The truth is everyone needs more money. Nobody gets so rich that they say they’re done making money – even Elon is still chasing the bag. So if the wealthiest billionaire doesn’t stop making money, you shouldn’t, with your 9 to 5. In Nigeria, with an economy like ours, most people have side hustles to meet their daily bills, and who can blame them?
If you’re reading this article, chances are you’re thinking of starting a side hustle, or you’ve already started one, but you still need help balancing your full-time job and the hustle. Well, look no further because, in this article, we’ll list tips to help you build a successful side hustle while working your full-time job.
- Pick an Ideal Side Hustle
The first step you need to take when the thought of a side hustle pops up is to choose the perfect side hustle that you can conveniently juggle with your full-time job, preferably a remote hustle that won’t clash with the hours of your regular job. Whether it’s starting a small business, getting into freelancing, or driving with ride-hailing apps, there are many options.
According to Next Advisor, having a side hustle that aligns with your personality and skillets is more convenient. For instance, selling a product might not be ideal if you’re naturally introverted. It’s also essential that you leverage your already existing skillets. For example, if you’re working as an investment banker, financial modeling is a skill you can offer on freelancing platforms.
It is equally important to consider how profitable the side hustle will be because the goal is for your income to increase. Researching the internet for high-earning skills that can be done remotely would be a great way to start. Since starting a side hustle is already daunting, choosing one you would love is better.
- Understand the Market
After choosing your preferred side hustle, you must understand the market and industry you’ll serve. That means analyzing your competition, opportunity for growth, and potential customers. This phase would also involve identifying the skillsets required to perform effectively in your preferred hustle and taking active steps to learn the ropes.
There are a lot of free and paid courses on online learning platforms like Coursera and Udemy, youtube channels dedicated to helping people get better in particular areas. Also, consider signing up on freelancing sites like Upwork and Fiverr to get clients and build your brand.
- Define Your Goals
Defining goals is a common practice – and for a good reason. You can only build a successful side hustle if you envision where you want to be, financially or otherwise, as it will motivate you and increase your performance. By this, we do not mean having massive goals, as this might appear overwhelming to you. However, we advise starting where you are through short-term goals.
Whether getting your first freelancing clients, getting approved as a driver on a raid-hailing app, or starting your small business, this would be an excellent place to start. As you accomplish your small goals, you get motivated to set even bigger ones.
- Time Management
Time is one of the most daunting factors that prevent people from building a successful side hustle, and it is understandable, given the number of hours you spend in traffic and even completing your tasks at work. Unfortunately, you may fall into this category, thinking 24 hours is barely enough to do all you need in a day because you still need to learn to manage your time effectively.
Look at it this way: while we all have different hours dedicated to work because of the nature of our job, we have some breaks between work. We usually spend our breaks and a few hours outside work chitchatting when we can invest that time building our hustle. So start by assessing the amount of free time you have at work. Whether working during break hours, delegating some tasks to your colleague, or cutting out some of your sleeping time, the goal here is to carve out healthy hours you can dedicate to this daily.
- Learn to Multitask
Time is of the essence when you’re working a full-time job and building a side hustle. For this reason, multitasking is a must-have skill because you’ll be juggling your full-time job and the hustle. Multitasking isn’t just about doing things simultaneously; it’s about doing things effectively and faster. Productivity doesn’t mean burning yourself out; it means working competently more quickly.
For instance, you want to do content research for your professional website, and you also want to do your weekly workout routine. You can go to the gym with your tab and watch inspirational YouTube videos for research as you walk on a treadmill. Working out and researching would have taken two hours, but multitasking halves the time.
Multitasking increases productivity, but it has adverse effects. For example, research at the University of Sussex discovered that those who frequently multitask have less brain density in their anterior cingulate cortex, which is essential for empathy and emotional and cognitive control. So, as much as multitasking is necessary, please don’t overdo it.
- Work Smart
In building a successful side hustle, your focus shouldn’t be on working hard but on working smart. So as much as you need to give your side hustle due attention, you also need to learn smart work to avoid stress.
For instance, you can use a scheduling tool to automate publication instead of manually posting all your social media posts. There are lots of free and low-cost software you can use. In addition, you can create an email template for writing emails. You can also create a FAQ page on your website rather than answering the same questions over and over again.
Another way to work smart is to delegate. It would be best to learn to outsource help and do things only you can do for your side hustle. For example, if you’re a mom, you can hire a babysitter to care for your kids while working on your side hustle. Come up with solutions to save time and maximize your competence.
Our Verdict
Building a side hustle can be demanding yet rewarding at the same time. It might require you to cut out of your free time, work at night, and disrupt your daily schedule. But by adopting the tips you’ve provided in this article, you will find the process less complicated. Even as you begin this journey, we advise you to be patient, optimize your time and automate repetitive tasks. If you feel you still need to figure out everything, try taking a step. No one has everything figured out, so you should not let this hold you back from achieving your financial goals. Let us know if you found this article helpful, and we hope to see you again.
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