“Random Acts of Kindness” Project Earns Non-Random Cash Money

This transcript was generated from the episode audio and may contain minor errors.

Hello, what's up? Welcome back. This is episode 451 of Side Hustle School. My name is Chris Guillebeau, your host. It just so happens that today, at least the day this episode's going out, is National American Diabetes Association Alert Day. Just want to give a shout out to

anyone whose life has been affected by diabetes that includes my dad. He's had type 1 juvenile onset diabetes pretty much the whole time I've been around. And fortunately, these days, a lot more manageable than it was a long time ago. But it's still a serious thing that can affect your life. So I'm really glad he's taken care of himself all these years. And to anyone

else out there with diabetes themselves, or has a family member with diabetes. Today is about honoring you and also encouraging other people to just take care of themselves. You got to take care of yourself and you got to be kind, or I guess you don't have to be kind, but it's probably good to do both those things. You may have heard that quote, "Be kind for everyone who's fighting a hard battle." I thought about that quote a fair amount over the past year myself. I've had some different struggles, not with diabetes, but with depression and anxiety. Not really the focus of

side hustle school, but it is something that I talk about from time to time. And today we're going to talk about random acts of kindness. It's actually a random acts of kindness side hustle project. But because this show is all about creating an income generating project for yourself, it's a random project that earns non-random cash money. How about that? So just as you should be

kind to others, I think you should also be kind to yourself. And part of that is looking out for the future. At least that's what I believe. This story will illustrate that in a couple of different ways. Let's say thanks to today's sponsor for their kind support. And then I'll tell you all

about this project. Happiness doesn't come from what we get, but from what we give. At least that's what the Buddha said. Or was it the Kardashians? In any case, great words to live by and maybe even grow a side hustle. Jesse Weinberg, a founder of a travel focused digital

agency, grew up with the importance of being kind to others. His grandfather was always making the impression that being nice to people sometimes pays off in more ways than one. After his grandfather passed away, Jesse felt he needed to continue his legacy. And then once he became a new dad himself, that ethos really set in, and he knew he had to do more. This lifelong practice inspired what is now known as kindness and co. A side hustle to make kindness an easy act that anyone

can extend to the ones they love, or even to complete strangers. Imagine finding a book with a note sharing how it was somebody's favorite and why you should give it a read. Or imagine treating a stranger to lunch on the fly. Imagine the feeling you'd get knowing that someone's about to stumble upon something special during their day. That feeling is priceless. Or actually,

it cost $10, $9.99 to be precise. You see, with kindness and co., Jesse wanted to start something that could spark a movement. A movement where something small could inspire someone to do something selfless, perhaps even change their point of view through one purposeful act. So he had the idea to create a kit that made being kind effortless. With his beautifully designed random acts of kindness kits, anyone can share a good deed. In exchange for that $9.99, each kit comes

with a beautifully designed card, envelope, and removable stickers to attach cash, a gift card, or just a simple note. Each card also provides examples of different ways to be kind to others using the kit. Thanks to the help of a talented friend who is also an artist, costs were minimal when it came to concept and design. When it came to validating his idea, Jesse decided to launch a Kickstarter campaign to see how people responded. He set a goal to raise $3,000 in order to jump start prototypes and create an initial run of kits. That $3,000 was fully funded. He was

unable to evolve his prototypes and get his first run of 50 kits produced. Lots of trial and error went into finding the right printer, the right materials, learning about assembly, construction, and fulfillment in a cost-effective way. But once the vision and production were in place, he set up a website and connected social channels to help spread the word. The results were more rewarding than he'd imagined. One person organized a neighborhood cleanup. Another bought coffee for

a random person in line. And that was just the beginning. To practice what he preached, Jesse gave away a kit for each of the first 50 kits he sold. But this project is not all a giveaway. Kindness & Co. has now sold over 1,000 kits, around 50 sales a month, bringing Jesse an extra

$500 a month consistently. He's currently working on developing a stronger marketing campaign through visual platforms like Instagram that will allow his customers to share their good deeds with the help of a viral hashtag. One customer has even gone above and beyond using the kit to buy 100 cheeseburgers to give to the homeless. In times like these, kindness can be hard to find, but at least you can now pay for it with PayPal or any major credit card. All right, congrats to Jesse. These cards look really fun. I was taking a look at his website.

We will definitely link that up in our notes. I would encourage people to go and check it out. And I always love hearing about projects where somebody has the motivation to do good and do well. I don't want you to misunderstand me and think I'm saying that everything you do that's kind has to be connected to money. Of course, it doesn't. But in this story, it's a really fun vision because

he has this mission to make the world a better place and encourage helpfulness, encourage kindness, encourage generosity. So I think it's great that he's making $500 a month from a project that is also impacting people and inspiring them to do helpful things for others. I know he has hopes of growing it further, so hopefully we can nudge it along just a bit. And maybe this gives you an idea to do something, probably not the same exact thing, but maybe something similar, or maybe it kind of helps you think about your project, the one you're already working on, or the one you've been taking notes about, or just the one that's kind of there in the back of your brain as you go about the rest of your life, as you go about your day job, maybe working out at the gym or commuting, whatever it is that you're up to. I would just encourage you on a regular basis to be kind, not just to others, but also to yourself, as I said in the introduction. And part of being

kind to yourself is looking out for your future, creating more security for yourself so that you'll feel better about yourself. There are lots of ways to do that, of course, and my little way here with the show is to kind of gently nudge you toward that financial independence of having more than one source of income. So that of course, you can do what's important to you. Hopefully that includes being kind, but that's up to you. Thank you for listening today. Inspiration is good, but inspiration

with action is so much better. Those show notes will be online at sidehustleschool.com/451-451. I'll be back tomorrow and the next day with another story. I'm excited to share them with you. I'm so glad you're here for the journey. Don't go anywhere. I'm Chris Guillebeau for Side Hustle School.