Dear Penny: What Side Hustles Can I Turn Into Full-Time Income?
I’m tired of struggling and feeling like I’m not providing for my family. I’m looking for a side hustle that I can do with minimal time, possibly from home and create some decent income. My goal is turning it into a full-time income and create a legacy for my family. I don’t have a ton of capital right now. I am 42 years old and have nothing saved for retirement.
I’m looking for some help and guidance so I can change my life and do the things I really wanna do. I would like to be fully working for myself within the next five to six years if possible.
— Aspiring Entrepreneur
Dear Aspiring,
You’ve come to the right place! We’ve written about tons of remote side hustles over the years at The Penny Hoarder.
You can turn a side hustle into a full-time income either by piecing together a lot of side gigs (if you like variety) or by choosing a side hustle that has the potential for full-time self-employment. Either option, though, is likely going to involve some legwork upfront, so the idea of making “decent income” in “minimal time” is probably a little ways off.
You can certainly reduce the amount of time you have to put into earning money by getting more efficient and commanding higher rates over time. But pay will be low at first if you’re starting from scratch.
For a side hustle with the potential for full-time income, focus on freelance work, rather than quick ways to earn extra money. You can get started without any capital investment. Consider a skill you have to offer — for example, writing, design, organization, planning, communication or social media. If you work in a highly specialized field like health care, law or education, hone your writing or teaching skills to expand your freelance opportunities. If you have at least a bachelor’s degree, you could look for online tutoring jobs. If you don’t have other expertise or experience, consider helping business owners and executives as a virtual assistant.
Is Your Paycheck Not Going As Far As It Used To?
We get it. Everything is more expensive than it used to be, but your paycheck hasn’t kept up.
When money is tight, these resources will help nearly everyone.
Land your first freelance gig by searching job boards like Upwork, Indeed and LinkedIn, and reaching out to people in your professional network to let them know you’re available. You’ll learn a lot on the job, and you can gather connections and work samples while you start earning a little bit of money.As you gain experience, you can pitch yourself for better gigs with higher pay and begin to earn a substantial income on the side of your job. You might not reach a full-time income from your side hustle while working another job — because that would be like working two full-time jobs — but you’ll sense when you’ve got enough experience and clout in the space to take the side hustle full time. If you’re consistently doing work on the side — even if it’s very part time — five to six years should be more than enough runway to take your side hustle full time.
