During the school year, most of your weekly schedule is already accounted for with to-do’s. You’re busy working on lessons, homework, projects or extracurricular activities.
To be honest, for some people they never really get a chance to do the things they really want to do either because it’s not a part of the curriculum or they just don’t have time.
One of the great things about summer break is the possibility to learn and try out new things. Summer is a time to explore new hobbies, rekindle old interests and do the things you just didn’t get a chance to do during the school year.
One very cool and impactful thing you can do this summer is to create an online side hustle.
If you have a little bit of an adventurous spirit then an online side hustle may be just the right thing for you.
What is a Online Side Hustle? 👨💻
A side hustle is like a small gig, a thing that you do on the side of your main gig, usually to earn money or get some experience. An online side hustle is done on the internet giving you the ability to work from anywhere where there is a reliable internet connection.
Also, side hustles won’t take up most of your time.
When done correctly, it can add to your skills and make a difference in your future professional life.
Anyone can create a side hustle.
- A high school student who doesn’t know exactly what he wants to do with his future can use a side hustle as a way to test drive different types of work.
- A college student instead of taking on an internship may create a side hustle as a way to to build up their skill set and experience for the job market after graduation.
- Adults too may use a side hustle as a means of earning extra money even though they have a full time job.
Why an Online Side Hustle?
You know how your parents insist that you do your school-work because it helps you with your future goals?
-Well, just like doing your school-work, making a student portfolio and other activities that you do, a side hustle can be the missing element to your plan for achieving your goals.
-A side hustle can also be the thing that makes you stand out amongst other candidates when applying for a job.
-It’s a vehicle that allows you to connect with people who can make a positive impact on your life.
-An online side hustle promotes good digital citizenship by getting you into the habit of producing digital content instead of only consuming it.
-Your earning potential may increase. Because your side hustle is online, you are open to a larger pool of buyers versus if you focused on an offline regional hustle.
-You can operate this hustle from anywhere in the world where there is an internet connection.
-Finally, your side hustle may turn into a profitable business that can lead to a full time profession.
How to Figure Out Your Online Side Hustle?
You can do anything you want as a side hustle, but if you don’t want to waste time, I suggest that you be strategic about choosing what to do.
One way is to check your goals. Does your idea sync with your life’s goals? Is there a link between what you’re doing and what you want to do in the future? If so, then it may be a good option.
For example, if your future goal is to become an art teacher, then a side hustle in which you design art for custom greeting cards can link to your future goal in the following ways;
✳️ It gives you income to pay for higher education
✳️ It gives you experience in practicing your art skills
✳️ It gives you the experience needed to teach your future students how to market their art as well.
10 Examples of Online Side Hustles
Here are some examples of side hustles that can be done online;
- Design and sell art to an niche audience
- Tutoring younger students
- Become a virtual assistant
- Write a book and sell it on Kindle
- Create and sell educational worksheets
- Content writing for blogs
- Manage social media pages for other companies
- Sell custom and unique crafts
- Start a blog and monetize it (e.g. you could earn money by becoming an affiliate for other companies’ products).
- Start a Youtube channel and monetize it (e.g. you could become an affiliate or get sponsorships)
Much of the formal education you encounter today won’t teach you about creating online side hustles or entrepreneurship. Instead, most of your formal education is geared at preparing you for traditional in-person jobs. But that’s not for everyone and it may not be for you.
Someone has to invent and create new online innovations that will eventually create even more jobs and that someone could be you.
How to Get Started with Your Online Side Hustle?
One way to get started is to use sites that cater to the side hustlers. These sites make it easy to get a gig started and find a pool of potential buyers.
Websites like Fiverr, Upwork, Freelancer, Etsy, Amazon, Skillshare and The Student Shed elearning Marketplace are examples of these sites. Signing up is usually free and the site takes a commission when you get a sale.
The site you choose depends on your business model.
For example, if you’re going to be teaching something you can create video lessons and publish them on Skillshare. If you want to create digital planners, then Etsy is a good option. If you want to create a low content book like a coloring book then Amazon would be a good place to sell that.
Another option is to create your own website and publish your products or services there.
Whatever option you choose, you’ll also need a way to get your work in the eyes of your potential buyers. Wherever your audience hangs out, go there and promote your work. Social media channels are some of the best places to find your audience.
Although there are more steps involved in creating a successful online side hustle, these are good starting points and you can learn as you go.
Overall, an online side hustle is a great way to do something you enjoy while helping you to accomplish your future goals. Anyone, whether young or old can start an online side hustle either by creating their own website or signing up with sites geared specifically to side hustlers. It’s relatively easy to start and you can learn more as you build it.
What about you, what side hustle are you interested in?
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