Are you looking for the best side hustle out there? Do you believe there’s one that makes the most money in the shortest period of time? Does such a side hustle exist?
Here’s a clue for you: stop looking and start digging.
There is a “most successful” side hustle. More precisely, there are many “most successful” side hustles available. Each person has a personal “most successful” side hustle. What is yours?
It turns out if you ask different side hustlers, more likely they will say their side hustle represents the “most successful” one in the entire side hustle universe. And they often have the numbers to back them up.
Digital real estate
“Digital real estate! Owning digital assets such as websites and domains are worth a lot in our digital world, and you can use this to make insane amounts of money, the same as a real estate tycoon buys up as much land to develop,” says Nick Wood, founder and CEO of Digital Landlords in St. George, Utah. “The more you own, the more you’re worth. Rank and rent digital real estate has allowed me to build a multi-million dollar empire purely through buying domains, building simple websites, and generating leads for business owners. I went from $60,000 in debt to running a multi-7-figure business entirely online. The opportunities are endless for owning and then monetising digital real estate and then using that income to purchase physical real estate as well.”
Grant writing
“We’re big fans of grant writing as a side hustle,” says Meredith Noble, co-founder & CEO of Learn Grant Writing in Anchorage, Alaska. “It is ideal for the person who wants flexible and fulfilling work. Grant writing consulting can be done entirely remotely. Jessica Stack, for instance, was a burned-out teacher during the Covid pandemic. She decided to become a freelance grant writer with no prior grant writing or business experience. Within 18 months, she made $100K and continues to grow quickly. She now has the freedom to work from home, a coffee shop, or a local co-working space, and be done by the time her kids get home from school to be a present mother. The best side hustles can often grow into your full-time venture, helping you live a life of your dreams.”
Many side hustles share this “freedom” characteristic. It’s often a key component when defining your lifetime dream. If you’ve got a day job or some other regular activity (such as a busy retirement schedule), it’s hard to commit a specific time towards your side hustle. Having the flexibility to work on your side hustle at different times can help.
Group coaching
Yesim Saydan, CEO of Your Social Media Expert in New York City, says the most successful side hustle is Group Coaching. “It’s easily scalable, therefore the most profitable, while also giving your clients the opportunity to network, keep each other accountable and support one another,” says Saydan. “It gives you time and location freedom, as you can choose which days/times you coach your clients and where. You can get clients worldwide, as Zoom allows you to teach in a virtual setting.”
Besides flexibility, you’ll find “relevance” can often catapult you to success. If you pick something that solves your problem or fills a void in your life, chances are there are others who can benefit from your experience.
Drop shipping
“I can’t say I know the most successful side hustle,” says James Bowersox, founder of Pindrop, based out of Maui, Hawaii. “It could be anything from day trading to running an online drop shipping business. For me, I chose to run a children’s clothing company online. It seemed a fun and profitable way to help my children learn about running a business and also crest some stylish clothes for them and other children to wear. I also think that with a side hustle, it’s very important that it is fun and engaging for yourself. Full-time jobs and businesses can be very demanding, and a fun side hustle can really bring a nice dynamic to your day-to-day life.”
You may find that comfort can be just as important as fun. If you’re relaxed doing certain tasks, that might have the makings of a “most successful” side hustle for you.
Cleaning
“In my opinion, the most successful side hustle is cleaning houses,” says Candice D’Angelo, founder of The Selling Lab in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. “It’s cash-based. You can work on the weekends, and it’s determined by your physical effort. No one is relying on you to save their life, so the pressure isn’t the same as a deadline.”
Still, if you want to ensure the success of your side hustle, you can always rely on textbook business methods.
“The side businesses with a clear vision and a detailed plan for achieving their objectives are the most successful ones,” says Fred Winchar, CEO, co-founder, and president of Max Cash in Reno, Nevada. “This can involve developing in-demand goods or services, utilising technology and digital marketing tools, and having a framework for managing client interactions. Successful side hustles include freelance writing, web design, virtual assistant services, and online tutoring. To enjoy it and be successful, it’s critical to pick a side hustle that aligns with your interests and skills.”
To ensure something you like doing keeps its “fun” characteristic, you want to reduce the potential for anxiety. You can’t eliminate it altogether (indeed, sometimes stress can be a good thing), but you can isolate its most likely source—money—and diminish its ability to cause angst.
Sacha Walton, business strategist and CEO of SWI Management in Hampton, Virginia, says, “The most successful side business is one with low overhead costs like with service-based businesses such as bookkeeping, event planning, accounting, where one can incorporate the skillsets into a side hustle that meets a general need, that can stand out from the competition, and have a target market have the potential to be a successful and lucrative business.”
Tying all these elements together, Pini Shemesh, the co-founder & CEO of MyTower in Tel-Aviv, Israel, offers a list of potential side hustles you might consider. “The most successful side hustle can vary depending on individual preferences and goals, as well as market conditions,” says Shemesh. “However, some popular and successful side hustles include:
- Online freelance work
- E-commerce: Selling products on platforms such as AmazonAMZN -0.6% or Etsy.
- Social media management: Providing social media management services to businesses and individuals.
- Consulting: Offering expertise and advice in a specific area, such as marketing or finance.
- Personal coaching or mentorship: Providing coaching or mentorship services in areas such as fitness, personal development, or career growth.”
“It’s important to note that success in a side hustle is subjective and can vary greatly depending on individual goals and motivations,” says Shemesh. “The most successful side hustle is one that meets the specific needs and goals of the individual and provides both financial and personal satisfaction.”
Lastly, there’s one thing that affirmatively signals you’ve found what you’re looking for in a side hustle: your passion for it.
“The most successful side hustle is the project that keeps you up late and wakes you up early in the morning; you are thinking about it all the time and how you can turn this idea into something big,” says Noah Koff, founder & CEO at Redwood Partners LLC. in Portland, Oregon. “An opportunity that unleashes a founder’s genius is going to be most successful. Because a founder gets a taste of success without having to work hard, and it drives the thing forward. Early momentum is critical for growing and sustaining a side project and turning it into a full-time business. There needs to be some tangible payback and reward that’s meaningful to the founder.”
How do you evaluate a side hustle?
Once you find your own personal “most successful” side hustle, you’ll want to kick the tires a bit. Is it really the one for you? There are a number of tried-and-true methods you can use to evaluate the potential of your side hustle.
“I focused on doing something that I loved and the revenue potential,” says Stephen Davis, CEO and founder of Total Wealth Academy in Houston. “I love to teach, but teachers get paid very little by comparison to their service. So I looked for ‘teaching’ business models that did make a lot of money and picked one of those. Now I am beyond lucky to teach and mentor thousands of Americans with my wealth-building strategies. It is especially inspiring for me, as I have been in the same spot as many of them: broke! I received a $20,000 pay cut in corporate America before I started my side hustle in real estate investing.”
How do you build a successful side hustle?
The path to a successful side hustle resides in your ability to take your idea and forge it into an ongoing enterprise. You might want to see how others accomplished this. Still, your discovery process offers a hint at what you need to build a successful side hustle.
“The most successful businesses are often those started with a passion—whether it is finding a way to bring fresh food to a community that otherwise wouldn’t or creating running mittens for cold morning runs,” says Emily Wheeler, senior manager of corporate sustainability at GoDaddyGDDY +0.8% in Scottsdale, Arizona. “Make sure you are rooted in your purpose as a person and business, who you serve, and why. Locking down that foundation is essential. When you hit hurdles and challenges, if you don’t have your story solidified, it will become difficult to want to keep going, but having clarity into the ‘why’ will make the process of doing, learning, failing, and trying again so much easier.”
How do you measure success in a side hustle?
Here’s what can trip you up. You may be using someone else’s metrics to define what “most successful” means for you. Remember, it’s not what others think; it’s what you think success means to you. A side hustle isn’t a full-time startup. The latter has a completely distinct set of success metrics (although there are some overlaps).
“Definitely the full-time startup business has to be profitable; that is Number One,” says Wendy Conklin, owner of Chair Whimsy in Round Rock, Texas. “I also believe it needs to make you happy. But definitely, you need to make a profit of some kind as why are we even in business if we’re not making a profit right away?”
Don’t fall for the trap exposed in The Parable of the Fisherman. Measure success in a way that’s most meaningful to you.
“For some, side hustle success is an extra $500 a month,” says Nick Loper, founder of Side Hustle Nation in Sammamish, Washington. “For others, it means replacing their day job salary. It depends on your goals, but if you find the work rewarding and are motivated to keep doing it, that counts as a win.”
How do you keep track of side hustle income?
A side hustle, despite the fun and passion, remains a business venture. If it’s not making money, it’s only a hobby. Respect the financial end of your side hustle, and you may discover that it will help you make it the most successful side hustle for you. Just try not to go overboard with the accounting stuff!
“I’m a big believer in the ‘keep it simple’ approach,” says Christopher Mitra, executive leadership coach at An Inspired Life in Kamloops, British Columbia. “The last thing you want is a bunch of expensive software for running your business that eats at profits. Open a separate checking account for your side hustle, and then find one of the many free to low-cost accounting packages that will provide the financial tracking you need. Don’t forget you need to claim that revenue, but having a side hustle will often provide you with several home-based businesses tax deductions.”
Finally, don’t be afraid to aim high. It may be an unreachable star (and some would say you’re better off if you are striving for an impossible dream), but it will motivate you toward success.
Jamie Mitri, founder and CEO of Moss Pure in Smithfield, Rhode Island, says, “The most successful side hustle is one that provides financial stability and is sustainable so that you can make the side hustle your main hustle!”
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This article was first published on forbes.com. Follow me on Twitter or LinkedIn. Check out my website or some of my other work here.
