Side Hustle Hero

This is the episode to tune into for inspiration and motivation to start or to scale your side hustle. Here we've curated the Top 10 side hustle life lessons from our heroes of year 1. They're really a diverse group of characters including a rapper, a beekeeper, voice actor, quick books pro advisor, a gnome maker, a cookbook author, a travel writer, and more. What they have in common with each other and with you, is that they have all travelled along the side hustle path. Enjoy! Thanks so much for being part of our Side Hustle Hero community. Here's to Year 2! What You'll Hear: 01:02 Joel Young, Ep 1: Be Willing To Fail In Public 02:22 Actions produce a result. It'll be a success or "learning experience" 03:05 Remember, every pro had their first attempt too 03:40 My performance was so bad, I couldn't watch the whole thing 04:00 Janis Doherty: Ep 2: How To Make The Right Decision For You 05:15 We make the best decisions with the info and awareness at the time 06:06 Missed an opportunity? There will be more 06:13 Nicole Buergers, Ep 9: Inspiring Beekeepers Hard Won Wisdom 07:35 What did you trade your 1,440 minutes for today? 08:07 Endured 50 bee stings to the face…and she kept going 08:35 Experiencing imposter syndrome? You're in good company - Sherry Lansing, Sheryl Sandberg, Lady Gaga 09:36 Shelley Adams, Ep 12: Cooking Up 6 Bestsellers 10:45 Googling, "how to bottle sauces" 11:00 A powerful question: "Can you help me get started?" 11:30 2 questions to ask when you sit down with your expert 12:00 The real "win" of attaining your goals 13:08 Tenille Landry, Ep 18: Painting For Profit 14:22 There'a a difference between "wishing" and "deciding" 15:15 The importance of the people you are surrounded by 16:24 Ruksana Hussain, Ep 20: Make Connections, Make Money 18:22 Giving vs Trading 19:08 When getting advice, be sure the person is achieving the results you want 19:48 When someone says no to you, say to yourself, "NEXT!" 20:26 Sam Hallburn, Ep 36: Earning 6-Figures As A QuickBooks ProAdvisor 21:42 Be cautious of who you ask for advice 23:30 Is there someone in your life telling you how to live your life? 24:10 Mike Burton, aka Keybeaux, Ep 42: Making It As A Rapper 24:50 Your people are out there! 26:30 Gary Jones, Ep 49: Lessons From The World Of Improv 27:09 "Be a problem solver, not a problem creator." 27:50 Gina Scarpa, Ep 35: How To Succeed In Voiceover 28:35 How to reframe rejection 29:03 Avoid being pushy…you need to put in the time 29:45 Stop being afraid! Take the leap of faith 30:20 There's nothing stopping you, but you 31:35 Having someone in your life who sees more in you than you see in yourself is huge 31:40 Hearing, "You can do this!" can be life-changing 33:43 Here's your weekly reminder of, "You can do this…you so got this!" Connect with Joan: https://www.instagram.com/joanposivy/ https://www.facebook.com/posivy/ https://www.joanposivy.com/ Be on the show! https://www.sidehustlehero.com/guests/intake/

We're celebrating Year 1! This episode brings you the best of the best side hustles we highlighted in the last 12 months. They are in no particular order, because they each made the list for different reasons. Some are online, some need you to be out and about in the world, most are year-round. Some are seasonal, but all of them can be lucrative side hustles. What's your favourite? Shoot me a message and let me know! Thank you so much or being part of this journey. It's truly deeply appreciated. What You'll Hear: 01:00 #1 - Litter clean up of parking lots and commercial and industrial properties 01:27 Episode 21, This Business is Cleaning Up, with Brian Winch 02:05 Use $30 - $50 an hour to number crunch projections 02:13 Why his clients are such fans 02:44 #2 - Making Money in the Sharing Economy, with J. Massey 03:50 You can establish a STR business without owning a property 04:20 J looks at his properties as a "distribution service" to maximize revenue 04:44 In Part 2 we discuss push back from cities and municipalities 05:40 "Day use" rental opportunities 06:18 #3 - Being A Paid Sports Superfan! 07:40 What's involved, what game day looks like, other offshoot income possibilities 07:55 #4 The Business of Being Santa, episode 29 - greater diversity in Santa's is providing opportunities for more people 08:57 Some of her friends make upwards of $40,000 playing the role 09:12 hiresanta.com 09:35 #5 is Serving up a Sizzling, Seasonal, Success with Poncho's Tacos episode 51 10:30 A seasonal market is an effective way to test your product, pricing, gain valuable feedback 11:36 "Pop up" stands, another smart way to test 12:10 Press releases and pitching their story landed some invaluable TV and other media coverage 12:31 #6 - Building A Review Website Business, with Chuck Temple, featuring the Electric Scooter Guide 13:21 Connect with a product or service you love and become the leading source for honest info about that industry 13:53 Look for a new industry or one with higher-value products 14:17 - #7 Excelling on Etsy, with Rachel Jimenez 14:25 You don't have to be perfect, just get it out there 15:06 After 9 months, she made $160,000 that year 15:24 This episode also stands out for her strategy for retiring early, her "there's always a solution" mindset , and the "5-minute strategy" as a path to higher productivity 15:56 #8 Scaling For Fun and Profit, with Sandra Booker episode 27 16:27 Seeing a client she helped go from earning $50/hour to $1 million a year, motivated Sandra to scale too 17:22 From $25, to $45 to $50/hr for VA services, then shifted to virtual business manager 17:51 In the episode Sandra shares her best delegation secrets, tips on when to make your first hire, and why you want to treat your client's business like your own 18:26 When you're training a remote worker, screen-share and record what you're doing so the person has something to reference again and again as needed 18:45 - #9 What It Takes To Be A Successful Seller On Amazon, with Annalisa DeMarta, episode 14 18:52 Buying books for $1 and reselling at a big markup on eBay, morphed into a $5 million brand on Amazon 19:41 Of the 2.7 million sellers on Amazon, her company is in the 0.0005% of sellers 20:02 In the episode she shares what it takes to be successful on the platform 20:10 Annalisa suggests selling via "arbitrage" as a great way to learn Amazon, 20:28 Private labelling or black labelling, and contract manufacturing are options, and she talks about the pros and cons of each 20:55 3 featured takeaways are - why and when to jump into a new venture, how to improve your cash flow situation, and how to reframe the feeling of depriving yourself when you're making those smarter choices 21:23 #10 - Reality Check: The Truth Behind E-commerce Success, with Melissa Ng 21:31 By day, she's an accountant 21:38 After Melissa found success in e-commerce, she co-founded Launchers Acadamy to help others be success in this space 22:01 What "shiny object syndrome" is and why you need to avoid it 22:40 Consistency and persistence is the "secret sauce" of being successful in ecommerce 23:11 Travis King from episode 46 Cash Flow And Capital From Land Flipping, describes how he suffered from shiny object syndrome 23:46 What commitment will you give to your side hustle? 24:12 Without a commitment, at the first sign of problems, it's too easy to doubt and then bail 24:35 Stick with it…and stick with me. I'll be here for year 2! Podcast Website: https://www.sidehustlehero.com/ Connect with Joan: https://www.instagram.com/joanposivy/ https://www.facebook.com/posivy/ https://www.joanposivy.com/ Be on the show! https://www.sidehustlehero.com/guests/intake/

Sell out within the first couple of hours on opening day. Ramp up inventory. Sell out again. That's been the trajectory for Poncho's Tacos during their first weeks in business. They have a Birria taco stand at a night market that is only open during the evening on weekends. It's also only seasonal, running for just over 5 months each year. Expected attendance at this year's market is more than one million visitors. The main draw is the over 110 food booths and food trucks offering more than 600 different foods items. That's a lot of competition that the new kids on the block, Poncho's Tacos, are up against. This group of 5, 18-year-olds have done so many things right it's a case study in how to successfully launch a venture, including; how they tested their product and pricing prior to the market, the two key decisions they made and acted on that enabled them to stand out from the crowd, what they did to gain free media exposure, and more. Whether you're thinking of setting up a seasonal booth somewhere or you're interested in an entirely different hustle, be prepared to capture ideas that pop into mind when hearing their story, to grow your venture. Be sure to check out the 5 Success Takeaways I share at the end, which includes an action that is very simple, but one that will have a major impact on the progress you make from today on with your side hustle. What You'll Hear: 02:34 Meet Matthew Berda, Mikito May, and Kenito Garrido (partners also include, Danny Alvarez and Henry) 04:45 Offseason time will largely focus on streamlining and scaling for next year 05:35 $20,000 - $30,000 to launch the business 06:35 They were very careful about their spending, what they bought, and sought out good used equipment 08:10 How and why they decided on tacos 09:36 Mikito knew they had to get word out so he contacted major local media 10:20 Determining price point of menu items 11:36 Every day they check their sales and expenses so they know exactly where their finances are at 12:13 The volume they are doing each day was their biggest surprise 13:09 What their typical week looks like 14:14 Despite increasing inventory, there are weekends they still sell out 15:10 Leveraging their age and marketing 16:17 Their signature menu item - The Anaconda – a 2 1/2 foot taco 17:45 A $20 tip is a nice confirmation 19:50 Find people you really want to work with and that you have chemistry 20:10 Don't overthink it, just try it 20:38 Find a mentor in your field of interest 20:50 Have an end goal - here's why Takeaways 21:40 Set a deadline. If you commit, your whole mindset will change 23:03 Seek out an accountability partner 23:16 Want more guidance on setting things up with your accountability partner? Reach out for a pdf from Joan 24:05 Know your audience and give them what they want 24:27 Get word out - don't be a best keep secret 25:42 The value of small tests 26:00 Have your end goal in mind. Do you have one? If not, get one. Use it as a guiding light for decision-making Connect with Poncho's Tacos: https://www.instagram.com/ponchos.tacos/ https://www.ponchostacos.ca/ https://www.tiktok.com/@ponchos.tacos ponchostacosyvr at gmail dot com Connect with Joan: https://www.instagram.com/joanposivy/ https://www.facebook.com/posivy/ https://www.joanposivy.com/ Be on the show! https://www.sidehustlehero.com/guests/intake/

Is it still possible to make money buying and selling domain names? For answers I turned to James Iles, who started flipping domains when he was a teenager. Later, he became a blogger in the community. Since last December, James has taken on the role of Global Domain Investing Community Manager for GoDaddy. In this episode, James shares insights on; the critical step you need to take prior to putting any money down to buy domains as an investment, how to determine if a particular one is a good choice, what it might be worth, as well as costs involved, what you can expect to earn working at it a couple of hours a day, and a fun fact about the .ai extension. What you'll hear: 01:45 What a Domain Investment Community Manager does 03:05 James started domain investing as a side hustle 03:29 Can you make money at it today? 04:35 Start with a good education in domain investing, for example GoDaddy's Domain Academy 05:30 How do you tell if a domain name is a good investment? 07:22 NameBio offers a great database of domain sales that gets updated every day (upwards of $2.3 billion in sales in the database) 08:14 GoDaddy's tool that uses its back data is called GoValue 10:27 The biggest mistake domain investors make 11:23 One of James's biggest investing mistakes 12:05 Some of the metrics to look for 12:57 Fees for buying and selling 13:50 Afternic is GoDaddy's aftermarket sales portal 14:32 James discusses what he sees for side hustle revenue potential 16:43 The .ai extension 18:05 Consider off-line learning resources like in-person conferences, ie NamesCon 20:08 James's regret in selling staycool dot com 22:03 Low barrier to entry 22:32 Reach out to James through email or Twitter 23:06 His best tip 24:42 Put in the time to learn about the industry - take James up on his offer! 25:13 Before buying what you think is an extremely valuable domain…check the spelling!!! Connect with James: Email, jiles at godaddy dot com https://twitter.com/jamesiles Connect with Joan: https://www.instagram.com/joanposivy/ https://www.facebook.com/posivy/ https://www.joanposivy.com/ Be on the show! https://www.joanposivy.com/be-our-guest.html

I think you'll appreciate the authenticity, honesty, and humour of today's guest, Gary Jones. Having left his day job behind, Gary's career has been a rollercoaster ride of gigs and hustles, where nothing is guaranteed. He is a legendary improv performer, a seasoned actor, and prolific comedy writer. In this timely episode, Gary shares a powerful message of trusting and having faith in yourself, especially when things seem uncertain. It's a fun episode. Afterall he is a skilled storyteller. His narratives, derived from his life as an actor, hold valuable lessons that apply to any side hustle you're pursuing. Be sure to catch his hilarious recounting of performing at the home of Bill & Melinda Gates on New Year's Eve. What You'll Hear: 03:50 The voice – you need to do this or you'll regret it 08:01 Discovering that improv is writing on your feet 09:29 Joining Second City Touring Company 11:40 Once on the road Gary found his tribe 12:28 Quit his 9-5 to immerse himself "in a world of uncertainty" 13:46 The foundation of improv is "yes, and" 15:42 Gary doesn't know what he'll make one month to the next 21:08 Ryan Stiles opens the door to Vancouver Theatresports and Punchline 23:30 Chatting over dinner turned into brainstorming ideas for a play 24:00 You've got to be able to spot opportunities then ACT 27:33 Entered the Vancouver Fringe festival with their play, "World's Greatest Guy" 32:36 Final show played to a packed house 34:40 Won the Jessie Richardson Theatre Award that year for best play 36:02 You've got to be like a hunter with a bow and arrow on the lookout for your next gig 41:05 How you value yourself is going to be reflected in what you earn and how you're treated 43:35 The original voice of Siri recommends improv classes and there are many transferable skills that'll help you in whatever industry you're in 46:01 Richard Side and the start of writing for The Debaters 51:23 Gary's advice to his film students "Don't be a dick." Be generous and be a problem-solver 53:14 The humour and craziness of performing at the home of Bill & Melinda Gates on New Year's Eve 59:00 Gary's best tip 1:00:34 If you feel inspired to take action, then take action Connect with Gary: https://twitter.com/thegaryjones Connect with Joan: https://www.instagram.com/joanposivy/ https://www.facebook.com/posivy/ https://www.joanposivy.com/ Be on the show! https://www.joanposivy.com/be-our-guest.html

When you're working in a family business and you want more money but there isn't more to go around, what do you do? You start a side hustle of course! That's what pushed today's guests Jennifer Cornelius and David Swojanovski to launch Rubble Road Soapstone Carving Kits. They've gone from selling 30 of these soapstone pieces a month, to selling thousands per month. Where once the saw that cuts the silhouette pieces ran just 4 hours a week, now it needs to run at least 12 hours a day. Is developing a business teaching students and adults soapstone carving using these kits something you'd be interested in doing as a side hustle? Then you'll want to reach out to Jennifer and David. But first, for inspiration in whatever your current or future side hustle might be, check out today's episode. What You'll Hear: 05:20 Want more money? You'll need to figure out a side hustle. 06:20 Being encouraged to teach carving in the schools 07:08 What the lesson looks like 08:50 Expanded from 6 shapes to offering 26 shapes in 3 different sizes 09:15 The overwhelming response at trade shows made them realize they were on to something 11:31 Statue of David: How did Michelangelo know he was in there? 13:20 Why all their stone comes from Brazil 14:38 Listening to customers has shapes their product line 15:48 Teacher's conventions gave Rubble Road great exposure 16:20 Piggybacking her sister's tradeshow proved lucrative for them, but not so much for her sister! 17:25 Go to where your ideal client is 17:50 40% of revenues come from other companies using their kits to teach in schools 18:53 Profit margins on kits 20:10 Potluck carving nights! 21:21 Teaching carving remotely 22:20 Remote teaching has given remote schools access to this program 26:02 Another income source: the "traveling jewelry classroom" 27:40 The biggest challenge in growing Rubble Road 30:13 Next steps for the business 32:38 Jennifer & David's best tip 35:06 The value asking questions 35:10 Being open to learning something from everyone you meet Connect with Jennifer & David: https://www.rubble-road.com/ https://www.tiktok.com/@rubbleroadsoapstone https://www.instagram.com/rubbleroadsoapstone/ https://www.facebook.com/rubbleroadsoapstone Connect with Joan: https://www.instagram.com/joanposivy/ https://www.facebook.com/posivy/ https://www.joanposivy.com/ Check out Joan's #1 success course! https://courses.joanposivy.com/p/turn-your-thoughts-into-wanted-things The Way Success Works Book http://thewaysuccessworks.com/ Be on the show! https://www.joanposivy.com/be-our-guest.html

Meet Susan Bennett, the original voice of Siri. She's moved from one gig to the next her entire working life. With the explosion these days of all things AI, her story is timely. It's a cautionary tale of knowing what you're signing and what that could mean for you in the future. Her story also serves as a valuable lesson for saying "yes", when presented with new opportunities. Susan also talks about the process of recording the voice of Siri, what that journey's been like, and her outlook on the proliferation of AI. What You'll Hear: 03:30 Right place, right time…and saying yes! 05:45 Susan's favourite voice 07:50 How she came to be Siri 08:50 How Apple acquired her voice 09:25 The launch of a new career 10:15 How Susan discovered she was the voice of Siri 11:15 "Flip it to your advantage" 11:44 Recording Siri 13:46 Reading street addresses 14:15 At the time, Susan had no knowledge of what her recordings would be used for 15:03 Most fun things of being Siri 15:41 Meeting Steve Wozniak was the spark for her speaking career 17:15 The original Siri had "attitude" 17:49 The possible downside of being Siri 19:35 Horrified at the discovery that Siri was her voice 20:02 Impacts of AI 24:35 The "niceties" are the lubricants of life 26:24 Susan's best tip 28:40 "Be positive and embrace the change" 29:02 Remember you have a choice 29:19 The one thing we all have control over: our attitude Listen online at: https://www.sidehustlehero.com/ Connect with Susan: https://susancbennett.com/ https://www.instagram.com/siriouslysusan/ https://twitter.com/SiriouslySusan Connect with Joan: https://www.instagram.com/joanposivy/ https://www.facebook.com/posivy/ https://www.joanposivy.com/ Be on the show! https://www.joanposivy.com/be-our-guest.html

After just 2 years, Travis King built up enough of a monthly passive income stream from his land flipping side hustle to quit his 9-5, and has since built it up to a 7-figure business. In this episode, you'll discover, How to generate cash flow from land deals, Costly mistakes made by newcomers to the industry, and what to do to avoid them, Why Travis prefers buying land over purchasing homes, Alternatives to bank financing, Tips and tricks for the newcomer to land flipping, and Ways to scale your business if you're already a seasoned land investor. If land flipping piques your interest, be sure to check out the sweet offer Travis is making available to you, as a side hustle hero listener. What You'll Hear: 03:52 Trying multiple side hustles 05:29 Giving any of them true focus likely would have worked 08:58 Do you really need to do more research, or is it procrastination? 09:30 First land deal was a purchase at a local tax auction, and resold on eBay 13:37 After 5 years, starting coaching people 13:54 You don't have to live in the USA to purchase land 16:27 Toughest time is when you're still working full-time at your regular job and you've built up your side hustle to the point it's a second full-time job 16:45 Started taking back mortgages to build up monthly income 18:05 That opened up the buyer pool 18:35 Life became so much easier once Travis quit his day job 19:48 Started being proactive using direct mail to seek out sellers 24:00 Analyzing tax rolls 25:12 Some of the indicators Travis looks for on the tax rolls/lists 26:54 Maybe 1% responds to mailings, then a lesser % says 'yes I'll sell' for 50%-70% below market value 27:35 He captures equity when he buys 30:08 A lot of these lists are available at the county level for free 33:27 Solving the lack of capital issue for others 35:20 Asking for too low of a downpayment resulted in more defaults 35:47 Now Travis asks for 30% - 50% down 36:54 How his rates compare to the banks 37:37 Has since starting using a 3rd party note servicer or a title company to service the account 40:15 Selling for cash brings in capital, the selling on payments brings in cash flow 41:04 Things you need to check out when you're searching for a property to buy 43:09 Most common errors newcomers to land flipping make 45:32 Most memorable land deal 50:45 www.thelandflippingchallenge.com, Travis's free 7-day course 51:29 SIDEHUSTLEHERO - coupon code for 20% of paid course 52:44 Travis's best tip to take action Takeaway 55:43 Be aware of the difference between knowing and doing 55:55 "Ya, I know that." - Don't get caught in that trap Connect with Travis: www.travisking.com www.thelandflippingchallenge.com Connect with Joan: https://www.instagram.com/joanposivy/ https://www.facebook.com/posivy/ https://www.joanposivy.com/ Be on the show! https://www.joanposivy.com/be-our-guest.html

This episode with trademark attorney Derrick Morgan is unique. Instead of the traditional, conventional life of an attorney clocking in a ton of hours in an office or cubicle, Derrick works while traveling around the world. Use the first part of the interview to challenge your perception of what a traditional job needs to look like. If travel and working from remote locations around the world is more your style but you feel unable to do so in your line of work, let this episode be an inspiration and idea generator for you. Then in the second part of the conversation Derrick tells us about; getting a trademark for our company name, our brand, what, when, and why, you need to trademark and, the upfront costs and renewals you'll face. In the end of episode takeaway, I share some thoughts with you to help answer, "What does your ideal lifestyle look like?" What You'll Hear: 03:35 What Derrick is doing is rare in the industry, but he's showing it is possible 05:05 Setting an example for up and coming professionals 07:15 Ability to lean on mentors is really helpful 07:35 Derrick has earned over $300,000 in under 3 years on Fiverr 08:01 Amassing over 700 reviews, virtually all 5-star 08:13 Under promise and over deliver 11:20 To start, look at the what the top sellers are doing and charge a bit less 11:51 Keep tweaking and improving your page 12:51 When to trademark 14:10 What to trademark 14:40 Where to start if you want to get a trademark 16:15 The costs involved 17:14 When you live outside of the US, but want a US trademark 18:20 How do you know how many countries to register in? 20:12 Renewal times and fees 21:30 The most common mistake made when doing the search yourself 24:19 Best tip to take action Takeaway: 25:48 What does your ideal lifestyle look like? 26:50 Discovering one of my unconscious beliefs 28:10 Write out what your ideal lifestyle looks like and then begin to brainstorm the "how" Connect with Derrick: On Fiverr On his Website Connect with Joan: https://www.instagram.com/joanposivy/ https://www.facebook.com/posivy/ https://www.joanposivy.com/ Be on the show! https://www.joanposivy.com/be-our-guest.html

Welcome to Part 2 of my conversation with Chuck Temple, founder of multiple 7-figure businesses. In this episode, we focus on his Electric Scooter Guide company. I love the business model. Connect with a product or service that you're passionate about. Then become the industry source that the community trusts, for real, and honest, reviews. There's no inventory to carry, and your cash flow at least at the beginning, comes from commissions from affiliate links. Chuck will share that story, as well as give you pointers of a couple of things to look for if you're curious about starting a review website. He'll also reveal the main indicator you need to look for, that'll be a sign of when you need to stop planning and start executing your plan, for whatever your side hustle or expansion plan might be. What You'll Hear: 02:16 The inspiration for a new business 04:15 Chuck turned to the community for his first product idea 05:10 Be the trusted person for sorting through the "way too much information" out there 07:30 Curate discount codes and coupons 08:52 If starting a review website, look for a new industry or higher value products 09:55 Committing to doing a "west coast scooter road trip" attracted his first sponsors 10:58 Getting feedback from the community provided some golden ideas! 11:50 Biggest expense for the scooter guide 12:40 Reviews that are overly positive are not as trusted as one's that also point out the negatives 13:50 How you know when to stop planning and start executing 14:45 The learning comes from succeeding and failing - you'll learn so much 16:13 "Smack you in the face therapy" 18:01 Anything that's not good in a company, you can trace back to the owner 20:37 Start Up To Sold 23:04 Chuck's best tip for taking action Takeaway 24:13 Acting before you have the "perfect" plan 24:55 Go as far as you can see, when you get there, you'll see how to go further Connect with Chuck: https://www.startuptosold.com https://www.chucktemple.com Connect with Joan: https://www.instagram.com/joanposivy/ https://www.facebook.com/posivy/ https://www.joanposivy.com/ Be on the show! https://www.joanposivy.com/be-our-guest.html