This transcript was generated from the episode audio and may contain minor errors.
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What if getting hit by a truck could accidentally launch your six-figure international globe trotting business? That is what happened to Kyle Hepp. Kyle Hepp had a very bad week, her worst week ever in fact, but it also became the catalyst for building this successful wedding photography practice that takes her around the world. Welcome friends and welcome to Side Hustle School. It's Chris Guillebeau, your host.
This is the weekend workshop segment. It's all about helping you learn the key steps to a new hustle, one step or concept per week. We're using the book "Cytosil from Idea to Income" in 27 days as our text. And for the first half of the year, we went through the 27 steps in the book. In the second half, we're looking at more detailed case studies from the book, as well as from my previous bestseller, $100 startup, so you can learn and understand how people apply the framework.
Okay, let's talk about Kyle's story, and then let's talk about how you can take the same model and apply it to your idea. So, Kyle was living in Chile with her husband, trying to build a career in sports management while doing freelance work on the side. And life seemed to be moving in a positive direction until a very bad 48 hour period. First of all, her husband lost his construction engineering job, basically just not a good situation there, they let him go. And the couple now had no steady income, limited prospects in their adopted country.
Two days later, Kyle was out for her morning job when a pickup truck slammed into her at a busy intersection. Thankfully, her injuries weren't life threatening, but she was badly hurt and spent a week in the hospital, followed by more weeks of recovery at home. Not able to walk properly and too bruised to even type, which then ended her freelance work. So, that's pretty tough, but during her recovery, Kyle and Siba, that's her husband, made an unusual decision. Instead of panicking, they decided to get this, take an extended European vacation.
I know that sounds crazy, but they figured they might as well travel while they had time and before they needed to find new jobs. Before leaving, Kyle did something that seemed almost trivial at the time. She had been dabbling in wedding photography as a hobby, but never seriously pursued it. So, on a whim, she updated her photography website and announced she was accepting new bookings. The response was immediate.
A booking request came in right away, which gave her unexpected confidence. And she figured, well, if one couple was interested, maybe there are others. And then she began thinking about what could I do to combine my interests in skill and photography with my love of travel. When Kyle and Siba returned to Chile after their European trip, they faced a big choice. They can now look for traditional employment and return to the safety of regular jobs, or they could bet on Kyle's photography skills and see if they could build something together.
Now, of course, this is not shocking, they chose the uncertain path. They decided to pursue wedding photography full-time until the booking stopped coming or the money ran out. It was a leap of faith born from necessity, but sometimes the best decisions come when you have nothing left to lose. Let's take a quick break. When we returned, what happened?
What did she learn along the way? And what might you need to know for pursuing a similar idea? [Music]
All right, back to the story. Instead of trying to be the cheapest option or the most technically skilled photographer, Kyle focused on building genuine connections with couples over time. And this process began long before the wedding day.
She invested significant time getting to know each couple, understanding their story, building trust. And so by the time she arrived to photograph their wedding, she wasn't just a vendor, she was someone who truly understood what mattered to them. And this relationship first approach really created something remarkable, clients who became advocates. They didn't just leave good reviews, they actually recommended Kyle to friends around the world who were planning their own weddings. And that around the world part is key because within two years, Kyle's business had completely transformed their lives.
I think it was year two, they earned $90,000. They were booked solid a year in advance, but perhaps more remarkably, they were working internationally photographing weddings in Argentina, Spain, England, and the United States. Kyle discovered that her ideal clients were well-traveled couples who weren't intimidated by hiring a photographer from another country. They in fact appreciated the unique perspective she brought and were not constrained by geographic boundaries. So this success came from premium positioning rather than volume work.
She wasn't just trying to do as many weddings as possible. She focused on fewer higher value clients who appreciated her international experience and that relationship building approach. And of course, the transformation came from turning a personal crisis into professional opportunity. That forced break from traditional employment gave her the time and motivation to pursue something she really enjoyed. Now, this kind of approach can work across a lot of different service-based businesses.
The key is identifying a client base that values relationship and service over simple transactions. And these clients exist in every industry, whether you are a consultant, coach, designer, any other service provider. The relationship-first approach can transform both your client satisfaction and your pricing power. You can charge a higher price. You can charge a premium price for a premium experience.
Now, of course, you have to provide a premium experience to charge a premium price. It goes both ways, but that's part of designing your service in the first place. So as for Kyle, she turned her worst week into her best career move. That truck accident that could have derailed her life instead became the catalyst for building a business that gives her complete location freedom and financial independence. So the question is, when crisis forces change in your life, will you see it as a setback or as your unexpected opportunity?
Or perhaps it's both, 'cause it could be a setback, but also there's a silver lining. I'll leave you with that today. And as always, it's better to have a simple idea. You can start right away than a brilliant idea that never launches. Hey, thanks for tuning in today.
My name's Chris Guillebeau. Much more is coming up if you're listening to "Side Hustle School." [Music]
- From the Onward Project.
