Using side hustles in achieving some money goals
If you are an employed worker, most likely you’re earning a fixed salary. What happens when your salary is only enough to cover for your monthly expenses? Are you able to set aside some money for your savings? Are you always challenged by lack of cash when it’s most needed, like an emergency fund?
To solve this financial dilemma, you might consider cutting down your expenses, removing everything except essentials. Maybe you can get additional training in specific skills to improve your capabilities, helping you move up in your career and benefit from being promoted. This means getting a raise.
For some, there is an alternative to find additional sources of income: side hustles. These are part-time work or business that are done in addition to full-time jobs. This is especially known among people who have interest or passions in fields other than their main line of work. Usually, side hustling is done in a person’s free time, right after a full time job, or on weekends.
There are several advantages of side hustling:
More freedom. People who do side hustles can decide who to provide service to and set their own rates. But those who do this are responsible for managing all aspects of their business, from marketing and getting clients to managing projects and ensuring timely delivery. They also need to take care of financial aspects normally done by another person (usually the accountant) in a company, such as equipment, logistics costs, and taxes and fees.
Flexible hours. Side hustling provides people with the ability to set their own hours and choose their clients. Often, clients have a longer timeline for the product or service to be delivered, which gives the side hustler more time to complete the request. But a high degree of self-discipline and time management skills are required, especially if the person has a full-time job. Always remember that side hustling should be done only on your own time and not on time where you are supposed to be at your full time job.
Starting and managing a small business. A side hustler can create a business that is manageable to do during free time. Examples are buy-and-sell or online selling where one can manage operations using only a phone. Among the challenges of these types of side hustles is time to respond to client inquiries or tracking delivery of stocks with suppliers. If you are in this kind of business, remember that taking calls during your hours at the company may affect your performance at work. Set your replies during your free time and if you are already out of the office already. That way you won’t be distracted at work and remain productive.
Increased skills. Side hustlers can develop new skills and improve existing ones. They can also work with different clients and learn about different industries. These skills can also be used in your main employment where you can improve your performance and become more valuable to the company.
Earn from a hobby. Some people simply want to enjoy doing something that makes them happy and earn a bit from it. There are those who tend to be good at a particular skill, like painting, photography or writing, which they use as a source of personal fulfillment. But these can be worthwhile to others and so people with such skills can provide service to others. But an argument can be made that once a hobby becomes work, it tends to lose its value as a source of personal fulfillment.
In conclusion, side hustles can be advantageous to an employed worker who is looking to augment his or her income stream and achieve specific financial goals. It can also be satisfying to a person who wants to continue enjoying a hobby while earning a bit from it.
But a side hustle can also be challenging especially as it can become distracting at work. If you are doing side hustles, have a disciplined approach so that you can continue performing well at your full-time job.
