Here’s the truth. Life and the current cost of living are expensive. the rising costs left many people looking for second and even third-income streams to supplement their main income to keep up with increasing prices. what many people didn’t anticipate in starting new businesses and jobs was how much it could take over their time and energy. And in many other cases, the side hustle becomes a more lucrative and fulfilling income stream than the main hustle. So then, what do you need to do to make the transition of your side hustle become your main hustle? We’ll show you how below.

The truth about side hustles

A side job, or side hustle is a slang term to describe taking on another employment opportunity outside of your primary job to bring in extra money. They are often considered labours of love, such as someone writing part-time, selling their art, starting a business selling clothes, baking, or photography, and other jobs where they make money from their creative side. For others, side jobs are as simple as tutoring online, delivering food and groceries, and being a Lyft or Uber driver. The choices are plenty. It boils down to the flexibility the gig offers and how much money you can make from it.

A 2020 Harvard Business Review article said that nearly 44 million Americans run side hustles of different kinds. For some of these and others around the world, this unexpectedly became a gold mine or is showing signs of being one. When this happens, you may think it’s time to think about how to make it the main thing.

Things to consider

  1. Is it sustainable? The extra money is great to have to cover those pesky and unforeseen bills, or even fund that dream holiday. But are you making enough from the side hustle to cover all your costs? And then meet these expenses? If so, then you can begin drawing up a business plan.
  2. Are you up for a full-time business? Running a small business on the side is one thing. You give to it as much as you can. But when you take it as your primary source of income, you need to think about the time, administration, and resolve to go through it every day to keep it going.
  3. Check your finances. Before making the leap, get a good grasp of your financial situation. The lure of the side hustle money can easily make you think that you can go the distance with it. This is because your main income pays a big portion of your monthly bills. The first few months, or even years, of starting a business can be unstable and requires lots of funding and resources to keep it afloat. Budget. Pay off big debts. Decide and plan how your finances for the next few months.

Making the move

Firstly, remove ‘hustle’ from your vocabulary. To hustle means to “push roughly” and “obtain illicitly”. Now, of course, many side hustles are legal ventures but the motivation between a side hustle and making it your main thing are different. For the former, it’s about bridging the financial gap. For the latter, it becomes the primary focus and source. It may seem like a small and inconsequential thing to do but the way you frame a thing will impact your view on it.

Here’s what you need to do to make a success out of your part-time venture.

  • Create a business plan

Now it may seem like you don’t need to create a business plan because you’re already running something small on the side, right? Wrong. It’s never said enough that if you fail to plan, you plan to fail. Maintaining a side hustle and turning it into a main hustle requires more of you. You need to draw up a plan for the next few months and consider everything needed to make it profitable. Your lifestyle and budget will change. You are now responsible for everything and don’t have a boss looking over your shoulder. Have a plan that answers these critical questions and a contingency plan in case something doesn’t work as envisioned.

  • Assess your strengths and weaknesses

Regardless of how great you are at some things; you are bound to have weaknesses in other areas. You can only do so much. And you need to be honest about your strengths and weaknesses. Use your strong points to your advantage and get the best results. Even though a lot falls on you as a business owner, you may need to outsource your weak areas if things like tax, admin, and accounting aren’t your strong suits. These can be time-consuming so invest some funds in getting resources to handle these tasks while you focus on the big items.

  •       Market your business

Building a brand and business from the ground up needs marketing. But it doesn’t have to cost an arm and a leg. Get online. Build on social media pages. Have a website. Make the most of your current customer base and ask them for reviews. Be intentional about creating fresh and exciting content, contribute to industry group discussions, and network.

  •       Make the most of your time

Scrolling social media. Bingeing on your favourite shows. Spending hours on mindless activities. These are all well and good but the moment you decide to level up your side hustle, you need to be mindful of where your time is going – it could be spent growing your business. Take note of what you spent most of your time on, which areas need more, or less, time, and resolve to spend more time on your business. Remember, it’s all on you to make your side hustle a success.

  •       Take Turtle Steps

The concept of Turtle Steps comes from well-respected life coach, Martha Beck. She advises that you should become consumed with reaching an enormous goal (yet). Instead, your focus should be on taking the next incremental step you can manage. You’ll get overwhelmed and drive yourself into a panic state which is not ideal because you could end up making costly mistakes. Rather, ask yourself what the next right step of action is and work towards achieving that. Successful businesses are built by taking one turtle step at a time.

Taking any business to the next level is not as easy as we imagine. If you need to assess your strengths and weaknesses to determine which areas you need to work on or simply enhance, our Workplace Personality Assessment is just what you need. Find your purpose, boost your confidence, and move one step closer to achieving your goals.

You’ll need help, a network of support, a good plan, time to execute it well, and a winning strategy. Remember, if things don’t work out the way you thought, there’s no shame in stepping back, reassessing, and getting a new side hustle while this one gets going. Be good to yourself. Be honest about the realities and challenges you will undoubtedly face. And give yourself a pat on the back for taking a leap of faith. If your parachute doesn’t open, you’ll either learn to fly or have a soft landing.

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