With the rising cost of living, many people are looking for “Side Hustle” Gigs. The simplest definition of a “side hustle” comes from Dictionary.com which defines a “side hustle” as “a job or occupation that brings in extra money beyond one’s regular source of income.” A side hustle job can take many forms, but they all require you to spend time working them, which makes it difficult to work two jobs and still have a life.
According to Bankrate.com, nearly half of working Americans work a side job in addition to their regular day job. In 3 out of 10 cases, this is because they need the extra income to keep up with regular living expenses.
However, money isn’t the only reason people take on side hustles. Sometimes people want to develop new skills to start a business in the future, or to pursue a passion.
Time Management
The problem many people run into with working side hustle gigs is often with time management. How to work your regular job, your side job, and still have time for your family or have a life, is tricky, and you will have to manage your time well to succeed at all three.
The simplest solution is to choose something you already know how to do. There’s no learning curve, and you can start much more easily. Many people do work that is an offshoot of what they do for their day job. For example, many police officers work side jobs as security for events, churches, and outside companies.
On the other hand, many people also work a side job entirely different than their day job that comes from their hobbies, or other passion pursuits. These may or may not take more time to start based on your knowledge level.
If you want to learn a new skill, that’s also going to factor into the time you will have to put into your side hustle. Knowing where you stand in relation to the learning curve to start these jobs can help you manage your time more effectively. Knowing how to select and manage your side job can help you achieve this. Once you know what you want to do, you can set priorities and goals.
1. Choose your side hustle with your lifestyle in mind.
Everyone knows someone who already has a side hustle and just because one person does well at something, doesn’t mean that side hustle will work for you. Choosing a side hustle that fits with your lifestyle and that you already have the skills for makes it much more likely that you will enjoy it and make more money.
Look at your hobbies and your passions, these can lead you to your side hustle. Are you a photographer, a DJ, a writer, or an artist of another sort? You can use those skills to get into a side hustle you will really enjoy.
If you want to learn new skills, keep in mind those passions and hobbies that most attract you when deciding on the new skills you want to gain, and look at how taking the time to learn these skills will fit into your lifestyle.
· How much time will it take to learn these new skills?
· How long before you can expect income from this side hustle?
Choosing something you love will make doing what you need to do much easier and more profitable overall.
2. Set Boundaries
You must decide how much time you are willing to spend on your side hustle, and how much you are willing to let your side job take away from your family, friends, and free time.
You will need to work with your family to determine how much time this is.
· How far are you willing to go to succeed in your side job?
· Is your family willing to work with you on scheduling your time?
3. Have a Schedule
Having a schedule is critical if you plan to work two jobs and have a life. A schedule can keep your progress on track and keep you from getting overwhelmed with all you need to do.
How you define your schedule should also reflect your lifestyle and can help you determine how much time to put into your side hustle.
· Look at the time spent on your day job. This is not flexible, so the rest of your life will have to be more flexible if you are to have a successful side job.
· Look at the time spent with family. How much time are you willing to give up?
· Look at time spent on other pursuits. Can you use this time to work on your side job? If you have a long commute where you are not the driver, could you work on the train, or in the car?
If you currently don’t use a schedule, try keeping track of your time for a week. This can show you where you spend your time and what you spend it on.
Once you know where you are spending your time, you can create a schedule that works for you. This might include getting up an hour early, or staying up an hour late, or both. You might be able to use part of your lunch hour for your side hustle.
4. Minimize Distractions
If you’ve ever worked from home, you know how easily distractions occur. Finding a workspace that allows you some distance from the the family such as a shared workspace, may be one solution.
However, in the event you have a space at home that will allow you separation from the rest of the family, you may still have to minimize your personal distractions.
Leave the phone in the other room if it’s not critical to your side hustle. Close all browser windows but ones you need for work. Turn off the television and make your workspace as peaceful as you can to enable you to focus on your work rather than on the distractions around you.
Conclusion
You can make side hustles work for you and still have a life by following the recommendations above. They can also help you increase your skills and maintain a family life if you take careful stock of where you want to go with your side job, and how much time you are willing to spend to get there. You know what your other obligations are, and you can decide how much free time you wish to have for other purposes and for your side hustle.
