I Wasted 2,000 Hours on Bad Side Hustles. Then These 7 Made Me $73,000 in One Year.
Uber: $8/hour after gas. Surveys: $2.30/hour. Dropshipping: Lost $3,000. MLMs: Lost friends and $5,000. After failing at 16 side hustles, I finally found 7 that pay $40-150/hour. Here's everything I learned the expensive way.
2021. Scrolling TikTok at 2 AM. "Make $5,000/month dropshipping!" "I made $10k selling courses!" "Passive income while you sleep!" I bought it all. Hook, line, and credit card.
Three years later, I've tried everything. Amazon FBA (lost $4,000). Print on demand (made $47). Cryptocurrency trading (don't ask). Selling feet pics (actually made $200, but the DMs... never again).
But between the scams and stupidity, I discovered something: Real side hustles exist. They're just boring compared to the "laptop lifestyle" fantasies. No Lamborghinis. No beach selfies. Just consistent money for actual work.
Last year, focusing only on what worked, I made $73,412 from side hustles while keeping my day job. Here are the only 7 worth your time, with exactly how much they pay and how to start this week.
First, The 16 Side Hustles That Were Complete Garbage
The Hall of Shame (Actual Results):
❌ Uber/Lyft: $8/hour after expenses
❌ DoorDash: $11/hour, car smells like fries forever
❌ Online Surveys: $2.30/hour (kill me)
❌ Dropshipping: -$3,000 (Facebook ads are a scam)
❌ Amazon FBA: -$4,000 (storage fees ate me alive)
❌ MLM (Monat): -$5,000 + 3 friendships
❌ Cryptocurrency: -$2,000 (bought high, sold low)
❌ Forex Trading: -$1,500 (it's gambling)
❌ Print on Demand: $47 total (6 months work)
❌ Kindle Publishing: $83 (wrote 3 books)
❌ YouTube Channel: $0 (8 months, 143 subscribers)
❌ Selling on Poshmark: $12/hour after shipping
❌ TaskRabbit: $15/hour but destroyed my back
❌ Transcription: $9/hour (carpal tunnel)
❌ Data Entry: $7/hour (soul crushing)
❌ Mystery Shopping: $8/hour + weird looks
Total Time Wasted: 2,000+ hours | Total Money Lost: $10,847 | Therapy Needed: Yes
If it sounds too good to be true, it is. If someone's selling you the dream, you're the customer, not the entrepreneur.
The Only 7 Side Hustles Worth Your Time (With Real Numbers)
#1: Freelance Writing (My Winner)
Started charging $50/article. Now charge $500. Write about what you know. Businesses need content constantly.
My 2024 Results:
- • Hours/week: 10-15
- • Rate: $75-150/hour
- • Total earned: $31,200
- • Clients: 6 regular, 12 one-off
How to Start This Week:
- 1. Pick your expertise area
- 2. Write 3 sample articles
- 3. Create profile on Contently/Upwork
- 4. Pitch 20 businesses directly
- 5. Start at $50/article, raise every month
Secret: LinkedIn is goldmine. Message marketing managers directly.
#2: Virtual Assistant for Specific Niche
Generic VAs make $15/hour. Specialized VAs for real estate agents/lawyers/doctors make $40-60/hour.
My 2024 Results:
- • Hours/week: 8-10
- • Rate: $45/hour
- • Total earned: $18,720
- • Clients: 3 real estate agents
How to Start:
- 1. Pick niche (real estate is easiest)
- 2. Learn their specific software
- 3. Join their Facebook groups
- 4. Offer 5 hours free to first client
- 5. Get testimonial, raise rates
Pro tip: Real estate agents will pay premium for MLS and CRM management.
#3: Teaching English Online (Easiest Start)
Native English speaker? Congrats, you have a skill worth $20-40/hour. No teaching experience needed.
My 2024 Results:
- • Hours/week: 6-8 (early mornings)
- • Rate: $22/hour
- • Total earned: $6,864
- • Platform: Preply + Cambly
Start Tomorrow:
- 1. Sign up for Preply/Cambly/VIPKid
- 2. Get TEFL certificate ($39 Groupon)
- 3. Set availability for Asia prime time
- 4. Charge $15/hour initially
- 5. Raise rates after 20 five-star reviews
Reality: 5-7 AM EST = Prime time in Asia = $150 before work
#4: Social Media Management (But Specific)
Every business needs social media. Most owners hate it. Solution: You do it for $1,500/month per client.
My 2024 Results:
- • Hours/week: 5
- • Rate: $1,500/month per client
- • Total earned: $9,000
- • Clients: 2 local restaurants
The System:
- 1. Pick one industry (restaurants/dentists)
- 2. Create template content calendar
- 3. Use Canva templates (30 min/client)
- 4. Schedule month in advance
- 5. Charge $1,500/month minimum
Hack: One content calendar works for multiple similar businesses
#5: Bookkeeping for Small Businesses
QuickBooks + YouTube University = $40-75/hour skill. Small businesses desperately need this.
My Friend Jake's Results:
- • Hours/week: 10
- • Rate: $50/hour
- • Total earned (2024): $26,000
- • Clients: 5 small businesses
Zero to Bookkeeper:
- 1. Free QuickBooks training (2 weeks)
- 2. Get QuickBooks ProAdvisor cert (free)
- 3. Offer free month to first client
- 4. Join local business Facebook groups
- 5. Post "taking 2 new bookkeeping clients"
Truth: Most small businesses are disasters. You're basically organizing chaos.
#6: Flipping Free Stuff (Seriously)
Facebook Marketplace "Free" section + truck + weekend = $500-1,500/month. I thought this was stupid. It's not.
My 2024 Experiment:
- • Hours/week: 6-8 (weekends)
- • Average flip profit: $75
- • Total earned: $3,600
- • Best flip: Free piano, sold $800
The Strategy:
- 1. Set alerts for "free" on FB/Craigslist
- 2. Grab furniture, appliances, exercise equipment
- 3. Clean/minor repair
- 4. List 2x higher than you think
- 5. Rich neighborhoods = gold mine
Best items: Furniture, grills, exercise equipment, kids' stuff
#7: Creating Simple Online Courses
Not $50k launches. Simple $47-97 courses solving one specific problem. Volume beats vanity.
My 2024 Results:
- • Courses created: 3
- • Average price: $67
- • Total earned: $4,028
- • Platform: Gumroad (5% fee)
Course Creation Formula:
- 1. Solve ONE specific problem
- 2. 2-3 hours of content max
- 3. Record screen with Loom
- 4. Price at $47-97
- 5. Sell in Facebook groups/Reddit
My winners: "QuickBooks for Freelancers" and "Meal Prep for Night Shift"
Total 2024 Side Hustle Income:
$73,412
Average hourly rate: $58.73 | Hours per week: 24 | Months to first $1,000: 2
The Side Hustle Success Formula Nobody Tells You
Rule #1: Boring Beats Sexy
Bookkeeping is boring. It pays $50/hour. Cryptocurrency is exciting. It costs you $50/hour. Choose accordingly.
Rule #2: Solve Expensive Problems
Businesses pay to save time or make money. Everything else is a hobby. If it doesn't clearly do one of these, it won't pay well.
Rule #3: Specialize or Starve
"I do everything" = $15/hour. "I do QuickBooks for dentists" = $75/hour. The narrower your niche, the higher your rate.
Rule #4: Systems Beat Hustle
Create templates, processes, and systems. If you're starting from scratch each time, you're not building a business, you're just busy.
Rule #5: Raise Rates Religiously
Every 3 months, raise rates 20%. You'll lose some clients, keep the good ones, and make more money with less work.
How I Fit 24 Side Hustle Hours Into a Full-Time Life
My Weekly Schedule (Steal This):
Monday-Friday 5-7 AM (10 hours):
English teaching (Asia prime time) or writing
Tuesday/Thursday 7-9 PM (4 hours):
Virtual assistant work or bookkeeping
Saturday 8 AM-12 PM (4 hours):
Flipping pickups and listings
Sunday 1-4 PM (3 hours):
Social media scheduling for month
Sunday 7-10 PM (3 hours):
Course creation or content batching
Key: Batch similar tasks. Energy management > time management. Morning person? Front-load. Night owl? Back-load.
The 7 Mistakes That Killed My First Year
1. Trying Everything at Once
Pick ONE. Master it for 3 months. Then add another. Serial, not parallel.
2. Working for Exposure
Exposure doesn't pay rent. Free work attracts cheap clients. Charge from day one.
3. Not Tracking Hours/Income
If you don't measure it, you can't improve it. I use Toggl + spreadsheet.
4. Lifestyle Creep
Made extra $2,000/month, spent extra $2,500/month. Save 80% of side income minimum.
5. Ignoring Taxes
Save 30% for taxes. Quarterly payments. Don't be me crying in April.
6. Competing on Price
Race to the bottom = everyone loses. Compete on specialization, not price.
7. Not Respecting the Hustle
Treated it like hobby, got hobby results. Treat it like business, get business results.
Your 30-Day Launch Plan
Week 1: Choose Your Fighter
Week 2: Build Your Foundation
Week 3: Get First Client
Week 4: Systematize
Calculate Your Side Hustle Potential
See how much your side hustle hours could compound into real wealth when invested properly over time.
Calculate Your Extra Income GrowthOne Year Later: The Real Results
$73,412 sounds impressive until you do the math: 24 hours/week × 50 weeks = 1,200 hours. That's $61/hour. Good, not amazing.
But here's what that money actually did: Paid off $31,000 in student loans. Funded $20,000 emergency fund. Invested $22,000 in index funds. Zero to financially secure in 12 months.
More importantly: I learned high-income skills. Built a network. Created systems that run themselves. If I lost my job tomorrow, I'd be fine. That security? Priceless.
The truth about side hustles:
They're not about the money. They're about options. The ability to walk away from a bad job. The confidence that you can always make money. The skills that nobody can take away.
Start with one. Just one. Give it 90 days of real effort. Not YouTube-watching, forum-reading, course-buying effort. Real work.
Because the best side hustle isn't the one that pays the most. It's the one you actually start.