Tag: Blog

“Ordinary Dude” Creates Meditation Books for Men

What It’s About

Take a breath and listen to this “ordinary dude’s” story.

Words of Wisdom

John offers some advice when it comes to expanding and focusing your business. He says it’s important to, “Diversify, but not too much. It’s easy as entrepreneurs to fall for ‘shiny object syndrome’ where you want to just try everything. But if you try too many things too fast, then you’ll spread yourself too thin and end up accomplishing nothing. On the opposite end of the spectrum, if you zone in too much on one thing you could really hurt yourself… So diversify. Do not put all your eggs in one basket but also don’t spread yourself too thin.”

Fun Fact

An estimated 200 million to 500 million people meditate across the world. The number of people who meditate has tripled since 2012, with the rates of children meditating increasing by 800% since then. [Source]

Notes from Chris

Episode 1501
John Weiler has been meditating since he was seventeen years old. He says that it has helped him overcome anxiety, panic attacks and even save his relationship with his now-wife, who was actually his girlfriend at the time.

But unlike a lot of meditators, John doesn’t completely buy into the “hippie culture” surrounding meditation. Although he says that there is nothing wrong with that, he found himself wanting to connect to people outside that space. He especially hoped to encourage men who had previously written off the idea.

That’s what sparked his desire to write An Ordinary Dude’s Guide to Meditation. Not only that, but one of his mentors encouraged him to start writing about topics he knew well. With that, John decided to dispel the myths and preconceived notions about meditation and connecting with his community.

Between October 2018 and September 2019, John published four more titles. Like the meditation guide, the new books also centered around themes of enlightenment and mindfulness, and were all directed towards his target audience of “ordinary dudes.” Sales didn’t really pick up until his sixth, called A Dude’s Guide to the Couch. It was an unexpected hit, regularly bringing in $500 a month on its own.

Moving forward, he currently has six more titles that he’s in the middle of writing, but he also really wants to spend more time freelancing, which is his main source of income. Not only that, but he wants to do this while still expanding his knowledge on marketing.

For a while, he was penciling in way too much work and his health began to suffer. Since then, he has decreased his workload and taken care of himself more, and his business has thrived in response. John is confident that he will continue to rise to the challenge, spreading the word about meditation one ordinary dude at a time.

 

 

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

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
"It’s easy as entrepreneurs to fall for ‘shiny object syndrome’ where you want to just try everything. But if you try too many things too fast, then you’ll spread yourself too thin and end up accomplishing nothing. On the opposite end of the spectrum, if you zone in too much on one thing you could really hurt yourself… So diversify."
—John Weiler #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

Behavior Analyst Creates Resources for Parents and Teachers

What It’s About

Twin sisters create resources to help children with autism and their families.

Words of Wisdom

Amelia shares important clarity regarding monetizing a blog, “if you’re looking to make money quickly – don’t start a blog. It was 15 months before we started seeing real growth. We could have probably taken a faster track by creating an online course first instead.”

Fun Fact

ABA has been around since the 1970s, and the science continues to develop.

Notes from Chris

Episode 1480
Amelia Dalphonse found her calling 17 years ago while she was teaching with Head Start, a program that provides early childhood education to low-income children and families. She’d worked with all kinds of kids over the years, but one, in particular, stood out. He was a four-year-old boy with frequent tantrums and very little verbal communication. Amelia and her fellow teacher wanted to help him, so they began researching the boy’s behavior and discovered that he might be autistic.

Wanting to learn more, Amelia then began studying Applied Behavior Analysis, a scientific approach that can be used to reduce challenging behavior and teach new skills in children with autism. Amelia liked Applied Behavior Analysis, or ABA strategies because they’re easy for non-professionals to learn and can have lasting benefits for the child if they are used consistently.

Not too long after she started her research, she ended up switching jobs to work with children with autism. She wanted to understand more, so she decided to pursue a master’s degree and become a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA), again specializing in working with children with autism.

And this is what brings us to the side hustle part of the story. Amelia started a blog called accessibleaba.com, hoping to share insights to help parents understand more about the field and their child. Soon afterwards, around Christmas 2018, her twin sister Dianna came for a visit. Dianna enjoys writing, so she offered to write some posts.

They started out blogging just for parents, but eventually expanded to have a separate blog for each of their target audiences: parents, teachers, and professionals. Together, their blogs get over 40,000 page views a month.

Amelia admits that as difficult as the pandemic has been, it’s also been the catalyst that has pushed them to work even harder. They’re bringing in around $1,500/month through a mix of book sales, membership fees, and supervision services. However, they have really just started to focus on monetization. For most of 2020, they focused solely on growing the blog and developing the courses.

They know that if they want to make more money, they need to come up with a better product or offer, improve their marketing, reach a new audience, or take some other action. One of those things—or perhaps all of them—is exactly what they plan to do.

 

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Learn more about ABA, Amelia, and the resources she and her sister have created for families and educators at AccessibleABA.com.

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
"Even though we’re still a long way from being able to quit our day jobs, there’s a feeling of control over the future that you don’t get working for someone else."
—Amelia Dalphonse #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

Texas Teacher Takes On Test-Taking Tutorials

What It’s About

A teacher teaches teachers to ace a challenging certification test.

Words of Wisdom

Emilio has some words of encouragement for those finding challenges to start their hustle, “everyone thinks they need a top of the line website, or business cards, or approval, they don’t! I would like to help others accomplish the same success I have.”

Fun Fact

There are over 320,000 teachers in Texas, one for every sixteen students. While that seems like a lot, the state still considers itself in a teaching shortage with an additional 40,000 positions still open as of June 2020.

Notes from Chris

Episode 1361
Emilio Granado is a Computer Science teacher based in Texas. He became a teacher a few years ago after a negative experience in the corporate world. He wanted to spend his life really helping people—and he knew teaching would offer that.

Emilio was teaching computer science at his school but hadn’t yet completed the correct certification. His boss informed him that if he didn’t complete it, he wouldn’t be able to teach the class the following year.

Emilio was worried, he knew the certification for tech teachers in Texas was difficult and he was afraid he wouldn’t be able to pass in time.

He was reminded of his blog, 1stYearTexasTeachers.com, and remembered how much it helped him process things. So he returned to the site and began documenting his learning and test-taking process. He went back to the chalkboard, and this time things turned out a little differently…

Just two weeks after his first post, Emilio started receiving more traffic to the site than he ever had before. Upon investigation, he realized that his new posts were ranking well in Google. In hindsight, he puts this happy accident down to keeping things focused. His post was around a particular test he’d have to take, and there was very little related content elsewhere on the internet.

As he continued writing, something amazing happened: he built a small audience. He saw return visitors in his traffic reports and started receiving comments on his posts. One of those comments in particular gave him even more motivation. Like a chemistry teacher, it caused a big reaction. What was so special? The commenter asked for a guide to help them pass the test.

Naturally, this got Emilio thinking. Would people really pay for his experience?

Emilio spent the next two weeks writing frantically. He used gaps in between work and the evening to complete his comprehensive study guide for Texas teachers. Once finished, he passed the draft copy to his wife, whose job was to edit it into a PDF ebook.

While the edit was being done, Emilio had another problem to solve. How would he actually accept payments on his site and deliver the guide electronically? He did some Google sleuthing eventually finding SendOwl, a popular program used to sell digital goods like ebooks. It looked easy to set up and was cheap at only fifteen dollars a month. Emilio wasted no time! He created a sales page, integrated the SendOwl link and was on his way to making sales.

Emilio continued to write content and, by June of the same year, he made over seven hundred dollars. A sum to this day he can barely believe. Turns out, June is the peak month for teachers to go for their tests. Even so, things continued steadily into 2020, when Emilio launched a couple more guides for different certification exams.

Like many other industries, he too has been affected by COVID-19 with many teachers opting to take their certifications next year. Yet still, this June he generated over nine hundred dollars with the COVID effect in full swing.

For now, Emilio plans to continue to add more content and create more guides. He’s even written a guide book to teach others how to do the same thing.

 

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

Don’t forget, TeachersPayTeachers.com is a great resource for side hustling teachers out there—you can list your classroom activities and curriculum for sale to other teachers.

DonorsChoose.org is also a great resource for anyone who’d like to support teachers and others. You can buy supplies for schools near you or elsewhere. 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
"Everyone thinks they need a top of the line website, or business cards, or approval, they don’t! I would like to help others accomplish the same success I have."
—Emilio Granado #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

Dedicated Runner Goes the Distance for Online Training

What It’s About

A running enthusiast outpaces expectations with an injury prevention and performance blog.

Words of Wisdom

Jason has wise words regarding the difference between a hobby and a serious hustle; “learn business basics so your side hustle has potential to grow. A passion project is fun, but if you’re hoping to pay the bills with your side hustle, learn the fundamentals of pricing, generating traffic, creating products, how to sell, digital marketing, etc.”

Fun Fact

It’s estimated that there are over 47 million runners in the USA alone. More than half of those run at least once per week.

Notes from Chris

Episode 1347
Jason Fitzgerald began running as a freshman in high school back in 1998. He continued to train and compete for over a decade until he graduated college in 2006. Over that time, he became an expert in the art of putting one foot in front of the other.

His obsession with the sport became somewhat of a running joke among his friends. He’d read all the books, had multiple trainers, and was always looking ahead at how he could be stronger, faster and better.

Around the same time he started his career, he started exploring the new world of online communities. For the first time, Jason realized it was possible to build an online business based on your passion. He became determined to do just that, and registered the domain StrengthRunning.com—not quite sure at that stage what he’d do with it.

In the end, it was a running injury that gave him the sole motivation to get started…

Jason set a goal of running the New York marathon. The training went well, as did the race itself. Afterward though, he developed an ITB injury that put him out of action for six months.

It was tough, but the injury had a silver lining. He used the time to assess what went wrong, and he was determined to never let it happen again. That led to him developing new training techniques and workout routines. His training eventually became less demanding but produced better results.

After seeing his own improvement, he devised a plan for his Strength Running website. He’d convert the dormant domain name into a blog sharing tips and strategies to help runners avoid injury.

With a WordPress theme and a free Mailchimp account, Jason launched the site in April 2010 for less than two hundred dollars. He was off and racing.

He didn’t want his site to end up at the back of the pack, so from the very beginning he worked to avoid that fate. First, he made sure to write articles based on keywords that people actually search for. He used Google’s research tools to help with this. For example, instead of titling an article “My Gym Routine,” he’d call it “Gym Workouts for Runners: Functional Strength.”

He spent the next year running reps: more content, more guest posts, and more traffic. A year later he put together a training product as a joint venture with a colleague which sold well. Incredibly, after just one more year, Jason was making enough money through the site to quit his job and go full time. He’d gone from government contractor, to side hustler to full-time blogger in just two short years. A new PR!

Still, Jason didn’t stop there. After realizing the value in selling his own products, he continued creating more of them. Now, through StrengthRunning.com, he sells guides on Mental Toughness, Strength, Nutrition and more. All aimed at runners who want to improve their performance without getting injured.

Combining affiliate sales with product sales brings in multiple six figures in profit from his website every year. It’s safe to say he’s taken the lead in the strength running marathon.

 

 

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

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
"A passion project is fun, but if you’re hoping to pay the bills with your side hustle, learn the fundamentals of pricing, generating traffic, creating products, how to sell, digital marketing, etc."
—Jason Fitzgerald #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 to grow a blog for couples separated by borders?

What It’s About

A listener wants to help separated couples learn about the U.S. visa process. How can she promote her blog and services?

Notes from Chris

Episode 1329

I got a great question today about how to market and grow a blog focused on information for couples where one of them is living outside the country.

This longtime listener is an immigration attorney who’s starting a series of courses for couples separated by borders. The blog is going to support the business, but she’s struggling a bit with it.

I always get excited when I hear about listener projects, and I also feel good when I have a good answer for their question, and I think this is helpful for a lot of other listeners.

“Hi, Chris. This is Katie from Boulder, Colorado, and I’ve been listening to this show since the beginning. I’m a self-employed immigration lawyer and my side hustle is Honey Visa School, which is a series of online courses to help people bring their partner to the United States on either a fiancee or a spousal visa without hiring a lawyer. My question is, I know there’s a market for this service, but how do we get the word out and grow my following?

I created a blog for Honey Visa School, but I’m struggling to promote it. How does a blog become popular, especially when the topic is personal and not something a lot of readers are going to repost on social media? Also, I’ve previously marketed my firm through informative talks to community organizations. But I’m not sure how to adapt this for my side hustle because of the pandemic. Have you heard of anyone doing this successfully? Thanks. And I look forward to hearing your thoughts.”

Listen to today’s episode to learn more…

 

 

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Check out Katie’s blog and services at her website, HoneyVisa.com.

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 narrow down a personal finance target market?

What It’s About

A listener wants to help two different audiences. How can she narrow her focus?

Notes from Chris

Episode 1301

Let’s talk about narrowing down today. A listener in Dallas wants to help teens and young adults learn personal finance—but the groups she has in mind are very different.

How should she choose a focus?

“My side hustle is personal finance classes for students to prepare them for all the big money decisions that await them in the real world. From the time students graduate high school to the time they graduate college, they’re making some of the biggest financial decisions of their whole lives. Their education loans, career choices, as well as the daily spending and saving decisions that they make and the patterns that they set. I think there’s a huge need for great personal finance education, and I think I’m the person to do it.

My question revolves around choosing a target market. I’m interested in serving high school students and college students and recent college grads. All of these groups have a need for personal finance education. But I’d have to market differently for high schoolers. I’d have to market to their parents or schools. Whereas college grads may see more of the need themselves. I’d love your thoughts on how to narrow down a target market. Well, I don’t want to close the door on possible customers. I think we’ll have better success in narrowing the target audience at first.”

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

Q&A: How can I share inspiring stories without writing?

What It’s About

This listener started a blog but doesn’t love the writing process. Is there another way she can share her stories?

Notes from Chris

Episode 1253

What if you start publishing a blog and then realize you don’t love writing—might there be another way to communicate and share the inspirational stories you hope your readers will connect with?

That’s what today’s listener is wondering about, along with the ever-important question of monetization.

Remember: think about this first!

“Hi, Chris. This is Shaunese from Clinton, Maryland. I been listening to your podcast for about three years. After about six months of starting my blog and beginning to realize that I don’t enjoy writing as much as I do. However, I do love hearing so many inspiring stories and my readers do, too.

Is there another way that I could continue my blog and continue sharing these stories to help women who want to start a business without writing so much? Or is there another way to share their stories? In my blog also, I haven’t figured out how to monetize yet. Any suggestions? Thank you, Chris. And I look forward to hearing from you.”

Listen to today’s episode to learn more…

 

 

SEE ALSO:

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

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: New Jersey Blog Grows to 25+ Team Members

What It’s About

An update from a former counselor now running a blogging empire all about Hoboken, New Jersey.

Notes from Chris

Episode 1244

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

Recent segments have featured someone leading urban hiking tours in San Francisco and a guy who sells a lot of hair ties and shampoo to other men with long hair.

Today, in our latest feature, we’ll hear from Jennifer Tripucka, New Jersey school counselor turned blogger who now has six employees and twenty contractors.

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

 

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Hoboken Girl: Learn more about all that Hoboken has to offer over on Jennifer’s website!
  • WordPress: Jennifer used WordPress to set up her blog, and here you can learn how to install your own WordPress site in 5 minutes

 

SEE ALSO:

  • Proud Mainer Brings Whoopie Pies to the World: After her kids go off to college, this former stay-at-home-mom begins baking whoopie pies in bulk. She now makes them by the thousands, selling more than $25,000 in creamy inventory each month.
  • The Travel Blog That Pays for a House: A “Digital Nomad Wannabe” goes from aspiration to vindication, earning up to $50,000/month and eventually buying a home with the proceeds from her blog.
  • Developer Gets Paid for Weekend Trips Abroad: This web developer always wanted to travel, but only had a few days a year to do it. Little did she know that her jam-packed adventures would become a profitable side hustle.

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
"The biggest advice that I would say is, consistency. Posting daily writing. Not stopping. Even if it’s just a plan that you make of a few days a week that you know you’re posting, make sure to do it."
—Jennifer Tripucka #SideHustleSchool

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

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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

Finance Professional Goes Big With Petite Dressing

What It’s About

An investment banker discovers small changes make a huge difference in her business model and profits.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Afraid of making mistakes or failing? Hear from Chi Li on the subject; “Making mistakes is a part of the game that cannot be skipped.”

Fun Fact

Though Chi Li sells petite clothing for women in New York City, her first customer was a man from Canada!

Notes from Chris

Episode 1240
Investment banker Chi Li went through the traditional route of earning an MBA to work at a bank. She found that the work she was doing, while financially rewarding, wasn’t satisfying her creative impulse.

Looking for a side project, she decided to market and sell clothes for petite women. As a woman under 5’4 [162 cm], she found it extremely difficult to find clothing in mainstream shops, even in New York City. Expecting that there would be others like her who faced the same problem, she decided that this was the problem she would tackle.

Her first step was to set up her own online shop and website, PetiteDressing.com, using the Shopify platform. This set her back $500 or so. She probably could have spent more time and done it for less, but time was a scarce resource since her job was so hectic.

Marketing her store and getting web traffic was more challenging. Unlike how she secured her inventory, Chi Li didn’t have first-hand experience with digital marketing that she could lean on. She started running Facebook ads and posting on social media platforms, but these efforts failed to generate even a single sale even after hundreds of dollars were spent.

The twists and turns didn’t stop there. A year into launching Petite Dressing, Chi Li saw that the growth of her blog was far outpacing that of her store. The blog was intended as a marketing channel for her store, not the business itself. But she knew that she needed to increase revenues on her website if this was to be more than a hobby.

With all that traffic, Chi Li started monetizing her blog as well through affiliate marketing and running advertising for brands. This also had the side effect of boosting her own store as she started to get inbound inquiries from independent designers who wanted to cater to petite women.

On her part, this required a big switch in mentality. As an employee in a traditional industry like finance, shaking things up was a sure way to remain stagnant. But in the world of entrepreneurship, she says that you constantly have to find new ways of doing things, whether it’s engaging with customers or generating a new stream of revenue.

This has certainly been true in her case, when she moved from focusing on eCommerce to blogging. In fact she’s now started a YouTube channel since she expects video content to only become more prominent in the long term, and especially with more people are staying home due to the evolving Covid-19 situation. In her words, “making mistakes is a part of the game that cannot be skipped.”

Chi Li never imagined that she would have a profitable blog when she first started out. But now, with over 150,000 monthly visitors to her website and $2,000 in monthly income, she’s gone big catering to smaller women on the side.

 

 

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
"Making mistakes is a part of the game that cannot be skipped."
—Chi Li #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

TBT: Jazz Musician Becomes High Earner

What It’s About

Our first Throwback Thursday episode features updates from a musician who creates online resources to learn jazz.

Notes from Chris

Episode 1111

Welcome to something new! We’re calling it Throwback Thursday (TBT) / “Where are they now?” and we’re going to an in-depth look at someone who’s story has evolved considerably since we first featured them.

The project is a suite of online resources to learn jazz. It began as a hobbyist blog and is now a booming multiple six-figure business.

Brent’s project was interesting in lots of ways. One unique way is that this is one of the few projects we’ve ever featured where the featured side hustler didn’t start the project but rather took it over from a friend who didn’t have much time to devote to it.

We first featured Brent LONG ago in the first year of the show (Episode #69), and then once more in the 100 SIDE HUSTLES book.

So here we are two years later, checking in…

Listen to today’s episode to hear Brent’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

Quote of the Day
"Figure out what your zone of genius is and that means really looking at yourself and asking “who am I qualified to help the best?”"
—Brent Vaartstra #SideHustleSchool

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