So there I was in my entry-level job earning barely enough to cover car, gas, home, and all the necessary stuff, yet my friends were out 3 nights a week without me.
Frustrating.
My income just wasn’t good enough for my lifestyle.
I started coaching youth soccer, pulling from my playing experience (not coaching) from college, and I was getting a side-stream of income.
In September I had the opportunity to speak at our local TEDx event, making the case that millennials are the most entrepreneurial generation in history.
And it’s true; 1 in 3 of us has already started one or more businesses.
Over the weekend I got word that the “official” video from the event was live and ready to share. (It’s about 13 minutes — embedded below.)
This was my first public speaking gig since high school graduation.
This is my first attempt at an annual review.
Why go through this exercise?
It’s time to evaluate what happened this year, to see you achieved your goals, and to ask if you’re happier or otherwise better off than you were a year ago.
So am I?
Bryn and I just got back from a couple weeks in Spain and Portugal. We had a great time exploring the sites, trying the food (and wine!), and playing digital nomad a bit.
Exposure to different cultures always triggers some new creative thoughts or ideas, and so here are a few of my notes from the trip.
(And if interested, you can check out my notes from last year’s 5-week journey to Japan and SE Asia.)
This is a tough post to write.
This summer I pulled the plug on ShoeSniper, my original side hustle and my longest running and most successful business.
A moment of silence.
It wasn’t an easy decision, but I was confident it was time to move on. I think this is an important story to share because most of what you read in the entrepreneurship world is about perseverance and “never giving up.”
Like I’ve mentioned, I’ve got a soft spot for cold callers, and a warm place in my heart for Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts (since scouting was good to me), so combine the two and I’m already pulling out my wallet.
The other night our neighbor’s grandson came by in his Cub Scout uniform, almost too shy to even speak, to sell some popcorn products as a fundraiser.
The whole thing got me thinking about how the Girl Scouts are a million times better at this fundraising hustle.
Time is our most valuable commodity, and it’s uniquely egalitarian; we’re all dealt the same 24-hours each day.
But it’s also a non-renewable resource — once it’s used up it’s used up.
That means we have to be conscious of how we use our time, of how we invest it.
And I’ll use the word “invest” rather than the word “spend” because I believe side hustling time, business-building time, is an investment — an investment in your future that will, with any luck, result in MORE time down the road.
Now that the “ice bucket challenge” has died down, there’s another challenge going around my Facebook feed this week.
People are asked to share 10 books that have “stuck with them” through the years, fiction or non-fiction, and tag their friends to post their list next.
(So I guess it’s not technically a TOP 10, but more 10 of the most memorable or impactful.)
It’s been fascinating to see some people’s title selections, including many new books I’ve never heard of.
Since side hustlers are pressed for time, one of the smartest things you can do is make the most out of everything you create.
This post will walk through how ONE project fueled:
A bestselling book on Amazon.
4 guest blog posts.
3 podcast guest appearances.
1 podcast episode on The Side Hustle Show.
An infographic.
A “featured” SlideShare presentation.
And this post, if you want to get really meta.
For the last 2 months, I’ve only taken cold showers.
Why?
Because Nick Reese challenged me to do it when we recorded last week’s podcast session back in March, and now I’m afraid if I break the streak I won’t want to start again.
Bryn and my friends think I’m crazy. They’re probably right.
But call it a coincidence — things have been going pretty well since I turned on that cold water!
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