This week we are focusing on the second pillar in the Freedom Code: Create
If you’re not sure what we mean by The Freedom Code, click here for an overview.
As adults, when we hear the word “create”, we usually think of artists.
Entrepreneurs (and side hustlers) are often left out of that conversation. We think more about painters, artists, musicians, and writers when we think of creators.
The reality is that the entrepreneur, the startup dreamer and the “side hustler” are all artists and creators. You are also a creator. You can take an idea and turn that into a business.
After you’ve discovered your passionate purpose, the next step on your journey to side hustle success is to allow yourself some time to get creative.
You’ll also decide whether your side hustle will be a product, service or art-based business.
A few years ago, I was in the ‘create’ phase of my business journey.
I woke up at 4:30am every morning and I created. I didn’t think about making money or what my business structure would be. I simply wrote articles and hit publish everyday.
The business model revealed itself later, after more than a year of consistently ‘creating’ my ‘art’ (blog articles).
In this newsletter, we’ll uncover the pros and cons of starting a product, service, or art-based side hustle.
We’ll also go over some time-managament strategies so that you can carve out time to create without sacrificing any of your important relationships or other responsibilities.
Let’s get to it!
What you can expect this week:
- Trends. How many hours a week do most people invest into their side hustle? We reveal the data along with some other interesting statistics!
- Strategies. Learn the difference between a product, service, and art-based side hustle.
- Tool of the Week. Who says you have to create everything on your own? Time is money, buy some of yours back by outsourcing side hustle tasks on Upwork.
Trends
How much time do most people invest into their side hustles? What’s the average income? When is the best time of day to ‘create’?
Find out by taking a look at the stats below.
Average Weekly Hours Spent On A Side Hustle
According to the most recent statistics, 46% of side hustlers work less than 10 hours per week on their side hustle. That’s just over one hour per day!
Most Popular Time Of Day To Work On A Side Hustle
Evenings are the most popular time of day to work on a side hustle. It makes sense, once work responsibilities and family are taken care of for the day, why not drop an hour of mindless TV to work on something you’re passionate about?
Average Monthly Earnings From A Side Hustle
What would you do with an extra $900 a month? This is the average monthly income from a side hustle, according to Self Inc. Results will vary of course, depending on your chosen side hustle and how much time you’re willing to invest in it.
Strategies
So you’ve discovered your passion, and now it’s time to create. But what will you create? Will you develop a product, start offering a service, or make some art?
To help you answer that question, we’ve outlined the pros and cons of each option. We’re also going to illustrate each option by talking about side-hustler ‘Lucy’. Lucy is passionate about animals, and is contemplating what she might like to ‘create’ to kickstart a side hustle built upon her passion.
Let’s start with products.
Creating a Product
Products can be physical (think paperback books) or digital (think ebooks)
A product is something you create once, and then continue to sell for as long as you wish.
Seeing as our token side-hustler Lucy loves animals, she might consider ‘creating’ personalized pet accessories or perhaps even ‘create’ bougie charcuterie boards for upper-class pups (this is a real business!).
As someone who loves animals, Lucy might be able to see what gaps there could be in the marketplace and how to develop something that fills that void. She could look into dropshipping as a low-cost way to get started with this type of side hustle.
If that doesn’t feel right, Lucy might also consider creating a digital product.
For instance, she might create a course that teaches dog owners how to groom their pets at home.
If creating a course is something that interests you, there are a variety of online platforms that can help you build something from the ground up and support you along the way.
Sites such as absorb and Thinkific are a good place to start.
If looking to create an online product, we also recommend reading this article by Zapier. They delve into 11 different online platforms where you can create and sell your digital product. https://zapier.com/blog/online-course-platforms/
Pros and Cons of a Product Based Side Hustle
Pros
- Easier to scale
- You’re responsible for product development
- Potential for a continuous (somewhat passive) income
Cons
- Need some capital to get started
- Potential for cash flow issues
- May need a customer-service team
Creating a Service
Back to our side-hustler Lucy. Let’s say Lucy doesn’t want to create a product. Another option could be starting a service-based side hustle.
The great thing about service-based side hustles is that the start-up cost is minimal. A good option for Lucy might be something like pet sitting, dog walking, or a mobile pet grooming service.
If you’re thinking about creating a service-based side hustle, consider what your strengths are.
Do you have a background in design, marketing, writing, or editing? Consider how you could utilize these skills and become a freelancer, working online for different clients.
The great thing about offering an online service is that you have the flexibility to be able to work from wherever you are.
By creating a service you can use the skills you already possess to address a range of customer and client needs.
Pros and Cons of a Service-Based Side Hustle
Pros
- Minimal capital to get started. In most cases, you’ll just need to start advertising your services on the right platform.
- Start making money right away, as long as you’re offering a service people want, you could be bringing in cash pretty quickly!
- Variety – every client is different and every day is a new day!
Cons
- Hard to scale
- Limited creativity, you need to meet your client’s expectations or risk bad reviews
- Time intensive – generally if you’re not working, the side hustle isn’t making money
Creating Art as a Side Hustle
Believe it or not, our talented side hustler Lucy also loves to paint! How could she combine her passion for painting with her passion for animals?
Maybe she could start creating pet portraits? Maybe she could just paint animals because it’s something she likes to do. Not every ‘side-hustle’ has to be a money-making opportunity.
Creating art is a personal journey and not something that should be rushed. So take your time to discover what you are wanting to provide customers and how to convey your message in a heartfelt and genuine way.
Pros and Cons of an Art-based Side Hustle
Pros
- Personal fulfilment and satisfaction
- Allows you to be as creative and bold as you wish to be!
Cons
- Requires commitment to hone your craft
- May not make you any money
Time Management Strategies
Creating a side hustle can be a timely process.
How are you supposed to build your side hustle from the ground up? Planning it, managing it and growing it while doing another job, looking after the family and everything else life throws at you?
Time is precious.
Outsourcing
Depending on your chosen side hustle, we believe outsourcing can be invaluable.
The internet is an amazing tool to use when looking to outsource to help build your side hustle from the ground up.
Sites such as Upwork (our tool of the week) and Fiverr, are great places to find people with skill sets that can help make the creation process so much easier, and give you back some of your valuable time.
Evaluate your schedule
How much time do you want to dedicate to creating? No matter how busy life gets, most of us can find pockets of time in which to dedicate to creating.
Maybe you could set your alarm half an hour earlier than usual. Maybe you ditch an hour of TV in the evening to create. Evaluate how much time you spend on things that don’t add value to your life and prioritize the creation process. If it’s important to you, you’ll find the time!
Tool of the Week
Creating a side hustle can seem a little daunting.
Investing money in having people help you create your side hustle can be an absolute stress saver! Instead of trying to do everything yourself, be realistic about what your strengths are and what you may need help with.
Whether you are after a content writer, wanting a marketing strategy implemented, a social media manager, a logo design, a website built, or a voice-over artist, Upwork is a platform helping connect side-hustlers with freelancers.
Signing up as a client is FREE! And once you have your account sorted, you can post jobs. You can choose to invite freelancers to apply for your job or leave it open so people can send in their cover letter with a portfolio of their work.
Rated 4.9 out of 5 stars and winning G2’s 2021 Best Software Awards, Upwork has tens of thousands of freelancers from across the globe specialized in a vast array of fields.
Check it out for yourself and you could be supporting someone working on their side hustle!
