5 Tips to Turn Your Side Hustle Into a Successful Business

Keen to turn your side hustle into a viable business? Here are 5 successful business tips to help you on your way, from assessing viability to avoiding burnout.

Many dream about quitting the 9-to-5 slog to become their own boss, but few ultimately take that leap. It’s no wonder – leaving your day job to turn your side hustle into a full-time role can very intimidating, especially without a roadmap. Keep your eye on certain guiding principles however, and you can set yourself up for your best chance of success. Here are 5 tips to help you take your side hustle full-time.

#1

Don’t go all in without being sure of viability

Mark Zuckerburg may have quit college to start Facebook, but seldom do such risks work out in reality. Most successful businesses are based on solid planning. So, before handing in your notice, get that plan in place so you have the foundations of a great business laid down. Calculate how much you need to earn each month, make sure the idea is sustainable and there is a need in the market for your service/product. It’s also a good idea to keep a stable source of income until your side hustle becomes profitable enough to sustain you before thinking of foregoing your source of income.

Insider’s Tip: Be prepared to split your time – entrepreneurs reported spending 20 hours per week on their side hustle while still employed in a full-time job. Learning to manage your time is a quintessential part of having a side hustle.

#2

Organic growth is best

While it can be tempting to spill lots of money at the start on getting your brand out there via advertising, doing a good job and delivering on your promises to clients are what will help you stand or fall. Word of mouth is key as you grow your client base and your business’s network. This can be an excellent way to begin scaling your business.

Insider’s Tip: When used in the right way, content marketing can help accelerate the growth of your side hustle. Familiarise yourself with social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram to market your brand/product!

#3

Avoid Burnout

The risk of burnout is very real. Overworking yourself and doing too much at once may come back to bite you later on. And, if you’re juggling a 9-5 in addition to trying to work on your business in the early hours, you’re probably not going to produce your best work. Instead, pace yourself and schedule a few hours a day or week when you’re at your most productive to work on your business. Your venture doesn’t have to succeed overnight, nor should it. Great things take time to develop, so avoid the temptation to work on it seven days a week and leave some time for yourself to relax and unwind after a full day.

Insider’s Tip: Avoiding burnout is one thing, but if you’re finding yourself feeling unexcited at the prospect of spending your spare time on your project, your venture might not be right for you.

You might also like Why Startup Founders Should Build A Personal Ethos, Not A Personal Brand

Successful Business Tips Avoiding Burnout

#4

Figure out your ‘why’

It’s very important to start your business out on the right foot, so set goals early on to keep you motivated. Having an overarching philosophy to your business will help you stay on track and make sure you continue to do it for the right reasons – if you keep your ‘why’ in mind at all times, you’re less likely to lose your purpose. There will be times where you doubt what you are doing, but remembering why you decided to start in the first place can set you back on the right track.

Insider’s Tip: Put pen to paper: research has shown that you’re 42% more likely to achieve your goals if you write them down.

#5

Automate where possible

If you’re just starting out, it’s very likely you’re going to be a one-man-band, so automate where possible. Whether it’s social media content creation or invoicing, there are increasingly plenty of applications out there to help, cutting down on valuable time doing mundane tasks so you have more time to focus on what’s important – growing your business! It can also reduce business costs and the need to hire an extra body.

Insider’s Tip: Need a list of resources to work with? Work Smarter provides a comprehensive list of over 500 business tools for you to choose from.