I’m gonna pop some tags, only got $20 in my pocket...
Hey, honey, can we go thrift shopping?
What? What? What? What?
Armed with $20 and an idea, Judy and I headed to Goodwill to buy mismatched China plates and old school globes that she could paint on and sell as art on Etsy as a little side hustle.
After spending an entire weekend painting and transferring her digital designs on to the plates and globe, we launched the shop.
The first month, we sold 2 plates for a grand total of $60 (sold a big one for $40 and a smaller one for $20)
WHAT A FREAKIN’ RUSH!!! 🤩
For the next couple of months, sales increased to about $500 a month. Not too shabby for doing something she loved to do anyways.
Then something magical happened…
A designer in L.A. bought a collection of plates for a design she was working on for the home of a “high-profile” movie star.
After receiving the plates she contacted us about getting fabric made with one of the designs on the plates because she wanted to make matching curtains.
Judy and I had no idea how we could make that happen, but we thought it would be super cool if we could make fabric with her designs.
So we turned to Google and found a company where we could have fabric made.
Fast forward 4 years and today shopcabin is an international company that licenses over 12,000 designs to fabric manufacturers, wallpaper printers, clothing manufacturers, paper goods makers, and more!
There has been enough fabric printed with Judy’s designs to reach the International Space Station or cover 35 entire professional baseball fields!
All from what started out as a little idea and a side hustle!
💰 Side Hustlin’
If 2020 has taught us something, it’s that life is truly unpredictable.
As you were celebrating the New Year, could you have imagined this year shaping up the way it has? I sure didn’t!
This pandemic has led to massive changes to our daily lives and a record number of people facing unemployment.
Whether or not you lost your job, or whether your business is up or down, today you’re realizing the importance of “hedging your bets”, now, more than ever.
You need a “Plan B”. Just in case… and a side hustle is a great Plan B.
So what can you start? Here’s a quick list to get your ideas flowing...
You can start something related to your hobbies, like Judy did - this could be a shop, a paid newsletter, a private Facebook community, or a local meetup you can sell tickets to.
You can teach something or coach people on something you’re already passionate and knowledgeable about on platforms like takelessons.com, udemy.com, skillshare.com, preply.com, or teachable.com
Are you an expert in your field? Try setting up shop on Clarity.fm
Do you have knowledge that can translate into tasks others may need help with? Like social media stuff, design work, writing, voiceovers, etc…? Offer up your services on platforms like Fiverr.com
Do you have a special talent? Offer it online via platforms like Patreon or AirBnB Experiences.
Maybe you’re a bargain hunter! If so, you can buy stuff at garage sales, Goodwill, Nextdoor.com, Craigslist, OfferUp, LetGo, or local Facebook groups and then resell those items on Ebay, Amazon, or your own online shop at a big markup. (If you’re interested in seeing how this works, do a quick search for Amazon arbitrage on YouTube and prepare to be blown away.
Still not sure any of those work for you? Don’t worry…. I gotchu
How about buying an existing online business you can make even better?
Here’s a list of some of the places I love looking for online businesses to buy:
Still need more inspiration? Check out these success stories!
💡 More Big Ideas & Stuff
These are the things that I’m listening to, watching, reading, discovering, or enjoying this week. Click the links and enjoy them with me.
📖 Read - Imagine making $27million a year working with your best friend by making just one “Killer” game that people can’t seem to get enough of (oh yeah, this started out as a side hustle)
📻 Listen - When it comes to side hustles there are two podcasts that inspire me more than any others. The Side Hustle Show by Nick Loper (super nice and genuine guy) and Side Hustle School by Chris Guillebeau (best-selling author of The $100 Startup)
📺 Watch - Side Hustles can not only make you some extra dough, but they can actually change your life because of these 3 life-altering secrets that every side hustler knows
🛒 Buy - Chances are your voicemail greeting sucks as bad as mine… That’s why I can’t wait to get my new one from “The Voicemail Guy”. (I think people are actually going to enjoy getting my voicemail instead of talking to me 😂) You can order your own greeting here
📈 New Trend - With more people working from home nowadays, indoor gardening is becoming “a thing” and there are several startups taking advantage of this trend 🌵
🎉 Celebrate - Today I’d like to celebrate my friend Jamy who took some seriously massive action and launched her own spin studio online! If you’re into spinning, love great music, positivity, and inspirational messages, you have to check out Keep It Simple Studios 🚲
Who’s ready to side hustle? Let’s go!!! 🙌
As always, keep coming up with ideas, dreaming big, and taking action!
‘Till next time...
Ralph Q out!
P.S. - I’d love to hear about a side hustle you already have or are thinking about. Drop me a quick reply and let me know what you’re working on 😃
P.P.S. - By sharing this newsletter with someone, you may just change their life - that’s pretty powerful, right?!?!
Just forward them this email or send them this link: http://ralphq.com/newsletter so they can sign up. You can also send them this one to read all the past issues: http://ralphq.com/past-issues