Tag: Service

Logistics Broker Earns Extra Income From Graffiti

What It’s About

This truck driver gets paid to tag walls with his art.

Words of Wisdom

For others looking to start a graffiti or art side hustle, Marty suggests widening your portfolio. “Keep thinking outside the box. I started drawing popular cartoon characters – even ones I didn’t know – and posted them online. I usually get inboxes from that. I drew a Frozen character and got a client from there.”

Fun Fact

The first forms of graffiti date back to Roman architecture. Although there was no spray paint at the time, artists would carve messages onto walls. In fact, the word graffiti was created from the Greek word “graphein” which means, “to write.” [Source]

Notes from Chris

Episode 1424
In 2019, Marty Nagel had been working in his career as a third party logistics broker for about a decade. Although he’s now based in Louisville, Kentucky, he was raised in Cincinnati, Ohio—a city known for its rich graffiti culture. Ever since high school, when he went to a few graffiti events in town, he had a fascination with the art.

Around the end of 2019, Marty was chatting with a friend when she began to tell him about a special present she intended to buy for her son. She told him that for his birthday, she was going to pay someone to create a small piece of graffiti art on his wall.

Ever the graffiti lover, Marty inquired further, and found out that she was intending on paying $800 for just a bedroom-sized wall.

Taken aback by the price, Marty offered to do it himself and charge a more palette-able rate, at $350. He also offered to throw in something extra: painting her son’s name in his room in the Wildstyle font. Marty’s friend agreed. Although he wasn’t planning it at the time, she became the first of many future clients.

Besides buying the cans of spray paint for each project, Marty did not have to pay anything else to get his new business up and running. He decided to call it Lowkey Originals.

His first course of action was to build a large portfolio of work to show off his variety of skills and abilities. To market his work, he made an Instagram account and designed a few t-shirts.

He’s been able to keep this steady stream of clients by utilizing social media … and not paying for it. Rather than pay for advertising, all Marty has had to do is run an Instagram and Facebook account. He posts a photo on Facebook every week and asks his friends to share the post.

He currently has enough clients to be booked two months out. Through this experience, Marty has been able to pay his rent, make a career switch in the middle of a pandemic without stressing out, and delve into his long-time passion for art.

As of now, Marty plans to keep Lowkey Originals just that—lowkey and on the side, complimenting his new day job as a driver.

 

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

    • See Marty’s collection of artwork at his Instagram account, @LowkeyOriginals

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 let your creative fire die. This is so important. Always be learning."
—Marty Nagel #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

Dancer Steps Up With Blinged Out Costumes

What It’s About

A dancer gives old costumes a new spotlight.

Words of Wisdom

Charlotte has some great advice about discovering your own hustle. “Find something that you can offer that is personal to you. Don’t try to copy others, people will recognize it as their work. You want something that is yours. My experience as a performer meant that I can embellish pieces for performers, knowing what the demands of that costume would be and avoiding all the small mistakes that I made years ago.”

Fun Fact

The cabaret dance style was invented during the 1880s in France. Beyond being just a dance show, the original art form used to poke fun at the glamorous part of society.

Notes from Chris

Episode 1410
For over thirteen years, Charlotte Pacelli danced professionally in the London Cabaret and at corporate events. She loved to dance, but the combination of a job, as well as freelancing in the same field, grew tiring.

So, after thirteen years in dance, and five running her own troupe, Charlotte decided to hang up her boots and relegate dancing to more of a hobby. The problem was, she was a high achiever, and couldn’t sit still for long. Her mind was always dancing around! She took a job in mental health at another school and looked for something else to keep her creative muscle flexed.

Throughout her years running a troupe, she’d become well versed at upgrading and repairing costumes. With more downtime, she decided to begin making some of her own, purely for fun and to keep herself busy.

She knew she wanted to make something that shined, so she went to the High Street stores in London’s famous shopping district, and looked for lingerie on sale. They didn’t need to be perfect, as she was going to modify them anyway. With a few pieces to add some pizazz to, she set to sewing.

Charlotte adorned the lingerie with crystals, fringing, and beaded trim. She refers to it as embellishing the costume, enhancing it so it looks at home in a cabaret show. The results were exactly what she envisioned, and she wanted to make more.

Charlotte set up an Instagram account called Primp My Costume and posted her first few creations. She’d developed a lot of good connections during her dance career, so she reached out to them now, mentioned the new account and that the pieces were for sale. Those pieces waltzed right out the door!

Over the next year, she worked on this in her spare time, after her day job and before going to bed. At first, she handled a few commissions per month but it was Etsy that really helped heat things up on the dance floor.

This extra source of business has upped Charlotte’s commissions to two to three per week, generating up to six hundred and fifty dollars per month. That’s a three hundred percent increase from the year before.

If it takes two to tango, then this business arrangement produced the perfect sequence.

 

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

SEE ALSO:

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

WEB HOSTING @ $2.49/MONTH

Want to build any kind of website for your hustle? If so, you'll need somewhere to host it! This is the reliable company I've used for many websites. It's cheap, flexible, and offers support 24-7.

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

GET $625 IN FREE TRAVEL

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

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

Quote of the Day
"Find something that you can offer that is personal to you. Don’t try to copy others, people will recognize it as their work. You want something that is yours."
—Charlotte Pacelli #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

Physician Assistant Peru-ses Machu Picchu Treks

What It’s About

A traveler and a guide team up to start their own tourism business.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

For those interested in starting a travel side hustle, Kevin suggests, “Become an expert in your field and travel region that you are looking to service. This will make you and your company a better resource for your potential customers that are interested in your service.”

Fun Fact

Although the delicate nature of Machu Picchu means numbers are heavily restricted, it is still one of the world’s most popular tourist attractions. In 2018 over 1.5 million people visited the site throughout the year, an average of 4300 per day.

Notes from Chris

Episode 1408
Kevin Groh has always loved to travel. In 2015 he was working as a Physician Assistant when he decided to visit Machu Picchu. The ancient city is nestled high in the mountains of Peru, and getting there is a formidable four-day task taking adventurers through the majestic scenery and exhaustive mountain passes. The conditions require that anyone trekking there must be accompanied by a guide.

For Kevin, that guide was a local named David Villagra. David grew up in a farming town nearby and worked for a local tour operator. However, he’d always dreamed of starting his own company to guide visitors from around the world through his own backyard.

In fact, he’d tried once before, and failed. Guiding is a serious business in Cusco, the historical city near Machu Picchu, and competition is fierce. Without any experience in marketing, he couldn’t compete with the larger local businesses. As he explained this problem to Kevin on day two of the trek, Kevin’s mind began to wander.

He had seen first hand what a fantastic experience the trek was, and put forth an idea. If David could handle all the logistics in Peru, he’d find a way to market to tourists in the U.S. In a handshake deal on day four of the hike they agreed to start Cachi Life, a travel company specializing in tours of the region.

David would arrange permits for the hikers, local porters, equipment and food. Kevin would build a web presence and handle all the marketing. Once Kevin returned stateside, he got to work.

With each happy customer the word of mouth spread, and Cachi Life soon had referral business coming in on top of the new business being funneled by their content marketing. By the beginning of 2020, the side hustle was making sixty thousand dollars per year!

But… you know the next part of the story. COVID-19 became a cloud covering the summit, making the next steps more a little foggy. The Peruvian border was closed for several months in 2020. This means that the tourism industry has taken a huge hit. A hit extended to Cachi Life.

While upsetting, Kevin still has his day job and knows tourism will be back in full swing before too long. In fact, the region is already reopening this month to visitors from select countries.

He’s been taking the time to increase the amount of content he produces to keep Cachi at the forefront of discussion. Furthermore, to attract people who may want more of a DIY approach to exploring Peru he and David are creating a Peru travel guide that they hope will help produce additional, non-tour related income. As soon as it’s feasible, they also plan to expand their tours to Bolivia and Mexico.

 

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • We’ll be able to travel again some day! Start dreaming about going to Peru at Kevin’s website, CachiLife.com.

SEE ALSO:

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

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
"Become an expert in your field and travel region that you are looking to service. This will make you and your company a better resource for your potential customers that are interested in your service."
—Kevin Groh #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

Attorney Shutters Day Job In Favor Of Photography

What It’s About

A lawyer shifts her focus and achieves perfect exposure to a new career.

Words of Wisdom

Emily shares some words of encouragement: “Be smart, but don’t hold back. It’s tricky juggling a full-time job and a side hustle. I gave my self a loose goal to “someday quit and do this full time”. I was optimistic but cautious. I didn’t want to leave my secure income (living in SF is not cheap!), I wanted to make sure it was the right move.”

Fun Fact

The first color photograph was taken in 1861 and is of a colored ribbon. Compare that single photograph to today, where an estimated 100 million pictures are uploaded to Instagram everyday.

Notes from Chris

Episode 1396
It was 2017 when Emily Jenks first began to become disillusioned in her day job. On the outside, things seemed great—she was a well-paid antitrust attorney in San Francisco. But on the inside, Emily was losing her spark a little more each day. She’d often wake up and tell herself, “I’d rather die than do this for the rest of my life”… which she now admits was a little dramatic.

But these feelings are real! A lot of people have them.

Instead of quitting, she set herself a big goal. Find out what she loves to do and then figure out a way to make money from it. She then proceeded to try everything from blogging to beach body coaching, none of which panned out. In the end, a chance gift from her husband brought her passion into focus, and it happened in a flash.

He bought Emily a day-long traveling photography course for her birthday … and it turned into the best day she’d had in years. By the end of it she had what she calls a “THIS IS IT!” moment. This is what she wanted to do with her life, this is what might help her escape her day job misery and bring more happiness into her life.

She’d start a photography side hustle with the stretch goal of turning it into a full-time gig. She was so convinced this was the right next step that she immediately bought equipment, confident the money would never be wasted. After all, she already knew she loved photography so if the business side of things didn’t work out she’d still use the gear for personal enjoyment.

Still, the number one goal was to eventually quit her job as an attorney, so she had a lot of income to replace. Emily began looking for her first client and turned to Yelp for help.

Yelp is a huge platform for people to find local services and they offer an advertising product called Yelp Ads. Using those ads, Emily soon had her first client booked for a family photoshoot. The client agreed to pay her two hundred and seventy-five dollars, which seemed way overpriced given her level of experience. To feel better about charging so much, Emily quickly set out to increase her skills.

Emily hasn’t once regretted the decision to leave the workforce behind. Her business has only grown. Now, in addition to family portraits, she does wedding photography and elopements, often bringing in upwards of twenty thousand per month.

Finding the link between your passion and the marketplace may not be a snap, but with the right motivation and continued work everything comes into focus.

 

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

SEE ALSO:

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

WEB HOSTING @ $2.49/MONTH

Want to build any kind of website for your hustle? If so, you'll need somewhere to host it! This is the reliable company I've used for many websites. It's cheap, flexible, and offers support 24-7.

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

GET $625 IN FREE TRAVEL

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

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

Quote of the Day
"Be smart, but don’t hold back. It’s tricky juggling a full-time job and a side hustle. I was optimistic but cautious. I didn’t want to leave my secure income (living in SF is not cheap!), I wanted to make sure it was the right move."
—Emily Jenks #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

Land Surveyor Paints a Sign Hustle

What It’s About

A father sees the sign from his own painted mural and it opens a new hustle.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Shawn says: “There’s nothing like being your own boss and finding success in something that you’re proud of and built from the ground up. I truly feel like this is what I was meant to do and my only wish is that I had discovered that in myself much earlier in life.”

Fun Fact

Murals and street art have had a large role in shaping popular culture. Artists like Banksy and Shepard Fairy have become famous for both their unique styles, but also the political and not-so-subtle messages shown in their works.

Notes from Chris

Episode 1359
In 2015, Shawn Fitzwater was working as a land surveyor—but he hated his job and wanted to find a way out. The change was a long time coming. Like many young people he left high school with hopes, dreams, and aspirations of achieving something great.

Yet here he was, twenty years later, a father of three and still doing the same thing he was back then. But what would he do? He’d spent half his life refining a single skill and felt like he couldn’t do anything else.

When 2018 rolled around, things had gotten worse. Shawn had resorted to driving for Uber with the family car to make ends meet. For him, it was a low point, and he had many hours between rides to dwell on what he considered a huge failure.

Still, he chose to use the time between rides in a productive way. He started drawing pictures in his notebook. Soon, that spark of creativity led to something much larger.

Shawn decided he’d paint a mural of TV characters on his oldest son’s bedroom wall. Once he got started, he already knew he loved it. He got lost in the process and felt like maybe, just maybe he’d found a business idea that was palette-able.

Before finishing the mural he knew this would be his next side hustle. He’d paint children’s murals alongside Ubering and figure out a way to connect the dots. In his excitement, he decided to film a progress video of the half-finished mural and post it to Facebook. He wanted to try and market this new service straight away.

Fast forward one week, and Shawn was shopping at the grocery store. There, he bumped into a restaurant owner who’d seen his video. The owner asked Shawn to paint a sign for his restaurant. Just like that, with zero setup costs and minimal marketing, in August 2018, Fitz Handpainted Signs and Murals was in business!

From there, jobs kept coming. Soon he was painting business signs, murals, and walls all over town. It had all happened so fast that Shawn was still borrowing a ladder from a friend to complete the work.

The bottom line is that it led to success. Shawn is now making a full-time living from his sign business. He’s caught up on all his bills and home repayments, taken his family on vacation, and even has a healthy savings account.
 He’s also realized that if you just keep trying, eventually you’ll find the right fit. I guess that’s the mural of the story.

 

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Learn more about Shawn and his sign/mural painting business at his website, FitzSigns.com.

SEE ALSO:

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

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 nothing like being your own boss and finding success in something that you’re proud of and built from the ground up."
—Shawn Fitzwater #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

Social Media Manager Moonlights for Mothers

What It’s About

A side hustle is born after a mother’s own experience working with a doula and then becomes one herself.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Jennifer advises new doulas to connect with their local community, even though they may be reluctant since these established doulas are technically the competition. But the doulas being connected and supportive of one another benefits everyone: “Empowered women empower women,” she says.

Fun Fact

In addition to her doula work and day job in social media, Jennifer is also a circus performer. She performs fire-breathing and fire arts, as well as aerial lyra and aerial chains.

Notes from Chris

Episode 1352
For Jennifer (Jenni) Jenkins, her journey to becoming a postpartum doula was a bit of a surprise to everyone, including herself. After earning a degree in Wildlife and Conservation Biology, she worked for the United States Forest Service in Louisiana. She fully expected her life path to be full of adventures into the woods to save endangered species.

Instead, she embarked on a completely different adventure after experiencing traumatic births with her first two children. Jennifer had hired a doula with her second baby. The support she received convinced her to shift her career path from working in the forests to working with expectant mothers.

At least, that was her dream. But how would she do it? To begin, Jennifer knew that she needed training and certification. Her first certification cost just $400, along with $150 in additional books and resources. Births are complicated and unique experiences, not something you can just study in a textbook. A doula-in-training has to gain a broad range of experience so they can have a better understanding of how to support their future clients. So before she could be fully certified, Jennifer also needed to spend a year and a half attending births in different scenarios.

Soon afterwards, Jennifer became certified and officially able to take on paid clients. She joined a local health and wellness collective and asked to be added to their website listings. This helped her business get exposure and brought in her first paying customers. To expand her network, she also attended events to meet with potential moms-to-be face-to-face.

Still, it wasn’t easy. Jennifer knew just having a doula certification wasn’t going to magically bring in clients, and learning how to market herself was very difficult. It isn’t something that comes naturally to many people, and it’s one of the biggest obstacles doulas face.

Her next goal is to start working toward becoming a Certified Professional Midwife. A midwife is medically trained and focuses on the health of the baby in the birthing process, while a doula focuses on the needs of the mother.

The good news is that she’s managed to build a solid side hustle through her hard work. In the first half of 2020, Jennifer had already made $8,000 in her second year as a doula. To balance her doula work with her job as a social media manager, Jennifer is careful to budget her time each day.

 

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Learn more about Jennifer’s business and services her website, JenniJenkins.com.

SEE ALSO:

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

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
"Empowered women, empower women."
—Jennifer Jenkins #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

Couple Follows the Signs to Custom Paint Parties

What It’s About

Paint no mountain high enough for this couple and their sign painting parties.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Tyler shares some important advice working with customers; “Understand that customer service doesn’t just mean being polite. It is a continual decision to provide the best service you can to every customer, even the bad ones! Even difficult customers who don’t deserve your help. Decide that no matter the situation, your principle of customer service won’t change.”

Fun Fact

There are an estimated 1,000 wine and paint party businesses across the U.S. and Canada. With that much demand, there are also opportunities to offer a similar concept with a unique twist.

Notes from Chris

Episode 1324
Tyler and Lauren Mills are a typical suburban family living in Cullman, Alabama. With four boys under the age of ten, things in the Mills household are quite busy, even in the quietest of times.

It was March 2015 when they started a side hustle that turned out to be tree-mendous. They’d always liked those rustic-looking wooden signs, the kind with beautiful calligraphy you might see at ranches, homesteads, or upon entering a wedding reception. For a while they’d been making them for display around their home.

She’d seen the popularity of ‘paint a canvas’ parties and knew painting timber signs could be even more enjoyable. She and Tyler decided to start a ‘paint a custom sign party’ business.

The idea was simple. They’d find someone interested in hosting the event who could provide the location. Tyler and Lauren would provide instruction and every attendee would take home their very own sign. The concept had already been proven with the painting parties, and they were confident their offering was even simpler. After all, to paint a sign all one needed was a lap rather than a full easel setup.

To pitch the idea, they once again turned to social media. Funnily enough, one of their first parties was actually hosted in a paint-a-canvas store location! Each guest paid thirty-five dollars, the same price they’d pay for a sign they didn’t make themselves. That meant, for a party of ten they’d make three hundred and fifty dollars before materials cost.

From there, the brush strokes kept coming. Tyler and Lauren saw the signs and knew they were on to a good thing. But, like selling custom signs before it, the concept wouldn’t grow itself. So they came up with unique ways to promote their new endeavor.

This persistent effort has helped the Scrap Mills parties grow over the years. Currently, they host a party nearly every week with up to twenty guests per party. That volume brings in well over two and a half thousand dollars per month. That’s more than Lauren was taking home from her full-time job, which she now doesn’t have to go to.

While it’s not enough for Tyler to quit his job as well, they’re hoping their next move will offer that opportunity. They’ve created a course that outlines exactly how someone can start their own paint party side hustle. All signs are pointing in the right direction that this too will be a success.

 

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Learn more about Lauren and Tyler’s sign painting parties at their website, ScrapMills.com.

SEE ALSO:

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

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
"Understand that customer service doesn’t just mean being polite. It is a continual decision to provide the best service you can to every customer, even the bad ones! "
—Tyler Mills #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

Lifelong Freelancer Adds Real Estate Photography to Portfolio

What It’s About

A lifelong freelancer snaps at the opportunity to start real estate media company.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Randy shares some advice regarding finding a hustle idea: “Assess your strengths and talents. Find something that you would love to do. Then hold on to it like a dog with a bone.”

Fun Fact

Last year over 5 million homes were sold in the USA alone. With that many properties changing hands, there are plenty of opportunities to offer services or products to those both buying and selling property.

Notes from Chris

Episode 1310
Randy Hill isn’t your typical side hustler. At sixty-four-years old you’d be forgiven for thinking he was retiring instead of starting a business on the side. But, Randy has spent his whole life doing things the unconventional way, especially when it comes to work.

Last year, he added another notch in his side hustle belt. He and his wife were selling their home, and the realtor sent out a photographer to take pictures. Having professional photos taken is a great way to improve a listing and garner maximum attention.

It was good timing in more ways than one. Randy had been taking photographs for decades as a hobby, and now he followed the photographer around his house, absorbing the process. After the photographer left, Randy started to think, I could do this. Naturally, he decided to try.

The first thing he needed was a proper camera. In a flash, he purchased a second-hand Nikon for five hundred dollars and an accompanying zoom lens for three hundred dollars. He had a friend who was getting rid of a tripod, so he got that for free. At the very least, if his idea for becoming a real estate photographer didn’t fully develop, he’d have a new camera setup to re-ignite his love for photography.

The next step was to get some training. Randy didn’t want to spend too much money, or any if he could help it, so he came up with a clever strategy. He contacted a realtor friend from his local area. Randy asked if he could accompany the realtor and their photographer for a day to watch them work in even more detail.

Randy then moved on to the second step in his education. He turned to the tried and true place to learn anything… Graduate school? No! YouTube, of course.

But online learning can only take you so far. It was time to start putting some of the lessons into practice. To do that, Randy needed to snap up a client!

He tried postcard drops at businesses, calling realtors directly as well as messaging them on Instagram. He found Instagram to be the most effective method. He’d follow realtors accounts, then direct message the ones that followed him back—which many accounts do automatically. He’d invite them to look through his profile—which now had several examples of his work—and, if they liked what they saw, he’d propose working together. As an extra incentive, he’d offer a free or heavily discounted shoot on the first property.

This technique worked really well and within just a few short months Randy was making up to five hundred dollars per month from his side hustle. A good result for a photographer with only free, informal training.

While coronavirus has slowed things down a bit, property is still selling and Randy is still working hard to introduce himself to new realtors and build up his network of clients. As you might expect from a sixty-something side hustler, he’s been around the block a few times, seen a few worldwide catastrophes and believes this will all be over at some point. He wants to be ready for when it is.

 

 

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
"Assess your strengths and talents. Find something that you would love to do. Then hold on to it like a dog with a bone."
—Randy Hill #SideHustleSchool

Sponsors & Gratitude

Learn More With Skillshare!

Supporting the sponsors keeps the show free. Today’s episode of Side Hustle School is brought to you by Skillshare. 📷

Skillshare is giving Side Hustle School listeners 2 months of unlimited access—for $0.99! Join the 2 million students learning everything from street photography to SEO on Skillshare today!
Get Started Here!

Like the Show? Leave a Rating!

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

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


Here's How

Keep in Touch

There’s a new story every single day on Side Hustle School. Episodes are produced to be short and to the point—I know you’re busy. Be sure you subscribe to get instant notification of the day’s broadcast!


To infinity and beyond,

Chris Guillebeau

TBT: Organization Expert Declutters 150+ Homes

What It’s About

An update from a yoga teacher who stretches and succeeds with a home organization business.

Notes from Chris

Episode 1293

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

Last week we heard from Dion Lynk, who has earned more than $100,000 from Fiverr consultations.

Today, in our latest feature, we’ll hear from Lisa Holtby, who has a really cool story of starting a home organization business that serves well-off clients in the Seattle area and then donates many of the discarded items to people in need, including newly-settled immigrant families.

She’s also incredibly organized herself. When we asked how much time she’d spent on her new business, she reported back with: “One thousand eight hundred and seventy-five billable hours.”

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

 

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • LisaHoltby.com: Learn more about Lisa and the things she’s up to on her website!

 

SEE ALSO:

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

CREATE YOUR ONLINE STORE

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

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

GET YOUR FIRST 1,000 EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS

Social media is nice, but building an email list is still the single best way to get customers and clients for your hustle. It's not hard to get started—sign up for a 30-day trial and join the list-building challenge! You’ll be up and running in no time. Learn More

Quote of the Day
"In this time of huge transition… I don’t know what’s going to happen. All I can do is keep offering excellent service to my clients."
—Lisa Holtby #SideHustleSchool

Sponsors & Gratitude

Don't Do Business Without It

Side Hustle School is brought to you by American Express.

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

Like the Show? Leave a Rating!

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

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

Keep in Touch

There’s a new story every single day on Side Hustle School. Episodes are produced to be short and to the point—I know you’re busy. Be sure you subscribe to get instant notification of the day’s broadcast!


To infinity and beyond,

Chris Guillebeau

Recruiter Moonlights on HR Jobs Marketplace

What It’s About

If you think an online jobs marketplace is lacking, try creating your own.

Words of Wisdom

Hear Chris’s valuable advice regarding niches: “Find an underserved niche and go after it. I had noticed some other niche gig sites starting up for certain industries and that got me thinking how many industries could eventually support their own gig marketplace.”

Fun Fact

Upwork is the largest freelance marketplace in the world. Currently it has 12 million registered freelancers and five million registered employers. It skews towards tech related projects leaving plenty of room for well marketed niche related offerings.

Notes from Chris

Episode 1291
It was five years ago when Chris Russell lost his job as a Director of Digital Recruiting. Having his income instantly halted was tough … but Chris still possessed all the skills that made him a valuable employee, even though he no longer was one. His ability to find good candidates and place them in the right jobs with minimal headache was a skill lots of businesses needed.

So, instead of diving in and looking for another 9-5 job, Chris decided to try his hand at freelancing. And for the next five years he made a living doing just that. He’d hustle, find temporary work somewhere among the large network he’d built up during his career, then move onto the next gig.

It was a flexible but not always lucrative arrangement. Chris was always on the lookout for his next gig. He often had periods where he wasn’t sure if the next one would even come.

In an effort to find something different Chris investigated the website Upwork, the world’s largest marketplace for freelancers. There he found some people looking for HR experts, but since Upwork skews more toward tech projects they were few and far between. Also, Upwork takes a large commission from each job, sometimes making it prohibitively expensive to use.

Chris felt like there had to be another way. And if there wasn’t, he was starting to think he was as good a person as any to make one.

His time on Upwork showed a need for a cheaper, niche version of the site aimed specifically at the HR industry. In his vision, just like Upwork, employers could post jobs on the site and freelancers could submit proposals to complete that work.

So instead of going the difficult route, Chris scoured the web looking for an ‘out of the box’ solution; a pre-made piece of software that he could simply purchase as is. You can find these for a lot of different sites. They allow you to pay to effectively create a clone of an existing site’s functions using your own branding.

Best of all was that he was able to install and configure it himself.

At the same time, he identified a dozen HR consultants he thought would be a good fit and contacted them, letting them know his new service would be a place that had regular gigs for freelance HR consultants. Almost immediately someone committed to a yearly subscription for eighty-nine dollars.

That’s when Chris knew he was onto something. He hadn’t even officially launched, and yet someone still believed in the concept enough that they were willing to put real money down.

He ‘officially’ launched HRLancers.com in January 2020. He posted about it to all of his Connections and mentioned it in the groups he was a part of. So what happened?

Well, in the first thirty days HRLancers.com received five thousand website visitors and hundreds of HR experts signed up to the service—most of them on the free version he offered, but some for the paid service, which offered featured placement on posts. Companies were posting gigs, and freelancers were applying for them.

The coronavirus slowdown isn’t stopping Chris. He’s continuing to network and attract more interest in the site. It’s nowhere near a full-time gig yet, so he still relies heavily on his own freelancing to make a living. But he is hoping that one day HRLancers.com will turn into the big promotion he always wanted, and aid in securing his financial future.

 

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Check out Chris’s website, HRLancers.com.
  • Looking to freelance (or just curious about job marketplaces), check out sites like Upwork and Fiverr.
  • Stripe: a popular online payment processor for those looking to sell something on their website.

SEE ALSO:

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

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
"Find an underserved niche and go after it. I had noticed some other niche gig sites starting up for certain industries and that got me thinking how many industries could eventually support their own gig marketplace."
—Chris Russell #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