Hands down, freelancing is the one of the fastest ways to begin making extra money on the side.
You don’t need to build a website, create a product, or even come up with some killer business idea. All you need is to dig into your inventory of current skills, and find ONE client you can solve a problem for.
What kind of problems could you solve? In the archives here, you’ll find people freelancing their skills in:
For more, here are some of the most in-demand freelance skills.
No, it’s not as sexy as “passive income,” but it’s not as speculative either. You can start getting paid right away, and if your goal is to replace your day job income, there’s probably no faster way.
I compiled a binge-worthy selection of freelancing and service business podcast episodes from The Side Hustle Show into this playlist. I think you’ll like it!
Dive into the archives here to figure out what you can sell as a freelancer and how to get it done.
“I had a lot of drive underneath me, I hated my job so much,” Abbey Ashley from TheVirtualSavvy.com told me.
If you’re looking to make extra money, there’s no doubt that starting a service business is one of the fastest ways to do that, with almost no barrier to entry and minimal startup costs. In fact, it was a service business, a house painting business, that was one of my first entrepreneurial adventures.
“It’s the best-kept secret in the real estate industry,” Mark said, talking about working as a loan signing agent.
You can make $100 for an hour working as a loan signing agent. With the only real requirements being you know what you’re doing, and you have a notary license.
When you hear “college admissions essay consultant,” you might imagine some dull, overly formal academic type.
But Carter Osborne from carterosbornetutoring.com took a pretty unconventional path to dominating this niche business.
When he started providing tutoring services on the side, he was just a “broke, desperate graduate student” in need of some extra money.
Carter actually had no formal business training. His background was in political science and public administration—so not exactly the traditional entrepreneurial breeding grounds.
Not exactly the traditional path for an entrepreneur, right?
And yet, the untraditional route Carter took allowed him to build a unique $100k consulting business, with almost all the revenue coming in just half the year.
While Carter’s career path didn’t seem logical as a tutor, he was about to discover an untapped market niche that was waiting to be explored.
Considering a side hustle as an Instacart shopper?
With Instacart, you can make money shopping for — and delivering — other people’s groceries.
If you have a car and extra time during the week, why not put both to work? That’s the pitch, anyway.
Let’s take a closer look at how their grocery shopping program works, and how much money you can expect to make. (With insights from a side hustling Instacart Shopper earning $480 a week!)
Three years ago Design Pickle didn’t exist. It wasn’t even an idea in founder Russ Perry’s head yet.
That’s why it seems crazy to me that today the unlimited graphic design service is doing $400k in monthly recurring revenue!
Back in 2014 Russ was running a creative agency, but he started to hate everything about it. “I felt like I was in a prison of my own creation,” he said.
“Find work. Earn money,” the Steady app promises.
Steady is the first tool I’ve seen that attempts to bring all the “gig economy” and flexible work opportunities under one roof.
Yes, that same gig economy that 36% of the US workforce is already a part of. In some ways, we’re becoming a nation of side hustlers and freelancers, and the free Steady app is a gateway to hundreds of potential ways to earn extra money.
You may remember the story Jacques Hopkins first shared on the Side Hustle Show in 2017 about his online piano course.
Over the past decade, he systematically scaled Piano in 21 Days, into a powerhouse brand that generated over $4 million in sales.
Now in 2024, I connected with Jacques again to get an update on his current projects and perspective looking back on his entrepreneurial wins and lessons learned over the past years.
Like all savvy business owners, his approach and focus has evolved quite a bit during that timeframe.
Have you ever woken up one day feeling trapped in a career you used to love? The stability of a steady paycheck no longer worth the daily dread of unfulfilling work? Did you suddenly want a career change? I’m talking staring-at-the-ceiling-all-night type misery.
Alex Warneke from alexwarneke.com knows exactly how this feels.
She found herself creatively stifled and financially limited working as a marine ecologist and park ranger. While loving the subject matter, restrictions around income growth, adventure, and location independence nagged her.
She couldn’t shake the feeling that her current path just wouldn’t get her to the life she envisioned.
Despite no prior experience, Alex strategically skilled up and gained Salesforce credentials to increase her income potential dramatically.
Her story offers an inspirational template for others looking to pursue more career flexibility.
Becoming a professional video editor can be a great way to make money online.
Video editing is an in-demand skill, growing at a 12% per year pace. And when you see the millions of YouTube channels, TikTok videos, and Instagram reels, it really comes as no surprise.
Full-time video editors earn an average of $50k a year, and freelancers often command rates of $40 an hour and up, depending on experience.
So how can you get starting making money as a video editor? Here are some ideas.
Whether you’re a full-time designer at your day job or just like to tinker around in Photoshop late into the night, finding the best remote graphic design jobs can be a quick and effective way to build a side-hustle.
Why are remote graphic design jobs perfect for side-hustlers?
Because they can be done from anywhere in the world with just a computer, your passion, and some serious talent!
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