The entrepreneurship podcast you can actually apply! The award-winning small business show covers creative ways to make money online and offline, including blog...
649: This Firefighter’s Side Hustle Grew to $1M in Sales
Mike Ettenberg spent 10 years as a firefighter, but was constantly losing or breaking his sunglasses on calls.
Frustrated, he decided to take matters into his own hands.
Frontline Optics makes durable sunglasses for first responders with a no-questions-asked replacement policy.
Despite having "no business experience," the Side Hustle Show listener took Frontline from side hustle to full-time venture, selling over $1M worth of sunglasses along the way.
Tune in to episode 649 to learn:
How Mike found his first customers
The "microinfluencer" strategy that generated consistent sales
When he felt comfortable quitting his firefighting day job
His plans for the future
Full Show Notes: This Firefighter's Side Hustle Grew to $1M in Sales
New to the Show? Get your personalized money-making playlist here!
Sponsors:
Mint Mobile — Cut your wireless bill to $15 a month!
Airbnb — Discover how much your home could be worth!
OpenPhone — Get 20% off of your first 6 months!
Gusto — Get 3 months free of the leading payroll, benefits, and HR provider for modern small businesses!
--------
54:17
Introducing Marketing Secrets with Russell Brunson
The Marketing Secrets podcast offers a unique, behind the scenes look into the world's best sales funnels. A number of Side Hustle Show guests have recommended Russell Brunson's books and ClickFunnels software, and I hope you check out his podcast too.
--------
2:38
The Side Hustle Snowball: How to “Erase” Your Expenses with Extra Income Streams (Greatest Hits)
I want to introduce a concept I call The Side Hustle Snowball.
If you’ve heard about Dave Ramsey’s “Debt Snowball” framework, this may sound familiar.
Here’s how The Side Hustle Snowball works:
You itemize out your expenses and then aim to come up with side hustle income to cover them, starting with the smallest and working your way up.
Once you reach the bottom of your list, you don’t need your job anymore!
The reason I like this framework is setting out to replace your income with a side business can be a daunting task. The Snowball approach breaks it down into mini-victories and lets you celebrate your progress along the way.
And just like a real snowball, it picks up steam, size, and momentum as it gets rolling.
Let’s look at some real-life examples of how you can make extra money. What follows are some of my actual monthly expenses*, and how we mentally zero them out with job-free income.
Full Show Notes: The Side Hustle Snowball: How to “Erase” Your Expenses with Extra Income Streams
New to the Show? Get your personalized money-making playlist here!
Sponsors:
Airbnb — Discover how much your home could be worth and find a professional co-host today!
Indeed — Start hiring NOW with a $75 sponsored job credit to upgrade your job post!
Mint Mobile — Cut your wireless bill to $15 a month!
Gusto — Get 3 months free of the leading payroll, benefits, and HR provider for modern small businesses!
--------
30:22
648: The 10 Best Side Hustles of the Year
The end of the year is upon us, which means it's time to reflect back on the side hustles that stood out — the ones that got people talking and that I was most excited to share.
"Best" is always subjective. But what marks a good episode is when I hang up the call, thinking, "I need to drop what I'm doing and go do something else. I should totally do that."
And I try and exercise some level of discipline and restraint because the shiny object syndrome is real.
But when the shiny object shines for me, I know it's going to be a hit episode.
So here are the top 10 side hustles for 2024.
(Here is the Spotify playlist to make it easy to go add that to your device: Best Side Hustles of the Year 2024)
Full Show Notes: The 10 Best Side Hustles of the Year
New to the Show? Get your personalized money-making playlist here!
Sponsors:
Airbnb — Discover how much your home could be worth and find a professional co-host today!
Indeed — Start hiring NOW with a $75 sponsored job credit to upgrade your job post!
Mint Mobile — Cut your wireless bill to $15 a month!
Gusto — Get 3 months free of the leading payroll, benefits, and HR provider for modern small businesses!
--------
1:00:51
647: How to Start an Online Directory as a Side Hustle
Why should your first online business be a directory? This is one of the most overlooked yet potentially lucrative side hustles out there.
I've got a little bit of experience in this space (I actually built a virtual assistant directory years before), so this is something close to me.
But my experience is nothing like John Rush’s from JohnRush.me, who is a master at quickly building and marketing these little side projects.
He has launched 30 directories in just the past year, managed to monetize 10 of them, and even sold one (AllGPTs.co) for a sweet five-figure exit.
(If you want more resources, check out John’s full Directory Guide or his no-code builder at Unicorn Platform.)
Tune in to Episode 647 of the Side Hustle Show to learn:
Why directories are a great starter side hustle
How to pick the right niche
The tools and strategies to build your directory
Full Show Notes: How to Start an Online Directory as a Side Hustle
New to the Show? Get your personalized money-making playlist here!
Sponsors:
Airbnb — Discover how much your home could be worth and find a professional co-host today!
Indeed — Start hiring NOW with a $75 sponsored job credit to upgrade your job post!
Mint Mobile — Cut your wireless bill to $15 a month!
Gusto — Get 3 months free of the leading payroll, benefits, and HR provider for modern small businesses!
The entrepreneurship podcast you can actually apply! The award-winning small business show covers creative ways to make money online and offline, including blogging, online business, freelancing, marketing, sales funnels, investing, and much more. Join 100,000+ listeners and get the business ideas and passive income strategies straight to your earbuds. No BS, just actionable tips on how to start and grow your side hustle. Hosted by Nick Loper of Side Hustle Nation.