I’d like to create a side hustle and turn it into consistent, reliable income

I’d like to create a side hustle and turn it into consistent, reliable income. I’m not ready to give up my day job, but I’d love to know that I could sometime in the future. I want to build something that would give me that option when I’m ready for it. 

Is there anything I can do now to make that happen?

Brilliant! I love that you’re thinking about this before you need to. There’s a simple process that can help you that I teach in a program called Passion to Profit — six steps to coming up with your first idea and turning it into a side hustle. I’ll show you how it works

• Step 1: Coming up with your idea
• Step 2: Figuring out who needs it
• Step 3: Asking those people if they’d actually pay for it (if not, repeat steps 1 and 2)
• Step 4: Package your offer
• Step 5: Price it right
• Step 6: Make a sale (repeat this step as often as you’d like)

I’ll walk you through these steps so you can try it on your own.

Let’s start with coming up with your first idea. While this part can feel hard, the truth is the answer should be obvious. It should be something that comes naturally to you. Ask yourself: What are things that my friends always call me for? What’s something I love doing that I would do whether I got paid or not? What’s something that’s easy for me that impresses other people?

I’ll use myself as an example here: I like writing, I like helping people in a practical way, and I love the world of business. Résumé writing was a great combination of these skills and interests.

But did I actually have a business idea?

The next step was to figure out who would actually pay for such a service. My guess was that people who were looking for their first job would have the hardest time writing a résumé, since there isn’t much to write! I had helped enough friends and relatives who were getting started to know this was something people struggled with that I actually enjoyed.

Next step was to think about what people who would potentially need this service would want and need. I asked around and confirmed that people usually realized they needed a résumé only when someone asked for it — often last minute. Based on that, I came up with a 24-hour résumé + cover letter package. This was what the people I was trying to help actually needed.

Now it’s time to price the package. When you’re just starting out, I advise finding out what market rate is and charging at the low end of it. Too low, and people may not trust you. Too high is also unwise, as you haven’t yet proven your worth. Later there will be time to adjust your pricing. At the beginning, pricing is just there to signal that you have a real service.

Lastly, it’s time to sell. Where do the people who need your service hang out? For a résumé writer, the answer was easy: People looking for jobs always check the classifieds section of the local paper. I placed my own ad for $15 and was in business!

Let’s run through another example of these 6 steps so you can do it on your own:

Say your skill is digital organization. You realize freelancers who run creative businesses often waste time searching for client files and never set up proper systems. You ask a few freelancers if this is something they struggle with — they say yes.

You create an offer: a free audit of their workflow, an initial setup of folders or tools like Google Drive, and a monthly review to keep things organized. After trying it a few times, you see your service saves them an hour a day. You price it based on what that hour is worth to them.

You promote it by offering a free training in a WhatsApp group for freelancers, or showing up at a local meetup. Now you’re getting clients — and solving a problem they’re glad to pay for.

See how these steps work for any business?

Try it yourself and see what you can come up with. Don’t worry if you get stuck on any of the steps — that may indicate you need to back up a step and try again.

Follow these steps and hopefully you’ll see that you can turn your passion into profit! All that’s left is to dial it up if and when you want to.

Shaina Keren is a career consultant who helps people discover and create careers that fit their best talents, interests, and life goals. She also advises businesses on hiring and keeping “the right people in the right seat,” in a win-win approach to growing businesses and careers.

(Originally featured in Mishpacha, Issue 1062)