At the end of nearly every episode of The Side Hustle Show, I ask my guests for their #1 tip for Side Hustle Nation. There’s always a great variety of responses, and I wanted to take some time today to go through some of my favorites from the past 50 interviews.
(I first did this for episode 50, which was my first-ever solo podcast recording.)
Through the first 50 episodes, there were a few common themes that stood out:
- “Just do it.”
- Adopt the “lean startup” mentality.
- Build your team / network.
If all these really smart and successful people keep saying these episode after episode as their “#1 tip,” I think they’re worth paying attention to.
What action can you take today to apply those tips?
My #1 Tip? Find your WHY.
Why side hustle? What are you trying to build? What will that afford you?
In this week’s show I dive into a meta analysis of the #1 tips from my next 50 guests. A similar pattern emerges with some variation of “just get started” remaining the most popular response.
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Drop YOUR #1 tip for Side Hustle Nation into the comments below for a chance to win a free Side Hustle Strategy session with me!
Here are the tips. The ones in bold are the ones I spend some time talking about and applying in my work.
51. Alex Genadinik – 80/20 your efforts.
52. Nick Reese – Give yourself artistic freedom and write daily.
53. Cameron Rambert – Make up in volume what you lack in (perceived) competence.
54. Kimberly Palmer – Just get started.
55. Chandler Bolt – Complete the process instead of perfecting the product.
56. Kimanzi Constable – It’s a marathon, not a sprint. Be you, be original, and don’t try to copy the A-listers.
57. Grant Baldwin – You can do this!
60. Jon Acuff – Don’t be ashamed of fear. “Average is living a life less than you’re capable of.”
61. Ryan Grant – Get your mind right. Think, “How can I make this happen?”
62. Jesse Krieger – Take action and take it one step at a time.
64. Scott Britton – Find other people with your same mission.
65. Corrina Gordon-Barnes – Be alert to overwhelm, and understand overwhelm is a choice.
66. Josh Elledge – Don’t put this off!
67. Garrett Moon – Validate your idea.
69. Doug Cunnington – Do it today.
71. Kurt Elster – Solve simple problems.
72. Ryan Finlay – The best opportunities are found only once you’re already in motion.
73. Matt Giovanisci – Spend 90% of your time creating and 10% marketing.
74. Harry Campbell – Think outside the box and don’t be afraid to try something out.
76. Alexis Grant – Be persistent. Stick with it!
77. Kellie Gimenez – Find something you’re passionate about and find a way to make money doing it.
78. Carrie Smith – You are your most important asset, so put yourself first and invest in yourself.
79. J. Massey – Once you get started, stay started. Focus on your IGAs; your income generating activities.
80. Jasper Ribbers – If you’re going to make assumptions, you might as well make empowering assumptions.
81. Rob Cubbon – Be consistent. Keep the products coming.
83. Jessica Lawlor – Wake up earlier and start each day with your most important task.
84. Andy Slamans – Take action. Don’t be a career “learner.”
85. Scott Oldford – Don’t be afraid of failure.
86. Joshua Jordison – All business is done through people. Give them value first.
87. Bryan Harris – Get extremely specific. Read the book Built to Sell.
89. Nick Stephenson – Focus on building your email list.
90. Jon Nastor – Get started today.
92. Sean Marshall – Ask yourself what your values are, what you REALLY want, and what you can create. How do those align with a paying market?
93. Dayne Shuda – Think how BIG could this be 5-10 years from now?
94. Joshua Sheats – Find your actual net profit from your job. It might be less than you think.
98. John Corcoran – Create a “conversations list” of 50 people you’d like to build a relationship with over the next 12 months.
99. Nate Dallas – Be honest with you are and be courageous. Do what you’ve been designed to do. Don’t shortchange yourself.
102. Dan Faggella – Build your list!
104. Will Mitchell – Think big, act small.
105. Jeremy Jacobson – Start today. Compound interest is the most powerful force in the universe.
106. Dorie Clark – Dive in on content creation.
108. Mark Podolsky – Read The 12 Week Year.
110. Steph Halligan – Try something radically different.
111. Daniel DiPiazza – The less I have to do, the more I get done.
113. Lise Cartwright – Done is better than perfect.
114. Melinda Fleming – Do the thing people notice you for.
115. Ankur Nagpal – Just do it.
116. Travis Marziani – Write down 1 idea a day.
117. Justin Cooke – Find your ONE thing.
121. Tim Johnson – Make your value proposition obvious.
122. Natalie Sisson – Do or do not; there is no try.
OK that might actually be 51 by my count, but either way tons of great advice from Side Hustle Show guests.
Other Links:
- Find your people
- Setting up my “I Done This” and gratitude journal
- Getting started with the Amazon FBA business
- Essentialism and Finding Your ONE Thing
- The Compound Effect
News and Updates
Lots of travel coming up in the next few months. Be sure to jump on my email list to be notified of any meetups near you. (Dallas/Fort Worth, Chicago, Atlanta, Seattle, Charlotte, Phoenix, Istanbul, Venice, Florence…)
Remember, leave YOUR #1 tip below for a chance to win a free Side Hustle Strategy session!
UPDATE: Congrats to Ben from UCareerStrategy.com for winning the contest!
Great list of some awesome entrepreneurs Nick!
Thank you for the insightful post. I am going to bookmark this post, and share it with some friends. I thought that the details per person were going to be a lot longer, but having one sentence is much more efficient. I think that consistency is critical.
As per the eps.
Mine would be: Set Realistic Goals
I have a small $20 tack board and I put my current jobs incoming per day and my side hustle goal income of just $25/per week. The other day I just realized I have surpassed my goal a longtime ago with just my Fiverr account (that now makes roughly $250 in income per month.) The thing is seeing those totals on that board gives my brain something to work on and I see it as soon as I wake up. It’s silly but having that works as an extra push when I feel down.
Patrick
Thanks for this wrap-up, Nick. My #1 tip: The night before, write a list of three things that must be done the next day. This allows for a restful sleep without anxiety, and a feeling of accomplishment as you cross them off your list!
My number one tip:
Don’t be afraid to stop doing something that isn’t working.
It’s “sunk effort” – just because you’ve put a lot of effort into doing something previously, that shouldn’t necessarily influence whether you keep going in the future if it’s not working for you. Find something else.
I did this recently with an online course I was creating. It didn’t “fail” necessarily (I never published it!) but I just realised it wasn’t aligned with what I wanted my side hustle to be. It was a hard decision because I spent a fair bit of time on it…
Cheers,
Ben
That’s an excellent one, Ben! In personal finance we talk about sunk costs in the same way (once you’ve spent the money it’s spent, even if you decide not to do the thing, so don’t throw more time/effort/money in just because you already spent some.) But I hadn’t thought about it in terms of suck effort in the business. Thanks! That’ll be really helpful!
My number one tip is to leverage law schools in your area or your alma mater for free legal advising. There are numerous schools that offer a law student operated “entrepreneur clinic” that screens and takes on clients for FREE. Two that I know off the top of my head are the University of Michigan and University of Colorado (Boulder). Every program has eligibility requirements, but you’re missing out if you’re not looking into it. It’s a win win win!
Dude that’s a great tip! There were definitely a couple times I could have used some free legal help :)
Free legal help is worth every penny you pay for it. Plus why go to an experienced practitioner when you can get advice from an unlicensed inexperienced law student? Makes sense to me.
lol
My #1 Tip is something I heard from a guest on the Hack the Entrepreneur podcast:
“Money is made in turning the wheel, not re-inventing it.”
I have several tips… so i will post one I haven’t seen in the comments as yet.
Remember that our prospects & clients’ basic human state is that they want the *situation* to change (in debt, overweight, hate our jobs!)… while very reluctant to make a change or even try something new.
Choose your counsel wisely. Don’t talk to Know-It-Alls, Dream Slayers, or Crazy Bitches.
Love this! Thanks Linda :)
A very amazing round up Nick, i really enjoyed all the quotes and also agreed to all of them especially the idea of waking up early and doing your most important tasks.
Being an entrepreneur is never an easy task and we need these kind of quotes from people that are already walking the walk to keep us motiv