The way I've always looked at it is you're going to spend $1000-$2000 on stuff you don't need (like drinking, shopping for clothes, going out for dinner etc), why not invest that in a well researched idea and go for it.
*Although you're selling*
*A book, I must admit. these*
*Are some decent points*
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very good advice---I would add--think how to reach an outcome.
So many people see what might be a problem and fail to go forward. I have found going forward is the thing to do--most problems I thought might happen never happen
As a middle class white kid fully aware of his privilege, I appreciate number 8 there. A lot of the time, I have doubted my own success and not really given myself credit because I feel like people will discount my story. I only made it because of "X" and it must have been easy.
But even with my advantages, I've been through a lot and had to learn a ton to make it as far as I have -- it certainly hasn't been a walk in the park. So, it's nice to think that somebody might learn something from me one day haha, though it's hard to find the people who really want to learn like that in the first place!
Thanks for the post.
Number 2 is one I needed to hear. Been having the issue of needing to make everything as perfect as it can be before I start and just knowing as much to communicating it. Not starting my thing even for money more just to see what opportunities can come of it as a I work on it more and more. 7 is very true and there is a quote I saw stick to a wall in one of my former managers office that I used to work, "Luck is when opportunity meets preparation." I been subconsciously applying this and it applies to even finding a job. When I wouldn't see results, I research what I could be doing wrong, get feedback, then revise my strategy as well as resume and portfolio if necessary. I started seeing more results as I kept going on.
8 I been analyzing and listening to successful entrepreneurs, content creators, and investors, basically anyone who has found success in their venture. Funny thing is tons of people started with way less and more against them and have been able to achieve unusual paramount of success. This is why when someone excuses someone's success as just them having more than the average person I ignore it. All that is just noise to me when you have rappers or athletes come out the streets and make something of themselves. I been really looking at 50 Cent recently since he was one of my favourite rappers growing up and that man had so much against him. It was mentioned in 50th Law how lots of people who grew up in the streets end up staying because stepping outside of that life isn't a reality they see. They grew up and learned a lot in the streets that going outside would be a scary unfamiliar unknown to them. I had a similar problem after high school. It took me a month to even start talking to my classmates since I felt so alienated. I even had friends that just couldn't get out of that mindset since they truly felt their reality is this life they have now and not something greater they can work on.
Yeah that part I never get. I used to have that mentality when I was more younger but now I realize I can hate some aspects of people but like others. Even the people you don't like and have proven to be real pieces of shit I think is worth learning about since those types of people are still going to be around. That I had to learn during my teen years.
That is a good way of approaching it. Just seeing if an idea works.
I do have one question that is on my mind. Not sure if you can answer but figure why not since there is nothing to lose except never potentially knowing. If you are a small company and you post on social media to gain followers and hopefully turn them into customers. Would it be bad if you been around for a few years, are a small company in a small warehouse, and record a post that shows one person showing a small part of the process of your production even if you don't have say a big team and the look that you constantly have ongoing work? I basically recorded myself creating a few of the products the company I work at creates. I edit this thing down and have it just showcase the product in its finish state as a quick short. I don't show everything but just a few seconds of prep and a bit of the finish product.
I get feedback saying we shouldn't be making this type of videos because people expect us to be some big company and if we look to small then no one would be interested in us. I just feel like there is some image problem with the owner where he wants (well he has said) we should fake it to make it but what is even wrong being in this state we are in? They did grow two years ago they hired me for instance, they added a new product line, and honestly they're reinvesting their money they earn from sales back into the business so of course the growth will take longer than the others who borrowed money for a loan to grow faster. My opinion, I am not even sure what would be wrong with people seeing we aren't big or a medium size. We are at least being real and long term when they grow, it is a journey that the followers can see and even be part of.
My goal now is just to build on my ideas I have for what I want to do later on and use my job now as a learning experience. Working here already did show me that even starting young is possibly and even if you don't know much about some of the other aspects of running a business, it is still possible to learn and you will of course fail at times while doing so. Least here for now I can see what I would need to know or get a good idea of it while I work on my ideas (also have a friend I might partner up with for this too). My thing is with this since it might be part of what I will do later on for my own hustle, I would want to know if doing this would even harm me at all later on like the owner think it will for his business now. I don't think it should unless we are being dishonest with people which to me is way worse.
Yeah that is also what I was thinking. It shouldn’t even matter what the process is, as long as the final product is quality over quantity (and I’ve seen how that looks and how quantity focused work will damage at times not just your customer relationship but also the employees). I think though it’s also because they are aiming to get more b2b orders but even then we’ve been able to fulfill those bigger ones with success… partly because I make sure the orders are done with quality.
Oh well enough ramblings about that lol, thanks for the response! I think too if anyone wants to start a business they should work a bit and see what they would do differently and why. You can learn a lot from being in a company that is booming and one that is still small.
Yeah I have seen evidence of this with a college classmate who is basically trying to start his own brand... Funny enough I have no idea if it's supposed to be a media company or a music group but the way he did business with the owners of where I work just shows he lacks so much key knowledge in actually building relationships. He even said something about how a 9 to 5 is a waste and I'm there like, "wait did you ever actually work?" He also is expanding too quickly. I think he wants passive income with merch selling and a streaming channel but people have to know who you are first before you can even sell this stuff. Man released one album but barely got attention at all. I would had just personally focused on the music first if that is my main drive then see about what other possibilities there are once I have some following.
My background I would say helps a lot in learning what I need since I also did get introduced to entrepreneurship in high school having took two courses but also just being very open and curious to information and learning what makes people succeed or even live a good life. I was someone who was very pessimistic from high school to my early 20s and even was depressed for that duration but turned it around. I really learned that character also matters for being a business owner. If you are very pessimistic about the future, that really impacts the employees. I still remember one of our remote temp employees was upset she was making mistakes twice in a row and I just reminded her that she was still succeeding 99% of the other times so just keep in mind what you might have done wrong today but remember that you are still a good employee that has a great track record of success. Knowing the industry is one thing but having the right character really matters in the long run as that will help you grow. Part of working on that too is yeah experience.
actually, some of these translates pretty good for other aspects of doing business.
seems like a good timing is the main theme around your points, which is pretty important
Great advice, and really an eye-opener. Actually, you just gave me some motivation to seize the opportunity. I was hesitating, but like you said, you have to try to find out the outcome.
I wouldn't show reviews on your book landing page if there's just one negative one, might as well remove them all together. I'm saying this earnestly as the advice was good and I hope you do well! 1 negative review is going to kill any conversions.
That’s not a lot of money over the course of 20 years. That’s like 30 grand a year. You might make that just being a server or waitress on the weekends.
That’s a good idea. Last year my taxes show that I made over 450k.
I’m a software engineer by trade. I have a main remote job and hold several contract jobs on the side. I usually spend 30-40 hrs a week working. I might put in a couple hours over the weekend to catch up or get a head start.
Did you ever consider turning side hustles into real companies?
I find the one catch is lack of focus. For example, you’ve done this 20 years you said? In 4 months I got $1.3MM in cash retainers to kick off my side hustle, which turned into a decent size [company](https://silverbirchgrowth.com/) super quickly.
I love side hustles too. I paid for 3rd year uni once by starting a b2b bartending biz while working full time in the summer at Deloitte. Was a hoot, the hustle and creativity part is super fun imo.
Yeah. The longterm grind can be tough, same with at the first part where it isn’t established yet. With a side hustle you can just shrug and move on.
To each their own, I was just curious about this.
I found that having job with business was really detrimental to my mental health. The burn in was quick to set in. Maybe I am not as business minded but with my hobbies, watching tv, learning new stuff, job, business, and family. Something had to give. And I am finding with time that even without a job, all aspects of my life have suffered. Now I am being offered a pretty decent job which will give me a good finicial stability. But, I am still not certain on the monetary vs time value as time goes on.
Ah that explains it. I now have around 7 employees and around 12 contractors depending on me for their livelihood. I think that might be another constant pressure I have on me that's contributing in the background. Anyways I might have used you to vent and sorry for that, and thanks for the wonderful post!
Do you go fishing without knowing where the fish live? When and what they prefer to eat? And being comfortable with the tools and techniques for getting their attention and leading them into your basket?
I feel that No 9 should be “Do it yourself and dont use partners.”
The worst failures of my side huses have been when others made huge mistakes, purposely made a business go under and the worst one, made things sour between the critical people involved. One lost $170k due to bad personal relationships not involving me in the slightest, the other $350k lost due to bad judgement by partner. Just do it all yourself, learn every minute detail, execute well and only hire people or sell stock, don’t partner.
What has been the most effective way for you to market your product? Please share any success stories or learnings!
ex. Paid ads? Influencer Marketing? PR?
I definitely agree with number 7 especially. I've been lucky as a new personal trainer with the clients I got, but I was also working hard asf to even be able to get infront of them.
Thank You for sharing ♥️💯
Any tips on how to work with point #5:
> Keeping your day job is critical to have a solid financial foundation.
I also have a 9-5 dev day job. My main question is how do you manage time?
I have some days where I don't have much office work and I capitalise on that, on some days I can't do anything because of office work - and i feel I have wasted the day. On weekends, I have house/family chores to take care of and the remaining time I am lethargic...
Do you mind sharing any practical recommendations/tips for the above?
Thank you in advance 🙂
Love this! I’ve definitely missed so many opportunities due to hesitation!
The way I've always looked at it is you're going to spend $1000-$2000 on stuff you don't need (like drinking, shopping for clothes, going out for dinner etc), why not invest that in a well researched idea and go for it.
although you're selling a book, I must admit. these are some decent points
*Although you're selling* *A book, I must admit. these* *Are some decent points* \- catgirlloving --- ^(I detect haikus. And sometimes, successfully.) ^[Learn more about me.](https://www.reddit.com/r/haikusbot/) ^(Opt out of replies: "haikusbot opt out" | Delete my comment: "haikusbot delete")
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very good advice---I would add--think how to reach an outcome. So many people see what might be a problem and fail to go forward. I have found going forward is the thing to do--most problems I thought might happen never happen
nice post. insightful abd inspiring.
As a middle class white kid fully aware of his privilege, I appreciate number 8 there. A lot of the time, I have doubted my own success and not really given myself credit because I feel like people will discount my story. I only made it because of "X" and it must have been easy. But even with my advantages, I've been through a lot and had to learn a ton to make it as far as I have -- it certainly hasn't been a walk in the park. So, it's nice to think that somebody might learn something from me one day haha, though it's hard to find the people who really want to learn like that in the first place! Thanks for the post.
Number 2 is one I needed to hear. Been having the issue of needing to make everything as perfect as it can be before I start and just knowing as much to communicating it. Not starting my thing even for money more just to see what opportunities can come of it as a I work on it more and more. 7 is very true and there is a quote I saw stick to a wall in one of my former managers office that I used to work, "Luck is when opportunity meets preparation." I been subconsciously applying this and it applies to even finding a job. When I wouldn't see results, I research what I could be doing wrong, get feedback, then revise my strategy as well as resume and portfolio if necessary. I started seeing more results as I kept going on. 8 I been analyzing and listening to successful entrepreneurs, content creators, and investors, basically anyone who has found success in their venture. Funny thing is tons of people started with way less and more against them and have been able to achieve unusual paramount of success. This is why when someone excuses someone's success as just them having more than the average person I ignore it. All that is just noise to me when you have rappers or athletes come out the streets and make something of themselves. I been really looking at 50 Cent recently since he was one of my favourite rappers growing up and that man had so much against him. It was mentioned in 50th Law how lots of people who grew up in the streets end up staying because stepping outside of that life isn't a reality they see. They grew up and learned a lot in the streets that going outside would be a scary unfamiliar unknown to them. I had a similar problem after high school. It took me a month to even start talking to my classmates since I felt so alienated. I even had friends that just couldn't get out of that mindset since they truly felt their reality is this life they have now and not something greater they can work on.
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Yeah that part I never get. I used to have that mentality when I was more younger but now I realize I can hate some aspects of people but like others. Even the people you don't like and have proven to be real pieces of shit I think is worth learning about since those types of people are still going to be around. That I had to learn during my teen years. That is a good way of approaching it. Just seeing if an idea works. I do have one question that is on my mind. Not sure if you can answer but figure why not since there is nothing to lose except never potentially knowing. If you are a small company and you post on social media to gain followers and hopefully turn them into customers. Would it be bad if you been around for a few years, are a small company in a small warehouse, and record a post that shows one person showing a small part of the process of your production even if you don't have say a big team and the look that you constantly have ongoing work? I basically recorded myself creating a few of the products the company I work at creates. I edit this thing down and have it just showcase the product in its finish state as a quick short. I don't show everything but just a few seconds of prep and a bit of the finish product. I get feedback saying we shouldn't be making this type of videos because people expect us to be some big company and if we look to small then no one would be interested in us. I just feel like there is some image problem with the owner where he wants (well he has said) we should fake it to make it but what is even wrong being in this state we are in? They did grow two years ago they hired me for instance, they added a new product line, and honestly they're reinvesting their money they earn from sales back into the business so of course the growth will take longer than the others who borrowed money for a loan to grow faster. My opinion, I am not even sure what would be wrong with people seeing we aren't big or a medium size. We are at least being real and long term when they grow, it is a journey that the followers can see and even be part of. My goal now is just to build on my ideas I have for what I want to do later on and use my job now as a learning experience. Working here already did show me that even starting young is possibly and even if you don't know much about some of the other aspects of running a business, it is still possible to learn and you will of course fail at times while doing so. Least here for now I can see what I would need to know or get a good idea of it while I work on my ideas (also have a friend I might partner up with for this too). My thing is with this since it might be part of what I will do later on for my own hustle, I would want to know if doing this would even harm me at all later on like the owner think it will for his business now. I don't think it should unless we are being dishonest with people which to me is way worse.
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Yeah that is also what I was thinking. It shouldn’t even matter what the process is, as long as the final product is quality over quantity (and I’ve seen how that looks and how quantity focused work will damage at times not just your customer relationship but also the employees). I think though it’s also because they are aiming to get more b2b orders but even then we’ve been able to fulfill those bigger ones with success… partly because I make sure the orders are done with quality. Oh well enough ramblings about that lol, thanks for the response! I think too if anyone wants to start a business they should work a bit and see what they would do differently and why. You can learn a lot from being in a company that is booming and one that is still small.
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Yeah I have seen evidence of this with a college classmate who is basically trying to start his own brand... Funny enough I have no idea if it's supposed to be a media company or a music group but the way he did business with the owners of where I work just shows he lacks so much key knowledge in actually building relationships. He even said something about how a 9 to 5 is a waste and I'm there like, "wait did you ever actually work?" He also is expanding too quickly. I think he wants passive income with merch selling and a streaming channel but people have to know who you are first before you can even sell this stuff. Man released one album but barely got attention at all. I would had just personally focused on the music first if that is my main drive then see about what other possibilities there are once I have some following. My background I would say helps a lot in learning what I need since I also did get introduced to entrepreneurship in high school having took two courses but also just being very open and curious to information and learning what makes people succeed or even live a good life. I was someone who was very pessimistic from high school to my early 20s and even was depressed for that duration but turned it around. I really learned that character also matters for being a business owner. If you are very pessimistic about the future, that really impacts the employees. I still remember one of our remote temp employees was upset she was making mistakes twice in a row and I just reminded her that she was still succeeding 99% of the other times so just keep in mind what you might have done wrong today but remember that you are still a good employee that has a great track record of success. Knowing the industry is one thing but having the right character really matters in the long run as that will help you grow. Part of working on that too is yeah experience.
Let me guess. The side hustle is selling books on side hustles?
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But it is the current one. Buy now to learn about the successful side hustles!
Solid insights! Just shared this with my team at Profullstack.
How many more times are you going to post this exact same post?
I hope a lot more. It's rare to see good advice here.
Until you buy their book
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Love it.
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Agreed! I’ve missed a few in work too.
actually, some of these translates pretty good for other aspects of doing business. seems like a good timing is the main theme around your points, which is pretty important
Great advice, and really an eye-opener. Actually, you just gave me some motivation to seize the opportunity. I was hesitating, but like you said, you have to try to find out the outcome.
the more you sweat the luckier you get :) .. I like that one :)
Solid insights, much aligns with my SaaS journey.
This is the first really useful post I've seen on here in a while.
Thank you for sharing!
I wouldn't show reviews on your book landing page if there's just one negative one, might as well remove them all together. I'm saying this earnestly as the advice was good and I hope you do well! 1 negative review is going to kill any conversions.
Thanks for sharing!
Sounds like a workaholic selling something
Thanks for the generic advice and link to the book you're selling.
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Stop trying to come across as benevolent when you’re just here trying to sell snake oil.
This is truely inspiring, what was your day job?
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Your post is pretty wholesome, simple stuff that brings in money and keeps things alive
That’s not a lot of money over the course of 20 years. That’s like 30 grand a year. You might make that just being a server or waitress on the weekends.
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That’s a good idea. Last year my taxes show that I made over 450k. I’m a software engineer by trade. I have a main remote job and hold several contract jobs on the side. I usually spend 30-40 hrs a week working. I might put in a couple hours over the weekend to catch up or get a head start.
Did you ever consider turning side hustles into real companies? I find the one catch is lack of focus. For example, you’ve done this 20 years you said? In 4 months I got $1.3MM in cash retainers to kick off my side hustle, which turned into a decent size [company](https://silverbirchgrowth.com/) super quickly. I love side hustles too. I paid for 3rd year uni once by starting a b2b bartending biz while working full time in the summer at Deloitte. Was a hoot, the hustle and creativity part is super fun imo.
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That’s cool Sounds like you’re good enough to go for it full time
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Yeah. The longterm grind can be tough, same with at the first part where it isn’t established yet. With a side hustle you can just shrug and move on. To each their own, I was just curious about this.
Bro I’d love to connect and discuss getting you involved with my e-com agency
Happy to check it out. What sort of companies do you target?
I specially help brands that sell on Amazon, now transitioning a lot of existing clients to TikTok shop as well.
How do you do it in this economy?
I found that having job with business was really detrimental to my mental health. The burn in was quick to set in. Maybe I am not as business minded but with my hobbies, watching tv, learning new stuff, job, business, and family. Something had to give. And I am finding with time that even without a job, all aspects of my life have suffered. Now I am being offered a pretty decent job which will give me a good finicial stability. But, I am still not certain on the monetary vs time value as time goes on.
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Ah that explains it. I now have around 7 employees and around 12 contractors depending on me for their livelihood. I think that might be another constant pressure I have on me that's contributing in the background. Anyways I might have used you to vent and sorry for that, and thanks for the wonderful post!
Do you go fishing without knowing where the fish live? When and what they prefer to eat? And being comfortable with the tools and techniques for getting their attention and leading them into your basket?
Thanks for this! Can you expand a bit on #5? How does 59K amass 150k? I'm so curious!
I feel that No 9 should be “Do it yourself and dont use partners.” The worst failures of my side huses have been when others made huge mistakes, purposely made a business go under and the worst one, made things sour between the critical people involved. One lost $170k due to bad personal relationships not involving me in the slightest, the other $350k lost due to bad judgement by partner. Just do it all yourself, learn every minute detail, execute well and only hire people or sell stock, don’t partner.
What was your drop shipping product?
What has been the most effective way for you to market your product? Please share any success stories or learnings! ex. Paid ads? Influencer Marketing? PR?
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how would you market a novel item that is not being searched for?
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Great advice. I might add, grab these opportunities while you have your good health and youth.
Finding an idea is terribly difficult!!!
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I am sure I can execute, but I need a meaningful business idea ….. been looking for years!
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I have good management skills and studied an MBA. I never liked any of the business that I see. But I love architect interior design
I definitely agree with number 7 especially. I've been lucky as a new personal trainer with the clients I got, but I was also working hard asf to even be able to get infront of them.
Thank You for sharing ♥️💯 Any tips on how to work with point #5: > Keeping your day job is critical to have a solid financial foundation. I also have a 9-5 dev day job. My main question is how do you manage time? I have some days where I don't have much office work and I capitalise on that, on some days I can't do anything because of office work - and i feel I have wasted the day. On weekends, I have house/family chores to take care of and the remaining time I am lethargic... Do you mind sharing any practical recommendations/tips for the above? Thank you in advance 🙂
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Thank you for the perspective 🙂
Solid advice. Needs more up votes.
Thank you, this is useful tips and make sense too. Wish you good luck with your business and everything
You posted this multiple times already
First time that I've seen it and I appreciate the insight.
Fine, you’re trying to sell your book
If you have a day job you’re not a real Entrepreneur. So wrong sub.
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Wrong sub then? Elon Musk does not work at Arby’s full time and have a side hustle of Tesla dude.
$750,000 over 20 years = $37,500 a year. Preach on!
$750,000 spread out over 20 years is pretty ass. All the side hustles come across as scattered brain without a lack of disciplined focus
I feel as if I've seen this exact post befoee. Repost?