Tag: Coaching

Dog Sled Trainer Becomes Women’s Fitness Coach

What It’s About

A woman in her 50s finds her calling helping other women her age youthfully.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Mary decided to put her focus on women in the 45-55 age group instead of on all women in general which felt scary at first. But it also made a great deal of sense since she could speak specifically to the needs and desires of these women being one of them.

Fun Fact

Mary is planning on competing in a Strong Woman competition for the very first time in February of this year at age 51. Go, Mary!

Notes from Chris

Episode 392

Mary Black and her husband, Mark, trained sled dogs for 22 years in Minnesota. They spent ten of those years living off the grid in the backcountry, 6 miles from the end of the nearest road.

They fed the dogs high special diets for peak performance, massaged them to ease their aches and pains, and loved them on good days and bad. But on one of those days, Mary and Mark looked at themselves and said, “We’re taking better care of the dogs than we are ourselves.” While racing the dogs gave Mary and Mark plenty of exercise, they didn’t eat well, and they constantly felt exhausted.

They wanted to make a big change, so Mary kicked her smoking habit and hit the gym instead. Since they were a team, Mark followed suit and they both got hooked on a new habit—getting healthy and their lives back on track.

They weren’t the only ones to notice the drastic physical and lifestyle transformations that they were making—friends, family, and even strangers at the gym started going up to them to ask them what they had been doing. Not only were they getting fitter, it seemed like they had found the fountain of youth and were reaping the rewards. They felt better than they had in decades, and that’s when they decided that aging gracefully is fine but aging youthfully is even better.

They decided to document their journey and share what they’ve learned with others, so they created a free WordPress blog called “Aging Youthful.”

What she wanted to do more than anything else was to help women like her stop wishing for the youthful days behind them and instead start living a more youthful, vibrant life full of purpose and passion.

She decided to offer a 12-week coaching program that mirrored her own journey with three different elements: the mind, the body, and the soul. She began allocating an hour each weekday on her side hustle and anywhere from four to fifteen hours on the weekends.

That first program just ended, and following its success, she’s already planning on launching signups for her next one this month! When everything is said and done, this new coaching program brings in an additional $500 – $600 a month for Mary after the $200 startup costs for her website, domain registration, mailing list host, and PayPal fees.

The extra money has been great to help Mary out with her aspirations of joining her husband as a Strongman competitor, but more than anything, it’s helped her prove to herself and others that life doesn’t end at 50.

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Aging Youthful: Learn more about Mary, her journey, and the coaching program that she’s created on her website!
  • WordPress: Mary used WordPress to form her website for Aging Youthful, and here you can learn how to install your own WordPress site in 5 minutes
  • MailChimp: The email marketing platform that Mary used to connect with those who signed up for her coaching sessions
  • Zoom: The video communications service that Mary used to communicate with her coaching clients

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
"‘Small hinges move big doors.’ I’m learning to take small steps and believe they will turn into big results."
—Mary Black #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.
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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.
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To infinity and beyond,

Chris Guillebeau

High-Risk Pregnancy Becomes Healthy Baby and Side Hustle

What It’s About

A clinical therapist finds an opportunity to help women in the midst of challenging pregnancies.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Part of why Parijat’s coaching side hustle has been such a huge success is because of the fact that she built a community around what she offers (in a market where community is very much needed) and cultivated a sense of belonging. She also lets you know that she’s been there, walked in your shoes, and come out victorious on the other side.

If you have a unique experience and knowledge that might benefit others, it may make for a natural side hustle addition!

Fun Fact

While it wasn’t actually something she planned on doing, several of her online business friends had been suggesting that she start a podcast for a while. Parijat was skeptical, but decided to give it a go and started Delivering Miracles at the beginning of January 2017.

She releases episodes once a week, and the episodes with just Parijat range from answering listeners questions to busting misconceptions about infertility and high-risk pregnancies and sharing her personal story through infertility, high-risk pregnancy and prematurity. As Parijat said, “I make the podcast for what I wish I had known when I was pregnant.”

Notes from Chris

Episode 378

Parijat Deshpande’s side hustle journey started back in 2012 when she was pregnant. What should have been one of the most joyous moments of her life ended up being one of the most challenging. Parijat’s pregnancy was considered very high-risk. With eight complications, sixteen weeks of bed rest at home, and another two at the hospital, she was understandably very concerned. As a clinically-trained therapist, Parijat assumed that there would be a strong online support system and resources for someone in her position, but after hours of fruitless searching, she came up empty-handed.

She was discouraged by a lot of generic pregnancy advice that didn’t really apply to a high-risk situation, so she decided that if she and her baby made it out of this experience okay, she’d find a way to help others like her.

And make it out okay they did! In her 22nd week, she was rushed to the hospital, but despite the odds and the predictions of her doctors, she was able to remain pregnant for an additional two more weeks giving her baby a better chance at life. After that long uphill battle, Parijat was finally able to take her infant son home.

Parijat knew that she didn’t have any special powers and that if she could do it, others could too. She thought back to her experience where she had wanted someone with her that had been in her shoes. And that’s when it occurred to her that maybe the best thing she could do for other women in these situations was to show up for them, offering them the resources and support that she never had. You could say it was the birth of her side hustle!

Like many of our featured stories, Parijat bounces back and forth between satisfaction with her side hustle progress and impatience for the next thing. But she’s not just waiting around for the next big thing, she’s actively working on building her business and her profile. She wants to make sure that no one going through this struggle feels like they are alone—and now, because of what she’s created, they don’t need to be.

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 share private struggles and triumphs with these moms fighting for their baby’s life. And every single time we cross a milestone it takes my breath away. It’s life changing for them and me."
—Parijat Deshpande #SideHustleSchool

Sponsors & Gratitude

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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

Project Manager Shares “Pundamentals” Of His Six-Figure Side Hustle

What It’s About

A project manager puts the “fun” in fundamentals with his corporate humor coaching service.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

For anyone looking to follow a similar path in speaking and training, take some time to experiment and try a lot of new things until you find it. Then take that passion and begin offering it to the people who are immediately around you, like groups in your local area. If you get a good reaction there, keep doing it. Be consistent and adjust to overcome obstacles in your way.

Fun Fact

Since starting Andrew has done over 500 events in all 50 states, 18 countries and on 3 continents; He’s worked with more than 250 organizations, including the International Association of Canine Professionals, which was an audience of 200 people and 20 dogs.

Notes from Chris

Episode 364

After taking improv and stand-up comedy classes in college, project manager Andrew Tarvin wanted to inject a level of humor into the usually dry corporate environment. In his interview for Procter & Gamble, he gave a humorous but on-topic presentation to the panel of executives that he made entirely in Microsoft Paint. It was engaging, enjoying and ensured that Andrew landed the job.

Once in his new position, he went out of his way to make humor a prominent part of the workplace. He held improv workshops for staff members and gave his projects quirky titles like, “Project Awesomeization.” This quickly earned him the improvised title of “Corporate Humorist.”

One day Andrew was approached by a member of his team. She told him all about how she’d been planning to quit her job and hated coming to work. But working on a project with him was fun and engaging, and reignited the passion she’d lost for her work. This conversation would go on to give him the idea for his highly profitable side hustle.

He realized many people in the workplace felt that humor would either be frowned upon by their bosses or that it would make them seem unprofessional. Having used humor for his entire career, Andrew set out on a mission to change that.

He decided he would start a side hustle as a “Humor Engineer.” If you’ve never heard of that job title before, it’s because he made that one up too.

He called the project Humor That Works.

This wasn’t too profitable in his first year, making him just $250, but it earned him $10,000 in his second year. The prices for these services depend a lot on the event (size, type of event, location, etc), but range from $3500 for local workshops to $10,000+ for full-day programs for companies.

Andrew was also asked to deliver one of his keynote speeches as a TEDx Talk at Ohio State University. This had a big impact on his revenue and brought awareness to the topic of humor in the workplace. In his third year, Andrew was able to quit his job and turn Humor That Works into a low, six-figure training company.

Because of the flexibility of his work and the increased income, Andrew became a nomad and traveled to all 50 US states, taking his keynote talks and workshops with him. He’s written a book about it called The United States Of Laughter, which he launched out of a catapult to say he did a literal book launch. His future focus is combining humor and nomadism to improve the corporations of the world.

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Humor That Works: Learn more about Andrew’s humorous take on the corporate world on his website!
  • The United States Of Laughter: The book that Andrew wrote about his experience taking his show on the road with him to all 50 states
  • WordPress: Andrew used WordPress to create Humor That Works, and here you can learn how to install your own WordPress site in 5 minutes
  • Meetup.com: One of the online platforms that Andrew used to help put his keynote speeches in front of audiences containing decision makers
  • MailChimp: The email marketing platform that Andrew used to connect with his followers and bring in potential clients

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
"Do at least one thing per day that helps support your side hustle!"
—Andrew Tarvin #SideHustleSchool

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

Atlanta Duo Gets Paid to Help Engaged Couples Elope

What It’s About

An unconventional couple becomes champions of the unconventional marriage!

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

One of the biggest considerations for revamping the wedding market for new generations is cost. Since the average salary for an adult between the ages of 25-34 runs just shy of forty-thousand [cite], the thirty-five-thousand dollar price tag [cite] for your average, traditional American wedding (not including the honeymoon!) has left many millennials looking for something less… well, traditional.

And if there’s one thing we’ve learned so far it’s that there are plenty of business opportunities available when new needs pop up!

Fun Fact

Lindsey says that she got her first start coordinating in high school as a stage manager for her theater group. And if you think the two sound unrelated, she assures us that high schoolers and tipsy wedding guests have a lot more in common than you would think.

Notes from Chris

Episode 357

When she’s not on the hunt for the best vegan restaurant in Atlanta, chasing after her three fur-babies, or watching endless amounts of videos on YouTube, Starbucks barista Lindsey Delgado-Harris and her wife, Shaun, are working to revolutionize the way millennials are getting hitched.

When it came time for them to plan their own wedding, Lindsey and Shaun found themselves completely overwhelmed with all of the fluff of conventional ceremonies. Being an unconventional couple themselves, they thought it would only be fitting that they chose to have an unconventional wedding. They cast aside the wedding planning magazines that didn’t really represent them or their ideals in the pursuit of something a bit different (not to mention, more affordable).

What they eventually landed on was a small, intimate brunch with family and friends. It was a delicious success, and in the afternoon haze of bubbly and good company, it occurred to Lindsey and Shaun that there really should be more options available to this generation of the newly engaged.

Weddings are simply too expensive, and while the classic courthouse elopement may have a certain appeal to some, it certainly wouldn’t do for many of the selfie generation who like to visually document every aspect of their lives on Instagram.

Lindsey and Shaun put their heads together to find a way to combine the desire for good visuals with the emptiness of their pocketbooks—and they created the Fancy Elopement!

For around $1,200, Lindsey and Shaun can provide you with a licensed officiant and a tailor-made ceremony with your choice of backdrop (twinkle lights, neutral colored bunting flags, muted colored dip dyed fabric, macrame, or paper cones), small handcrafted bouquets and/or boutonnieres made with seasonal flowers, some sparkling wine (which no ceremony can be without), a 30-minute portrait session with a photographer, and online gallery and digital rights for sharing your photos. The best part is that they do all of this for you…all you have to do is show up and get married!

Since planning and orchestrating fancy elopements are a pretty involved and customized process, Lindsey and Shaun have also found success in offering “day of” wedding coordination services for $1,800. This involves them flawlessly handling all aspects of the wedding you’ve planned so that when the day comes, you can hand off the reins to them and focus on walking down the aisle and not tripping on your train.

With these two services combined, they’ve been able to plan and help out fifteen couples, and have made more than $8,000!

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • LIFE & ART events: Learn more about the services this powerhouse couple offers over on their website!
  • Squarespace: The website building platform that Shaun used to create LIFE & ART events

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
"The term fancy elopement came organically from my wife Shaun, who wanted to elope for our wedding, but didn’t want to sacrifice style. This got her thinking, ‘how can I provide something more than just the standard run-down-to-the-courthouse elopement? I wanted something a little fancier, so there has to be other folks who want that, too.’"
—Lindsey Delgado-Harris #SideHustleSchool

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

Picky Eater’s Year Abroad Cooks Up $500/Month Side Gig

What It’s About

Give peas a chance and listen to this episode.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

While communicating with other picky eaters in a Facebook group, Jacky realized that many of them had tried to unlearn their picky habits. However, the nutritionist or therapist they were working with didn’t understand what it was really like to be an adult picky eater.

But Jacky, she understood. She had been there herself—and she knew she could help others outgrow their limited diets more effectively than confused and frustrated health coaches.

Fun Fact

When Jacky was 6 years old, she agreed to try a baby carrot. Her parents were so excited about her trying a vegetable that they pulled out the camera and started taking pictures. Jacky immediately felt a heavy pressure and self-doubt. As you can imagine, she didn’t eat the baby carrot.

Notes from Chris

Episode 350

Mac n’ cheese. Pizza. Grilled cheese. Chicken fingers. For 23 years, these were the main food groups of Jacky Lamenzo’s diet. She wasn’t just a picky eater. She was a notoriously picky eater. Every attempt at a new food earned gasps and shocked faces from her friends and family.

“Wow! Jacky’s trying something new!” they would say. Every. Single. Time.

It was always a big fuss—so big of a fuss that Jacky just embraced the label and stopped even trying new foods altogether. It wasn’t worth making a scene every time she ate a green bean.

But things were about to change—and change very fast.

Jacky’s application to teach a year abroad in China was approved, and before she knew it, she was off to the other side of the world. As you can imagine, she was in for a rough ride—culinarily speaking.

However, it actually wasn’t that hard for Jacky to break outside of her self-imposed food boundaries. All she needed was a mindset and environmental shift.

Her very first dinner in China, Jacky tried everything—yes everything—on the table. Since dinner was served family-style to her and her fellow teachers, she got to try what she wanted, in the time that she wanted, and in the amount that she wanted.

There was no pressure to eat everything on a paid-for plate. There were no friends staring her down ready to applaud her if she tried something new.

Finally, at 23 years old, Jacky no longer considered herself a picky eater. And she wanted to help others break away from the label as well.

Only six months into her year teaching in China, Jacky had completed the online health coaching certification program from the Institute for Integrative Nutrition and taken her passion for good food and wellness to an official level.

By this time, Jacky had made a bit of a name for herself in the Picky Eaters Facebook group. And when she announced that she was officially certified to be a health coach, she quickly found her first client.

At one point, Jacky was consistently earning around $500 per month through her very niche health coaching. However, she realized that she was most effective (and had the most fun) when she only took on one client at a time.

Jacky’s thrilled that her story and hard work have resulted in changing lives and widening palettes, but she’s eager to see if she can impact far more with her upcoming book. And she still has more new foods to try!

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
"My very first dinner in China, I tried everything on the table, from pineapple and eggplant to tofu – nothing which I had ever dared to try before. And without the pressure of others asking whether or not I liked it, I was able to try comfortably and LOVED everything!"
—Jacky Lamenzo #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

Telecom Manager Gets Paid to Write Resumes for LinkedIn Connections

What It’s About

A business pro teaches others what it takes to stand out from the crowd on LinkedIn and get hired.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

If you have a good head for business and a decent amount of connections on LinkedIn, take a moment to look them over and ask yourself if they have anything in common. If they do have something in common, use your power of observation to come up with one service you could offer them.

Fun Fact

In addition to being a business savvy guru, Mike has also used his blog to mention the virtues of playing Acoustic Guitar and has even been featured in Acoustic Guitar magazine.

Notes from Chris

Episode 320

Mike McRitchie has devoted much of his working life to helping businesses and business people grow. From his first job at a medical company to the 20 years he spent with a telecom construction business taking them from five people to $2.5 million in revenue, he’s been fascinated with what it takes to make it in business, how to thrive and not just survive.

But after many years in the corporate world, Mike decided it was time to try a project that he had more ownership over. He felt he’d taken everything he could from his day job, and began to ask himself, what would happen if he applied some of this accrued knowledge to his own business efforts?

He looked at his network—including all 1,500 of his LinkedIn connections—and saw a pattern. All of his connections were employees and not business owners. It was here he found a problem he truly knew how to solve.

Mike began to offer services to help employees increase their income, find better jobs, and just become more attractive job candidates. He broke his ideas down to a few services: resume writing, LinkedIn profile creation, and career improvement coaching.

It was over on LinkedIn where Mike began to see his first real results. Mike offered to help some of those 1,500 LinkedIn connections by writing their resumes and re-designing their profiles—and he offered to do it for free in exchange for good faith, word-of-mouth referrals.

Mike prides himself on helping people uncover skill sets and talents they never knew they had. Because his business is highly dependant on referrals, it’s important he gets this formula right every time. But he must be doing something right because he’s now generating anywhere between $400 and $3000 per month through the business. Mike has also managed to increase his profits by 40% over the last year, and going forward he wants to increase that income by adding more services to his business.

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • MikeMcRitchie.com: Learn how to take your resume and LinkedIn profile to the next level on Mike’s website
  • LinkedIn: The business—and employment—oriented social networking service that Mike helped others master

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
"Taking action on your idea is key because you can always morph it into something else later, but momentum begets momentum."
—Mike McRitchie #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

ER Nurse Masters CrossFit and Becomes Nutrition Coach

What It’s About

A change up turns an unknown recipe blog into a successful fitness and nutrition coaching side hustle.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Show your passion so others know they can trust you, and document your journey on social media. This helps significantly when you’re looking for clients as your clients will think of you when they require help with a specific problem.

Fun Fact

Heather went part-time as a nurse in August and aims to turn her side hustle into a full-time job by the end of next year. Her goal with The Positive Thread involves transforming the minds, bodies, and lives of 100 women by December 31st, 2018.

Notes from Chris

Episode 308

For Heather McConochie, becoming a nutrition coach was an easy decision. As an Emergency Room nurse, Heather had plenty of experience in the healthcare industry, along with an extensive knowledge of human physiology, and she realized that while taking care of patients was meaningful, she wanted to do something that would allow her to help people before they landed in the hospital.

Heather knew that she could make an even bigger impact by coaching others on how they could have a healthier lifestyle and approach. Not only that, but her own personal fitness journey had taught her that many illnesses could be prevented with proper nutrition and sufficient exercise.

When she began her CrossFit journey in 2015, she ventured into healthier eating education to make sure that she could perform at her best during gym sessions. Her better eating habits quickly yielded results as she not only set personal records in her weightlifting, but also mastered skills like handstand pushups, ring dips, and pull-ups.

Eager to document and help others replicate her success, she launched her website with a vision of having a successful food and wellness blog. However, her site quickly fell into neglect as she found that she had no audience. It was simply too demoralizing and difficult to write quality posts consistently, knowing that her words weren’t reaching the people she’d hoped for.

Things remained that way for awhile. As she trained, Heather completed a nutrition certification program to ensure that she was properly fuelling her workouts. Over time, she gained a reputation for fitness, and her colleagues started approaching her for advice on nutrition.

During one such interaction, her coworker remarked that she should start a business around nutrition coaching. Heather wasn’t sure that it would work until she found out that a friend from her gym was paying $75 an hour for nutrition coaching. If there was one person willing to pay that much, Heather figured, it would probably be possible to find more people who would be willing to pay such rates for good coaching. She could have an entire business doing nutrition coaching!

She now has 19 clients and ended up making $6,250 within the first 4 months of starting her nutrition and fitness coaching side hustle, The Positive Thread. Now that many of those clients have committed to recurring plans or multiple sessions, she now has a more predictable recurring side hustle monthly income of $1,500.

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • The Positive Thread: Reach your health and fitness goals—learn more about how to do so on Heather’s website!
  • SquareSpace: The website building platform that Heather used to create The Positive Thread
  • Thinkific: The course building platform that Heather used to create courses for her coaching clients, which she eventually aims to release as an individual product

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
"You don’t need a degree, but if you don’t know enough to help people get sustainable results, you won’t get clients."
—Heather McConochie #SideHustleSchool

Sponsors & Gratitude

Get a FREE Audiobook from Audible!

Audible is offering SHS listeners a free copy of the Born For This audiobook with a 30-day trial membership. 📚

Just go to aonc.co/bftaudible and browse the unmatched selection of audio programs and start listening.
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

Musician Turns Drum Lessons Into Six-Figure Podcast

What It’s About

Drummer marches to the beat of his own drum creating a highly successful niche podcast.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Anyone can begin by talking about something they are knowledgeable about, whether through blogs, videos, or podcasting. Focus on distribution and get the word out, and build Only then, can you think about customers and advertisers.

Fun Fact

When he was younger and just getting started on his path to rock, Nick religiously watched an instructional VHS called “Under the Table and Drumming” from one of his heros—Carter Beauford the drummer for Dave Matthews Band. He watched it so much in fact that he broke the tape. Of course, he bought another one to replace the defective tape, and lo and behold, he wore out that one too!

Notes from Chris

Episode 296

Philadelphia native Nick Ruffini developed a love for the drums when he was a teenager. When he was 15, his parents hosted a party and invited his brother’s garage band over to play for them. As fate would have it, the drummer of the band left his drums at Nick’s place after the party and wouldn’t come back to collect them for over a month. During this time, Nick played with the drum set every day.

By the end of the month, he realized that he needed a drum set of his own because he had fallen in love with the instrument.

This love of drumming continued through his teens, and he took his act on the road with a band he helped form when he was 18. As Nick said, one of the best ways to make money as a musician in a band was to tour and get your name out there, and that’s exactly what they did. And this worked out really well for the most part—even as he was getting his degree—but all of that changed when he met a girl in New Jersey.

This wasn’t just any girl, she was the girl, and it got Nick to thinking that there had to be a better way to make money from his music without having to sacrifice his time and relationships to life on the road.

It was around this time that Nick decided to take up lessons to learn more about different drumming techniques and styles, and one day, Nick asked his teacher if he could record his lessons for the day. Nick was no stranger to side hustles, so naturally, he thought that there would be others who would want to listen to the conversations he was having with these knowledgeable drummers.

One popular podcast, one blog, and four years later, he’s been able to take Drummer’s Resource on full-time and is bringing in six figures annually! Nick shows us that there’s no fixed playbook on how you can expand your side hustle. Like him, you can march to the beat of your own drum.

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Drummer’s Resource: Check out some of the interviews Nick has featured on his website!
  • GarageBand: Nick used this digital music creation studio to produce the episodes for his podcast

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
"To stay consistent is pretty hard when you’re not making any money. Persevere anyway."
—Nick Ruffini #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

Lawyer Creates Online Course for Mothers Returning to Work

What It’s About

A mother of two creates an online course helping other mothers transition easily back into the workforce.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

After baby number 2, Lori quickly realized why nobody else had created this resource—new mothers are not blessed with an abundance of time, and half the time they’re incredibly sleep deprived. Lori wasn’t immune to this either, so she decided that in order to save her sanity, she would break up the building of her side hustle into 20-30 minute bite-sized pieces, tackling one at a time.

If you’re feeling pressed for time like Lori, here’s her advice: “There’s never enough time in the day, but YES you can do this—maybe just not all at once. Be patient and aware of your needs, and everything will come together over time.”

Fun Fact

For Lori, Mindful Return felt like a natural extension of the work she’s been committed to her entire career: promoting women’s equality and leadership. As an undergraduate at Princeton, she wrote her thesis on immigrant women in France who were victims of domestic violence, and at Georgetown Law, she was the co-President of the Women’s Legal Alliance and represented clients through the Domestic Violence Clinic. In her private practice, she was a member of her firm’s Women’s Initiative and a member of the Women’s Bar Association of the District of Columbia.

Notes from Chris

Episode 255

Lori Mihalich-Levin lives in Washington DC, where she is a partner in a major law firm focusing on Medicare reimbursement counseling. She represents academic medical centers, hospitals, and health systems, as well as a broad array of other health care organizations. She’s also the mother of two boys, ages 3 1/2 and 6, and it was after the birth of her second child that she started her first side hustle, Mindful Return.

Mindful Return is a 4-week online course that helps new working mothers return to work after maternity leave. More than 400 women have taken the course so far.

After returning to work full-time after her own maternity leave, and finding that 1 child plus 1 child felt like 85 children. This high-powered attorney says she was in tears on the kitchen floor more often than she’d like to admit. No one seemed to be talking about how hard it was to transition back after the typical 3-4 month American maternity leave.

She also realized that while there was a curriculum out there for pretty much everything baby related (from how to massage your baby to how to puree baby food and make a birth plan), there was almost nothing on how to go back to work after maternity leave without losing your mind.

Does this sound like a big need to you? I’m not a mother but it makes perfect sense.

Lori has now run the course for 400 women, was recently featured in the Washington Post, and is currently averaging $2,000/month in net income from this project. For her next step, she’s collaborating with a dad in creating a 4-week online course specifically to help new working dads navigate paternity leave and the transitions back to work.

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Mindful Return: Does the thought of juggling your kids while returning to work bring you to tears? Learn more about Lori’s course on her website!
  • Ruzuku: The platform that Lori used to create her 4-week course

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
"There’s never enough time in the day, but YES you can do this—maybe just not all at once. Be patient and aware of your needs, and everything will come together over time."
—Lori Mihalich-Levin #SideHustleSchool

Sponsors & Gratitude

Cook with Blue Apron!

Supporting the sponsors keeps the show free. Today’s episode of Side Hustle School is brought to you by Blue Apron. 👩‍🍳

Check out this week’s menu and get your first three meals FREE, with free shipping. Get ready to say mmmmmm.
Get Yours 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

Introvert Builds Networking Experience to Help Women

What It’s About

A woman in Denver steps outside of her comfort zone to help other women succeed in business.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Her advice to hustlers: first find an audience interested in what you are providing and ask them to invest before you start. Without motivation, it can be difficult to maintain momentum through the hard times.

Krystal always kept in mind the handful of women who had paid their membership fees for the entire year and knew she had a responsibility to them.

Fun Fact

When Krystal first monetized her group, she was told it would be impossible to compete and therefore, she would never pull in a profit, as there were so many associations and meetups already happening in Denver.

“I’ve seen my revenue double each year since starting the business, so I think I can safely say those assumptions were wrong,” Krystal said. “The lesson here is not to take the word of those who believe what you’re doing isn’t achievable or ‘realistic’.”

Notes from Chris

Episode 249

Krystal Covington is an introvert, but you wouldn’t necessarily know that considering the networking empire she’s building. She’s the founder of Women of Denver, a social enterprise association for women that strives to help them increase their incomes and reach economic equality. The group hosts three to five events each month to help women develop their skills and build a strong network which can contribute to them increasing their income.

When she moved to Denver from Detroit in 2013, she had no connections but recognized the need for a network that could help support her in her life and career. And although she tried a variety of networking groups, she couldn’t find one that filled her need. That’s when she realized that she was going to have to build it herself.

Krystal ran Women of Denver as a free meetup group for about a year, but even with free events, there was still a challenge getting attendees, which created a growing demand for Krystal’s time and money and contributed to her feeling over extended. It was at this point that Krystal realized she had to make her program an income-generating business or shut it down.

To get new members, Krystal offered an incentive. The first five that signed on each got a free video to promote their personal brand. Those first sales validated her efforts and supported the idea that what she was creating was truly worth paying for.

In the first year, the business made about $7,000. The second year, it increased to $15,000. This year—year three—Krystal is expecting revenue to exceed $30,000 with the current growth.

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Women of Denver: Learn more about Krystal and her empowering female entrepreneurial side hustle on her website
  • Eventbrite: The event sales platform that Krystal used to promote Women of Denver
  • Meetup: The platform that Krystal used to create and market her local meetups

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
"What’s been most valuable is the growth I can see in myself. I started this very afraid of standing in front of crowds, but last year I was invited to do a TEDx Talk because of my work with Women of Denver and pulled it off without a hitch. I thought I would fall flat on my face and forget my words, but I made it through confidently."
—Krystal Covington #SideHustleSchool

Sponsors & Gratitude

Get a FREE Audiobook from Audible!

Audible is offering SHS listeners a free copy of the Born For This audiobook with a 30-day trial membership. 📚

Just go to aonc.co/bftaudible and browse the unmatched selection of audio programs and start listening.
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