Tag: Niche Ideas

Listener Discovers Astronomical Success in Astrological Gifts

What It’s About

A listener reads the stars to discover her side hustle!

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Sasha’s best advice for fellow hustlers is one that echoes from SHS: just start! Sasha’s side hustle started with a single mug and has grown into a line of astrological gift goods that now has her thinking about other expansions. Being able to shift her mindset from “working hourly” to the side hustle concept where you make your product/service/etc. work for you has made all the difference. Her astrological line of gift goods—and her success—was written in the stars.

Fun Fact

When asked if she has had more than one side hustle, Sasha said:

“I cringe slightly at this question! Once in my youth (actually, I wasn’t THAT young) I followed my favorite band, The Cure, around the country. My best friend and I made devotional votive candles of the band members and sold them in the parking lot after each show to cover our gas money!”

Notes from Chris

Episode 374

Sasha Soukup been selling vintage items on Etsy for eight years. It brought in a little money from time to time, but it also had its limitations—mostly that she was never able to replicate when she had a hit. Frustrated and looking to get ahead, Sasha started listening to Side Hustle School aiming to create a side hustle that was low investment and low risk but also replicable.

After a month of listening, Sasha’s thinking started to shift. Her once rigid reasoning began looking at things in new ways. That, she said, has been the greatest gift Side Hustle School has given her—flexibility of thought.

After two months, Sasha was coming up with an idea or two a week. Then, suddenly, it was like a dam burst and she was seeing potential side hustles everywhere.

Looking to combine her skill with physical products with her interest in popular culture, Sasha created a line of astrology-related printed goods. She started with coffee mugs. After coming up with initial designs, she then found an artist to develop those ideas. That artist was actually one of her former Etsy customers who specializes in far-out 1960s-inspired art—it was a perfect match.

She had no idea whether her designs would be successful or not—she figured if it failed at least she would end up with great Christmas presents for her friends. Luckily it was the best case scenario, and not only her friends but also a lot of strangers, are buying her goods for their own gift giving.

Sasha’s now selling coffee mugs, t-shirts and stickers (and she will be adding buttons soon, too) and her sales are growing each week. For now, most of her profits are being reinvested into new designs, and promotions, since she covers her living expenses from her day job.

The additional income has made a big difference in her life—among other things, she can now go to the acupuncturist once a week instead of just in urgent situations without feeling like she is spending her food and basic expense budget.

Being able to shift her mindset from “working hourly” to the side hustle concept where you make your product/service/etc. work for you has made all the difference. It seems her astrological gift goods—and her success—was written in the stars.

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Astral Boutique: See what the stars have in store for you over at Sasha’s eclectic Etsy shop!
  • Marmalead: The paid service Sasha used that analyzes the strength of your keywords, titles and tags

SEE ALSO:

  • EXTENDED CUT #6: The Million-Dollar Etsy Shop: Most Etsy shops don’t make money—or if they do, they make a small amount of money. But some make a lot of money. What separates them? This special episode takes a detailed look at the online storefront for a million-dollar Etsy shop whose full story is coming up next week on the show
  • Single Mom Makes $15,000 from Astrology Calendar: After realizing that all of the astrology calendars in the market featured similar designs, a former restaurant owner decides to create her own
  • New Yorker Doubles Her Income with Next-Level Tarot Cards: How a senior designer for a feminist media publication decides to create tarot card decks and ends up making as much with her side hustle as she does at her day job

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

GET $625 IN FREE TRAVEL

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

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

CREATE YOUR ONLINE STORE

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

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

Quote of the Day
"I’ve been absolutely obsessed with SHS since the first episode. I was amazed at how rigid my thinking has become after, well, a lifetime of looking at things one way, and that’s been the greatest gift that this show has given me, this flexibility of thought."
—Sasha Soukup #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

NYC Banker Launches All-Natural, Drinkable Pickle Brine

What It’s About

A financial services professional discovers a weak spot in bars and restaurants and finds himself in a pickle—that is, a drinkable pickle brine side hustle.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Their most effective marketing tool has been social media. Not only do they post great content, but they use it as an outreach tool. Michael and his friend message athletes, celebrities, chefs, bars, managers every single day, and one of the athletes, Blake Coleman of the NHL’s New Jersey Devils, responded. He tried one of the brines and loved it—and has since taken a bottle to every single hockey game to avoid cramps and stay hydrated.

This quickly led to Brine Brothers being mentioned on the front page of the National Hockey League website, which was the brands largest publicity yet. In turn, this led to a variety of newspaper and online magazine articles featuring their all-natural pickle brine.

Fun Fact

Feeling a little less than your best following a night of drinking and reveling? Pickleback shots actually do more than provide a weird, briny buzz!

The salt and water in pickle juice not only help erase the woes of the previous night, they also help you take preventive action. Pregame with a virgin shot to help stock your body with the goods it needs before the dehydrating powers of alcohol swoop in [cite].

Notes from Chris

Episode 362

Michael Belicose is the Vice President of Consumer Banking for JP Morgan Chase & Co. He’s got a lot of responsibility at his day job, but when he’s off the clock, he geeks out over something that most people don’t give any thought to—pickle brine.

Though unknown to many, pickle brine is actually a drink beloved by an avid subculture. Athletes love it for its post-workout regeneration and hydration qualities. Chefs love it for its complex flavor profile that pairs well with many types of food. And lovers of adult beverages enjoy mixing it into cocktails or using it as hangover relief.

After work, Michael and a friend liked to enjoy chilled shots of pickle brine followed by a shot of whiskey (known as a “pickleback shot”), but they found that the brine was often just an afterthought to the bartenders. It tended to be unfiltered, old, and filled with all sorts of preservatives.

Disappointed by this sad state of pickle brine, Michael and the friend began playing with the idea of creating their own. With thousands of bars and restaurants in the city not knowing how delicious good brine could be, or how it could compliment a spirit, they believed they had found an opportunity.

Michael knew that he could create a delicious all-natural brine that would be far better than the ones most places served. He also knew that NYC is filled with passionate bartenders that are always looking for ways to improve their menu. Confident that they had stumbled upon an underserved need, Michael and his friend started planning their domination of the drinkable brine market.

Just seven months after launching, Brine Brothers has product in over 15 bars in the New York area and generates sales online from around the country. Prior to Thanksgiving, Brine Brothers had made over $5,000 in total sales, and in just the two weeks following Thanksgiving, they generating just over $1,500 in sales.

While it’s definitely a big dill, Michael’s not getting comfortable; he’s aiming to make $10,000/month and to reach a point where the business drives itself without him having to message influencers every day.

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Brine Brothers: Learn more about all of the uses of pickle brine and pick up a bottle of your own on Michael’s website!
  • ThomasNet, Specialty Food Resource, & Specialty Food Co-Packers Directory: Three of the online resources that Michael and his partner used to find a co-packer for Brine Brothers
  • Shopify: Michael and his partner used Shopify to set up their store for Brine Brothers, and they’re offering a 21-day trial and exclusive discount for all Side Hustle School listeners!

SEE ALSO:

  • U.S. Co-Paker Directory: Are you reaching a point where you’re outgrowing your own kitchen? Here’s a directory containing co-packing companies in each state!
  • Working With Co-Packers: Part 1 & Part 2: This two part series goes into what you should look for when selecting a co-packer and best practices for working with a co-packer once you’ve found one
  • Blogger Turns Leftover Cherries Into $5,000/Month Income: After being diagnosed with diabetes, a food blogger creates a sugar-free line of ketchup alternatives

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
"The true challenge is finding the time outside of our day jobs to grind away and speak with people.  Word of mouth and personal connections have been great so far and we continue to ask friends, family and former classmates for recommendations."
—Michael Belicose #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

Bitcoin YouTuber Earns Thousands in Affiliate Commissions

What It’s About

Altcoins lead to an alt-income stream for a man in the Netherlands!

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Alex’s advice to anyone wanting to start a similar side hustle is to start a free YouTube channel on one niche topic you love to talk about. Don’t deviate and instead go to depth on this one topic, and provide as much entertaining information as you can.

Fun Fact

In addition to being a cryptocurrency guru, Alex is also known for being the founder of the Netherland’s equivalent to 411, the information telephone service. In the Netherlands, you can pay up to 1 euro per minute, and some users even pay for every minute after the call is transferred. Alex changed the business model and made the 411 service (called 1812 in this country) free! He makes his money selling advertising space, and it is more than enough to live on.

Notes from Chris

Episode 361

If you’ve watched or otherwise consumed any form of media recently, it’s been hard to avoid the conversation about cryptocurrencies. Despite all the hype and chatter, it can be a confusing topic. How do these currencies work? What are people actually investing their money into? And if I drop my Bitcoins behind the couch, will I find them later while cleaning and realize I’m rich?

Anyway, here’s a super short primer: Bitcoin is a digital currency with no physical form used to make payments without fees and a level of anonymity. These highly secure payments are made and recorded using a technology called blockchain.

For people who don’t like the current economic model, this gives them a lot of hope and creates a cause they can believe in. Which brings us squarely to today’s side hustler, Alexander van Dijl, cryptocurrency enthusiast, YouTuber, and owner of the Netherland’s based website Bitcoin Update.

Over the past few years, Alex has developed an interest in Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies, dabbling in investing and mining, and he felt an internal pull to spend more time and effort on it. He decided he would produce and broadcast daily video updates, information and case studies for the Dutch Bitcoin community. It would be simple to arrange around his day job, where he operates an information service and could be a fun way to connect with people with similar interests.

Since starting his YouTube channel in September of 2017, Alex has been able to grow his side hustle income to over $1,000 per month on average. But sometimes he makes that in one week with a big affiliate sale, and he projects his business will be worth around $15,000 per month this time next year. Oh, and he’s not getting paid in digital currency—he gets paid in money that goes straight to his bank account.

 

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
"Every sale is a celebration! Even though I now drive between 10 and 100 sales every day, I still celebrate each one. The first one is always the best. It shows that people are interested and that the new side hustle works."
—Alexander van Dijl #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

Unusual Men’s Fashion Item Romps Way to $100k

What It’s About

Two friends capitalize on the men’s romper trend and make six figures!

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Wyatt’s advice to other side hustlers is to act quickly on opportunities that already have demand—let someone else prove the concept, then do it better than them. Pretty soon you can break away from mirroring your competitors and do your own thing without taking too much risk.

Fun Fact

Men’s rompers have gone from being a gimmick to a serious fashion statement in less than a year, and no two people are more surprised than the founders of RomperJack.

Notes from Chris

Episode 360

When Steve Jobs quoted Picasso saying “Good artists produce; great artists steal,” Wyatt Thompson took it to heart, and it was the influence behind his side hustle, RomperJack.

Following Picasso’s lead, Wyatt decided to make a side hustle out of something that already existed rather than taking the time to invent something new. He invited his friend Justin to join him in the search for one.

They thought Kickstarter would be a good place to find out what was coming onto the market, and it was. They found a campaign for men’s rompers that was going viral. It had raised $300,000, but the product wouldn’t be available for four months. Four months seemed like a long time to wait for rompers, and the two figured they could start selling them sooner than that.

Until then, Wyatt didn’t even know there was such a thing as men’s rompers. In fact, he knew little about fashion in general.

In spite of that, Wyatt and Justin saw that this was a great opportunity from a strategic perspective:

1. There was only one company selling this product for the market.

2. The barrier to entry was low. No one can copyright the design of a romper because the outfit has been around for decades.

3. The Kickstarter campaign wouldn’t deliver the product for four months, leaving a window for someone else to make it first.

These three indicators led the two to believe it was a great market to test a Side Hustle. He wasn’t thrown by their lack of knowledge or experience because they had a blueprint in front of them—the Kickstarter campaign from the other guys—and Wyatt had the confidence in their ability to find out what they didn’t know.

Within 26 days of first finding that Kickstarter campaign, Wyatt and his friend were selling RomperJacks. And within ten minutes of making their site live on Shopify, an alarm went off indicating a sale was made. Wyatt and Justin assumed it was the other one testing if their PayPal options were linked correctly, and then they realized it was an actual sale. They screamed for joy, and then terror, because their rompers hadn’t yet arrived from AliExpress.

Within a few weeks, the two began designing their own style of rompers in Photoshop and sending them to manufacturers on Alibaba. While AliExpress sells existing products in small quantities, Alibaba is a group of manufacturers and resellers who trade in larger orders and do custom designs.

The company grossed $100,000 in sales from July – October! Now they sell RomperJack in five countries and enjoy a growing number of brand partnerships.

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • RomperJack: Romp on over to Wyatt’s website to see the full lineup on his website!
  • Kickstarter: The crowdfunding platform that Wyatt used to find trending side hustle ideas
  • AliExpress: An online retail service owned by Alibaba that is made up of small, international businesses offering products to online buyers with wholesale options
  • Alibaba: The platform that Wyatt and Justin used to locate a manufacturer for their man rompers
  • Shopify: Wyatt and Justin used Shopify to set up their store for RomperJack, and right now, they’re offering a 21-day trial and exclusive discount for all Side Hustle School listeners!
  • Dollar Shave Club: The personal grooming ecommerce store that Wyatt scored a job at after using his experience building RomperJack as leverage

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
"When in doubt, mimic the market!"
—Wyatt Thompson #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

New Dad Starts Woodworking Hustle While Infant Son Naps

What It’s About

This new father finds time between lunch and playtime to work on his woodworking side hustle.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Scott said that his favorite episode would probably be Ep. 310 about the 13-year old schoolyard lollipop hustler. He has two (very) young children, and he realized that he’d like to instill this hustle mentality in them early.

He always wished that this had been brought up to him much earlier in life, and he loves the idea of showcasing to his kids that you can really take it into your own hands and create income streams in many different avenues. You don’t need a typical career. And even if you do have a typical career, you can supplement that through other channels.

Fun Fact

As Scott develops a website for his business, he said he is definitely going to include messenger functionality. He loves the interaction he gets to have with his clients through his current channels: Facebook page, Instagram, Kijij, Letgo, and Facebook Groups.

Notes from Chris

Episode 356

Scott Lyons has combined his interest in woodworking and business to create a side hustle that allows him to express his creativity and one that also brings in almost $1,000 a month.

An Account Director at a creative advertising agency by day, Scott works on the business side, helping clients develop and organize their advertising campaigns. On the other side, Scott channels his creativity making rustic decorative ladders for blankets, towels, etc. with his side hustle, A Step Above Decor.

With the birth of his first child, Scott’s family received a ton of beautiful blankets, some even handmade. Not wanting to just throw them into a closet for storage, and looking for a way to display them, Scott stumbled across a decorative wooden ladder used for just that.

As he had learned some woodworking skills growing up—he used to build his own skateboard ramps—he figured this was something he could make himself, especially during his son’s naptime. He was right!

While his son slumbered, Scott crafted and soon he had ladders in every room of the house. Friends and family who visited noticed, and began making requests for their own. Scott thought he might be on to something. With a bit of encouragement from his wife, he posted a few of them in a local buy/sell Facebook group and garnered the interest of about 20 people. It also brought him his first sale outside of his family.

“That’s when the lightbulb really turned on and I recognized the opportunity,” said Scott. Given that it was his wife’s encouragement that got him to post, he took her out to dinner to celebrate the sale.

Since then, Scott has been taking one night a week to make the ladders and the rest of the week to work on sales. Scott typically makes five ladders a week—all in one night—and his average monthly profit is a bit more than $900.

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • A Step Above Decor: Traditional bookshelves are so 1999—check out Scott’s wares on his Facebook page!
  • Kijij & Letgo: A couple of the platforms that Scott used to sell his decorative ladders

SEE ALSO:

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

GET $625 IN FREE TRAVEL

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

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

RELIABLE WEBHOST FOR $2.49/MONTH

Want to build any kind of website for your hustle? If so, you'll need somewhere to host it! This is the reliable company I've used for my past 5 websites. It's cheap, flexible, and you can get support 24 hours a day.

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

Quote of the Day
"Another great aspect of my side hustle is the joy that my projects bring to my clients. I don’t really create anything in my day job, so to see the reactions of people to something that I’ve build with my own hands… I’d almost do it for free! Almost."
—Scott Lyons #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

“High Times” Cartoonist Creates Creative Cannabis Accessories

What It’s About

A professional cartoonist becomes a woodworker who stumbles upon a smoky side hustle success.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Just to be clear, I don’t want you to wait 20 years for your side hustle, but I do think this story illustrates the value of paying attention to something you might not think is a big deal but matters a lot to other people.

Here are a few episodes that draw on this as well: Ep. 346, Ep. 312, and Ep. 326.

Fun Fact

Bruce started off as a cartoonist, drawing for magazines, books, and advertisements. His cartoons appeared in almost every issue of High Times Magazine from 1976 to 1983, and he had his own political cartoon syndicate that appeared in over 380 newspapers across the US and Canada every week during the better part of the 70s.

Notes from Chris

Episode 354

Bruce Jorgensen took the long way to arrive at his side hustle. After getting a degree in journalism, he spent the 70’s as a cartoonist, drawing for magazines, books and advertisements. Most notably, his cartoons appeared in almost every issue of High Times magazine from 1976 to 1983.

He also started his own political cartoon syndicate for which he drew four editorial cartoons a week that appeared in over 380 newspapers across the US and Canada every week.

After moving with his wife and three young children into a new neighborhood in New Jersey, he met one of his neighbors, Jon, and they became fast friends. Jon was a quadriplegic who had limited mobility in his arms, with no fine motor control. Jon smoked joints cannabis, which he found controlled his seizures and trembling. But he couldn’t smoke without help from his nurse or a friend, which was humiliating and inconvenient for him.

Bruce immediately saw that he could make Jon’s life a bit easier and crafted him a holder out of a wooden chopstick and a metal alligator clip. Jon could hold the stick and regained both the ability to smoke on his own and a little bit of dignity. Bruce thought nothing of it, but friends of both Bruce and Jon noticed what a cool smoking tool it was and requested ones for themselves.

Fast forward to the late 90’s and Bruce was still working as a cartoonist, but the work had grown stale for him. A friend offered him a job as a woodworker, and Bruce jumped at the opportunity to quit cartooning. After a couple years of learning on the job, Bruce happened to visit some old friends and noticed that they were still using the makeshift smoking tool that he created for them long, long ago. All of his friends confirmed that it was their preferred smoking tool. It wasn’t until that moment that Bruce realized he had invented a potentially marketable product.

Not long after this first major sale, Bruce lost his woodworking job due to the recession. Fortunately for him, New Jersey offered a six-week program through the unemployment office that helps people come up with a business plan and learn basic skills like bookkeeping. With this support, he began to turn his side hustle into his third career and also came up with the name—Mystic Timber.

Even with minor missteps along the way, he kept at it and revenues steadily increased year after year. Over the years Bruce has not only diversified his product line but his revenue streams as well.

He’s continued to sell wholesale to smoke shops, added the trade shows, and more recently started selling direct to consumers through their website. Selling direct to consumers brings in an extra $600/month, and at a higher profit margin. He’s also figured out the trade show circuit and can now bring in more than $20,000 in sales at a three-day show.

Through all of these efforts, and through the many lessons he’s learned over the years, Bruce has managed to take Mystic Timber from a fun side hustle to a profitable business.

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Mystic Timber: Get your dab on in style with some of Bruce’s wands!
  • High Times Magazine: The world’s leading source for daily cannabis news, weed information, and marijuana culture since 1974

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
"Like any business, a side hustle is a long series of decisions and choices, and every day presents new problems which have to be solved in real time. But the thing that you have to keep in mind is that they also present new opportunities for growth and evolution as well."
—Bruce Jorgensen #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

Role-Playing Pastor Rolls The Dice On $2800/Month Hustle

What It’s About

A Side Hustle School listener roles the dice on a niche side hustle idea and comes out on top!

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

After just a few episodes, David figured out what he needed to do: instead of selling his time, he was going to sell a product.

For the next few weeks, David took a look at his life and interests. He didn’t want to sell a product he knew nothing about. Instead, he wanted a product he could sell with confidence. This is really sound advice for anyone looking to sell a product!

Fun Fact

David has listened to every episode of the Side Hustle School podcast. He says he was guilty of only ever thinking of ways he could sell his time to make money, and the episodes he listened to taught him the power of selling a product for a profit.

Notes from Chris

Episode 352

For David Derus, his full-time job as a Presbyterian Pastor has always been a labor of love. But, it’s never been quite enough to help him pay his bills. In order to help him stay in service of his local Parish, David has spent his adult life side hustling around his church duties. He’s been a dog walker, a handyman, a house sitter and a blogger, just to name a few. Although all of these hustles were good for a while, they never quite provided him with the consistent support he needed and were a huge drain on his time.

On the verge of burnout, David decided he wanted a side hustle where he didn’t have to exchange his time for money.

Talking about this problem to a member of his church, that parishioner recommended that David check out a podcast you might be familiar with—Side Hustle School. He said it was filled with stories of people who’d achieved the same goals he had, and that it may help him find a profitable idea.

When David got home that evening he downloaded an episode and was instantly hooked.

Ever since he was a young boy, he’d been interested in role-playing games, like Dungeons and Dragons. David found it to be a fun way for an awkward teenager to meet like-minded people to talk to, and he’s been playing ever since. He also figured it might be a good place to start in his hunt for a new side hustle project.

David paid a visit to his local group and got to talking to a friend who was showing off his new custom dice. He told his friend he had “dice envy” and was instantly struck with an idea and name for his side hustle—Dice Envy!

Dice seemed like a simple product to sell, with low startup costs, and a like-minded market he could sell to.

After everything was said and done, the total startup costs for David came in at around $3,000. This included his initial investment in the dice, creating his website, legal fees and advertising the initial release of his first set. Whilst this is a slightly more expensive investment than David thought, it has more than paid for itself, with Dice Envy netting around $2800 per month.

We can’t make this up! Our listeners are by far the best testimonials of how this is working for people and how people are taking action. Please let us know what you’re up to—email podcast@sidehustleschool.com or come and share your story, here!

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Dice Envy: What do you call the unfair advantage that the undead have in a necropolis? Wight privelege! Snag some sweet dice for your next D&D meetup on David’s website!
  • Photoshop & Illustrator: Two of the Adobe programs that David used to create the designs he used for his roll-worthy dice sets
  • Alibaba: The platform that David used to locate a manufacturer in China for his customized dice
  • SquareSpace: The website building platform that David used to create Dice Envy
  • ShipStation: The app that David used to simplify his shipments. For a limited time, you can get a 30-day trial AND an additional month free! Click the microphone at the top of their page and enter the word HUSTLE
  • Fiverr: The freelancing platform that David relied on for the bulk of the branding for his website and brand

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
"Don’t try and reinvent the wheel. Find a niche that you are familiar with and stick within a theme. Ideas do not need to be revolutionary to be profitable."
—David Derus #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

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

Philadelphia Lover Maps Out $35,000/Year Side Hustle

What It’s About

A neurosurgeon tries her scalpel on a new medium and makes an extra $35,000 a year!

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Because she views her side hustle as a project and not a business, Emma is able to avoid the pressures of entrepreneurship and the need for constant expansion. Which is also the same advice she’d give to anyone looking to start a side hustle themselves: view it as a long-term project and don’t get too caught up in the fact you’re now an “entrepreneur.” Keep it as a passion project and try not to focus on the end result!

Fun Fact

Emma’s first sale was a trade with a street artist she loves. She swapped a map for a faux sign saying, “Dream Big.” Pretty appropriate for what this project has become!

Notes from Chris

Episode 347

After a strange career jump from Neuroscientist to Marketing Director—and a few bad break-ups—Emma Fried-Cassorla found herself in the midst of an existential crisis. She loved her new job but felt a strong urge to make something that showed off her artistic side.

In order to force herself into extra-curricular creative activities, Emma set herself a challenge: she’d create a paper-cut map of the city of Philadelphia. (A papercut being precise incisions into paper to remove all of the sections of paper that don’t look like what you’re trying to make). She’d spent a lot of time with a scalpel performing experiments as a Neuroscientist and felt her skills would transfer across perfectly.

For the next three months, Emma spent her evenings and weekends working on the 4×3 project. She documented her progress on her Philadelphia-centric blog, Philly Love Notes, and through its associated Instagram account. Once the project was completed, and on the recommendation of a friend, she scanned the finished work into her computer.

Little did she know that this labor of love would go on to become the backbone of her entire side hustle.

Custom maps make up around 95% of Emma’s monthly orders. But while for most businesses custom means a lot of extra work, Emma has managed to refine it to a relatively painless process. In her own words, Emma says she basically makes the same map over and over again.

The sales of these maps—and that initial three months of work back in 2014 —has earned her an extra $35,000 annually around her day job. That’s almost a full-time job’s wages on the side! But, she’s not using all of that cash for herself. Lots of her extra income, like the $5,000 she raised during a recent Black Friday sale, is donated to a wide-range of projects in and around Philly.

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Etsy | Philly Love Notes: Cut a minute out of your day to check out Emma’s papercut maps
  • Philly Love Notes: Head on over to Emma’s blog for a reminder about all of the wonderful things that make Philly so great
  • NextFab: The local “makerspace” in Philly that Emma used to make her papercut maps

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
"When you don’t need something to work, you can take your time, and you’re less likely to make decisions that you wouldn’t make unless you were wholly dependent on that next paycheck."
—Emma Fried-Cassorla #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

Marketing Professional Produces Giant Puppet Performances for Extra Cash

What It’s About

A marketer finds creative freedom in a little silk and paint.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

In yesterday’s episode, I talked about freedom being the greatest motivation and reward for a side hustler, and I also mentioned that there are lots of different kinds of freedoms. Creative expression is its own kind of freedom, and although you don’t have to make a living from your art, wouldn’t it be great to get paid for doing something that you already love doing and having others appreciate your work?

Fun Fact

Toni’s puppets range from the more realistic to the completely fantastical! There’s an enormous dog named Dogody, flying Cedar Waxwing songbirds with eight-foot wingspans, a giant monarch caterpillar named Kafka, two monarch butterflies, a walking talking compost pile, a lime green snake, and a dancing tree of life… to name a few.

Notes from Chris

Episode 343

By day Toni Mikulka works in marketing and fundraising for a nonprofit children’s museum in Berkeley, California. On evenings and weekends she has a related, but way more artistic side hustle: puppets. We’re not talking sock puppets. We’re talking about huge, hand-crafted puppets held up by multiple sticks as she walks underneath them. How does one get into puppets? It was a circuitous journey that took her all across the country, from Brooklyn to Vermont to Seattle and back to New York.

But let’s rewind a bit to when Toni was in college and she organized three seasons of the Vagina Monologues. During this time her college friends would often go to this place called Bread and Puppet Theatre—a place that offered good old fashioned sourdough rye bread in combination with a variety of interesting puppet shows—but she would only ever see snippets of the place in the photos her roommates brought home. To her, it seemed like this magical, mysterious club, but as much as she was intrigued, she never managed to make the trip to Vermont.

After college Toni got into marketing and fundraising for a large nonprofit in Brooklyn. While she appreciated that it was a mission-driven organization, she eventually became unhappy in her job, as she had a passion for performance art that wasn’t being fulfilled behind a desk. She would find herself staring out her office window that looked out on the Brooklyn Bridge for an hour at a time, thinking about how she never pursued a life as an artist. She began missing deadlines and taking longer lunches.

Finally, it just got to be too much, so in 2010 she quit her job with dreams of checking out that Bread and Puppet place she always heard about in college. As it turned out they had an apprenticeship, which she applied for and got.During the apprenticeship, she learned how to build and repair puppets, walk on stilts, and design posters, in addition to the band practice and vocal training.

But at the end of the program, she still wasn’t sure what to do or where to go afterwards with her skills. Where did she go? To the only obvious destination: she went to Burning Man.

At Burning Man, she finally found her tribe, made connections, and found the courage to launch her own puppet company, Giant Puppets Save the World.

She now makes a fairly consistent $800 a month on her puppetry side hustle, with her job at the children’s museum providing her full-time salary. While the extra cash is great, Toni also shared that, “You can’t put a price on the creative expressions and the feeling that comes from making something entirely original and magical for other people to enjoy.”

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Giant Puppets Save the World: See what Toni and her giant puppets are up to on her website!
  • Bread and Puppet: The unique outdoor theatre that Toni interned at that specializes in giant puppets
  • WordPress: Toni used WordPress to create Giant Puppets Save the World, and here you can learn how to install your own WordPress site in 5 minutes

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 can’t put a price on the creative expressions and the feeling that comes from making something entirely original and magical for other people to enjoy."
—Toni Mikulka #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