With the current buzz on side hustles, you might be wondering if it’s time to start one. A lot of success stories are circulating on the Internet about people who earned a lot of money through their side hustle.
The question is, are you ready to start one?
Here are a few questions for you to answer before you jump into any side hustle.
Question #1: Why do you want to have a side hustle?
Most people who start their side hustle do so because of money. They want to have extra income to pay for their bills. How about you? Why do you want to have a side hustle?
Let’s be clear of what a side hustle is. It is a form of additional income from a job you do outside your full-time job. It is not passive income. You will be actively working on your side hustle.
So, consider the time and energy you have to put in your side hustle before starting one. Is the reason for having one big enough to make you spend your time and energy on it?
Question #2: What do you want to do?
A lot of options are available for side hustles, from dog walking to graphic designs, and virtual assistants.
It is important to identify what it is that you want to do, see if people are willing to pay you to do it.
Again, we don’t want you to start doing a job that you actually hate. Choose a side hustle that you will enjoy doing.
Remember, when we do things we want to do, it’s not a job anymore. It’s fun.
Question #3: Check your company’s policy
If you are working for a company full-time, it is very important to check their company policy.
Some companies do not encourage side hustles because they might be in direct competition with the company. Better to ask your human resource department or your manager if you are unsure if the side hustle you choose is in competition with your company.
Question #4: Can you manage your time?
We don’t know how much time your full-time job demands from you. Remember that having a side hustle requires your time and energy. We highly recommend that you manage your time well.
Or else, you will just be adding the stress of starting a side hustle and you won’t be able to keep up with the demand of your full-time job.
Assess how much free time you have. With this knowledge, you can choose the best side hustle.
Try small projects and see how you were able to handle them before committing to a bigger one.
Question #5: Are you brave enough to go out of your comfort zone?
You may have been working at your full-time job for years now. And the job you do is pretty easy for you. But having a side hustle may require you to do something totally new to you.
If you don’t like challenges and you are okay with your current full-time job, then stay there. You wouldn’t want to start a side hustle only to lose your job and fail. That’s why it’s important to really assess if you are ready to start a side hustle or not. And hopefully, the questions above were able to help you.
Starting anything new can be scary and overwhelming. We highly recommend that you do your own research. Ask people in the field. Get the opinion of people you actually know and trust. Ultimately, you will be doing the work, and you are the one that has to live with the decisions you make, so look at it as a long-term commitment in yourself.
