How to Earn More Money in 2019 With Side Gigs

How to Earn More Money in 2019 With Side GigsHow to Earn More Money in 2019 With Side Gigs When you hear the phrase gig economy, you probably think of apps, like Uber, TaskRabbit or Instacart. But the truth is, theres a whole world of side gigs out there, available online and off, for all sorts of people. With positions as varied as Courier, Lesson Plan Creator, Personal Financial Advisor, Search Engine Evaluator, Online Community Manager and many mora, theres a side hustle for virtually every differentskill set and passion. And the best part is, it can often be pretty financially lucrative - especially if you take on a side gig on top of your full-time job. Say hello to extra income for vacations, shopping sprees or even those pesky bills that always seem to pile up.But with so many options available, navigating which side hustle is right for you, how you enter the field and what the pay is can be intimidating,to say the least. Thats whereElana Varon, author o f The Ultimate Side Hustle Book 450 Moneymaking Ideas for the Gig Economy , saw an opportunity. Varons new bookgoes into the what, why and how of side gigs, as well as real-life stories from those who have taken them on. According to Varon, the benefits of taking on a side hustle are significant.Most people who take on a side hustle want the extra money, so thats a big benefit. But if youre exploring a new career, a side hustle can help you learn about other types of work you can do and get experience in the field. And hopefully, youre able to spend your time doing something you enjoy, Varon said. And for those concerned with work-life balance, dont worry - there are plenty of side hustle options that dont require workingaround the clock. The beauty of a lot of side hustles today is that you can decide how much you want to work,Varon added.Glassdoor recently got the chance to chat with Varon to get her insight on what makes a great side hustle, how to balance full-time work with pa rt-time gigs and some of the most surprising side hustles out there (think mushroom farmer). Heres what she had to say.Glassdoor What initially inspired you to write this book?Elana Varon Side hustles have come out of the shadows, but with all thats written about them, there wasnt a comprehensive resource to help people figure out what they could really do, or how to go about it. Some side hustlers are entrepreneurs, but a lot of people are simply looking to make some extra cash, or finance a hobby. They can all use the book to get ideas that fit with their skills and interests, available time and financial goals, as well as get tips for finding and managing their gigs.Also, Ive been researching and writing for years about the impact of technology on the workplace. This book was an opportunity to dig into the flip side - how gig economy platforms, social media, recommendation sites and other technologies are influencing how people find work and earn a living.Elana Varon The idea l side hustle is work that fits your skills, interests and available time, and that enables you to meet your goals. Most people who take on a side hustle want the extra money, so thats a big benefit. But if youre exploring a new career, a side hustle can help you learn about other types of work you can do and get experience in the field. And hopefully, youre able to spend your time doing something you enjoy.Elana Varon The beauty of a lot of side hustles today is that you can decide how much you want to work. So the first thing to do is have a concrete goal. Its a lot easier to manage your time when you know what youre trying to accomplish. Then be realistic about how many hours you have, so you can choose a side hustle that fits both your goals and the rest of your life - which includes sleeping . If you dont get enough rest, your performance and your health will suffer, and not just in the long term.So if you travel a lot for work, renting your apartment out on Airbnb might b e a better fit than tending bar on weekends. If youre a stay-at-home parent , caring for your children is your full-time job (even though youre not getting paid for it), so youre going to need a side hustle that you can work on when your partner is home or your kids are in school. There are some situations, of course, where people are going to decide to push their limits - maybe they have to cover an unexpected bill, or theyre launching a full-time business or they have to put in extra hours in their main job. But hopefully those periods are temporary.Elana Varon I talked to a few people whose side hustles turned into full-time businesses , and some people started their side hustles with that goal in mind. If you want to take that route, you need a plan, and you have to be comfortable with the risks. From working your side hustle, you probably have an idea of how much money you can potentially make if you do the job full time, but most people wont earn that much right away. One of the biggest adjustments people have to make when becoming self-employed is figuring out how theyre going to pay their bills - both for the business and themselves personally - while theyre building up their customer base and revenue.You also have to be ready to spend a lot more time on the marketing, financial and administrative aspects of your business, or find someone to help you. We used to do our own taxes, but when I started my writing and editing business, preparing the returns became more complicated. So we hired an accountant who not only prepares our returns but also gives us advice.Finally, if you have people who live with you or depend on you, make sure theyre on board. Youll have to renegotiate household and (if you have kids) childcare responsibilities. You may have to cut back on your household spending for a while. And depending on what kind of work you do, it may be a while before you are able to eat dinner uninterrupted or stay off email while youre on vacati on - or even take a vacation.Elana Varon A couple of things Most people are used to paying their taxes via withholding. They dont get a W-2 from their side gig, so they dont think about what else they might owe. But if you make more than a few hundred dollars from your side hustles, you have to pay taxes on those earnings. Because ridesharing and TaskRabbit have received a lot of media attention, theres a tendency to think of side hustles as defined by work you get via apps or platforms. But a lot of jobs arent well-represented on gig platforms, at least not yet, and most people actually still get work the old fashioned way, through friends and colleagues.Elana Varon I was struck by how many people I talked to had serial or multiple side hustles. I expected it from Millennials, who in general are more likely to freelance than older generations and grew up assuming they would have multiple careers. But Gen Xers and Baby Boomers also told me about having a lot of different gigs. You might conclude from this that people arent feeling financially secure, and that was true for some. But I heard a lot of pragmatism. People saying, Sure, I like this, but its still work, so I want to get paid.Elana Varon I dont think there are any universally top or best side hustles, because people have different skills, interests and goals. But monetizing assets you already have can get you a relatively high return on your efforts. I interviewed someone who lives in an urban neighborhood where there wasnt much parking - on the street or off. For a while he had a house with a two-car driveway, which was rare. And since he had only one car, he rented out the unused half. He didnt have to do any extra work other than putting an ad on Craigslist and talk to the tenant occasionally, so that was pretty close to free money .Those kinds of side hustles, where you can get value from things that are otherwise idle are interesting because theres theoretically no limit to what you can r ent out - boats, clothes, tools, RVs. There has to be demand for it, obviously, but sharing platforms have expanded the possibilities. While I was doing my research, I also became fascinated with mushroom farming. Maybe youve seen the kits for growing a log of shiitake mushrooms in your basement, but it turns out that if you have enough space and enough time, you can raise a profitable little crop. Its not for me, though. I have trouble keeping houseplants aliveWant a few more side hustle ideas to get you started? Consider these optionsDidnt find the right position? Dont worry - theres a virtually unlimited number of options available, so if you havent found the right one yet, dont get discouraged. Think about what you do best and how you can monetize it, and be sure to check out The Ultimate Side Hustle Book for more ideas