Book Nook: Side Hustle - From Idea to Income in 27 Days

Many young adults, millennials, and Gen Xers, have a "side hustle" - a job to work on besides their main job. In fact, some people (like me) only have "side hustles." I do not have a single job that is more than half time; instead I cobble together income from seven different sources (one part-time private school, a part-time online school, tutoring, private lessons, freelance music, online surveys, and a handful of odd shifts at a nearby skating and event center). Even my husband, who has a full-time job in IT for a non-profit, makes a little money on his side hustle as photography.

There's a reason for this. White collar works now find promotions are harder to come by, wages have flat-lined, and the expectation that one remain with a single company, or even a single industry for one’s entire career has all but vanished.

There are other reasons too. Many people like the flexibility of a side gig. Some people like the extra cash. There are others who want to do it just to see if they can make an idea reality.

All of these are addressed in a book I got to review called SIDE HUSTLE: From Idea to Income in 27 Days by Chris Guillebeau. It was a well-written book that helps readers come up with the idea for their "side hustle," figure out the goal (extra income all the way up to full-time job), and come up with tangible steps on how to get there.

I teach piano "on the side" and it's because quite a money-maker for me. This book reinforced a lot of what I did along the way, as well as gave me tips for improving my focus and making it an even stronger side gig.

Guillebeau walks you through everything you need do to go. You’ll learn how to:

• Build an arsenal of great side hustle ideas (if you don't already have one) – and then choose the one with the most potential
• Identify the profile of that one customer your hustle is meant to serve (for focused marketing)
• Improve your sales and marketing
• Master the art of deals, discounts and special offers
• Raise your game: improve, expand, or make more money off your hustle

Along the way, you’ll read engaging stories about dozens of successful side hustlers. You’ll meet:

• The Pennsylvania oil and gas rep who brings in an extra $1,000 a month posting images on Pinterest
• The single mom who designed her own astrology calendar and immediately made $5,000 on etsy
• The software developer who raked in $7,500 a month after creating a real-time Bay Area traffic app
• The theme park portrait artist who now makes $250 an hour doing digital caricatures at upscale events 
• The newlyweds who turned a honeymoon trip to Nepal into a $15,000 fashion brand

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CHRIS GUILLEBEAU is the author of the bestselling author of books including The $100 Startup, The Happiness of Pursuit, and The Art of Non-Conformity. He is also the founder and host of Side Hustle School, a daily podcast with more than 2 million downloads per month. During a lifetime of self-employment and side hustling, he visited every country in the world (193 in total) before his 35th birthday.

For more information, please visit: https://chrisguillebeau.com

To learn more about Side Hustle, please tune in to the daily podcast: https://sidehustleschool.com

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