Rina pays about $300 a year for that insurance policy.
And when performing or playing music for the public, there's also a music licensing fee to consider. A lot of venues she works with usually have their own licensing, but if she's performing in an unusual space like a barn, they have to pay another $300 for an extra license. Some months in the DJ hustle are quieter than others. For example, in January, not many people get married. But overall, the work is steady.
Rina charges a base rate starting at $200 an hour. And with DJing about 20 to 25 gigs a year, makes an annual profit of about $30,000. And she says she hardly markets her DJ work. She lives by this motto, it's not who you know, it's who knows you. So other than some postcards, a few posts on social media, and a couple bridal shows, all of her gigs have come from word of mouth.
She realizes that she could grow this business with an active marketing campaign, but that's not really her goal. Right now, she's looking to sustain her side hustle to supplement her regular income. Again, $30,000 a year, not insignificant. For those who might consider a DJing side hustle, Rina says the money you can make DJing is really good, but you really, really have to love and know music. More than that, she suggests finding a niche.
And for DJ Goodwin, their motto is, "We're not wedding DJs, but we will DJ your wedding." In other words, they focus on cool and not cheesy wedding music, and most of all, they stick to their brand. That said, Rina says at the end of the day, this really is a service you're doing for others. So some DJs tend to be rigid in what they will and will not play. But Rina says in order to be successful, you need to be open-minded and receptive to suggestions. If partygoers really want to dance along to the Macarena, just give it to them, because it gets people out on the dance floor, and it's kind of like the great musical equalizer.
Everyone looks a little ridiculous dancing to the Macarena. So be okay with stepping outside your own tastes in music, and people will thank you for it. Looking back, there's very little Rina wishes she had done differently, but there was one week when she took on three gigs. She says that was exhausting. In hindsight, she wished she had only taken on two, but it was a learning experience, and she survived.
Overall, the bad experiences are few and far between, and they're countered by the joy of seeing people having fun on the dance floor. Now, DJing is not Rina's only side hustle. She stays pretty busy. She's also started her own PR and marketing business called Factor PR, which she hopes to make her main job over time. She currently has 12 clients who she helps with PR, social media, and content marketing.
Now, I know what you're thinking. How does she do it? She's got the day job, she's got the DJ side hustle, 25 gigs a year, and this new business that she's trying to start and actually turn into her main thing. Well, her tip to success is scheduling. Rina schedules and prioritizes everything.
Her most important habit is waking up early in the morning. She finds that the more she can tackle early, the more she can get done throughout the day. She doesn't always complete everything on her to-do list, but she keeps moving forward. For her PR firm, she has found that hiring interns and using Asana project management software has really helped to make a difference. Interestingly, Rina says that the most important thing she's learned from DJing is how to run a client-based business.
She says the side hustle experience actually helped her in starting the new PR firm. Rina doesn't want to DJ forever, and like I said, she's not trying to make that her full-time job, but she also doesn't necessarily see herself completely retiring from it. Ultimately, she's hoping to build factor that PR firm into a legacy business where she can make a living, all the while spending tunes on the side, even playing the Macarena, if that's what it takes. [Music]
Yay, congratulations to Rina. I always love tracing people's history and seeing how one thing leads to another, how you have these skills that you apply in a certain way, and then years later, it turns into something totally different.
That's what you see in this story. She had a background in the music industry. She learned about PR and marketing. That led to her very profitable side gig as a DJ, which then gave her the confidence and some of the client skills that she needed to form a PR business. If you've ever wondered if you could do more than one thing, well, I think the answer is yes.
I'm a bit like Rina. Sometimes I get behind on stuff. I have to think about scheduling and prioritization, but overall, I'm really excited by working on more than one project and trying to make progress on multiple things. So everybody has to discover what's best for them about that. Some people really do need to focus on just one project, and I respect and understand that, but for some of the rest of us, we kind of come alive or even thrive in an environment where we have the side project, we have the so-called main project, we have the project that's on the horizon, and that can be an active, engaging way to live your life as well.
By the way, side note, in the research for this story, I was reading about a couple DJs who began at age 75. There was a woman named Ruth Flowers, who went by the DJ name Mammy Rock, began her new career pretty late in life, age 75, and then continued, actually getting paid a lot of money to travel the world, perform in clubs in London and Paris and elsewhere, and did that until she died at age 83. There's a YouTube video I'm gonna link up in the show notes, which I thought was pretty cool. And then through that rabbit hole, I also found another person, DJ Sumiko Rock, who is 82 years old currently, and actively DJing in Tokyo, also flying around the world and doing festivals and seemingly staying pretty active and informed. So if you ever think that you might be too late for something, I think these two ladies are a pretty great example that maybe you shouldn't consider that excuse anymore.
Or at least I thought it was pretty awesome. I hope you enjoyed this story today. As always, inspiration is good, but inspiration combined with action is so much better. Today's show notes, including everything I mentioned today, all the resources and links are at sidehustleschool.com/313. Thanks for listening.
I'll be back tomorrow. I'm Chris Guillebeau for Side Hustle School. [Music]
