Prelude to the side hustle journey

Greetings, folks. This page will detail my venture into side hustledom.

I won’t be alone, however. My guide will be Chris Guillebeau’s 2017 book, Side Hustle: From Idea to Income in 27 Days. Because I’m juggling other projects, I don’t expect to finish in 27 days, but this page is now out there, with arms folded, waiting for updates, forward steps, and the inevitable backward missteps.

In fact, I’m going to use this task tracker he generously allowed me to share beyond his community.

And before I go any further in this, I’m going to hearken back to Simon Sinek’s book: Start with Why. It’s a book about leadership, but to me, the title says it all, After all, shouldn’t we first be leaders of ourselves?
Okay, off the soapbox. What’s my ‘why’?

Here it is, thanks to an excerpt of an email I received from charitywater.org:

We’ve met young girls who walk in the 115ºF heat of the Sahel Desert to collect water from 1,000-year-old holes.
We’ve met women in Ethiopia who walk to the river before sunrise and don’t get back until after lunch.
We’ve even met mothers in Mali who sometimes sleep next to an open water source so they can be first in line when the water refills the next morning. 

For hundreds of millions of people, being born female means that life revolves around collecting water.
It’s a burden that limits opportunities, jeopardizes safety, and steals time—approximately 200 million hours a day worldwide.

The good news is that this is a completely solvable problem.

So, my vision: Make money online and donate 20% of the proceeds to a charity–in this case, charitywater.org.

DAY​ ​1:​ ​Predict​ ​the​ ​Future

A​ ​side​ ​hustle​ ​has​ ​many​ ​benefits​ ​and​ ​no​ ​downside.​ ​It​ ​all​ ​starts​ ​with​ ​your​ ​answer​ ​to​ ​an​ ​important question:​ ​Twenty-seven​ ​days​ ​from​ ​now,​ ​what​ ​will​ ​be​ ​different​ ​about​ ​your​ ​life?

❏  GOAL​ ​#1​ ​-​ ​Make​ ​some​ ​extra​ ​cash​ ​for​ ​a​ ​specific​ ​purpose,​ ​whether​ ​to​ ​pay​ ​off​ ​a loan,​ ​buy​ ​a​ ​big-ticket​ ​item,​ ​take​ ​a​ ​vacation,​ ​or​ ​just​ ​build​ ​up​ ​your​ ​emergency​ ​fund.

❏  GOAL​ ​#2​ ​-​ ​Create​ ​a​ ​sustainable​ ​and​ ​ongoing​ ​source​ ​of​ ​income​ ​that​ ​makes​ ​a​ ​real difference​ ​in​ ​your​ ​quality​ ​of​ ​life.

❏  GOAL​ ​#3​ ​-​ ​Replace​ ​or​ ​exceed​ ​the​ ​income​ ​from​ ​your​ ​current​ ​job.

❏  OTHER​ ​-​ ​Choose​ ​your​ ​own​ ​goal!​ ​In my case, I want to complete my online course entitled ‘Goodwill Words’, share it via Teachable, and donate 20% of the proceeds to various charities.

DAY​ ​2:​ ​Learn​ ​How​ ​Money​ ​Grows​ ​on​ ​Trees

Step​ ​1​ ​-​​ ​Your​ ​potential​ ​side​ ​hustle​ ​is…

❏  Feasible​ ​(you​ ​can​ ​start​ ​it​ ​and​ ​earn​ ​money​ ​in​ ​a​ ​short​ ​amount​ ​of​ ​time)
‘Starting it’–It’s up to me to finish a mini-course and a lead page.

❏  Profitable​ ​(You’re​ ​not​ ​looking​ ​for​ ​an​ ​idea​ ​that​ ​merely​ ​sounds​ ​interesting,​ ​you’re looking​ ​for​ ​a​ ​profitable​ ​one.​
I have to define ‘profit’. Certainly, bring in enough money so I have something to donate. I guess I would also add that I’ve covered the cost of WordPress.com site.

❏  Persuasive​ ​(It’s​ ​not​ ​enough​ ​to​ ​have​ ​a​ ​good​ ​idea—your​ ​idea​ ​has​ ​to​ ​arrive​ ​at​ ​the right​ ​time,​ ​and​ ​be​ ​so​ ​persuasive​ ​that​ ​it’s​ ​hard​ ​for​ ​customers​ ​to​ ​say​ ​no​ ​to.)
Re: my persuasion–The first five benefits of the course:

• Adds a positive purpose to our day.
• Offers chances to improve someone else’s day. [Do good to feel good.]
• Gives us a creative outlet.
• Provides an ‘authentic audience’ for writers.
• Affords writers opportunities to practice their skills.

More questions from Chris:

Step​ ​2​ ​-​​ ​The​ ​High-Potential​ ​Idea​ ​Checklist:

❏ Can​ ​you​ ​describe​ ​how​ ​to​ ​turn​ ​your​ ​idea​ ​into​ ​action​ ​in​ ​one​ ​sentence? 
❏ Is​ ​there​ ​an​ ​obvious​ ​way​ ​to​ ​make​ ​money​ ​with​ ​this​ ​idea?
❏ Does​ ​this​ ​idea​ ​solve​ ​a​ ​problem​ ​for​ ​someone?
❏ Can​ ​you​ ​figure​ ​out​ ​how​ ​to​ ​make​ ​this​ ​idea​ ​happen​ ​quickly?
❏ Is​ ​it​ ​relatively​ ​low​ ​maintenance?
❏ Can​ ​you​ ​get​ ​paid​ ​more​ ​than​ ​once​ ​for​ ​this​ ​idea?

DAY​ ​3:​ ​Brainstorm,​ ​Borrow,​ ​or​ ​Steal​ ​Ideas

Okay, so Chris’s task tracker suggests that I narrow down to at least three ideas I conceive.

While I’m pretty sure which direction I’m going, I’ll follow the blueprint. I mean, really, who among side hustlers can limit themselves to just three ideas, much less one.

Idea #1: Develop a course for writers and good-doers to deliver ‘goodwill words’ to support others needing a little support.

Idea #2: Offer brainstorming services and ebooks of already brainstormed topics for writers, marketers, teachers, and students.

Idea #3: Rent myself out to complete ‘targeted and detailed curations’ of a website’s content.

DAY​ ​4:​ ​Weigh​ ​the​ ​Obstacles​ ​and​ ​Opportunities​ ​of​ ​Each​ ​Idea

The task tracker categorizes them as ‘opportunities’ and ‘constraints’. I’m going to revisit this chapter in the Side Hustle book for a little clarification.

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