I never used to have a good answer for “what side hustle should I start?” but I think I’ve come up with one by reverse-engineering how I got to mine.
Following the hype is the opposite of what you should do.
When I started making YouTube videos it was because I had a genuine interest in tech and wanted to replicate the style of guys like Oliur and Andres Vidoza.
Where most people go wrong is trying to find the best opportunity that will make them the easiest money.
I generally believe you can make anything work given enough time.
The latter point is key — it will probably take you 36 months to nail down your process and see the results.
This is why I believe it’s important to spend your time working on something you actually have an interest in, rather than what seems to be making everyone money right now.
I want to find the balance between what is a skill that is valuable to others but enjoyable to me.
Learning to make videos is valuable to businesses and something I’ve generally enjoyed.
Recently I’ve been spending more time coding because it’ll allow me to build software that can be used by businesses and help them make more money.
But I also love doing it.
I often find myself wanting to rush to monetize but this is where I have to reset my expectations.
I’ve only been consistently working on my own side projects for ~3 months at this point.
I still remind myself that this isn’t supposed to be easy and it’s going to take longer than a few months to get good enough at the thing.
Once I remember this I can enjoy doing the work for its own sake.
All I have to do is show up a little bit each day continually and my skills will improve.
3 months isn’t a long time but I’ve already learned SO MUCH in that time compared to the years before I was inconsistent.
As simple as it sounds, the only advice I’d give to myself when starting out is be consistent and have fun.
I’ve been testing the Dell XPS 14 to see if it could be a proper MacBook Pro replacement. There’s a lot of things I miss from Mac while using it but it’s the best windows laptop I’ve seen.
links to valuable stuff I thought was worth sharing
Change your life in 6 months. - Very actionable video from Oliur. I like watching videos like this to remind me of the basics.
POV: You’re Running a $96M / year Business - a day in the life of Noah Kagan. This was genuinely such an inspiring video to watch because it’s the life I’m working towards. Waking up when I feel like it, going for a walk in the middle of the day, spending time on my business, meeting like-minded people, etc.
Too Many Interests? How to get REAL results in them. The Best Approach. - a very interesting video that came up in my recommended. I often get sidetracked from being interested in code, design and making videos at the same time, but this is a great framework for making time.
Have a great week.
Cole
P.S. If you found this letter helpful, please consider sharing it with a friend :)
Sign up to receive more insights on running a one-person business.