Colorado Artist Quits Job, Goes Back to Work, Then Quits Again

What It’s About

Art Director takes a new direction with his art.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Jimmy recommends that you start small—pick one product design to gauge how people respond to it. If you can get customers in with smaller purchase items such as stickers or hats, you can then bring them into your audience and sell them higher priced items like t-shirts and hoodies.

Fun Fact

Through networking and online exposure, Jimmy has had the opportunity to sell his designs on Nordstrom.com, and create merchandise for bands like Norah Jones, The Grateful Dead, and Counting Crows. And starting later this year, you’ll find some of his designs at REI!

Notes from Chris

Episode 811

Colorado native Jimmy Bryant has been designing and creating art his whole life. When he wasn’t working his 9 to 5 job, you could find him sketching or creating new designs on his computer. His passion for designing unique styles consumed most of his free time.

While working in a construction job in California, he began taking on various freelance projects to fuel his hobby. After doing this off and on for many years, he decided it was time to take the leap and launch himself as a full-time freelancer with his brand, Atomic Child Designs.

He moved back to Colorado and began listing his designs with various sites like Mintees and Red Bubble. On these sites, he was able to get his designs out there and find clients. Jimmy also did several band merchandising gigs where he would design t-shirts and promotional items.

However, life as a freelancer didn’t last long. Jimmy had left his previous job with little money saved and learned early on that he wasn’t prepared for this lifestyle. He decided to go back to working for a company so he could have a steady paycheck again and found a job as an Art Director for an apparel design firm. While there, he continued his art on the side. Jimmy still loved doing it and wasn’t ready to give up on his dream. Having a full-time job took the pressure off of making regular sales from his side hustle, and allowed him more freedom to experiment.

Part of his experimenting happened on Instagram. He started a 365 challenge, where he began posting one new design per day for 365 days. During this challenge, he picked up more and more followers. People were eager to see what he was going to design next. And it provided accountability to continue creating and expanding his design skills. When he began this challenge, he had just over 500 followers. Today he’s up to 659 original designs and almost 14,000 followers.

Sales and clients continued to grow. After much consistency and persistence, he was averaging about $11,000 per month and making more money from his side hustle than his day job. That’s when he knew it was the right time to leave his Art Director role.

It’s been quite the journey for Atomic Child, from freelance to full-time, to part-time, and now back to his main hustle. In his words:

“The best experience is realizing you can make a living off your designs by designing for yourself and not being tied to client work. It has given me the freedom in my life that I dreamed of for so long.”

 


  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
"If you’re wanting to grow your side hustle into a full-time gig, make sure you have multiple sets of revenue coming in first rather than relying on one stream. It’s easier to make mistakes and take risks when you have a steady paycheck than to jump ship and start with nothing."
—Jimmy Bryant #SideHustleSchool

Sponsors & Gratitude

Don't Do Business Without It

Side Hustle School is brought to you by American Express.

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

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

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

Designer Goes Viral with Playful T-Shirts; Earns $445,000

What It’s About

A freelance graphic designer turns his work research into a side hustle that earns $10,000 a month.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Mike believes that the key to success in print-on-demand, and eCommerce in general, is starting. It’s an easy industry to enter into, and people can start earning money without too much capital. The best way to scale print-on-demand as a side hustle is to put in the effort to learn a few key skills, such as Google Adwords. Print-on-demand businesses thrive by testing new ideas, and one experiment could be your next viral design. Add a dash of experimentation, a heap of patience, a sprinkle of perseverance, and you’ve created a bona fide side hustle.

Fun Fact

Did you know that the world record for the most t-shirts worn at one time is 257? This heroic feat was achieved by Sanath Bandara of Sri Lanka in 2011. It took him 1 hour and 57 minutes to put them all on, and he beat the previous record by just 5 shirts!

Notes from Chris

Episode 424

Mike Pasley is an “Idea Man,” and the only thing the professional graphic designer likes more than ideas is putting them into action. According to him, he’s always coming up with a new money-making venture. At the wide-eyed age of 12, he created his first side hustle, an eBay store to sell old items. It’s been an entrepreneurial whirlwind ever since.

From childhood eBay stores, Mike went on to pursue a degree in marketing. After graduating, he went into a full-time freelance career and has been busy ever since. After a foray into the craft beer market, he then found himself working as a digital marketer for Viralstyle, an online fulfillment company which specialized in custom apparel. This was his first step into the print-on-demand industry… and suddenly he was in uncharted territory.

ViralStyle let anyone, anywhere, upload their t-shirt design and sell it online through a crowdfunded format. Once a customer orders a design, it goes to print and is then mailed to their address. Mike had stumbled upon a very simple business model with a ton of benefits! There was no inventory for the company to maintain, very little overhead fees outside of advertising, and the best part—it could be done part-time.

Mike needed to figure out the best way to attract potential sellers to the website, so he started to learn how to design and sell t-shirts. He created his own practice store called Famous In Real Life. That way, he would understand what people needed when they visited the site and how they would use it.

It wasn’t all smooth sailing for Mike and finding his first few customers proved difficult. It took a few tries, and a $300 investment in advertising, for him to find his golden t-shirt design. But once a t-shirt went viral, traffic to his Shopify store quickly increased. Within six months, he was consistently bringing in an average of $10,000 a month. By the end of 2017, Mike had earned $445,000 in total revenue. He had virtually no start-up costs, so all the money he makes becomes additional income—or funds to invest into new side hustles.

 


MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Idea Nest: Check out the brands that Mike is building over on his website!
  • Viralstyle: The online fulfillment company specializing in custom apparel that Mike works for
  • Printify & Inkthreadable: The print on demand websites that Mike used to conduct research for his t-shirt designs
  • Shopify: Mike used Shopify to set up his store for Famous In Real Life, and they’re offering a 21-day trial and exclusive discount for all Side Hustle School listeners!

SEE ALSO:

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

GET $625 IN FREE TRAVEL

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

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

CREATE YOUR ONLINE STORE

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

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

Quote of the Day
"Knowing that there are thousands of people in the world who have seen a product I designed is what gets me fired up. This weekend I was at a festival and saw a stranger wearing one of my shirts. It was incredible to see that."
—Mike Pasley #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

The Snuggle Is Real: Architect Moonlights by Selling Designer Onesies

What It’s About

An architect discovers cash in minimalist onsies.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

One of the best things about print-on-demand is that there is no inventory since things are printed as people order them. This gave Gerald the ability to expand his designs without any cost. No inventory to buy, just post designs and see what people put in their carts. He added simple, edgy type-face inspired graphics that featured fun and playful messages with a clean aesthetic. More white to dribble on.

Fun Fact

Gerald was inspired by an episode of our podcast featuring a man who provided for his family with five side hustles. Gerald has decided to do that, too, so he’s on the hunt for his next side hustle.

Notes from Chris

Episode 389

By day, Gerald Lau is an architect. He’s a fan of clean lines, lots of white, and simple typography. He also liked the idea of a side hustle. At first, though, he tried a couple projects that didn’t quite work. One was selling designer stationery and homeware online, from his home.

It was hard for him to find time to keep up with the stock, fulfill orders himself, manage customer service, and do the marketing required to run the business alongside his architect work, which often requires long hours.

So then he tried doing interior design gigs on the side, but it felt like overtime. He took on too many projects and burnt out. [Remember: do something different for your side hustle.]

Gerald is a regular listener to Side Hustle School, and an episode about print on demand businesses caught his interest. It inspired him to develop an idea he had to create timeless, minimalist t-shirts for his kids. He named his side hustle The Typo Tees.

Gerald decided to specialized in alphabet onesies (like the letter of a child’s first or last name] and t-shirts. The first results were as promising as his previous attempts: nothing much happened.

As he broadened his designs, a crazy thing happened: people began buying the onesies and shirts… and these customers were happy with the product. They loved dressing their kids in something that was personalized for them, like the first letter of their name. This change in direction ended up bringing Gerald in more than an extra $1,000/month.

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • The Typo Tees: See what all of the cool toddlers are wearing over on Gerald’s website!
  • Shopify: Gerald used Shopify to set up his store for The Typo Tees, and they’re offering a 21-day trial and exclusive discount for all Side Hustle School listeners!

SEE ALSO:

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

GET $625 IN FREE TRAVEL

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

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

CREATE YOUR ONLINE STORE

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

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

Quote of the Day
"The more you want to earn from a side hustle, the more effort you need to put in. There are no shortcuts."
—Gerald Lau #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

Office Worker Turns $15 Into $500/Month Custom Cup Hustle

What It’s About

Petty office quips become a galvanizing side hustle for people who want to escape the grind.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Using Fiverr she found a designer that had a style she liked and then sent them a message asking if they could help her with tea + shade. They said yes, and Stesha put them to work right away. If you’re ever looking to do the same, Stesha recommends that you make sure you’re also purchasing the rights to the image alongside it. Common sense might tell you that when you buy it it’s yours to do what you want with it, but that’s not always the case.

Fun Fact

Stesha also adds a personal touch to each order, by personally sending a packet of tea and a thank you note to everyone who purchases from her. This helps her create a stronger, positive association with the brand that can sometimes be lost through third-party drop-shipping companies.

Notes from Chris

Episode 318

Like all too many people in the nine-to-five grind, Stesha Sims felt that her work wasn’t being appreciated. Her ideas and suggestions were ignored, promotions passed her by, and she was left to fend for herself in the cruel world of office politics. She felt trapped. The job provided her with insurance, healthcare and a stable wage to fund her dream life, but there didn’t appear to be any exit strategy from the awful job on the horizon.

Stesha admits this left her feeling, well, a little petty.

In order to cope with the drudgery of going to the office every day, she came up with a set of quips to help convey her feelings without getting her fired. She’d “throw shade” on her job by telling her friends and coworkers, “I’m only here for the direct deposits” or “I just showed up for the insurance.” She knew that other people felt the same way about their jobs too.

That’s when the idea for a side hustle struck her. What if she could sell something that brought together all of the people who felt stuck in their office jobs, but were using it to fund bigger and more important parts of their lives?

Stesha decided she’d take the “shade” that her friends and colleagues loved, and print it onto the side of cups. They’re something that most office workers are able to bring from home, could be played off as a joke to management, and constantly remind the buyer of the bigger motivation behind their day-to-day efforts. And so, tea + shade was born.

A combination of free trials, free apps, and Fiverr designs meant that the Tea + Shade startup costs were around $15. Which basically means that Stesha only had to sell two mugs to recoup her initial investment and go home with a profit! However, she’s managing to keep the business at a consistent $450 to $500 per month and is seeing a little growth each and every month.

Stesha wants to expand the brand into t-shirts, tote bags, and other highly visual products to let people keep throwing shade in new and creative ways. Lots of people complain about their jobs, Stesha turned her complaints into a money-making project.


MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • tea + shade: Throw some shade of your own around the office with some of Stesha’s mugs!
  • Shopify: Stesha used Shopify to create her store, and right now, all Side Hustle School listeners can get a free 21-day trial and 10% off for one year
  • Teelaunch: The print on demand platform that Stesha used in conjunction with Shopify to create her mugs
  • MailChimp: The email marketing platform that Stesha used to connect with her client base
  • Fiverr: Where Stesha sourced someone to create the designs for her shady mugs

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
"You don’t have to launch with a million mugs, but you do have to launch with something that stirs emotions with your base. I have lots of repeats customers because they love the message!! It’s okay to start with one item, you can slowly expand up from there."
—Stesha Sims #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