15 Side Hustle Ideas for 2024 💸 businesses my friends & I have tried and made it work

Summary

This video script details the speaker's journey of exploring nine different businesses and side hustles over four years, which eventually led to quitting their job in 2019. The speaker shares a mix of passive and active income ideas they've tried, such as creating and selling physical products, teaching workshops, freelancing skills like calligraphy, and participating in gig economy jobs. They also delves into online ventures like business coaching, creating courses, YouTube content creation, and running an Etsy shop. Additionally, they mention other successful business ideas from their network, including social media marketing, self-publishing on Amazon, consulting, and flipping items. The script emphasizes the importance of pursuing passions, having an entrepreneurial mindset, and the hard work required to turn a side hustle into a full-time endeavor.

Takeaways

• 📚 The speaker has tried nine different businesses in the past four years, two of which led to quitting their job and working full time for three and a half years.
• 🎨 The first business venture was selling physical products, specifically greeting cards, highlighting the ease of starting with something you can create yourself.
• 👩‍🏫 The speaker also taught calligraphy workshops, suggesting that if you have a skill others want to learn, you can host workshops as a side hustle.
• 🔧 Freelancing a skill you already possess, like photography or writing, is a recommended way to start a business without needing to learn something new.
• 🚗 The speaker briefly tried food delivery with UberEats but didn't enjoy it due to a dislike of driving and parking, but acknowledges gig economy jobs as viable options.
• 📈 After quitting their job, the speaker transitioned their calligraphy business online and started business coaching, emphasizing the value of coaching others in areas you're experienced in.
• 🎓 Offering free beta coaching packages initially can help build confidence and establish a coaching business, as the speaker did with calligraphy.
• 📚 Creating and selling online courses, like the Calligraphy Instructor Academy, is a way to package knowledge and potentially earn passive income.
• 📹 Starting a YouTube channel was a slow process for the speaker, taking two years to gain traction, indicating the need for patience and passion in such endeavors.
• 🛍️ Opening an Etsy shop is a good way to sell both digital downloads and physical products, with the potential for passive income if SEO is effective.
• ✍️ Blogging can be monetized through various methods like affiliate marketing, ads, or promoting your own products or services.
• 📈 Additional business ideas from the speaker's network include social media marketing, selling books on Amazon, consulting, offering services based on formal education, flipping items, and investing in rental properties.
• 💡 The importance of pursuing your passions when starting a business is stressed, but also acknowledging the need for quick cash options like gig economy jobs or freelancing existing skills.
• 💡 Lastly, having an entrepreneurial mindset is crucial for starting and growing a business, with resources available to help shift from an employee to an entrepreneur perspective.

Q & A

What is the speaker's background in terms of business and side hustles?

The speaker has tried nine different kinds of businesses and side hustles over the past four years, which led to quitting their job in 2019 to work full time on their ventures for about three and a half years.

What was the speaker's first business idea and why did they choose it?

The speaker's first business idea was selling greeting cards through a calligraphy business. They chose it because it seemed like the easiest thing to start at the time, allowing them to do something they were interested in.

How did the speaker's friends approach selling physical products?

The speaker's friends sold various physical products such as bubble tea holders, crochet products, beauty products, and clothing. Some of these required finding a supplier or manufacturer, while others could be handmade at home.

What is the advantage of starting a business with a skill you already have?

Starting a business with a skill you already have is advantageous because you don't need to learn something new. It allows you to leverage your existing expertise, which can be offered as services like photography, video editing, writing, or teaching languages.

Why did the speaker try delivering food with UberEats and what was their experience?

The speaker tried delivering food with UberEats as a side hustle to gain experience. However, they didn't enjoy it due to their dislike of driving and challenges with parking, despite finding the experience interesting.

How did the speaker transition their calligraphy business to an online platform?

The speaker transitioned their calligraphy business online by starting business coaching, specifically helping calligraphers start their businesses. They also offered free beta coaching packages initially to build confidence and establish their coaching abilities.

What is the Calligraphy Instructor Academy and how does it relate to the speaker's business?

The Calligraphy Instructor Academy is a course created by the speaker to teach others how to host calligraphy workshops. It represents the speaker's attempt to package their knowledge into a course for passive income, although it remains a niche product.

What challenges did the speaker face when starting a YouTube channel and how did they overcome them?

The speaker faced slow and steady growth when starting their YouTube channel, taking about two years to reach a point of satisfaction. They overcame this by consistently creating content and maintaining the effort required to build an audience.

Why did the speaker start an Etsy shop and what were the benefits?

The speaker started an Etsy shop as a way to expand their business online, particularly for selling digital downloads. The benefits included a consistent sales stream and an integrated system for payments and transactions.

How can a blog be monetized according to the speaker's experiences and suggestions?

According to the speaker, a blog can be monetized through various methods such as affiliate marketing, advertising, or promoting a product or service offered by the blogger. The speaker's own blog is not monetized but provides several suggestions for doing so.

What other business ideas did the speaker's friends implement successfully?

The speaker's friends have successfully implemented business ideas such as social media marketing, selling books on Amazon, consulting in their fields of expertise, offering services based on their formal education, flipping items in niche markets, and investing in properties for rental or Airbnb.

What advice does the speaker give for someone considering starting a business or side hustle?

The speaker advises starting with the easiest business idea that also aligns with one's interests. They emphasize the importance of having an entrepreneurial mindset, being prepared for the hard work and energy required, and pursuing passions rather than just focusing on making quick cash.

Outlines

00:00

📚 Side Hustles and Business Ventures

The speaker shares their experience with nine different types of businesses and side hustles over the past four years. Two of these ventures led to quitting their job in 2019, allowing them to work full-time on their own projects for over three and a half years. The speaker intends to share these experiences, including both passive and non-passive income streams, starting with their own ventures like creating and selling physical products such as greeting cards, teaching calligraphy workshops, and freelancing their skills. They also discuss the challenges and ease of starting different types of businesses, including finding suppliers for physical products and leveraging personal skills for services.

05:01

🚀 Diverse Side Hustle Ideas and Personal Growth

The speaker explores various side hustle ideas they tried, such as delivering food with UberEats, which they did not enjoy due to a dislike for driving and parking. They also mention gig economy opportunities like taxi services and TaskRabbit. After quitting their job, they expanded their calligraphy business into online coaching, helping others start their businesses. They offer advice on starting coaching by offering free beta packages to build confidence and results. The speaker also discusses creating and selling online courses, the slow growth of their YouTube channel, and the establishment of an Etsy shop for digital downloads, which has proven successful. They also mention blogging as a potential income stream, suggesting various monetization strategies.

10:02

🌟 Pursuing Passions and Building an Entrepreneurial Mindset

The speaker emphasizes the importance of pursuing passions when starting a business, rather than just focusing on making money, as the work can be long-term and interest is crucial for sustainability. They share personal insights about transitioning from calligraphy to content creation and the importance of stepping stones in career development. The speaker admits that while they love calligraphy, their true passion lies in content creation and sharing their journey. They also discuss the importance of having an entrepreneurial mindset and suggest a video about mindset shifts from employee to entrepreneur for those looking to start a business.

Keywords

💡Side Hustles

Side hustles refer to additional part-time jobs or ventures that individuals undertake alongside their primary employment to generate extra income. In the video's context, the speaker discusses their experiences with various side hustles, which led to quitting their full-time job and pursuing self-employment. Examples from the script include starting a calligraphy business and selling greeting cards, which was the speaker's first side hustle.

💡Passive Income

Passive income is money earned with little to no effort by the recipient, often resulting from investments of time or money that allow for ongoing revenue streams. The video mentions passive income streams as one of the types of side hustles the speaker tried, such as selling courses or digital products on Etsy, which can generate income with minimal ongoing effort after the initial setup.

💡Physical Product

A physical product is a tangible good that can be produced and sold. In the script, the speaker's first business venture involved creating and selling physical products, specifically greeting cards. The concept is also extended to other examples like bubble tea holders and clothing, which require finding suppliers or manufacturers to produce the items.

💡Calligraphy Workshops

Calligraphy workshops are educational sessions where individuals can learn the art of calligraphy. The speaker mentions teaching calligraphy workshops as a side hustle, which is a way to monetize a skill and share knowledge with others interested in learning. The video also references an in-depth video about hosting such workshops.

💡Freelancing

Freelancing involves offering one's skills or services on a self-employed basis, rather than working for a specific company. The speaker discusses freelancing as a side hustle, providing on-site calligraphy and wedding calligraphy services. Freelancing allows individuals to leverage their existing skills to generate income independently.

💡Gig Economy

The gig economy refers to a labor market characterized by the prevalence of short-term contracts or freelance work as opposed to permanent jobs. The script mentions the gig economy when discussing side hustles like food delivery with UberEats, taxi services, and grocery delivery, which allow individuals to earn money on a flexible, job-by-job basis.

💡Business Coaching

Business coaching involves advising and guiding individuals or businesses to achieve their goals. The speaker transitioned their calligraphy business into an online business by offering business coaching services, specifically to help other calligraphers start their businesses. This side hustle is an example of leveraging personal experience and expertise to assist others.

💡YouTube Channel

A YouTube channel is a platform where content creators can upload and share videos. The speaker started a YouTube channel two years ago, which has been a slow and steady process to grow. The channel serves as a platform to share knowledge and experiences, and while it's not the fastest way to make money, it can be a source of income through monetization and promoting other services.

💡Etsy Shop

An Etsy shop is an online store on the Etsy platform, where sellers can offer handmade, vintage, and unique items. The speaker opened an Etsy shop and has been pleased with the consistent sales, particularly for digital downloads. Etsy shops can provide a passive income stream and are a way to sell both physical and digital products.

💡Blog

A blog is a regularly updated website or web page, typically run by an individual or small group, that is written in an informal or conversational style. The speaker has a blog on their website that, while not monetized, represents a potential income stream through various methods such as affiliate marketing, ads, or promoting products and services. Blogging can be a way to share expertise and generate income.

💡Entrepreneurial Mindset

An entrepreneurial mindset is a way of thinking that embraces innovation, risk-taking, and the pursuit of new opportunities. The speaker emphasizes the importance of having an entrepreneurial mindset when starting a business, suggesting that mindset shifts were crucial in their transition from being an employee to an entrepreneur.

Highlights

The speaker has tried nine different kinds of businesses and side hustles in the past four years.

Two of the side hustles led to quitting their job in 2019, and they have been self-employed for three and a half years.

The video shares nine personal business attempts and six additional business ideas from friends that are profitable.

The hustles include both passive and non-passive income streams.

The first personal business was a calligraphy business selling greeting cards.

For physical products, finding a supplier or manufacturer is necessary, unlike handmade items that can be started at home.

Teaching calligraphy workshops is a way to monetize a skill, with the potential to rent a room or partner with a cafe.

Freelancing skills such as photography, video editing, or writing can be a good business start for those with existing expertise.

Delivering food with UberEats was tried as a gig economy side hustle, but not recommended for those who dislike driving.

Business coaching for calligraphers was started after quitting the 9-to-5 job, highlighting the potential of coaching in one's field.

Offering beta coaching packages for free can help build confidence and a client base before charging for services.

Creating and selling online courses, like the Calligraphy Instructor Academy, can be a source of passive income.

Starting a YouTube channel requires patience and consistent effort, with monetization and audience growth taking time.

An Etsy shop is a good platform for selling both digital downloads and physical products with built-in payment systems.

Blogging can be monetized through various methods such as affiliate marketing, ads, or promoting one's own products or services.

Social media marketing as a freelance service is a growing field, helping brands manage their online presence.

Self-publishing books on Amazon can be lucrative for those who understand the market and find a good niche.

Consulting in one's field of expertise, such as non-profit consulting or accounting, can be a viable business option.

Offering services based on formal education, like counseling or therapy, or becoming an accountant, can be profitable.

Flipping items in a market one is knowledgeable about, such as fashion or sports cards, can yield significant profits.

Investing in an Airbnb property or rental property can be a fun and potentially lucrative side business.

Starting a business requires energy and work, and it's important to choose something of interest to sustain long-term commitment.

An entrepreneurial mindset is crucial for starting and growing a business, with mindset shifts aiding the transition from employee to entrepreneur.

Transcripts

in the past four years I've tried nine

different kinds of businesses and like

side gigs side hustles and two of these

side hustles actually brought me to quit

my job in 2019 so I've been doing my own

thing full time for about three and a

half years now if you're thinking of

starting a business this year then keep

watching because I'm gonna share the

nine things I've tried in the past four

years and six other business ideas that

my friends are doing and they are making

money with it the hustles that I share

in this video are going to be a

combination of passive income streams

and also non-passive income streams so

we'll start off with the ones that I've

tried first so the first one I tried was

making a physical product and selling it

so the first thing I ever did was when I

started my calligraphy business I sold

greeting cards I do have another more

in-depth video about how I did that so

if you're interested in selling greeting

cards you can watch that one but at the

beginning when I was thinking about

starting a side business selling

greeting cards was actually the idea

that seemed like the easiest thing for

me to start because I just kind of

wanted to do something so I started off

with greeting cards I have some other

friends who are selling other kinds of

physical products so some examples are

bubble tea holders crochet products

beauty products clothing and for those

ones it's a little bit more difficult to

start because you actually have to find

Like A supplier or like a manufacturer

for those things for me when I started

selling green cards I literally went to

a print shop and just like printed

greeting cards so it really depends like

the the kind of physical product you

want to sell if it's like a handmade

thing obviously it's easier to just

start because you just do it in your own

house but if your passion isn't

something else and you need to look for

a supplier or a manufacturer then it is

a little bit more difficult to start but

but you can totally still do it in the

future I do think I want to sell some

kind of like a journal so I'll probably

have to find like a manufacturer to make

the journals or something like that the

next thing I tried when I was still

working in my nine to five job was

teaching calligraphy workshops so if you

have a skill and other people are

interested in learning it you can

totally host your own workshops I do

have a video about hosting in-person

workshops this one specifically for

calligraphy workshops but I do think

it'll be helpful if you want to host

some kind of creative Workshop maybe a

photography Workshop or a how to plant

things Workshop to start off you can

rent a room or just find a cafe that's

willing to host you and you don't really

need to find like a very formal place to

teach you can basically find your own

place the next side hustle idea is

freelancing a skill you know so that

could be photography video editing

writing articles for me I did on-site

calligraphy and I also offer wedding

calligraphy services and this is a great

way to start a business if you already

have a skill that you know and you don't

have to go out and learn something oh

yeah another thing is like teaching

languages that's another thing so the

next one I tried was actually last year

and I only did this for a month but I

tried delivering food with ubereats and

oh my God it it was such an experience

it was really cool to try it out but I

honestly don't like it because I don't

like driving and I suck at parking but

there are so many of these gig economy

kind of side hustles that you can try

like food delivery taxi services grocery

delivery and taskrabbit after I quit my

job in 2019 I really wanted to take my

calligraphy business from a in-person

kind of business to a more online

business and that's when I started

business coaching so I was specifically

helping calligraphers with starting a

business so if you've already done

something that you know how to do you

can coach other people you can teach

other people how to do the same thing if

you're not really sure if you want to do

this or how you can do this you can

start by offering like a couple of

people free beta coaching packages so I

did this at the beginning when I was I

had like low self-confidence I didn't

know if I could coach people I didn't

know if my advice would be helpful so I

found three people who wanted to start a

calligraphy or an art business and I

coached them for free for like a month

or two you and then like they actually

got results and then I started offering

like pay packages from there you can do

one-on-one coaching you can do group

coaching and then the other thing that a

lot of coaches like to do or a lot of

people who teach things is once you

build an audience you can package your

knowledge into a course so that's also

what I did and I have a course called

the calligraphy instructor Academy which

is a course about how to host a

calligraphy Workshop it's like very very

Niche if you can get a system running or

if you have like a big enough audience

you could just like make passive income

from selling the course for me my

calligraphy instructor Academy course

it's super super Niche and

I don't really sell it passively I wish

it's sold by itself I think it's good

that I tried I know how to create a

course and I think maybe in the future

I'll make another kind of course that

isn't super duper Niche two years ago I

started a YouTube channel and honestly

it has been taking so long to get it off

the ground like I was I made so many

videos and it wasn't until last month

that one of my videos like got bigger

um the whole time I was doing YouTube I

feel like I was just shrugging trudging

Trucking along and the growth has been

like really slow and steady so I would

say if you want to make money YouTube is

not the fastest way but I think if you

have that passion to like share things

with people and you're willing to put in

a lot of time and a lot of energy and

I'm not saying it's going to take you to

like two years it took me like two years

to get to a point where I'm like happy

but you just don't know how long it's

going to take you to get monetized and

to build an audience and of course you

can do you know don't have to be

monetized to make money off YouTube you

can have a YouTube channel and sell your

course or sell your other services your

coaching Consulting but it's really like

a labor of love I think you really need

to want to do YouTube in order to be

consistent and like sustain this because

it is a lot of energy the next business

I started was an Etsy shop and this I

have actually been super duper happy

about it's about two and a half months

in and I'm making like consistent sales

check out these videos if you want to

learn more about my Etsy shop but Etsy

shops are a great way especially if you

sell digital downloads it's more of like

a passive income stream you can

definitely start like an Etsy shop and

sell physical products but starting an

Etsy store is really great because

everything's kind of in one system like

the payment systems and everything and

if you have really good SEO then you

might not even need to do social media

promotion like people can just find your

product through the Etsy search the

other thing I have is a Blog and it's on

my denacolligraphy.com website and that

blog is actually not monetized but you

can definitely monetize a Blog there are

so many people making a full-time income

from blogging and there are several ways

like you could do Affiliates you can do

ads you can use the blog to promote like

a product or service that you offer like

there's so many ways to monetize a Blog

so those are all the things that I have

tried myself and I'll give you some

other ideas and these are business ideas

that my friends or people I know have

actually done and they're successful

doing them so the first one is social

media marketing actually a lot of

friends who do like freelance social

media management like they help

companies or brands or just like other

business owners manage their social

media like the social media calendar

writing captions or like making posts

and also doing like strategy work

another one is selling books on Amazon

so self-publishing books I don't know a

lot about it but I think it can be very

lucrative if you know what you're doing

and if you find a really really good

Niche for Amazon self-publishing so the

next one is Consulting and I have a

couple of friends who are Consulting on

the thing that they used to do when they

were in a job so I do know somebody who

was working in non like the non-profit

sector and then

um she quit her job and then now she's

doing like non-profit Consulting because

she already has that experience and now

she's just she's doing her own thing but

in the same field the next thing is

offering the service you learned in your

formal education so I have one friend

who went to school for

um like it was like a counseling program

or a therapy program and then I have

other friends who are accountants and

they worked at accounting firms or they

worked in like corporate accounting and

they are now taking on their own clients

on the side so like helping people do

their taxes or bookkeeping and stuff

like that next one is flipping things

things that you really really like or

you have a lot of knowledge about so I

have friends who do this in like the

fashion worlds and then also friends who

are doing it in like the sports cards

world I've never done it myself but I

I've heard that you can make a lot of

money I don't know the next thing which

is something I want to do in the future

and hopefully this year that's one of my

goals for this year is to buy an

investment property and like rent it out

just like on a monthly basis or do

Airbnb so I have friends who are doing

this and honestly like I just love the

whole Airbnb idea I really want to like

design a place and like I love meeting

people as well and like helping

Travelers so I think that would be

really really fun and so honestly like I

okay I just gave you like a lot of

different ideas and there's definitely

so many more ways that you can make

money so many different ways so many

like basically

anything that you're interested in there

is a way to make money there are so many

things you could do but when you when

you actually are trying to start up the

thing it actually takes a lot of energy

and so much work just to do one thing so

if you are thinking about starting

something I would say especially if it's

like the first business you're starting

start with what is the easiest but then

also like you should probably have an

interest in it like don't do it just for

the money or because like you're gonna

be doing it for a long time or at least

one or two years and if you're not

interested then you might just like at

the end

not want to do it anymore and pivot

that's kind of what happened with me

um like I I love calligraphy but I knew

it wasn't like the full-time thing that

I wanted to do this is actually the

full-time thing that I want to do is

like content creation and like sharing

my journey and and like the YouTube and

making passive income so the Etsy is

really great but the calligraphy that I

was doing and also the business coaching

I just knew that it was gonna be a

stepping stone to where I really want to

be and I wouldn't have been able to

start my YouTube If I didn't start my

calligraphy side business because with

YouTube like I just I just never thought

I would be a YouTuber because I didn't

have the confidence to be on video and I

didn't really like how I looked but when

I started the calligraphy business I had

to do a lot of I did like a lot of

Instagram stories

with my face in it so I guess I got a

lot of practice and because I did that

so much and then also when I started the

coaching business I I like put myself

out there so much and and like all of

that helped me build up the confidence

to do YouTube so I personally think you

should go after your passions but I do

understand that some of you might need

like Quick Cash

um and that's maybe why you want to

start a side hustle so if it's for quick

cash I would say gig economy or offering

a service that you already know like

video editing or photography or like

teaching something maybe tutoring so

those are the easiest ways if you need

cash immediately when you start any

business yes the business strategy and

picking the right business to start is

really important but it's also super

important to have a entrepreneurial

mindset I do have a video about my

mindset shifts that I made going from

employee to entrepreneurs so check that

out if you want to start a business and

be in the right mindset

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