Side hustle wisdom What works and what to watch out for

Side hustle wisdom What works and what to watch out forSide hustle wisdom What works and what to watch out forThe first time I heard the expression side hustle, I was sitting in an airboat in the swamps outside of New Orleans. Over the deafening sound of the motor, the captain explained that while ferrying tourists was his main source of income, he kept a small shellfish business on the side. He demonstrated by lifting some half full traps teeming with someones future pricey dinner.Over the past few years, weve been hearing everyone from moonlighting CEOs to short order cooks refer to their bonus gigs as side hustles. What was once considered moonlighting, where a full-time employee might take on some extra work before a big occasion, has now given way to people supplementing their income with another hopefully regular - revenue stream.There are a lot of people who think they have side hustles but are parte of the gig economy, says entrepreneurial consultant and side hustle expert Damon Brown whose most recent book is The Ultimate Bite-Sized Entrepreneur. A person who drives a car around and picks up other people or rents out another part of their home to strangers, those arent actually side hustles. Youre actually working for someone else.So, what exactly is a side hustle? Brown explains A side hustle is something you create on your own, can pull the plug on your own and you can generate your own checks. More importantly, Youre not dependent on other people to pay you, you get it directly from the consumer.Brown believes the best side hustles incorporate 3 things Who you are Something in your current toolkit and who you want to serve. If you can combine them, it can be long-lasting and lucrative, he said.Brown believes its important to differentiate the gig economy from the side hustle. In one, Youre working for someone elses side hustle, dream or startup. Youre essentially furnishing someone elses dream. In the other, you might just be padding your income o r setting the groundwork for your retirement fund.In the past, Brown and a partner launched and ultimately sold Cuddlr, an app that connected would-be huggers. We bootstrapped the whole thing, we made a little profit. There was nothing about anyone else owning it, Brown said.Before starting your own side hustle, beware of two red flagsThe non-compete aspects In your current job, are you allowed to do anything on the side?Ownership issue If you do come up with something great, does it become part of the company you work with or is it fully owned by you?If youre working for a company that pays your benefits - a company car or even your phone or laptop - your employer can argue that the benefits contribute to your idea and the side hustle. People who are writing the contracts are very aware of side hustles, Brown said. Todays side hustle can be tomorrows $10 million company, he explains. And your employer might want a part of it.So, what should you be mindful of on your route to side -hustle success?Proceed with caution Dont work on your passion project during office hours and expect to fully own it.Read your contract carefully If it landseems at all confusing, have your attorney give it a once-over. You dont want your zillion dollar idea belonging to someone else.Be honest You dont want to be doing something on the side and theres even a hint that its affecting your day job, says Brown.Beware When Brown launched Cuddlr, he had to make sure people were safe. Were connecting people for hugs, but that can go south, he explained. Do your due diligence.Plan for success If you have a simple idea and think 100 people will buy it what happens if 100,000 people buy it? asks Brown. The biggest issue I see with side hustles is that people dont plan. What you have in place when a handful of people use their product isnt the same as when a million people use it.Define your goal Be definitive about where you want to be and know when you want to wrap things up Says Brown. And set success markers for yourself.If youre worried your boss might see your side hustle as a challenge to your day job, use some of your new-found skills at work. Say you learn how to market things better and you work at a University, Brown says, you can help them learn how to market themselves better.