Notes from Chris

Episode 2176

I believe we can learn as much from failure as we can from success, if not more. It’s with this principle in mind that I offer you a weekly segment called Failure Friday: a collection of short stories all about mistakes, missteps, disasters, and of course, failure.

Just like our Throwback Thursday segment, you’ll hear directly from side hustlers who have struggled to get something off the ground. They’ll tell you a short story of something that went very wrong.

Today’s short story features Robert from Long Island, New York. His idea was to start a virtual consultation service to help people pick out the right exercise shoes.

Let’s hear about how this idea didn’t pan out… I’ll be back at the end to wrap us up.

SEE ALSO:

• Marketer Creates Six-Figure Subscription Box Success: He looked for a simple solution for a client, and didn’t find one—so he spent the next year building it.
• Comic Book Curator Creates Custom Crate Subscription: A Sacramento-based comic and collectibles owner sparks an interest in reading with a monthly comic book subscription box service.
• A Packed Closet Leads to Secondhand Subscription Boxes: A professional organizer finds a way to stitch her passion for thrift shopping into profits.

Inspiration is good; inspiration combined with action is better. Now get back to work!

Yours in the revolution,

Notes from Chris

Episode 2175

Welcome to Throwback Thursday / “Where are they now?” where we take an in-depth look at someone who’s story has evolved considerably since we first featured them.

Recently, we’ve featured a Florida enthusiast who becomes America’s leading ambassador of kickbikes, a European mode of transport and adventure, as well as a CEO of a lead-generation company in Utah.

Today, in our latest feature, we’ll hear from a Los Angeles film editor who sets out to create a business serving other industry professionals. He now earns as much as his previous salary with just three hours of coaching per day.

What else has happened since we last talked with Zach? Let’s hear directly from him with more updates.

Listen to today’s episode to hear more…

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

• Thanks to Zach for sharing his updates with us. Check out his website optimizeyourself.me or subscribe to the podcast Optimize Yourself wherever you listen!

SEE ALSO:

• Raver Turns LED-Powered Gloves Into Bright Future: When a raver-turned-salesperson falls in love with an underground artform, he turns it into a successful side business.
• Bright Idea Leads Chicago Woman to Million-Dollar Hustle: A Chicago-based plastic recycling sales rep overcomes her fears and doubts to transform her love for DIY lamp shades and $10 in supplies into a multi-million dollar business.
• 3D Printing Brings Cosplay Into 21st Century: With a 3D printer and sense of imagination, a California natural gas industry worker takes superhero DIY cosplay to a whole new level.

Inspiration is good; inspiration combined with action is better. Now get back to work!

Yours in the revolution,

Notes from Chris

Episode 2174

A caller has an idea to connect overseas web developers with clients in the U.S. In case you weren’t aware, development (programming / coding / etc.) is a hot career field. It’s very hard to find good help without spending a lot of money, and sometimes it’s hard even when you do spend a lot of money.

So back to our caller’s idea: how would this work, and how can they profit from it?

“The company I work for at my day job recently had a negative experience with a web developer. Two of them, actually—the first guy embraced the quiet quitting ethos and didn’t take any initiative for anything, and the second guy just kind of ghosted us.

It was frustrating, and it seems like good help in this field is hard to find.

Thus, my idea: is anyone working as some sort of broker or liasion between overseas web developers and companies in the U.S. or elsewhere that want to hire them for jobs? I don’t just mean something like Fiverr, I mean more of a handholding service.

I’m not a developer myself, but I manage projects and am good at communicating expectations. In both of these other situations, there were warning signs that our company ignored despite my raising concerns early. So I think there’s value here, but I don’t really know how to go about the next steps.”

Listen to today’s episode to learn more…

SEE ALSO:

• Catholic Designer Creates Stylish Apparel Line: What shall it profit a man to gain the whole world but not sell any t-shirts? This designer cast his bread upon the waters and ended up with a profitable fashion line.
• Seattle Couple Creates New “Income LiveStream”: When a married couple runs into logistical problems at their wedding, it leads to an innovative service that other engaged couples need during the pandemic.
• Role-Playing Pastor Rolls The Dice On $2800/Month Hustle: Listener success story! This Presbyterian minister turns to his lifelong interest in role-playing games to set up a sustainable second income source.

Inspiration is good; inspiration combined with action is better. Now get back to work!

Yours in the revolution,

Notes from Chris

Episode 2173

Let’s talk about one of my favorite things in the world: cats and cat videos, specifically. If I could add up all the time I’ve spent watching cat videos, I’d think … I’m surprised it’s not more! And it’s time well spent.

But back to our show, which features a listener question: how to monetize cat videos?

It made me think, I wonder if I could monetize watching cat videos. That’s the real dream! But since that’s not feasible in any way that I know, let’s go to the original question.

“This might sound like a weird question, but there’s a point to it: Does anyone make money from cat videos?

I tried Googling for the answer, but all I found was … more cat videos. I then spent almost an hour watching them, which brings me back to the original question: with so many talented cats out there, and every owner with a smartphone, who’s monetizing this?? Or is it all really just for entertainment?

Keep up the good work over there. I listen every day and really appreciate the show.”

Listen to today’s episode to learn more…

SEE ALSO:

• Catholic Designer Creates Stylish Apparel Line: What shall it profit a man to gain the whole world but not sell any t-shirts? This designer cast his bread upon the waters and ended up with a profitable fashion line.
• Seattle Couple Creates New “Income LiveStream”: When a married couple runs into logistical problems at their wedding, it leads to an innovative service that other engaged couples need during the pandemic.
• Role-Playing Pastor Rolls The Dice On $2800/Month Hustle: Listener success story! This Presbyterian minister turns to his lifelong interest in role-playing games to set up a sustainable second income source.

Inspiration is good; inspiration combined with action is better. Now get back to work!

Yours in the revolution,

Notes from Chris

Episode 2172

Today’s episode is part of a new feature we’re doing in 2022 called ‘Your First $1,000.’ As you might surmise from the title, this is all about how someone made their first $1,000.

How did they get to that point? Not their first $100,000—that’s cool, but it would probably be a long story.

One thing I’ve learned is that once you begin to earn real money, the steps required to go to the next level—whether it’s $1,000 to $2,000, or even to $5,000 or $10,000 are often easier than that first real paycheck.

With that in mind, today’s feature comes from Daniel. He’s a programmer who was already working on one side hustle when he stumbled upon another.

Let’s hear the story from him.

SEE ALSO:

• Military Spouse Starts Subscription Box Mission:When an HR Director’s husband is away on military deployment, she uses the alone time to march toward a subscription box.
• Think Inside the Subscription Box:Looking for more community, a North Carolina web agency owner starts a subscription box for female entrepreneurs. It’s supposed to be a referral tool for her agency, but it ends up becoming a full-time business of its own.
• Nature-Loving Neighbors Create Kids Subscription Box: When two couples can’t figure out how to get their kids outdoors and away from electronics in the winter, a personal challenge blossoms into an unbeLEAFable side hustle.

Inspiration is good; inspiration combined with action is better. Now get back to work!

Yours in the revolution,

Notes from Chris

Episode 2171

A caller from Ireland wants to start his own instructional workshop. Any tips?

Putting on a workshop or any live event has some things in common with other services and also some unique characteristics.

It is a lot of work and in the right circumstances, a lot of fun. A number of friends of mine have tried workshops and walked away from them becuase they couldn’t get the variables right. Others (a smaller number) have been able to make a living or a significant revenue stream from them. So what does Killian need to know?

“Hey there, this is Killian calling from Ireland. My question is about putting on live events, specifically an instructional workshop where people come together to learn something and then apply it. What are your tips for running a successful weekend workshop?

Also—any plans to host any more Side Hustle School workshops? I went to one of the first ones you did and am still in contact with some of the people I met there.”

Listen to today’s episode to learn more…

SEE ALSO:

• Catholic Designer Creates Stylish Apparel Line: What shall it profit a man to gain the whole world but not sell any t-shirts? This designer cast his bread upon the waters and ended up with a profitable fashion line.
• Seattle Couple Creates New “Income LiveStream”: When a married couple runs into logistical problems at their wedding, it leads to an innovative service that other engaged couples need during the pandemic.
• Role-Playing Pastor Rolls The Dice On $2800/Month Hustle: Listener success story! This Presbyterian minister turns to his lifelong interest in role-playing games to set up a sustainable second income source.

Inspiration is good; inspiration combined with action is better. Now get back to work!

Yours in the revolution,

Notes from Chris

Episode 2170

Today we’re going to hear from a CPA in the midwest who wants to focus on retaining clients. This is such an important topic—probably 9 out of 10 questions I get from existing business owners are all about how to find new customers, make more sales, and so on.

But if there’s a hole in your bucket—i.e. you don’t retain customers well—it’s all for nothing. I really respect people who have their eyes on sustainability.

So, what can we do for Jim?

“Hi, this is Jim Buttenfield from Kansas City, Missouri. I’m a CPA and have built a small but loyal group of clients over the past two years since leaving my job as a cost accountant for a big company.

I love working for myself and would like to have a few more consistent clients, but rather than focus on growth, I want to make sure I keep the clients I have. Most of them are small business owners, and they keep me pretty busy.

Most retention advice I’ve seen includes recommendations like “Send them cookies during the holidays.” I have no objection to cookies—but I tend to think the valuable work I do for them is a lot more, well, valuable.

So aside from bribing my clients to stick around, do you have any other advice?”

Listen to today’s episode to learn more…

SEE ALSO:

• Catholic Designer Creates Stylish Apparel Line: What shall it profit a man to gain the whole world but not sell any t-shirts? This designer cast his bread upon the waters and ended up with a profitable fashion line.
• Seattle Couple Creates New “Income LiveStream”: When a married couple runs into logistical problems at their wedding, it leads to an innovative service that other engaged couples need during the pandemic.
• Role-Playing Pastor Rolls The Dice On $2800/Month Hustle: Listener success story! This Presbyterian minister turns to his lifelong interest in role-playing games to set up a sustainable second income source.

Inspiration is good; inspiration combined with action is better. Now get back to work!

Yours in the revolution,

Notes from Chris

Episode 2169

I believe we can learn as much from failure as we can from success, if not more. It’s with this principle in mind that I offer you a weekly segment called Failure Friday: a collection of short stories all about mistakes, missteps, disasters, and of course, failure.

Just like our Throwback Thursday segment, you’ll hear directly from side hustlers who have struggled to get something off the ground. They’ll tell you a short story of something that went very wrong.

Today’s short story features Jack from Milwaukee. He run an advisory service in his spare time when he’s not working in finance during the day.

Since he’s a busy guy, he assumed that getting some help in the form of an assistant would be a good idea. And maybe it still will be at some point—but the first go-around didn’t go so well.

Let’s hear the story from him.

SEE ALSO:

• Marketer Creates Six-Figure Subscription Box Success: He looked for a simple solution for a client, and didn’t find one—so he spent the next year building it.
• Comic Book Curator Creates Custom Crate Subscription: A Sacramento-based comic and collectibles owner sparks an interest in reading with a monthly comic book subscription box service.
• A Packed Closet Leads to Secondhand Subscription Boxes: A professional organizer finds a way to stitch her passion for thrift shopping into profits.

Inspiration is good; inspiration combined with action is better. Now get back to work!

Yours in the revolution,

Notes from Chris

Episode 2168

Welcome to Throwback Thursday / “Where are they now?” where we take an in-depth look at someone who’s story has evolved considerably since we first featured them.

Last week, we heard from a Florida enthusiast who becomes America’s leading ambassador of Kickbikes, a European mode of transport and adventure.

Today, in our latest feature, we’ll hear from the founder and CEO of a lead generation / digital marketing company called Credo. It’s been through a few different iterations over the years, but continues to grow and evolve.

Let’s hear more about that directly from John. I’ll be back at the end to wrap us up.

Listen to today’s episode to hear more…

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

• Thanks to John for sharing his updates with us. Check out Credo at www.GetCredo.com.

SEE ALSO:

• Raver Turns LED-Powered Gloves Into Bright Future: When a raver-turned-salesperson falls in love with an underground artform, he turns it into a successful side business.
• Bright Idea Leads Chicago Woman to Million-Dollar Hustle: A Chicago-based plastic recycling sales rep overcomes her fears and doubts to transform her love for DIY lamp shades and $10 in supplies into a multi-million dollar business.
• 3D Printing Brings Cosplay Into 21st Century: With a 3D printer and sense of imagination, a California natural gas industry worker takes superhero DIY cosplay to a whole new level.

Inspiration is good; inspiration combined with action is better. Now get back to work!

Yours in the revolution,

Notes from Chris

Episode 2167

Today’s caller wants to drive for Uber Eats, Door Dash, and Postmates—but it’s not what you think. He’s not looking for a new part-time job, he wants to collect the bonuses that each service offers, then quit.

That’s because these companies are all about getting people to jump ship from one service to another, and then of course trying to get them to stay.

Longtime listeners know that I want to help you create real income, not just get those part-time jobs—but is our caller on to a smart strategy?

“I’m wondering about driving for Door Dash—but it’s not what you think. I don’t want to do it for long, I just want to do it long enough to get the bonus for new drivers. Then I want to do it for UberEats, Postmates, and any other services.

Is there anything wrong with this? I know that driving for these companies isn’t a great longterm play, but I figure if I can get the bonuses it makes the introductory pay much higher, and then I can quit. Let me know if you’ve heard of anyone else doing this or if you have any pointers.”

Listen to today’s episode to learn more…

SEE ALSO:

• Catholic Designer Creates Stylish Apparel Line: What shall it profit a man to gain the whole world but not sell any t-shirts? This designer cast his bread upon the waters and ended up with a profitable fashion line.
• Seattle Couple Creates New “Income LiveStream”: When a married couple runs into logistical problems at their wedding, it leads to an innovative service that other engaged couples need during the pandemic.
• Role-Playing Pastor Rolls The Dice On $2800/Month Hustle: Listener success story! This Presbyterian minister turns to his lifelong interest in role-playing games to set up a sustainable second income source.

Inspiration is good; inspiration combined with action is better. Now get back to work!

Yours in the revolution,