Archives: Podcast

Failure Friday: “Perfect SAT Score” Tutor Gets Rejected by 100 Publishers

What It’s About

A perfect SAT score doesn’t always mean a yes.

Notes from Chris

Episode 1791

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.

The stories will vary, but often it starts with an idea, what they thought would happen and what really happened—and of course, what they learned.

Today’s short story features Shaan Patel, owner of Prep Expert. We told the successful story of his standardized test preparation business on Episode #996. Among other big wins, Mark Cuban invested $250,000 in his business.

But since this is Failure Friday, we’re not here to talk about that! Before he started his business, he pitched a book that was rejected by more than 100 literary agents and publishers.

Let’s hear the story from him, along with his biggest lesson learned.

Listen to today’s episode to learn more…

 

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Thanks to Shaan for sharing this transparent and truthful story. Check out his website at PrepExpert.com or follow him on Instagram at @shaanpatel.

SEE ALSO:

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

CREATE YOUR ONLINE STORE

Create your online store with Shopify using an exclusive discount for Side Hustle School listeners. For a limited time, get a free 21-day trial and a 10% discount for a whole year.

Many Side Hustle School listeners are building sites using Shopify's easy-to-learn platform. Try it free today! Learn More

GET YOUR FIRST 1,000 EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS

Social media is nice, but building an email list is still the single best way to get customers and clients for your hustle. It's not hard to get started—sign up for a 30-day trial and join the list-building challenge! You’ll be up and running in no time. Learn More

Sponsors & Gratitude

Don't Do Business Without It

Side Hustle School is brought to you by American Express.

No matter what you do in business, from working nine-to-five to working five-to-nine, it’s easier when you don’t go it alone. Get the powerful backing of American Express—don't do business without it! 💳 Visit American Express

Like the Show? Leave a Rating!

Side Hustle School is for you! If you’re enjoying it, please take a quick moment to leave a rating or write a quick review. It's really easy and it makes a difference! ✅

It also makes a huge difference when you tell your friends about the show. Remember, it's 100% free and listener-supported.
Here's How

Keep in Touch

There’s a new story every single day on Side Hustle School. Episodes are produced to be short and to the point—I know you’re busy. Be sure you subscribe to get instant notification of the day’s broadcast!


To infinity and beyond,

Chris Guillebeau

TBT: “Recovering Attorney” Operates 7-Figure Podcast Service

What It’s About

An update from a former White House aide who now serves podcasters worldwide.

Notes from Chris

Episode 1790

Happy Thanksgiving!

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 the owner of a business that sells pyrographic drumsticks and other personalized items (“Handcrafted Drumsticks Ignite Into Profits”). She marches to the beat of her own drummer … she also relied on her side hustle turned full-time business when she became unemployed. (Happily so, I should add.)

Today, in our latest feature, we’ll hear from John Corcoran. We first featured him on Episode 894: Former White House Aide Teaches People to Make Friends. John describes himself as a recovering attorney. He operates a service helping businesses with podcasts. This has grown into a 7-figure business that he continues to improve.

Listen to today’s episode to hear John’s updates…

 

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

 

SEE ALSO:

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

CREATE YOUR ONLINE STORE

Create your online store with Shopify using an exclusive discount for Side Hustle School listeners. For a limited time, get a free 21-day trial and a 10% discount for a whole year.

Many Side Hustle School listeners are building sites using Shopify's easy-to-learn platform. Try it free today! Learn More

GET YOUR FIRST 1,000 EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS

Social media is nice, but building an email list is still the single best way to get customers and clients for your hustle. It's not hard to get started—sign up for a 30-day trial and join the list-building challenge! You’ll be up and running in no time. Learn More

Sponsors & Gratitude

Don't Do Business Without It

Side Hustle School is brought to you by American Express.

No matter what you do in business, from working nine-to-five to working five-to-nine, it’s easier when you don’t go it alone. Get the powerful backing of American Express—don't do business without it! 💳 Visit American Express

Like the Show? Leave a Rating!

Side Hustle School is for you! If you’re enjoying it, please take a quick moment to leave a rating or write a quick review. It's really easy and it makes a difference! ✅

It also makes a huge difference when you tell your friends about the show. Remember, it's 100% free and listener-supported.
Here's How

Keep in Touch

There’s a new story every single day on Side Hustle School. Episodes are produced to be short and to the point—I know you’re busy. Be sure you subscribe to get instant notification of the day’s broadcast!


To infinity and beyond,

Chris Guillebeau

Q&A: How to market consulting for health professionals?

What It’s About

Today’s listener seeks a prescription for the best (and most ethical!) way to market to health professionals.

Notes from Chris

Episode 1789

Happy Thanksgiving!

Of course, in Canada Thanksgiving is old news—they get it a couple of weeks before us.

Today’s caller is a Canadian listener launching a learning platform for pediatric anesthesia. How can she reach her intended audience—and how can she serve professionals in this market from less-developed countries who can’t afford to pay western rates?

“Hi, Chris. My name, it’s Theresa from Beautiful Canada. First and foremost, thank you for sharing all your knowledge and your brilliant podcast. And coming up with that concept of the Side hustle. My question to you, it’s twofold. I’m in the process of launching an online consulting business. It’s a consulting, coaching, mentoring and also a learning platform for pediatric anesthesia. It’s geared towards health care professionals such as CRNAs and so forth. So the first part of the question is how would you go about marketing? Should I? Would it be a good idea to contact associations or word of mouth? It’s the best. Or maybe a mix of both. The second part of the question is us part of serve. My mission of sharing this knowledge and ensuring that the experience gained over the years is shared and the little ones all around the world or as many people as possible benefit from the knowledge and experience I’ve gained. I would like to volunteer some of this of my time and knowledge, especially in places such as Africa, where anesthesia care is scarce or non-existent. How would you approach the percentage of time and investment of resources on this part of my mission?”

Listen to today’s episode to learn more…

 

 

SEE ALSO:

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

CREATE YOUR ONLINE STORE

Create your online store with Shopify using an exclusive discount for Side Hustle School listeners. For a limited time, get a free 21-day trial and a 10% discount for a whole year.

Many Side Hustle School listeners are building sites using Shopify's easy-to-learn platform. Try it free today! Learn More

GET YOUR FIRST 1,000 EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS

Social media is nice, but building an email list is still the single best way to get customers and clients for your hustle. It's not hard to get started—sign up for a 30-day trial and join the list-building challenge! You’ll be up and running in no time. Learn More

Sponsors & Gratitude

Don't Do Business Without It

Side Hustle School is brought to you by American Express.

No matter what you do in business, from working nine-to-five to working five-to-nine, it’s easier when you don’t go it alone. Get the powerful backing of American Express—don't do business without it! 💳 Visit American Express

Like the Show? Leave a Rating!

Side Hustle School is for you! If you’re enjoying it, please take a quick moment to leave a rating or write a quick review. It's really easy and it makes a difference! ✅

It also makes a huge difference when you tell your friends about the show. Remember, it's 100% free and listener-supported.
Here's How

Keep in Touch

There’s a new story every single day on Side Hustle School. Episodes are produced to be short and to the point—I know you’re busy. Be sure you subscribe to get instant notification of the day’s broadcast!


To infinity and beyond,

Chris Guillebeau

Rustic Tiki Bars Turn Into Pallet-able Career

What It’s About

Instead of going into teaching, this new graduate builds backyard tiki bars. They call it the Great Resignation, right?

Words of Wisdom

Ben shares an important piece of advice, “Listen to customer feedback and repeat more of what works. There’s a ton of demand out there, so if you’re handy and have a few tools, you can do this business too.”

Fun Fact

The Mai Tai, the classic tiki cocktail with rum, Curaçao liqueur, orgeat syrup, and lime juice was created at the original Trader Vic’s bar in Oakland, California in 1944.

Notes from Chris

Episode 1788
Ben Corkery was part way through teacher’s college in Canada when he realized he didn’t want to enter the traditional workforce. Searching for a business that would provide him with more freedom, he decided to double down on a promising project he’d started the previous summer: building rustic backyard bars.

He got the idea from his best friend who had built a bar out of wooden shipping pallets to use at his own farm wedding a couple of years back. The rustic farm look was still in vogue, and Ben already had experience with framing and carpentry—so he decided to build a similar structure. He picked up some free pallets from Home Depot and built the bar, which he rented out once via Facebook Marketplace for $120… and then promptly sold it for $250.

He now had a taste of entrepreneurial freedom and the timing couldn’t have been better. More than a year into the pandemic, people were still going all out on home improvement projects. Ben tweaked his rustic bar designs to suit what customers wanted… and began making tiki bars and cabanas too. He earned more money that spring and summer than he’d ever done before.

Crateworks Custom Bars continues to be a solid seasonal business and customers are placing orders for next year. Ben gets most of his customers through Facebook Marketplace and Facebook groups. He’s also collecting Google reviews to help build his business.

Since he began by using free pallets and tools he already had, this was a zero-cost business to start. He’s now averaging $8,000 per month in the summer and at least $1,000 per month in the winter.

Ben is passionate about creativity and doing work that matters to him. And he wants to help other people do that too. Since he has a teaching background, he’s created a course and coaching program to help others start building and selling tiki bars and other unusual DIY craft projects.

He also writes a weekly newsletter on Substack called Society for a Wonder’ing Mind.

 

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Considering pouring yourself a drink from your own custom bar? Check out Ben’s website, Crateworks Custom Bars.

SEE ALSO:

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

WEB HOSTING @ $2.49/MONTH

Want to build any kind of website for your hustle? If so, you'll need somewhere to host it! This is the reliable company I've used for many websites. It's cheap, flexible, and offers support 24-7.

Get your own hosting plan for just $2.49 a month!
Learn More

GET $625 IN FREE TRAVEL

Earn 50,000 travel rewards points (enough for 2 round-trip plane tickets or $625 in travel credit). You'll also earn 2x points on all travel and dining spend, with zero foreign transaction fees.

I use this card every day all over the world! ✈️ Learn More

Quote of the Day
"Listen to customer feedback and repeat more of what works. There’s a ton of demand out there, so if you’re handy and have a few tools, you can do this business too."
—Ben Corkery #SideHustleSchool

Sponsors & Gratitude

Try ShipStation for 60 Days FREE!

Today’s episode of Side Hustle School is brought to you by ShipStation, the #1 choice of online sellers. 📦

To get a 30-day trial AND an additional month free, click the microphone at the top of their page and enter the word HUSTLE.
Get it Here

Like the Show? Leave a Rating!

Side Hustle School is for you! If you’re enjoying it, please take a quick moment to leave a rating or write a quick review. It's really easy and it makes a difference! ✅

It also makes a huge difference when you tell your friends about the show. Remember, it's 100% free and listener-supported.
Here's How

Keep in Touch

There’s a new story every single day on Side Hustle School. Episodes are produced to be short and to the point—I know you’re busy. Be sure you subscribe to get instant notification of the day’s broadcast!


To infinity and beyond,

Chris Guillebeau

Q&A: How do people discover a new podcast?

What It’s About

Today’s caller seeks advice on how to get their podcast out there.

Notes from Chris

Episode 1787

Welcome to a new week—Thanksgiving week for some of us!

Marketing is essentially about discoverability.

Consider a billboard: the idea is to reach a lot of people in a concentrated area with a specific message. That message may just be branding, like a sign by Coca-Cola. Or it could be something time-sensitive: get tickets to Hamilton. Or it could be for a new movie, skincare line, or anything else.

So if we focus on online a bit, how do people discover websites? SEO is a big one, and so is online links. If someone writes about your site in the New York Times, or if you rank highly for relevant keywords, hopefully a lot of visitors will discover it.

But what about a podcast? If you think about it, it’s a bit different–a podcast isn’t a website. It doesn’t rank in search terms or get links from other sites. All of this points to what is known as a discoverability problem for podcasts.

Before I say any more, we have a listener question on this topic that might help you see how this can be a big deal.

“I’d like to start a podcast and am pretty familiar with the technical parts—it seems relatively simple. I’ve also been working on content and have most of what I need for the first six episodes lined up. There’s one thing I don’t understand, though: how do listeners discover new podcasts? It seems like a very different medium than YouTube, where the algorithm determines placement and makes recommendations to users based on what they’ve previously watched. There’s nothing like that for podcasts, right? And if so, how could anyone discover a new show in the first place? Thanks for any help and advice you can give me.”

Listen to today’s episode to learn more…

 

 

 

SEE ALSO:

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

WEB HOSTING @ $2.49/MONTH

Want to build any kind of website for your hustle? If so, you'll need somewhere to host it! This is the reliable company I've used for many websites. It's cheap, flexible, and offers support 24-7.

Get your own hosting plan for just $2.49 a month!
Learn More

GET $625 IN FREE TRAVEL

Earn 50,000 travel rewards points (enough for 2 round-trip plane tickets or $625 in travel credit). You'll also earn 2x points on all travel and dining spend, with zero foreign transaction fees.

I use this card every day all over the world! ✈️ Learn More

Sponsors & Gratitude

Don't Do Business Without It

Side Hustle School is brought to you by American Express.

No matter what you do in business, from working nine-to-five to working five-to-nine, it’s easier when you don’t go it alone. Get the powerful backing of American Express—don't do business without it! 💳 Visit American Express

Like the Show? Leave a Rating!

Side Hustle School is for you! If you’re enjoying it, please take a quick moment to leave a rating or write a quick review. It's really easy and it makes a difference! ✅

It also makes a huge difference when you tell your friends about the show. Remember, it's 100% free and listener-supported.
Here's How

Keep in Touch

There’s a new story every single day on Side Hustle School. Episodes are produced to be short and to the point—I know you’re busy. Be sure you subscribe to get instant notification of the day’s broadcast!


To infinity and beyond,

Chris Guillebeau

Australian Shapes Crafty Shop During Lockdown

What It’s About

An artist finds her niche community and supports them with art supplies all from down under.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Find ways to stand out. “Instead of having a standard 20% off sale, do an 18% off sale. The unusual number is more likely to catch the customers attention and be more memorable. Better yet, have a story behind why it’s 18%. Is it because your product is 18% more durable than your competitors?”

Fun Fact

In the early days of the Clay Craze Community page, people would DM Katrina asking questions about how to use polymer clay. The truth is, she was very much a beginner in the art, so she spent lots of time Googling and YouTubing the answer. Now she realizes that this was the byproduct and power of having a good brand. It also validated the need for a community where clay makers can ask and answer questions.

Notes from Chris

Episode 1786
During lockdown in Australia, Katrina Vo wanted a creative outlet to keep herself busy. She started experimenting with polymer clay, making jewelry and trinket bowls for fun. For those not in the know (including me), polymer clay is a pliable material, sort of like Playdough for grownups. The main difference is that polymer clay becomes permanently hardened after it’s baked in the oven, making it the perfect material for creating ornaments, jewelry and figurines and more.

As Katrina discovered how versatile the material is, her fascination grew into an addiction. She started an Instagram account to share other people’s creations. The account was originally intended to be a personal inspirational mood board, but it grew quickly, with 300-400 new organic followers per day!

Once she noticed how popular it was becoming, she put lots of effort into attracting more followers by sharing tips for working with clay, or growing your small handmade business. It became a community for clay makers to connect through sharing tips and techniques while supporting and encouraging each other. The account is now called Clay Craze Community. (Find it @clay_craze)

Those realizations inspired Katrina to open Clay Craze Studio, a one-stop-shop for polymer clay makers. Her goal was to create tools which made working with polymer clay more fun and efficient. Using manufacturers from both Australia (where she’s based) and overseas, she made tools that help shape the clay or print textures on it, spending about $150 on stock and a Shopify website.

But before launching any products at all, she spent months interacting with the members in Clay Craze Community to understand their pain points.

After going live in October 2020 (pandemic biz shoutout), Clay Craze Studio had its first sale via a link on the Instagram account. Katrina had just put through a test order to make sure everything was running smoothly, so she initially thought the sale confirmation was part of the test order. After triple checking the order three times, she realized the sale was real!

Let’s talk numbers. The shop started with ten products, but it now stocks over 300, including products made in-house and supplies from other wholesalers. It averages 300-400 orders per month. During its first year of operation, the store generated $113,000 in sales, primarily through social media. Katrina is forecasting 30% growth in its second year, with over 40 new products in the pipeline.

Katrina enjoys her corporate job managing and negotiating changes to legal contracts. However, she says that running your own business gives you an entirely different source of motivation, purpose and fulfillment. It’s incredibly fulfilling to know that someone believes in products, to the extent they are willing to part with their money for it.

Katrina also loves how the project has enabled her to spend more time and support her family. She’s even hired her sisters to source new products and pack orders, while her fiancé helps with the website.

 

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

SEE ALSO:

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

GET $625 IN FREE TRAVEL

Earn 50,000 travel rewards points (enough for 2 round-trip plane tickets or $625 in travel credit). You'll also earn 2x points on all travel and dining spend, with zero foreign transaction fees.

I use this card every day all over the world! ✈️ Learn More

CREATE YOUR ONLINE STORE

Create your online store with Shopify using an exclusive discount for Side Hustle School listeners. For a limited time, get a free 21-day trial and a 10% discount for a whole year.

Many Side Hustle School listeners are building sites using Shopify's easy-to-learn platform. Try it free today! Learn More

Quote of the Day
"Instead of having a standard 20% off sale, do an 18% off sale. The unusual number is more likely to catch the customers attention and be more memorable. Better yet, have a story behind why it’s 18%. Is it because your product is 18% more durable than your competitors?"
—Katrina Vo #SideHustleSchool

Sponsors & Gratitude

Learn More With Skillshare!

Supporting the sponsors keeps the show free. Today’s episode of Side Hustle School is brought to you by Skillshare. 📷

Skillshare is giving Side Hustle School listeners 2 months of unlimited access—for $0.99! Join the 2 million students learning everything from street photography to SEO on Skillshare today!
Get Started Here!

Like the Show? Leave a Rating!

Side Hustle School is for you! If you’re enjoying it, please take a quick moment to leave a rating or write a quick review. It's really easy and it makes a difference! ✅

It also makes a huge difference when you tell your friends about the show. Remember, it's 100% free and listener-supported.


Here's How

Keep in Touch

There’s a new story every single day on Side Hustle School. Episodes are produced to be short and to the point—I know you’re busy. Be sure you subscribe to get instant notification of the day’s broadcast!


To infinity and beyond,

Chris Guillebeau

Q&A: How to market “lockdown art” project?

What It’s About

Today’s listener wants to capitalize on their art and audience.

Notes from Chris

Episode 1785

In today’s episode: a caller from New York City becomes well known for posting drawings and paintings to an Instagram account during pandemic lockdowns. Now he’s wondering: how can he monetize the attention he’s received?

Also, we’re looking for stories! If you know someone with a side hustle or small business that brings in at least $500/month while they’re also working a full-time job, send them to us. On the website, there’s a form you can access at SideHustleSchool.com/get-featured.

If it’s you, fill out that form. If it’s someone you know, send them the link. Our listeners are very loyal (thank you, listeners) and we often hear really cool reports of how the businesses we’ve featured have received more customers or some other kind of support.

“Hi, Chris, this is Matt from New York. When the city shut down in 2020, I started posting drawings and paintings to an Instagram account. They’re the types of designs you might find on Threadless or designed by humans. Their street scenes based mostly on photos I’ve taken. I sold a few T-shirts over print on demand sites, but realized how tiny the margins are and how fierce the competition is. So recently I bought a domain, got a free trial with Shopify, and I’m setting up a store. It’ll be mostly clothing, but also some wall art and notebooks and things like that.

What are the best ways to drive people to the site? Facebook and Google ads blogging about the stories behind the items, building an email list? This is my big question, I think, because just putting a forum on the site and creating opt in offers with ads are one thing. But how can I find leads to build a cold email list the way you would in, like B2B sales? I realize this is a multi-pronged question, but I figured that you’d be able to boil it down to its essence and offer some strategies that go beyond the most basic.”

Listen to today’s episode to learn more…

 

 

SEE ALSO:

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

CREATE YOUR ONLINE STORE

Create your online store with Shopify using an exclusive discount for Side Hustle School listeners. For a limited time, get a free 21-day trial and a 10% discount for a whole year.

Many Side Hustle School listeners are building sites using Shopify's easy-to-learn platform. Try it free today! Learn More

GET YOUR FIRST 1,000 EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS

Social media is nice, but building an email list is still the single best way to get customers and clients for your hustle. It's not hard to get started—sign up for a 30-day trial and join the list-building challenge! You’ll be up and running in no time. Learn More

Sponsors & Gratitude

Don't Do Business Without It

Side Hustle School is brought to you by American Express.

No matter what you do in business, from working nine-to-five to working five-to-nine, it’s easier when you don’t go it alone. Get the powerful backing of American Express—don't do business without it! 💳 Visit American Express

Like the Show? Leave a Rating!

Side Hustle School is for you! If you’re enjoying it, please take a quick moment to leave a rating or write a quick review. It's really easy and it makes a difference! ✅

It also makes a huge difference when you tell your friends about the show. Remember, it's 100% free and listener-supported.
Here's How

Keep in Touch

There’s a new story every single day on Side Hustle School. Episodes are produced to be short and to the point—I know you’re busy. Be sure you subscribe to get instant notification of the day’s broadcast!


To infinity and beyond,

Chris Guillebeau

Failure Friday: “Weeks after launch, the website was totally dead…”

What It’s About

Spare a minute to hear about the rough start for SpareRoom.

Notes from Chris

Episode 1784

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.

The stories will vary, but often it starts with an idea, what they thought would happen and what really happened—and of course, what they learned.

Today’s short story features Rupert Hunt from the UK. We told the successful story of his roommate finder business on Episode #836: Music Graduate Makes Spare Change Filling Spare Rooms.

Every 3 minutes someone finds a roommate on SpareRoom—so obviously it’s really taken off. But in the beginning, there was no guarantee of success, and Rupert had to make a big decision both for himself and in consideration with two close friends. He’ll tell us how that unfolded, as well as another lesson he learned along the way.

Listen to today’s episode to learn more…

 

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Thanks to Rupert for sharing this transparent and truthful story. Check out their website at spareroom.co.uk or spareroom.com in the U.S. or follow them @spareroom on most social networks.

SEE ALSO:

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

CREATE YOUR ONLINE STORE

Create your online store with Shopify using an exclusive discount for Side Hustle School listeners. For a limited time, get a free 21-day trial and a 10% discount for a whole year.

Many Side Hustle School listeners are building sites using Shopify's easy-to-learn platform. Try it free today! Learn More

GET YOUR FIRST 1,000 EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS

Social media is nice, but building an email list is still the single best way to get customers and clients for your hustle. It's not hard to get started—sign up for a 30-day trial and join the list-building challenge! You’ll be up and running in no time. Learn More

Sponsors & Gratitude

Don't Do Business Without It

Side Hustle School is brought to you by American Express.

No matter what you do in business, from working nine-to-five to working five-to-nine, it’s easier when you don’t go it alone. Get the powerful backing of American Express—don't do business without it! 💳 Visit American Express

Like the Show? Leave a Rating!

Side Hustle School is for you! If you’re enjoying it, please take a quick moment to leave a rating or write a quick review. It's really easy and it makes a difference! ✅

It also makes a huge difference when you tell your friends about the show. Remember, it's 100% free and listener-supported.
Here's How

Keep in Touch

There’s a new story every single day on Side Hustle School. Episodes are produced to be short and to the point—I know you’re busy. Be sure you subscribe to get instant notification of the day’s broadcast!


To infinity and beyond,

Chris Guillebeau

TBT: Pyrographic Drumsticks Blaze Profitable Path

What It’s About

A flaming hot update from an artist that literally lights drumsticks on fire.

Notes from Chris

Episode 1783

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 the founder of MomBox. She’s gone from frustrated new mom to CEO of a growing startup! … as well as the founder of Micro Gainz, a system that helps weightlifters break plateaus. The pandemic helped him bulk up his business!

Last week, we heard from Bill Simpson, chief tap dancer of HowtoTapDance.com. From his homebase of Melbourne, Australia, he teaches the art of the tap to students all over the world.

Today, in our latest feature, we’ll hear from Ella Cordial-Brockelsby. We first featured her in Ep. 784: Fire in the Hole! Handcrafted Drumsticks Ignite Into Profits. She marches to the beat of her own drummer … she also established this business while she was gainfully employed. As you’ll hear in her update, it ended up being a vital backup plan.

Listen to today’s episode to hear Ella’s updates…

 

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Thanks to Ella for sharing their updates with us. You can see the Cordialgreetings shop on Etsy at etsy.com/shop/Cordialgreetings. In addition to personalized drumsticks, she sells all sorts of items that might make for a memorable holiday gift.

 

SEE ALSO:

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

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To infinity and beyond,

Chris Guillebeau

Q&A: “I stopped writing on my blog. Should I delete it or just leave it there?”

What It’s About

Today’s caller has no more words for their blog. What should they do next?

Notes from Chris

Episode 1782

If a blog falls in the forest, does anyone read the old posts?

Today’s caller started a blog with enthusiasm but then it fell into decline—hey, it happens to most of them. But now she’s wondering, what, if anything, should she do with it?

If you’ve ever started something only to stop doing it after a while, you too would be a terrible person. Just kidding. Actually, you’d be human! But in a situation where you have some kind of creative work out in the world, should you close it down (in this case by deleting the blog entirely) or let it live on, just without any further updates or attention from you? And is the answer different if this project is still producing a small amount of income?

“For a couple of years I had a blog and wrote on it almost every day. It didn’t make a ton of money, but it did make some, which was nice. I finally just got tired and stopped. Now I’m working on a new project and wondering if I should completely delete the blog. I feel torn about it. Part of me thinks, well, I spent a lot of time on it and maybe some of those posts are still helpful to someone. But another part of me thinks, move on! Delete everything and do something else. How would you handle this?”

Listen to today’s episode to learn more…

 

 

SEE ALSO:

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

CREATE YOUR ONLINE STORE

Create your online store with Shopify using an exclusive discount for Side Hustle School listeners. For a limited time, get a free 21-day trial and a 10% discount for a whole year.

Many Side Hustle School listeners are building sites using Shopify's easy-to-learn platform. Try it free today! Learn More

GET YOUR FIRST 1,000 EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS

Social media is nice, but building an email list is still the single best way to get customers and clients for your hustle. It's not hard to get started—sign up for a 30-day trial and join the list-building challenge! You’ll be up and running in no time. Learn More

Sponsors & Gratitude

Don't Do Business Without It

Side Hustle School is brought to you by American Express.

No matter what you do in business, from working nine-to-five to working five-to-nine, it’s easier when you don’t go it alone. Get the powerful backing of American Express—don't do business without it! 💳 Visit American Express

Like the Show? Leave a Rating!

Side Hustle School is for you! If you’re enjoying it, please take a quick moment to leave a rating or write a quick review. It's really easy and it makes a difference! ✅

It also makes a huge difference when you tell your friends about the show. Remember, it's 100% free and listener-supported.
Here's How

Keep in Touch

There’s a new story every single day on Side Hustle School. Episodes are produced to be short and to the point—I know you’re busy. Be sure you subscribe to get instant notification of the day’s broadcast!


To infinity and beyond,

Chris Guillebeau