Side Hustle Blueprint – Tips & Tools Page
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Expense Tracking Spreadsheet Template
Independent Contractor Agreement[/text_block]
Where to Find Training
If you decide that you want to upskill or need to get trained in the you want to do, there are a few places you can go to get that sorted quickly. This also depends on the skill set you’ve chosen.
Some ideas, such as an at-home hairdresser or legal consultant, require a bit of training and are not ideal options if you don’t already hold the skills in the first place. Keep it simple, and try to stick with what you know.
You can find further training on sites like:
Udemy— tons of free, discounted and cheap courses on anything under the sun
Skillshare— similar to Udemy, you’ll find even more course options here
Helpouts by Google— this is a great way to learn how to do something very cheaply with someone beaming into your home via a Google Hangout to teach you
Guides— this is a great online community of free and paid guides that will teach you anything you want to know, and it is all self-paced learning
Fiverr— while not normally a place to go to learn how to do something, there are people selling their courses on here, so if you’re boot-strapping, this is a good place to go to check out and see what’s available for what you want to learn
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Interviewing Tips
- Always dress professionally – regardless of whether this will be an audio or video chat. How you dress influences how you come across. Give yourself the best opportunity by dressing like you would for a ‘normal' job interview.
- If you're doing the call via audio only, stand up during the call. Don't stay seated. This allows you to stay focused, and you'll feel more confident. It also allows you to punctuate what you say with body movements, which come through well over audio.
- Smile during the interview, regardless of whether they can see you or not. It will come through in your voice and adds to your personality.
- Listen! Wait until the client finishes speaking before replying. Talking over a potential client NEVER turns out well.
- Come prepared with questions! Don't think you've got any? Ask something anyway. Always have at least 2 questions such as: “Would you like daily email updates on progress, or would an update a few days out from the deadline suffice?” or “Will you or someone else be available via Skype should I have questions during the project?” and “Skype chat is a great way to communicate and get immediate answers. Is this something you or your company would be willing to do during the project?”
- Follow up – most likely, the client will let you know when they will be back in touch. But it doesn't hurt to shoot off an email 10 to 15 minutes following your interview to let them know how much you're looking forward to working with them. And should they have any further questions, you'd be happy to answer them.
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Side Hustle Job Boards/Sites
Craigslist— this is a good place to find people locally that you don’t know. Use this option if you’re providing services like writing or hairdressing. In fact, you’ll probably find at least one job here no matter what service you provide
Elance— similar to oDesk, you need to have a complete profile, and it may cost you a subscription fee to access specific jobs
Dice— if you’re side hustle is tech related, this is a good option for you to start
Problogger.net— any type of writing gig can be found on the job board at Problogger with a focus on blogging and copywriting
Smashing Jobs— designers and programmers will have the most success on this job site
We Work Remotely— if you’re not quite ready to enter freelancing, there are some remote job options here, a good stepping stone if you just want to test the waters and leave your current job for more flexibility
Hire Writers— any writing gig can be found here, cheap but a good way to build your portfolio
Authentic Jobs— lots of different options here, both freelancing, moonlighting, and if you want a career change, there are also full-time options available[/text_block]
Resource Links
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Social Media Profiles
Website Options
Wix.com— you can set up a great website in under an hour without having to spend a dime on hosting or domain name registration
Weebly.com— the same as Wix, no money required to get yourself up and running
Portfoliobox— if your skill set is more on the creative side, this type of website might better suit your needs
Crevado— another alternative for your creative skills
WordPress.com— use this if you think you’ll turn your side gig into a full-time thing, as it can easily morph into a hosted website with your own domain name at the press of a few buttons
Other Links
OurDeal.com – contract set up for when dealing direct with clients
PayPal – receiving payments from overseas/local clients and invoicing clients
Dwolla – receive payments if you're based in the USA
Invoiceomatic – free, online invoice template
Freshbooks – cloud based accounting system
Nutcache – free, cloud based accounting system
Fiverr – great place for getting logos, banners etc designed for your business
Google Calendar – managing your time and client deadlines
Evernote – task management and client job management
Zapier – to connect apps together based on certain, predefined tasks
IFTTT – another app management program that will perform actions based on your predefined actions
Todoist – to-do list with project management capabilities
Trello – cloud based project management program