I Make $1,000 a Month from My Side Hustle as a single mom — Here’s How You Can, Too.
Why work at home? Why get a side hustle? Simply put, side hustles can help you pay off student loans faster, save up money to buy your dream house, or just earn some extra cash to treat yourself once in a while. In this guide on how to make $1,000 a month from your side hustle as a single mom (or dad), you’ll learn how I did it, including the mistakes I made along the way, so you can get started on your journey today!
Identify your passion.
What do you enjoy doing? What do you wish you could be doing with your life? If there’s something that lights your fire and gets you excited about what’s possible for your future, then it’s worth making some time to see if there’s real money in it. Many successful entrepreneurs will tell you that side hustles are their gateway to creating a full-time business that supports them. Even better, many of these hustles can be done from home (or even on vacation). Here are just a few ideas to get started.
Whatever your idea is, don’t be afraid to give it a shot. Before you get started though, remember that passion alone won’t make you rich. A successful side hustle will also require creativity and some marketing savvy. For instance, if you love baking cakes for friends and family but are having trouble figuring out how to start making money from your hobby-based business idea, there are plenty of resources available online that can help you figure out how to turn your baked goods into a marketable product. There are many free videos available on YouTube that teach both baking tips and ways to monetize home businesses.
Put together a business plan.
Once you’ve created your side hustle business and established what you’re going to offer, it’s time to start thinking about marketing. One of my favourite ways to think through how to market a business is by putting together an outline for a business plan. In many cases, I consider that outline more important than starting with a formal business plan; it helps you start identifying what questions you have (and don’t have) answers to and gives you something concrete to work with if you decide later on that creating an actual formal business plan makes sense for your particular circumstances.
There are tons of great resources out there on what goes into creating an effective business plan. If you’re already planning to create one for your main job, check out Mashable’s How to Write a Business Plan or read up on SMART goals for your side hustle over at B-plans. For example: What are your growth projections? How will you fund yourself and make sure that money lasts long enough to cover costs before revenue starts coming in?
Know what you want to sell.
If you’re trying to break into an industry that’s more established or where there are already many players, it can be difficult to enter. This is true no matter what kind of business you want to start. Before launching your side business, figure out exactly what it is you want to sell and why people would want it. What problem does your product solve? What do people currently do instead of buying your idea? Is there enough demand for your product that you could easily sell 100 or 1,000 or 10,000 copies? Be sure that all of these elements are clearly defined before deciding on a plan of action and starting to build out your site and brand.
Be sure that all of these elements are clearly defined before deciding on a plan of action and starting to build out your site and brand. If you don’t have any idea of what you want to sell, but want some ideas for things that people need or problems that need solving in your area, start researching online. Look at popular posts in your industry and read comments asking how to solve certain problems. Go through Amazon’s best sellers list in various categories. Read product reviews and learn about different pain points users experience when using certain products and services.
Work on your identity first and then your brand.
Most people don’t think about branding when working on their side hustles and micro-businesses. And while they don’t need to work on branding to make money, it can help them stand out in a crowded market. For example, if you love public speaking and want to turn that skill into profit through your side hustle (or potential business), it would be helpful to work on your identity first before diving into any kind of branding efforts.
Once you’ve worked on your identity and are clear about who you are and what your brand is all about, it’s time to think about what that means for your business or side hustle. Do you want to be viewed as an expert in public speaking? What does that mean for how you work with clients or customers? Is being seen as an expert something that will help build more credibility around your work? That could also mean thinking carefully about how you speak publicly.
Test out your idea before jumping in.
Weigh your financial situation and compare it to what you’d be giving up by leaving your job. Are you in a good place to leave? Do you have other income sources in place? This can help you avoid a scenario where you jump into your new business full throttle and later discover that staying at home with your kids was preferable. Check out ways to bring in some extra cash so that if it turns out work-at-home isn’t for you, you don’t end up losing money by leaving your job. For example, an easy side hustle might be able to pay for childcare or household expenses while allowing you more time with family.
Once you’ve considered your financial situation and weighed it against what you’re giving up by leaving your job, think about ways to make some extra money. Your goal shouldn’t be to leave your day job at first; instead, it should be to replace your paycheck with income generated by your side hustle. Do the research and get feedback on your idea before fully committing yourself. For example, maybe there is already someone out there who has thought of something similar and came up short because they didn’t do their homework or market themselves correctly. Maybe there are even competitors in your area that have a better reputation and more business acumen than you do so far.
Prioritize your side hustle.
If you’re working full-time and have a family, it can be tempting to keep your side hustle in second place. And if you want to make your side hustle succeed but don’t know where to start or what to do first, it can be easy to stall for time. Don’t! Just because you’re busy doesn’t mean you shouldn’t prioritize your side hustle. The sooner you get going on yours before any others become involved in its future (like potential investors), the better off you’ll be. Because remember: It takes work — and time — to build an income stream outside of your day job.
Have patience.
As they say, The best things in life are worth waiting for. Patience is essential when you’re working on your side hustle and trying to figure out what works for you. If it doesn’t work at first, don’t give up! It may take some time to get established and have steady customers. But trust me: Anything worth doing takes patience. And if it were easy or immediately profitable, everyone would be doing it already!
Hone your skills.
Making money at home is easier than ever these days. Whether you’re an expert in something or just want to try your hand at something new, there are plenty of jobs you can do from home. And here’s the best part: most of them pay well! Even if you can’t make enough to live on (yet), there are ways to supplement your income with some side hustles and earn extra cash when you need it. Here are a few side-hustle ideas that might suit you. Or try making candy; it requires little equipment and no kitchen expertise so it’s easy to get started. With experience and investment, I could see making $50K+ per year doing something like that.
If you’re looking for something that doesn’t require any special skills and isn’t physically demanding, consider picking up dog-sitting or house-sitting. Pet owners are always on-the-go these days, so they often need someone to care for their furry friends. This can be a great way to earn extra cash if you have enough space in your home to host an animal or two! And with sites like Rover and DogVacay popping up all over online, it’s easier than ever to get started. Another service-based business idea is designing t-shirts; there are many sites that allow you to design a shirt and upload it.
Take advantage of social media.
Twitter is a great way to connect with other single parents and get your name out there as a reliable source of information. Once you start building up a following, you can even get businesses to pay you for promoting their content and products on social media. For example, I promote financial services companies on Twitter because it’s a relatively easy way to make money as a single mom. If I can help others learn how to better manage their finances and start making some real money, then I’m all for it!
It can be tough to find time to work on your business and take care of your family at the same time. That’s why social media is such an important part of building an online business.
Use free tools and websites to help you advertise your product/service.
While you shouldn’t spend all of your time self-promoting, you do need to spend at least some time promoting your business. Whether it’s email marketing or Facebook advertising — or both — you should start getting creative with how you spread awareness about your product or service. That’s why we recommend spending 20% of your work week on self-promotion and marketing. Use free tools and websites like Facebook to promote your offer for free; if that doesn’t generate any interest, then use paid options like Facebook ads. If you have a bigger budget, explore paid advertising options on platforms like Google AdWords or Bing Ads.
Read about what other successful bloggers have done to start their businesses: It’s important to know what works for other businesses in your niche before you dive in headfirst. That’s why we recommend spending 20% of your work week reading about how other bloggers started their blogs and comparing their strategies with yours. For example, if you’re thinking about doing product reviews on your business site, read some of our favourite product review blogs or articles to learn more. Doing so can give you insight into which type of content is most popular in your niche. Reading industry-related news sites will also help keep you up-to-date on what’s happening within your niche.
The Finer Details (Resources) First, we’ll start with links to blogs that helped me develop my blogging skill set… Next, we’ll discuss which companies I used for building my website & hosting my site… Lastly, we’ll talk about how I built backlinks for getting more traffic…
Background Links About Me Link to LinkedIn profile — Linkedin Link to Facebook Profile — Facebook Post About Me (under construction) Twitter Account — Twitter Tweet using TwitLonger account Website coming soon… Why Do This?
Conclusions.
The most important thing you can do to have success in making money as a single mom is your commitment to yourself. It’s also vital that you have realistic expectations. Remember: not all side hustles are created equal. But if you’re willing to work hard and manage your time wisely, one of these nine side hustles can make an impact on your financial situation. Just be sure to keep expenses low and track what you’re spending for the best results! Best of luck! I hope you’ve enjoyed reading my post. If so, please share it with friends and family who might benefit from it. I appreciate it very much!
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