Tag: Unique Ideas

Adobe Expert Digitizes Millions of Family Photos

What It’s About

A service that helps families organize their precious memories amidst the chaos.

Words of Wisdom

Adam shares an important reminder, “I struggled for years to find purpose and meaning in my day job. It was a great day job and I loved the company, but it didn’t feel like a good fit anymore and my side hustle gave me something challenging and interesting to pursue.”

Fun Fact

Originally, Adam wanted to name his company, “Overwhelmed,” because that’s how most people feel about organizing their photos. However, the domain price for Overwhelmed.com was $183,000. That seemed a bit too expensive, so Adam went with “Chaos to Memories.”

Notes from Chris

Episode 2019
IIt took a few years to develop, but Adam Pratt got his side hustle into focus.

He’s the creator of Chaos to Memories, a way to not only scan your family photos onto the computer but also make those photos searchable. Thanks to his process, people find it easy to look for specific photos and share them with friends and family.

It all started when Adam took 15,000 family photos to get scanned. Upon getting them back, he quickly spotted two problems. First, the photos he got back didn’t have the greatest quality. But second, he had a difficult time finding specific photos.

Finding one photo from 15,000 is a nearly impossible task. He figured he wasn’t the only one who had this challenge–after all, lots of people scan old family photos and then feel overwhelmed.

What if he sold the already-organized, searchable photo system to other people? First, though, he wanted to see if anyone would value the service.

He volunteered his time, and he offered to organize photos for some good friends. He worked for thirty hours, all for free. His friends loved the result. Now, that was the Kodak moment. Adam knew then he had a golden, photo opportunity.

He got his first, paying client. The pay was decent. The client loved the end result. But to make the business viable for him, Adam realized he had to increase his hourly rate. He doubled his rate, and the business snowballed from there.

Flash forward to today. Adam’s business makes well into six figures annually, and he’s hired four part-time employees.

Next up, he’s launching new, online courses, and is expanding his staff, and is even publishing a book.

Adam pictures a bright future for Chaos to Memories.

 

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Learn more about Adam and his memory organization services at his website, ChaosToMemories.com.
  • Adam is launching a new book, Declutter Your Photo Life and is giving Side Hustle School listeners 40% off. Use the code: SIDEHUSTLE40 at checkout.

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
"Venture out, learn what makes you uncomfortable and repeat. What I learned about myself in 15 years I could never have learned just from reading books or hearing others tell their stories."
—Eva Rosales #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

“Free Prep Course” Site Generates 7-Figure Income

What It’s About

An education executive builds an empire—by giving away his core products for free.

Words of Wisdom

From Dave: “We would not be what we are today without always experimenting. On the flip side, persistence is key. Experimenting can drain you, so it’s important to keep faith that things will work out in the end if you try again.”

Fun Fact

When he worked at GE, Dave worked on developing one of the first online services, GEnie. There he would regularly run into an intern named Sergey Brin, who would later go on to co-found Google.

Notes from Chris

Episode 1865
Having worked in the education industry for more than a decade, Dave Evangelisti was familiar with the strengths and weaknesses of online learning. In particular, he knew how valuable tutoring and test-prep courses were—but many of these services cost nearly as much as college tuition.

It gave Dave an idea that was genuinely rooted in service: he wanted to provide truly free resources for students who couldn’t afford to pay (or who just didn’t want to). Those resources would be based at Test-Guide.com.

He began with the mindset of small, actionable objectives. As I said, his primary goal was to be helpful. Money-wise, he hoped to be able to earn enough to pay for his lunch everyday. Well, just you wait!

This straight-forward model proved to be successful. Quickly, Dave was tasked with wearing a multitude of hats for the site to function.

With a low overhead of just under $100—a domain name and web hosting—the site would live or die based on its ability to gain traffic. Dave would pay for his lunch by ad clicks that amounted to a couple cents from each user.

By targeting an audience of students seeking free resources, the site went from making $5 a day to being on track as the leader in free practice tests, prep-course reviews and study materials all in just under four years. Test-Guide.com now provides more than 100 different practice tests including the MCAT, ACT, SAT, and others all completely free of charge.

Dave hopes to build the brand to the point that people will automatically think of Test-Guide.com the way they think of using regular study material. With a full team of employees, it’s now a 7-figure business.

That’s enough to buy a lot of lunch.

 

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Looking to get schooled in education test prep materials? Check out Dave’s website, Test-Guide.com/.

SEE ALSO:

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

WEB HOSTING @ $2.49/MONTH

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

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

GET $625 IN FREE TRAVEL

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

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

Quote of the Day
"We would not be what we are today without always experimenting. On the flip side, persistence is key. Experimenting can drain you, so it’s important to keep faith that things will work out in the end if you try again."
—Dave Evangelisti #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

New App Designer Jumps Into No-Code Development

What It’s About

An designer downloads a way to create new apps—no coding required!

Words of Wisdom

Karla says to start now so you stand out from the crowd. Don’t wait until more people start developing no-code apps. She predicts it will soon be a common tech skill to have.

Fun Fact

As of December 2021, there was a combined total of almost 16 million apps available across all App Stores, including Apple, Google Play, and Amazon.

Notes from Chris

Episode 1823
Karla Fernandes began her career as a graphic designer at age fifteen, learning everything she could about layout and print for newspapers, magazines, and corporate materials. From there, it was an easy migration to digital media where she learned HTML and backend programming languages. She loved the creative process—and soon realized there were a lot of bad web designers out there. Karla wanted to do better.

So way back in 2006 she quit her job to open her own UX/UI business where she improves how users interact with web-based products. She called it Vitamina K.

In 2020, Karla was taking an educational vacation. This is something she does every year. She dedicates an entire month to learning something new. This time, she had learned about no-code development a few months earlier and in December she started using a tool called Bravo Studio which allowed her to create apps with no coding needed.

While Bravo Studio is free to use, Karla upgraded to a $399 package that removed the company’s branding and gave her other benefits.

How does it work? Well, when you’re creating a regular app, you need to write complex scripts that have logic and rules behind them to make the app do what you want it to do. This is a long process, and you might need two different development teams: one for Android, and one for Apple’s operating system. It could take anywhere from six months to two years to get your app ready to market.

Karla began getting app development clients by reaching out to people while she was still learning how to do it herself. After she had a few apps of her own under her belt, people started coming to her. As a new Bravo Studio expert, she’s featured on their website and people can hire her to complete an app project for them. She’ll also troubleshoot any issues people are having, or even teach them how to use the tool themselves.

What does this add up to? Between the apps, the freelance work, and her new class, Karla’s earning about $6,000 per month [ what about the actual apps though? how much does ScarfApp bring in?]from her no-code, app-making project. Not bad at all for something that came from a month-long educational vacation!

 

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Learn more about Karla and her no-code app work at her website, Vitaminak.Design.

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 wait so that many more get to know this, before you know this won’t differentiate you, it will be just as common as other skills are now."
—Karla Fernandes #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

Rustic Tiki Bars Turn Into Pallet-able Career

What It’s About

Instead of going into teaching, this new graduate builds backyard tiki bars. They call it the Great Resignation, right?

Words of Wisdom

Ben shares an important piece of advice, “Listen to customer feedback and repeat more of what works. There’s a ton of demand out there, so if you’re handy and have a few tools, you can do this business too.”

Fun Fact

The Mai Tai, the classic tiki cocktail with rum, Curaçao liqueur, orgeat syrup, and lime juice was created at the original Trader Vic’s bar in Oakland, California in 1944.

Notes from Chris

Episode 1788
Ben Corkery was part way through teacher’s college in Canada when he realized he didn’t want to enter the traditional workforce. Searching for a business that would provide him with more freedom, he decided to double down on a promising project he’d started the previous summer: building rustic backyard bars.

He got the idea from his best friend who had built a bar out of wooden shipping pallets to use at his own farm wedding a couple of years back. The rustic farm look was still in vogue, and Ben already had experience with framing and carpentry—so he decided to build a similar structure. He picked up some free pallets from Home Depot and built the bar, which he rented out once via Facebook Marketplace for $120… and then promptly sold it for $250.

He now had a taste of entrepreneurial freedom and the timing couldn’t have been better. More than a year into the pandemic, people were still going all out on home improvement projects. Ben tweaked his rustic bar designs to suit what customers wanted… and began making tiki bars and cabanas too. He earned more money that spring and summer than he’d ever done before.

Crateworks Custom Bars continues to be a solid seasonal business and customers are placing orders for next year. Ben gets most of his customers through Facebook Marketplace and Facebook groups. He’s also collecting Google reviews to help build his business.

Since he began by using free pallets and tools he already had, this was a zero-cost business to start. He’s now averaging $8,000 per month in the summer and at least $1,000 per month in the winter.

Ben is passionate about creativity and doing work that matters to him. And he wants to help other people do that too. Since he has a teaching background, he’s created a course and coaching program to help others start building and selling tiki bars and other unusual DIY craft projects.

He also writes a weekly newsletter on Substack called Society for a Wonder’ing Mind.

 

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Considering pouring yourself a drink from your own custom bar? Check out Ben’s website, Crateworks Custom Bars.

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
"Listen to customer feedback and repeat more of what works. There’s a ton of demand out there, so if you’re handy and have a few tools, you can do this business too."
—Ben Corkery #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

Digital Marketer’s Playlist Skills Pay Off

What It’s About

A DJ spins the hits … and the crowds yells, “BINGO!!!”

Words of Wisdom

Chelsea shares an important reminder; “Charge what you’re worth. Don’t discount taking the time to make a playlist, getting to the venue, the act of hosting, etc.”

Fun Fact

Bingo originated in Italy and is descended from Lo Giuoco del Lotto d’Italia, the Italian national lottery. It’s been played in one version or another since 1530!

Notes from Chris

Episode 1648
When Chelsea Tirone was in college, she was always the one making the playlists for a night out, a road trip, or a workout. Now, she’s a digital marketer who also gets paid to create playlists for her side hustle Beats, Brews & Bingos.

It started last year when Chelsea was doing social media marketing for a local brewery in Charleston, South Carolina. The owner wanted to bring events back once COVID restrictions lifted. They’d been hosting regular bingo nights prior to the pandemic, but the host had moved away.

Chelsea was somewhat familiar with music bingo from other places, so she suggested it. The owner agreed to try it for one night, with Chelsea doing the hosting… and the music hasn’t stopped since.

Here’s how it works. Music bingo is like regular bingo but with songs. There’s a different bingo pattern each round, such as five in a row. If an attendee completes the pattern, they yell “Bingo!” really loud and they get a free beer.

Chelsea admits that she was super nervous the first time she hosted, since she wasn’t confident in her public speaking skills. However, she quickly gained confidence. In fact, it went so well that she decided to offer the experience elsewhere—and she now hosts musical bingo at five breweries and bars in Charleston. Beats, Brews, & Bingos has a loyal following of people who come every week, and earns a profit of $1,750 per month. Chelsea sometimes also gets tips from people who’ve had a fun night out.

Next, she plans to create a monthly music bingo membership for other venues outside of Charleston. The membership will include four curated playlists per week, as well as social media templates and everything they need to start hosting music bingo! She’s even going to find a roster of local hosts so all the venues have to do is host it and supply the prizes, typically free drinks.

The best part of the journey so far has been watching families and friends come in week after week. After 2020, that sounds like something we could all enjoy.

 

 

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
"Charge what you’re worth. Don’t discount taking the time to make a playlist, getting to the venue, the act of hosting, etc."
—Chelsea Tirone #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

TBT: When the Pandemic Hit, This Product Went Up 70x

What It’s About

This product helps people open bathroom doors without touching them. Perfect for pandemics!

Notes from Chris

Episode 1636

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.

Recently, we’ve featured a tea blend that uses adult language, the designer who makes clothing for dachshunds and their humans, neurogum, and a UK blogger who lives in a van. Last week, we heard from a maker in Chicago, Illinois who sells faith-based jewelry, especially rosary beads.

Today, in our latest feature, we’ll hear from the co-founder of a company that makes Step n’ Pull, a device that allows public restroom users to open the door with their foot. Their business increased 70x at the start of the global pandemic.

What’s happened since?

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

 

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • StepNpull®: Step on over to Mike’s website to learn more about this problem solving solution!

 

SEE ALSO:

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

CREATE YOUR ONLINE STORE

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

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

GET YOUR FIRST 1,000 EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS

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

Sponsors & Gratitude

Don't Do Business Without It

Side Hustle School is brought to you by American Express.

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

Like the Show? Leave a Rating!

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

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

Keep in Touch

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


To infinity and beyond,

Chris Guillebeau

Accountant Shifts Gears To Renting Out Cars

What It’s About

An account uses the Airbnb model to rent out his fleet of cars.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Kisean shares advice on time management, “take a fast from social media, Netflix, etc. whatever is taking up your time. Check your screen time on your phone and think about how much time you waste a day. You would have a full degree in whatever area you want to specialize in.”

Fun Fact

Getaround has been in business for over 11 years and, as of 2019, was reported to have five million users and approximately 20,000 connected cars worldwide.

Notes from Chris

Episode 1618
Kisean Smith graduated from the University of Georgia in 2016 with a degree in accounting. While studying, he had low expenses and paid minimal student rent. But after graduating and landing his first job, he soon realized student life is not real life.

In his home city of Atlanta, rent for even a modest place was four times what he was used to. Being an accountant, Kisean started to crunch some numbers. He figured he could buy a modest home, rent out the spare rooms on AirBnB, and make a profit on top of his monthly payments. To make a long story short, it worked—and that was what led to his next adventure.

The sharing economy has become a huge industry. AirBnB is now a household name but there’s plenty of other services in the space—and Kisean set about exploring them. He soon discovered Getaround, a platform that enables car owners to rent their cars to others for an hourly or daily rate. After a good experience as a renter, Kisean decided he wanted in on the action.

He settled on a 2015 white SmartCar: cheap, small and fit for utility. He purchased the car for one thousand dollars down with monthly payments of one hundred and seventy six dollars.

Kisean received bookings almost instantly. By the end of the first month, he’d earned seven hundred dollars in rentals. After the car payment, insurance, and commission he was still left with well over two hundred dollars profit. The best part though, was that it took almost no work. Getaround provided the marketing channel, their app took care of the logistics, and all he had to do was sit and wait for the money to hit his bank account.

Kisean was excited! That first month’s results were enough to go all in on this side hustle. Almost immediately, he purchased a second car, same as the first and under the same financial terms. It too became a successful rental on Getaround. So, he did it again and by now was the proud owner of three Smart Cars all zipping from A to B around Atlanta earning him money every month.

Being an accountant, Kisean kept a close eye on the numbers over the following months. He learned that on average his cars were rented for nineteen days a month resulting in up to nine hundred dollars of rental income. After subtracting the expenses he was still left with an average of three hundred dollars profit per car, per month.

With those figures, it was time to hit the gas.

Kisean switched from a financing to purchasing model and began using his own funds to purchase additional cars in cash. He’d buy from private sellers, not dealerships, that enabled him to find better deals. Over the next two years, his personal fleet grew to thirteen vehicles and encompassed not just Smart Cars, but Fords, Nissans, and Kias as well. With that many cars, Kisean earns well over three thousand dollars profit per month. The best part though, is that he does it all remotely and in less than one hour a day.

 

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Thinking about replicating Kisean’s hustle? Learn more about how people rent out their vehicles at, getaround.com or Turo.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
"Take a fast from social media, Netflix, etc. whatever is taking up your time. Check your screen time on your phone and think about how much time you waste a day. You would have a full degree in whatever area you want to specialize in"
—Kisean Smith #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

Failure Friday: “The client ordered the most expensive thing on the menu…”

What It’s About

Next time, put a limit on that suggestion to “order anything.”

Notes from Chris

Episode 1616

I believe we can learn as much from failure as we can from success, if not more. It’s with this principle in mind that we’re starting Failure Friday, a collection of short stories all about mistakes, missteps, disasters, and of course, failure.

Just like our Throwback Thursday segment, you’ll hear directly from side hustlers who have struggled to get something off the ground. They’ll tell you a short story of something that went very wrong.

The stories will vary, but often it starts with an idea, what they thought would happen and what really happened—and of course, what they learned.

I applaud their courage! I’ll share some of my failure stories along the way as well.

Today’s short story features Chris Waters. We told the successful story of his incredibly fun project/business/mission on Episode #943: Reddit Secret Santa Delivers Sack Full Of Adventure.

Even Santa has some fails along the way. Let’s hear from Chris about a point in his client contract that he was a bit too laissez-faire about until he learned his lesson… I’ll be back at the end to wrap us up.

Listen to today’s episode to learn more…

 

 

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

Sponsors & Gratitude

Don't Do Business Without It

Side Hustle School is brought to you by American Express.

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

Like the Show? Leave a Rating!

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

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

Keep in Touch

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


To infinity and beyond,

Chris Guillebeau

Q&A: How do income-share agreements work?

What It’s About

What are income-share agreements, and do they exist in the world of entrepreneurship?

Notes from Chris

Episode 1614

Some cool things are happening in the world of higher education, which of course has changed a lot in the past decade or two—but one thing that hasn’t changed, at least until recently, is the skyrocketing cost of tuition.

A listener has an opportunity to go to school as part of an income-share agreement (ISA), where her tuition isn’t due until after she graduates. What is this all about, and is it a good deal? Also, are there opportunities like this for side hustlers to learn about entrepreneurship?

“Hey Chris, this is Megan and I’ve recently learned about income-share agreements. As best as I can tell, this is where someone goes through an educational program for free, in exchange for a portion of their income for a certain time period after they graduate. It seems pretty cool—back when I went to college, there was no guarantee about anything. All you had to do was pay up and hope for the best. Do you have any thoughts on this—and are there income-share programs for entrepreneurship? Looking forward to what you have to say about this.”

Listen to today’s episode to learn more…

 

 

SEE ALSO:

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

CREATE YOUR ONLINE STORE

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

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

GET YOUR FIRST 1,000 EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS

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

Sponsors & Gratitude

Don't Do Business Without It

Side Hustle School is brought to you by American Express.

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

Like the Show? Leave a Rating!

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

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

Keep in Touch

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


To infinity and beyond,

Chris Guillebeau

Intern Manages Businesses For Six-Figure Income

What It’s About

An intern becomes her own boss and brings in over $8000 a month in the process.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Deya shares some encouragement, “If you’re like me and a bit more risk-averse, give your side hustle idea a test drive before deciding. Have a think about something small that you can do to test and validate the idea of your side hustle first. What do you need as proof? How much money is enough to validate your side hustle? Could you just try to land 1 customer? Could you just try to make your first $1?”

Fun Fact

Some estimates state there are 57 million freelancers in the US alone. With that many workers serving that many clients it’s no wonder a few new job titles spring up every now and then.

Notes from Chris

Episode 1611
Deya Aliaga Kuhnle likes to say she never worked a nine to five job; because it was more like nine to whenever she finished—sometimes as late as 2am. Maybe some of our listeners can relate. That’s the life of climbing the corporate ladder. You have to pay your dues and earn success the hard way.

Deya had fallen into the social pressure of working at a big company through two internships. It was six months into her stint at the second when she realized something … doing this her whole life was not how she wanted to exist.

Yet she couldn’t just walk away. She admired those who quit with no safety net in place and risked it all … but that felt scary. She had no savings and no backup plan.

Instead, Deya followed the tried-and-true model of working on her side hustle while keeping her day job. She called it “Try before you buy.” As for what this side gig would be, well, she wasn’t exactly sure yet. But she threw herself into anything that came her way to try to find out.

Deya didn’t mind. She was still working her day job and considered this a testing phase. In taking on odd jobs for digital companies over the course of a full year, she realized that working on small projects was great, but what she really liked was looking at the business holistically, on a process and systems level. Seeing the whole picture and diving into the nitty gritty details with the business owners was what she excelled at.

It was that service she’d offer—and she came up with her own name for it: “Digital Business Management” (DBM for short), something akin to an outsourced chief operations officer. She planned to pitch this service on the pain points it addressed.

At her peak earnings as a DBM, Deya takes home nearly nine thousand per month from four different clients, some of which take ten hours per week of work, and others that only needed a few tasks done now and then.

Being a systems thinker, Deya eventually turned everything she knew about freelancing as a business manager into a course called DBM Bootcamp. Since launching earlier this year it’s already turned into another lucrative project.

 

 

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
"If you’re like me and a bit more risk-averse, give your side hustle idea a test drive before deciding. Have a think about something small that you can do to test and validate the idea of your side hustle first."
—Deya Aliaga Kuhnle #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