Archives: Podcast

Weekly Recap: How NOT to Add People to Your Email List

Notes from Chris

Episode 463

THEMES & TAKEAWAYS:

Last week, we looked at launching crowdfunding campaigns. This week, let’s consider email lists.

In this episode, I share a personal experience where I was added to someone’s email list without my permission. The lesson is that you should definitely have an email list, but don’t randomly add people to it. Nobody likes spam!

And if you don’t have an email list yet, check out ConvertKit. It’s the email marketing platform I use for the show—plus, all Side Hustle School listeners get their first month absolutely free!

Listener Shoutouts

Last but not least, I’d like to give a shoutout to Paul who forwarded me a new project that he’s working on called My Value Manifesto. Listen to the recap to hear more about this project, and check it out for yourself!

EPISODES FROM THIS WEEK:

Here’s what we heard this week on Side Hustle School! Listen to this week’s recap for a more comprehensive highlight reel.

  • Ep. 457 – A New Zealand-based software developer puts her digital skills to artistic use by creating virtual lettering brushes for budding digital calligraphers
  • Ep. 458 – Frustrated with snobby and overly-serious triathletes, a man creates a Facebook group for more casual and fun discussion. It then transforms into a $30,000 side hustle with tens of thousands of members
  • Ep. 459 – When she left her job, she found herself longing to reconnect with a favorite hobby. So she grabbed some paints and brushes—and within an hour, found her first client
  • Ep. 460 – A new mom helps party hosts plan their events. After hiring college students to do the work, she parties her way to a European vacation, complete with Beyoncé tour tickets
  • Ep. 461 – An emergency medical technical builds iPhone apps on the side, landing gigs with Buzzfeed and the University of Massachusetts
  • Ep. 462 – An adjunct community college professor uploads his final course to YouTube, then converts it to a Udemy course. In just sixteen months, he reaches almost 35,000 students and makes over $100,000 in profits

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Join me at the World Domination Summit!

Have you heard of the World Domination Summit? This is a gathering of awesome people—an event that I’ve been hosting together with an amazing team in Portland, OR every summer for the past eight years.

WDS 2018 is coming up at the end of June (June 26th-July 2nd), and we’ll be welcoming people from over 30 different countries. With inspiring keynote speakers, a week full of activities and attendee-led meetups, and two incredible parties, you won’t want to miss it!

This is our final wave of main stage tickets so visit our website to get your ticket to this incredible, once a year event! We promise that it’s unlike anything you’ve ever experienced before.

Here’s what’s coming up next…

Each week I’ll feature more stories from people who are starting side hustles without quitting their job. Here’s a sneak peek of what’s coming next week:

  • A student cashes in on his love of history by mailing beautifully designed letters to monthly subscribers
  • A North Carolina man’s software app forces users to make donations when they slack off their fitness routines
  • And so much more!

Do you have a side hustle story you’d like to share? Fill out the Side Hustle School submission form and your story may be featured on the show!

Also, if you’re interested in joining the Side Hustle Society, visit our Society page to get notified when it goes live!

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
"You should definitely have an email list, but make sure you’re inviting the right people to join."
—#SideHustleSchool

Sponsors & Gratitude

Create a Stunning Website With Wordpress

Today’s episode of Side Hustle School is brought to you by Wordpress.com! Whether you’re looking to create a personal blog, business site, or both—you’ll make a big impact, when you build your website on WordPress.com. 💻

Get 15% off when you build your website with Wordpress.com—use promo code PODCAST when you check out.
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

Adjunct Professor Puts Course on YouTube for $100k Profit

What It’s About

A college professor hacks Udemy and makes more than he does at his day job.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

One of the things Jason confessed was that he has to be careful not to neglect his family by focusing too much on his side hustle. That’s easy to do when your project takes off, because as he says, “You want to throw yourself into it more.”

So what does he do to prevent this from happening? He’s found that setting clear boundaries help and recommends that other side hustlers hustling from home create clear divisions between their home and work lives.

Fun Fact

Even though Jason earns more per month in his side hustle than he does in his day job, he has no immediate plans to quit. He’s a couple years away from being fully-vested in his retirement plan….a great reason to stay.

Notes from Chris

Episode 462

Jason Dion is a Cyber Security Planner working for the government in the greater Washington D.C. area. In November of 2016, he uploaded his first online course on Udemy to help people pass their IT certification exam. Sixteen months later, he has fourteen courses and earns more in his side hustle than he does in his day job. We’ll get to the exact figure later.

So how did Jason go from being a cybersecurity expert in his day job to running a successful library of online courses? Well, teaching online courses on Udemy was not Jason’s first side hustle. His first was as an adjunct professor at a local community college.

While teaching as an adjunct professor, his “day job” switched to one that required extensive travel, often at the last-minute. So teaching in the classroom was no longer an option. During his final in-person course, he recorded the audio of lectures, converted that audio to video by pairing it with a slide deck, and posted those videos on YouTube. The videos were something his students could go back and use as they studied, but he also signed up for a free program that allowed him to earn ad revenue when people watched them.

Those videos sat on YouTube for about a year, and he made a whopping $25-50 per month in ad revenue. A friend suggested he turn it into an “online video course” on a platform like Udemy. So, during Thanksgiving weekend of 2016, he took that course from YouTube and converted it to Udemy’s format. Within a month, he made almost $60. The next month $277, the next $582. He realized he was on to something, so he started making more courses.

In less than a year and a half since starting—and without quitting his day job—Jason now has 14 different courses on Udemy, and he releases a new course every 1-2 months. So far he’s taught almost 35,000 students in 171 countries. Since that first course in 2016, he has made over $100,000 in profits. That’s $100,000 after Udemy takes their cut. In the last six months, his monthly sales have increased, and he averages between $10,000-$15,000 per month. More than what he makes in his day job!

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

Quote of the Day
"I may spend 100 hours to build a course, but the sales keep coming month after month. I’m creating an asset that works for me while I sleep, and I loved waking up in the morning and seeing I earned money."
—Jason Dion #SideHustleSchool

Sponsors & Gratitude

Travel the Globe With Cards For Travel!

Side Hustle School is brought to you by CardsForTravel.com. Use travel hacking to see the world!

When you apply for their most popular, small business rewards card, you can earn 80,000 Bonus Points—enough for three round-trip plane tickets or $1,000 in travel credits. Check out this limited time offer! ✈️ 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

EMT Moonlights as App Builder, Earns $15,000 a Month

What It’s About

When he’s not out saving lives, this paramedic flexes quite a different skillset—app development.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

It’s not always easy to stay on the cusp of the fast-paced smartphone app world, but Phil has a tip for those looking to make their way into the field. He believes that pre-launch day hype, like creating waitlists based on referrals, finding a public influencer in your target market to endorse your app, and having a solid marketing plan can all help move you up in the app rankings.

Fun Fact

You might think you have a ton of apps on your phone, but it’s hard to beat 57. That’s the average number of applications your average South Korean smartphone owner has downloaded onto their smartphones! But that’s nothing in comparison to 149.3 billion—the total number of apps downloaded, worldwide.

Notes from Chris

Episode 461

Phone apps aren’t usually the first thing that comes to mind when you think of “Emergency Medical Technicians” (or EMTs) but Phil Scarfi in NYC has always looked beyond the ambulance for inspiration. Whenever he went to work, he would spend any downtime dreaming of ways he could make his life easier.

He wasn’t looking for an easy way out, by any means. Just ways he could simplify an already hectic life. One day Phil might focus on looking for the latest gadgets, the next, he could spend searching for productivity hacks. But, no matter what, his attention always wandered back to phone applications.

App development had been an interest of Phil’s, ever since he studied computer science during his freshman year of college. Eager to take his classroom learning into the real world, he created an app that showed what the dining halls were serving for meals each day. Word slowly trickled out and eventually reached the dean of students, who notified the college… who then bought all rights to the app in one lump sum payment.

That success showed him the draw of coming up with app ideas. He eventually decided to become an EMT so he could help people facing their worst situations, but he never really let go of his love of computer science and app development… and especially creating solutions to make his day-to-day life easier.

After he’d spent years quietly developing apps for his own personal use, Phil’s friends started to make suggestions. And, eventually, they made some “friendly” requests of what they would like to see on their own phones. It was at this point that Phil started to come up with ideas to make other people’s lives easier. This led to a new side hustle, Pioneer Applications.

These days, Phil is bringing in around $15,000/month—he’s come quite a long way from his cafeteria days! Phil also says that his app-building side hustle has been one of the best experiences in his life. While he’s happy with Pioneer’s success for now, at some point he may want to go full-time and take the business to the next level. In the meantime, he’ll continue to balance his day job with building apps that make people’s lives easier. It’s not a competition; it’s not a Game of Phones where a different character dies every week. Everyone can have a h-App-y ending.

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Pioneer Applications: From dapper men’s attire to Buzzfeed, Phil makes apps for it all! Learn more about the apps Phil is creating over on his website

SEE ALSO:

  • A 12-Step Guide to Building Your Very First Mobile App – Part 1 & Part 2: 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
  • Flight Instructor’s App Takes Flight, Earns $30,000: Urs Camenish wanted to create an app to help him grow his income. But, he’d never owned a smartphone or used an app in his life
  • Spanish-Language Bible App Generates 1 Million Downloads: Opportunity knocks for a Utah accountant and leads to a fortuitous side hustle making $70,000 in one year with a $0.99 app

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

Quote of the Day
"I cannot begin to tell you how many apps I’ve seen have so much potential, but their owners stopped pushing them because ‘the going got tough.’ Some might take weeks, others might take a year or so. Keep pushing forward!"
—Phil Scarfi #SideHustleSchool

Sponsors & Gratitude

Create a Stunning Website With Wordpress

Today’s episode of Side Hustle School is brought to you by Wordpress.com! Whether you’re looking to create a personal blog, business site, or both—you’ll make a big impact, when you build your website on WordPress.com. 💻

Get 15% off when you build your website with Wordpress.com—use promo code PODCAST when you check out.
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

Stay-at-Home-Mom Hires Army of College Students

What It’s About

A new mom finds some much-needed release in the form of a party organization service!

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Kristen’s target market ended up being affluent professionals with limited time, so she started by asking them two things: 1) what they would most want someone to help them with if they were throwing a party, and 2) what they would be willing to pay to not have to do those things themselves?

She then used this information to determine the services she’d offer and the rate that she’d offer it at. When in doubt, ask!

Fun Fact

Kristen had a friend who got married in Europe, and a combination of her PartyEase income plus her husband’s airlines miles and hotel points allowed for her and her husband to take a two-week vacation to London, Paris, and Barcelona.

Notes from Chris

Episode 460

Kristen Blanks is a Midwesterner who grew up in Akron, Ohio—a place whose claim to fame is that it is the birthplace of NBA All-Star Lebron James. While many of her schoolmates were signing up for French Club or the Debate Team in high school, Kristen set her sights on something different: The Kitchen Libby Organization. If you’ve never heard of this organization, don’t worry—you’re not alone.

For those who are not in the know, a “kitchen libby” is someone who provides services like washing dishes and serving at parties. As President of this esteemed organization, Kristen was in charge of selecting students from her roster of available kitchen libbies to work the parties. It looked great on her college application and provided her with some applicable management and organizational skills. Little did she know at the time that this would go on to be the inspiration for her side hustle.

A few years later and a whole Bachelor’s degree away from her Kitchen Libby days, Kristen was toiling away in grad school so that she could be a counselor. Since her day-to-day schedule was so demanding, she often had to rely on her parents and student loans for support. But Kristen had always had a bit of an independent streak. Not content to rely on mom and dad or loan institutions with outrageous interest rates, she started brainstorming ways that she could bring in some extra cash.

It needed to be something that would allow her to have control over her hours and provide the flexibility that her school schedule severely lacked. That’s when she started reminiscing about her high school days as part of the Kitchen Libby Organization. It definitely fit her criteria and didn’t hurt that it was something that she already had experience in.

She marketed PartyEase on Craigslist and advertised it as the solution to a host’s party-throwing woes. She’d take care of the details and allow hosts to actually ENJOY their parties instead of working them. While not hugely successful, she did end up with around 5-6 gigs a year which lined her otherwise empty pocketbook. In 2012, Kristen hung up her apron for good when she and her husband moved to Pittsburgh while he attended graduate school.

Four years later, Kristen and her husband were officially settled into their new home in Columbus, OH following the birth of their first child 2014. Life was getting back to normal.

Kristen loved being a full-time mother to her young son and was an avid volunteer through her church and the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. She had always wanted to be a stay-at-home Mom, but the reality was that, well, she was bored. She missed being able to use her adult brain to contribute financially to the family.

As Kristen said to us, “After singing the ABCs for about the 100th time, I poured myself a glass of wine at noon and set out to find a way to not only save my sanity but serve my community while working from home.”

She knew she wanted to depart from her formal training as a school counselor and do something more light-hearted and above all, FUN. So, midway through 2016 she relaunched PartyEase, and started offering her party organizing services to her community in Columbus. Since this was the digital age, she launched her website with Weebly, ordered some stunning business cards, and started reaching out to friends and family for leads on upcoming events.

While this is definitely a seasonal business, Kristen says that she’ll do anywhere from 2-6 gigs a month during the party deprived periods of January and February, and upwards of 15 gigs a month during the busy wedding and holiday seasons. On average, most of her gigs end up bringing in anywhere from $200-1,500 depending on the length of the party and the number of people needed to help run it.

By the end of 2017, Kristen took home about $7,500 after paying all of her contractors and deducting any costs along the way. Not bad for a mom who had been living in sweatpants!

 

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • PartyEase: Let someone else handle the details for a change—learn more about Kristen’s side hustle on her website!
  • Cystic Fibrosis Foundation: The non-profit organization that Kristen spent her time volunteering for
  • Weebly: The platform that Kristen used to create her website for PartyEase

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

RELIABLE WEBHOST FOR $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 my past 5 websites. It's cheap, flexible, and you can get support 24 hours a day.

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

Quote of the Day
"While you might be able to do it alone, it’s better to have people in your corner. Set a meeting with someone who’s successfully started a similar business and pick their brain. You’d be surprised at how helpful people are willing to be!"
—Kristen Blanks #SideHustleSchool

Sponsors & Gratitude

Create a Stunning Website With Wordpress

Today’s episode of Side Hustle School is brought to you by Wordpress.com! Whether you’re looking to create a personal blog, business site, or both—you’ll make a big impact, when you build your website on WordPress.com. 💻

Get 15% off when you build your website with Wordpress.com—use promo code PODCAST when you check out.
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

Aussie Woman Earns Up to $4,000/Month Painting Faces

What It’s About

A little face paint and creativity put this Australian woman on a slide to side hustle success!

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

One great part of her marketing that I noticed on her website is that Ainslie warns against the dangers of acrylic paints and craft glitters, and provides guidelines for customers to follow if they’re getting quotes from other face painters. This helps build trust between the potential buyer and Ainslie and shows she cares about her customer’s wellbeing. A great touch if you’re going to be working with someone’s children.

Fun Fact

Ainslie says the only downside to the job is watching parents squash their kid’s creativity. If a boy asks for a butterfly, or a girl asks for a skull, a parent will often step in and decide for them. She says it’s hard to bite her tongue and not give the parents a mouthful, but because she’s got her business head on, she avoids arguments.

But it’s all worth it when she sees just how many people appreciate her favorite hobby as a paid service. And she’s not only paid in money— she also loves seeing the joy in a kid’s (or parent’s) eyes when they look in the mirror.

Notes from Chris

Episode 459

After leaving a job working full-time with children in Northern Australia’s beautiful Gold Coast region, Ainslie Deverson began to miss some parts of her old day-to-day life. The games, the stories, and most of all, painting children’s faces. She found it was a great way to be creative and express herself, while bringing joy to the children and parents she worked on. People had often told her she had a talent for it, and it seemed a shame to let her skills get rusty.

So, one weekend, Ainslie decided she’d attend a local market and offer her services to some of the passers-by. It was something to do, and a way to keep her skills sharp. She bought some paints and brushes and made her way to set up a stall.

After minutes of offering her services, kids were flocking to her to get all different kinds of designs on their faces. They’d all come along with parents who, when they saw their kids were happy, would ask if she offered her services privately for birthdays and events. Within an hour, she’d penciled in her first birthday party for a few weeks in the future. She kept her cool while making the booking, acting like she’d been doing this for a long time, but on the inside, she was squealing and couldn’t believe someone had booked her.

The speed of this first sale gave Ainsley the idea to turn this into a real side hustle. She saw an opportunity to make money from a hobby she loved, and if the parents at this market wanted her services, there must be other people who need this as well.

Since starting Faces by Ainslie, Ainslie has been able to make anywhere between $800 on a slow month, to $4,000 on a good month. Not bad for a $250 investment and a simple website!

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Faces by Ainslie: Learn more about Ainslie and her awesome face painting service over on her website!
  • Wix: The online website building platform that Ainslie used to set up her website

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

Quote of the Day
"So many face painters have ‘mom’ hats on instead of business or work hats. So they people please and self sacrifice. You will stunt yourself and not be able to give your all to clients therefore have lower paying clients, clients who are difficult and it will suck the joy and creativity from you."
—Ainslie Deverson #SideHustleSchool

Sponsors & Gratitude

Create a Stunning Website With Wordpress

Today’s episode of Side Hustle School is brought to you by Wordpress.com! Whether you’re looking to create a personal blog, business site, or both—you’ll make a big impact, when you build your website on WordPress.com. 💻

Get 15% off when you build your website with Wordpress.com—use promo code PODCAST when you check out.
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

Pathetic Triathlete Creates $30,000 Facebook Group

What It’s About

A man builds a safe space for Oreo consuming triathletes!

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Zach describes his marketing approach as guerrilla marketing. He joined every single relevant group—triathlons, marathons, cycling races, swimming meets, you name it—and browsed for goofy for fun posts. When he found one, he would comment saying: “Nice! This post belongs in the Pathetic Triathletes Group!”

Fun Fact

To nearly eliminate financial risk, Zach created his first shirt using a Teespring campaign, set up a free Etsy store instead of Shopify and dropships most of his products. Sales and fulfillment are mostly hands-off and free!

Notes from Chris

Episode 458

Swimming. Cycling. Running. The three sequences of a triathlon. They’re difficult, strenuous, and people train for years to prepare for them. And, according to Zachary Rose, “For some reason, many people turn into total jerks once they learn how to swim, bike, and run long distances.”

Zach, a triathlete himself, was fed up with seeing those jerks dominating the triathlon Facebook groups. He thought they were condescending, way too serious, and just generally sucked all the fun out of the community. Surely he wasn’t the only person to think so.

There needed to be a place where goofy, fun, and newcomer posts could be celebrated and enjoyed—not shot down by elitists. On a bit of a whim, Zach decided to create his own Facebook group.

He called it The Pathetic Triathletes Group.

He created a quick logo, wrote a description that outlined the restrictions on elitism, and shared his group in other triathlon groups. Just a couple hours later, over 100 people had joined.

Fun posts started showing up organically. As Zach had suspected, people were holding back in the other groups, afraid to ask fun or basic questions. But here they could thrive, they could be silly, and even better, they could be honest.

In the group’s second week of existence, it hit 500 members—and it didn’t show any signs of stalling anytime soon. More and more people were posting and declaring how great it was to finally have a judgment-free zone.

Zach, a side hustler at heart, started to explore ways to monetize this group. He came to the conclusion that since the group was a source of fun and silliness, his products should be too.

And then the idea for his first product arrived. It was simple, easy, and vanilla: a t-shirt.

Not wanting to risk any of his own money on printing shirts (and not really sure how well the idea would go over), Zach created a Teespring campaign. This would allow him to effectively take pre-orders and drop ship his shirt without ever having to lay hands on one. He knew his profits would be a lot lower this way, but it was also virtually risk-free.

He set up his account and started designing his shirt. On the front, he simply wrote “PATHETIC” in big bold letters. On the back, he attached the logo for the Facebook group. Looking back, it was, according to Zach… “really bad!”

But despite the poor design, the shirt sold—30 shirts, actually. When the campaign ended, Teespring fulfilled the orders and Zach was sent a check. It was a small amount of money, less than $150, but it proved that he didn’t just have a growing group, but a group filled with at least a few people that were committed financially to the idea.

Then, like any celebrating triathlete, Zach ate a package of Oreos.

Over the last couple years, The Pathetic Triathletes Group has grown rapidly. When I looked on March 20th, the group had 45,999 members. With the exception of a few targeted Facebook ads here and there and Zach’s initial guerrilla marketing, growth’s been pretty organic. He has a good team of volunteer moderators, an automated sales and fulfillment funnel, and he’s constantly making new designs.

And all those members? They’ve made just over 3,000 purchases, all of which were somewhere between $5 and $25 each. Zach didn’t want to give away the exact number, but that likely puts The Pathetic Triathletes Group in the $30,000 lifetime sales club.

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Etsy | Pathetic Triathlete: Gear up for your first triathlon with some of Zach’s gear
  • The Pathetic Triathletes Group: Do you celebrate most physical feats of strength and endurance with a package of Oreos? Zach’s Facebook community might just be a good fit for you!
  • Teespring: Zach used Teespring to upload his designs and sell shirts although he was still responsible for driving prospective buyers to his shirts
  • Shopify: Jesse used Shopify to set up his store for Kindness & Co., and they’re offering a 21-day trial and exclusive discount for all Side Hustle School listeners!

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
"I try to keep things laid back because I started this not as a primary source of income but as something that is FUN. The second it stops being fun is when I know I need to reconsider the strategy."
—Zachary Rose #SideHustleSchool

Sponsors & Gratitude

Create a Stunning Website With Wordpress

Today’s episode of Side Hustle School is brought to you by Wordpress.com! Whether you’re looking to create a personal blog, business site, or both—you’ll make a big impact, when you build your website on WordPress.com. 💻

Get 15% off when you build your website with Wordpress.com—use promo code PODCAST when you check out.
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

Kiwi Coder Makes Extra $50,000/Year from Virtual Paintbrushes

What It’s About

Virtual paintbrushes for digital calligraphers.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Karin emphasizes that perfectionism is your enemy when it comes to getting a revenue-generating hustle off the ground. Fancy logos and swish websites are nice to have – but not necessary. She has found that her time is much better spent on the things that will offer value in the long run. For example, creating video tutorials on how to install brushes has saved her answering hundreds of questions, and gives customers confidence that the product works.

Fun Fact

Apple is one of Karin’s biggest fans, after spotting her handiwork with their Apple Pencil. Their PR team are keen to tell the world about her colorful creations, which has led to Karin being put in touch with journalists at the NZ Herald and Vancouver Sun who have both written articles about her work.

Notes from Chris

Episode 457

Karin Newport is a software engineer in New Zealand who enjoys her day job. But her analytical day-to-day work left her needing a creative outlet. She had always loved calligraphy, but her tiny apartment meant art supplies and canvases weren’t an option. Then, in 2016, that all changed. She got her first iPad Pro and Apple Pencil, downloaded the Procreate app, and started lettering to her heart’s content.

Using her technical skills, combined with an artistic eye, Karin began creating her own digital paint brushes to give her work the types of textures she was after. She loves bright colors and watercolor effects and wanted brushes that could capture that look and feel. She created brushes using the settings within an app called Procreate and realized that other people might find them useful too.

To test the waters, she made a basic website called iPad Lettering and posted a few brushes as free downloads. She thought: if 100 people download these for free, then maybe there’s an interest in them. One week and a hundred downloads later, it was clear that there was a demand. But would people pay? There was only one way to find out. She posted more brushes, this time with a price tag. Three hours later, she had her first sale. She jumped up and down in her apartment with excitement, realizing that she was well and truly onto something.

Now that she really knew that there was a demand, Karin started spreading the word. Instagram was where she got her artistic inspiration from, so that’s where she headed first. By splashing her beautiful lettering images across Instagram with the ‘ipadlettering’ hashtag, she quickly built up a following. She now has 153,000 followers, and her hashtag has almost 200,000 posts.

Karin brings this approach into all aspects of her customer service, and is always thinking about how she can create value. She offers free tutorial content, handy guides and grids, and even free brushes. She shares these with her growing email list of 35,000 subscribers, who can’t get enough of her ever-expanding range.

Her revenue is equally impressive. She brings in $50,000 a year, with nothing spent on advertising and zero costs outside of the iPad and Apple Pen she had already bought. She set up a free website (using Adobe Business Catalyst) and, although it’s not perfect, it’s all she’s needed to generate a significant income while holding down full-time work.

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • iPad Lettering: Up your digital calligraphy game—check out Karin’s brushes on her website!
  • Procreate: The iPad program that Karin used to create her calligraphy creations and brushes
  • Adobe Business Catalyst: The platform that Karin used to create her website for iPad Lettering

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
"The main thing is to just start and not worry about the little things too much. I still have a crappy website 2 years later, but I run the whole thing myself and have to prioritize things. It doesn’t have to all be perfect for it to be successful."
—Karin Newport #SideHustleSchool

Sponsors & Gratitude

Travel the Globe With Cards For Travel!

Side Hustle School is brought to you by CardsForTravel.com. Use travel hacking to see the world!

When you apply for their most popular, small business rewards card, you can earn 80,000 Bonus Points—enough for three round-trip plane tickets or $1,000 in travel credits. Check out this limited time offer! ✈️ 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

Weekly Recap: Tips on Crowdfunding Campaigns & Clutter-Clearing

Notes from Chris

Episode 456

THEMES & TAKEAWAYS:

So, last week, we talked about profit margins, and this week, I’d like to offer some tips on launching crowdfunding campaigns and how to keep clutter at bay.

Crowdfunding With Kickstarter

In Ep. 444 from last week, we featured Travis Hancock, the founder of Façade Games (a link to his site can be found on the episode page!). This case study is going phenomenally well! He’s generated over a million dollars with three board games, and he gave us some fantastic tips for anyone looking to start a crowdfunding campaign on Kickstarter.

Listen to today’s recap to learn more about these seven Kickstarter launching tips and which two are my favorites of the bunch!

Clutter Clearing Tips From Gretchen Rubin

As you may know, the Side Hustle School podcast is part of The Onward Project, a collection of podcasts curated and overseen by my good friend and mentor, Gretchen Rubin. She has a podcast of her own called The Happiness Project, and she’s the author of many bestselling books.

Gretchen and her sister, Elizabeth, have a beloved, if somewhat odd, sisterly ritual: every time Gretchen visits Elizabeth, they clear her clutter. This is tremendously satisfying for Gretchen, and Elizabeth graciously cooperates.

In one of Gretchen’s favorite Happier episodes, Ep. 10, the duo recorded themselves as they courageously cleared clutter in Elizabeth’s home office.

So, why is clearing clutter important to you as a Side Hustle School listener? Well, I think it’s about more than just cleaning up—it’s about being intentional with your life and making sure that everything is there for a reason. And when you do this, I think it’s actually going to help you do better work, be more intentional, and in fact, it probably will help you to be happier.

In the recap, I share a few of my favorite tips, but you should also listen to the full episode on Gretchen’s website!

LISTENER UPDATES + QUESTIONS:

Today I’m sharing a letter we received from Jane, a listener in Toronto, and a listener voicemail from Houston:

  • Jane is “hell-bent” on starting a side hustle, and she wrote in to tell us that she’s already gotten started on a promising, new project! A lot of the people that she’s informally mentored over the years have been promoted and gone on to be very successful in their careers, and she also really enjoys doing this. In many cases, long after they work together, Jane is still helping them and giving them guidance on career decisions. She also volunteers to mentor a new graduate as part of a rotational program that they have at the bank.From her most recent mentee, she learned that many of her colleagues were not getting as much out of their mentor relationships, and naturally, this got the gears turning! She thought that the mentors could use a little help, so she came up with the idea to create a mentoring deck of cards meant to help trigger conversations between mentors and mentees and help them with career discussions and decisions. She’s already printed out 20 decks (Check out the image of her cards below!) So far, she’s had 20 decks printed, and if they’re well received, she’s planning on building a website so that she can start selling them.

  • Houston is interested in starting his own project on student loan debt. He’s still chiseling his own student loan debt down by doing odd jobs here and there, but he’d like to build something that is more sustainable and (ideally) centered around getting rid of student loan debts. This way, he can help others in a similar situation while also getting rid of his own student loan debt.Listen to the recap to hear more about my response to Houston!

If you have something you’d like to ask me or an update you’d like to share, I’d love to hear from you. Leave me a voice message on the website or call into the Side Hustle Hotline (Dial 844-9-HUSTLE // 844-948-7853), and your question may be featured on the show!

EPISODES FROM THIS WEEK:

Here’s what we heard this week on Side Hustle School! Listen to this week’s recap for a more comprehensive highlight reel.

  • Ep. 450 – After being laid off, a Denver man turns his hobby into a full-time gig that earns $8,000/month
  • Ep. 451 – A new dad’s random acts of kindness kit sparks a movement of positivity while bringing in an extra $500/month
  • Ep. 452 – It’s a bird, it’s a plane… or actually, it’s an acrobatic performance troupe that started as one mom’s side hustle, and now employs 14 people
  • Ep. 453 – A director of operations at a senior center comes up with a way to improve training services—while building a sustainable side income
  • Ep. 454 – The daughter of Ukrainian immigrants turns a love of shopping into an e-commerce shop selling one-of-a-kind vintage clothing
  • Ep. 455 – After learning to design and screen print sweatshirts in college, a Canadian skateboarder starts an Etsy shop that produces consistent, passive income

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Join me at the World Domination Summit!

Have you heard of the World Domination Summit? This is a gathering of awesome people—an event that I’ve been hosting together with an amazing team in Portland, OR every summer for the past eight years.

WDS 2018 is coming up at the end of June (June 26th-July 2nd), and we’ll be welcoming people from over 30 different countries. With inspiring keynote speakers, a week full of activities and attendee-led meetups, and two incredible parties, you won’t want to miss it!

This is our final wave of main stage tickets so visit our website to get your ticket to this incredible, once a year event! We promise that it’s unlike anything you’ve ever experienced before.

Here’s what’s coming up next…

Each week I’ll feature more stories from people who are starting side hustles without quitting their job. Here’s a sneak peek of what’s coming next week:

  • Frustrated with snobby and overly-serious triathletes, a man creates a Facebook group for more casual and fun discussion. It then transforms into a $30,000 side hustle with tens of thousands of members
  • An adjunct community college professor uploads his final course to YouTube, then converts it to a Udemy course. In just sixteen months, he reaches almost 35,000 students and makes over $100,000 in profits
  • And so much more!

Do you have a side hustle story you’d like to share? Fill out the Side Hustle School submission form and your story may be featured on the show!

Also, if you’re interested in joining the Side Hustle Society, visit our Society page to get notified when it goes live!

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
"Debt is a common pain point for a lot of people, but if you want to help them you need to have a believable story. You can’t just be on the same path as them."
—#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

Canadian Sports Enthusiast Earns $1,000/Month Selling Quirky Apparel

What It’s About

A Canadian man earns passive beer money selling matching t-shirt and onsie sets to new parents.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

To minimize risk and volatility, Matt is extremely cautious about expanding his inventory and never purchases any equipment until he is sure he can offer something new. Most of his sales have followed Pareto’s Principle—where 80% of his sales comes only from 20% of his listings. No matter how tempting it is to keep expanding, Matt knows he has to be focused.

Fun Fact

Almost no one would accept Matt’s order for custom t-shirt prints. The one printer who did was extremely surprised when Matt came back for a second order—and then another. Turns out there’s a market for all sorts of design.

Notes from Chris

Episode 455

Born in Toronto, 32-year-old Matt Williams has always enjoyed Canadian action sports. As a child, Matt spent a great deal of time playing video games and drawing. As he grew older, he eventually developed a love for skateboarding, preferring it to other team sports that the boys in high school traditionally favored.

Today, his day job involves managing a Canadian action sports publication, where he gets to cover skateboarding, snowboarding, and surfing to his heart’s content. It’s truly a high school dream come true.

But it wasn’t always smooth sailing. Matt realized that money was a problem at the end of high school. No one was going to pay for college, so Matt had to quickly find a way to come up with a significant sum of cash. His first side hustle idea was to sell his own skateboard-inspired t-shirts, which combined a subject he was interested in with a skill that he had developed as a child.

These shirts sold out quickly to his friends and family, which prompted Matt to head back to his supplier for a second order. He did a few more print runs, then eventually abandoned his side hustle to focus on other opportunities in college.

But Matt’s itch for creating never went away.

Even though Matt enjoyed his job, he would spend his weekends and free time designing things. He would learn techniques such as silk screening and challenge himself to design accessories. Matt’s friends continued to purchase his wares, so he eventually decided to set up an Etsy shop as an easy way to facilitate payments and track his revenue.

Things quickly got bigger than Matt had expected. Orders trickled in at the start, and Matt would usually average a sale or two a week. He would check his Etsy shop, which he calls “Mattmade,” each day after work without fail. This went on for awhile until Matt realized that he could do a lot more than just passively collect payments for the occasional order.

Matt now averages over $1,000 a month from his Etsy shop, but spends only 2 nights a week on his side hustle. His friends have urged him to go all in on his side hustle, but Matt prefers this arrangement. At this pace, he gets to enjoy his work and experiment with his designs knowing that he isn’t dependent on his shop for his income.

Moving forward, Matt intends to explore different lines of apparel and use some of these proceeds to support causes that he feels strongly for. As he puts it, “I just want to continue creating things that people enjoy, with little to no pressure and in my spare time.” He’s not just making products, but also wants to make his own schedule as well.

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Mattmade: Interested in a GOT themed t-shirt and onsie for you and your little one? Matt has what you’re looking for over on his Etsy page

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

Quote of the Day
"Surprising as it may seem, 80% of your overall sales will likely come from just 20% of your products. Make sure you know your margins before you expand your range of products!"
—Matt Williams #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

Vintage Clothing Shop Sells Retro Jeans for Modern Money

What It’s About

A first generation immigrant creates a second income buying and reselling vintage clothing.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Liz used the pop-up shop through Topshop to explore whether her unique vintage items would sell. Much to her surprise, they sold quite well, so she decided to focus on them more. This pop-up shop also made Liz organize and up-level a lot of things about a business: she redid her website, started hiring professionals to photograph her items, and she learned how to use the camera herself.

Fun Fact

You may be wondering about the origins of the name of Liz’s shop, Odessa Rae. Well, Odessa is the city in Ukraine where Liz’s parents are from, and Liz started Odessa Rae with her best friend, whose middle name is Rae. Unfortunately, scheduling made it impossible for the friend to remain a partner (she’s a nurse who worked nights), so Liz is running things solo.

Notes from Chris

Episode 454

By day, Liz Zavoyskiy is the business development lead for an entertainment and media investment fund in New York City. By night—and on weekends—she runs Odessa Rae, an online shop that sells custom, one-of-a-kind vintage clothing.

Liz didn’t have plans to open a vintage clothing shop, but a series of events, including an accidental eBay purchase and the launch of a friend’s blog, sent her down the fashion runway.

Liz grew up in Brooklyn, NY, the daughter of two immigrant parents from Odessa, Ukraine. She recalls the immense cultural shock of being around really wealthy people during her freshman year at NYU. The insecurity about her wardrobe, at least in comparison to some of her peers, led her to the vintage shopping world of New York—where she could find special items of clothing, sometimes at a special price—if she looked hard enough. This search eventually morphed into a love of all things pre-owned.

A few years later, in 2016, a friend was launching a blog and wanted a branded piece of clothing for a photo shoot. By this point, Liz had expanded her shopping to eBay and was really into 70s-era denim. She and the friend were browsing eBay and found a vintage Levis denim jacket. They didn’t realize they had placed the winning bid until the jacket showed up at the door a week later.

Liz offered to “bling up” this jacket before her friend’s photo shoot. She borrowed a sewing machine, spent most of a day watching YouTube videos learning how to sew, and delivered a jacket embroidered with a bunch of funky-looking patches. The friend loved it so much that she posted a photo on social media, mentioning that “maybe you could ask her to make one for you.”

Within a half hour, Liz had her first order for a custom jacket from a stranger. This quick success made her think that maybe she could do it more than once.

Because custom jackets were a niche product on social media, she got a lot of early attention in the form of organic press coverage once she built a website for her shop. Her first press feature came a few months after that first custom jacket order, and her shop has since been featured on sites like Elle, InStyle, and ENews.

So what type of profits can be made selling custom vintage clothing? There are good months and bad months, but she usually ends up netting between $1,000 to $1,500 each month. Her startup costs were under $3,000, which covered purchasing sewing machines and setting up her website. The majority of her customers find her on Instagram or through press articles. She updates Odessa Rae once or twice each month with new items but does no paid marketing.

This side hustle not only helped her feel more comfortable around her peers, it also helped build her confidence as an entrepreneur. Liz has truly taken retail therapy to a whole new level!

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Odessa Rae: Vintage threads are always in style—check out Liz’s unique creations over on her website and upgrade your wardrobe
  • Elle, InStyle, & ENews: A few of the online media outlets that covered Odessa Rae and drove more traffic Liz’s way
  • Topshop: The international retailer of clothing, shoes, make-up, and accessories that saw one of the features and reached out to Liz about doing a pop-up shop at their Soho New York store

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

Quote of the Day
"Clothes don’t make the person, but a great outfit can help accentuate what’s already wonderful on the inside—and making people feel great is what I love to do."
—Liz Zavoyskiy #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