#60 - An Unconventional Guide To Finding A Sidepreneurship That’s Right For You

Show Notes

Our work gives us a sense of purpose, and a sense of self-worth. That’s why entrepreneurship is so important! In this episode Lori Vajda and Nola Boea compare and evaluate 3 types of entrepreneurial small business opportunities. Come take a listen and decide which type of sidepreneurship is right for you. ​

Thanks for Listening!
Ready to start your business or grow your personal brand? Schedule a free 20 min. consultation call now. 

Sticky Brand Lab is the place for professionals who want to take their knowledge, experience or ideas on the road less traveled. 

If you enjoyed this show, make sure to subscribe to the podcast so you’ll never miss an episode. Want to get to know us more? Find out more about us and our services at Sticky Brand Lab

We love hearing from you! Leave or speak your message here

If you haven’t already, please connect with us on Facebook! 

Would you like to be a featured guest or have your question, comment or review mentioned? Ask Muse!

Business success strategies are in the works. Come have a listen!

In This Episode You’ll Learn 

• With so many people discontent at their jobs, more people are exploring the transformative journey to entrepreneurship.
• Based on what we know about human desire, motivation, and job design, a sidepreneur could be the right entrepreneurial path for you.
• The difference between side gig, side hustle and side business and why you want to know them.
• Tips for quickly discovering which sidepreneur business path will help you create your best and most satisfying life.

​
Key points Nola and Lori are sharing in this episode:
(1:42:37) Why American Express decided to list sidepreneur in their annual report on Women Owned Businesses.  
(8:47:62) The definition of a side gig and why it often doesn’t lead you towards an entrepreneurial path.
(14:12.21) Why mindset is only part of the distinction between a side hustle and a side business and the benefit of each of these small businesses.
(17:50.90) Being really good at something doesn’t mean it’s your passion or purpose. How exploring a sidepreneur can help you discover the career path that’s right for you.
(20:33.42) What makes a side business more lucrative than a side hustle and three other advantages.

Resources 

You can subscribe to Lori and Nola's show, (we love you and want to make it easy) on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Audible, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, or wherever you listen to podcasts.

This episode was supported by: Be-YOU-nique

ConvertKit: Our #1 Favorite Email Marketing Platform 
(This is an affiliate link)​

Transcript

[00:00:00] Lori: While the term side-gig, side-hustle and side-business may sound interchangeable, they really aren't. Yes, all three are a way to generate extra income. However, not all roads to extra income require the same amount of commitment or expertise. Nor will all three allow you to test a business idea, provide a creative outlet or deliver the same level of personal and professional empowerment. Stick around listeners because today we're breaking down the difference between the side-gig, side-hustle and sidepreneur, in our continued effort to help you create your best and most satisfying life.

[00:00:37] Announcer: You're listening to the Sticky Brand Lab podcast, where time strapped professionals like you learn how to create a business you love in as little as three hours a week.

[00:00:50] Nola: Working a full-time day job while earning extra income on the side has given rise to the gig economy and the side-hustle. Now, there's a new entrepreneurial path gaining traction, specifically the sidepreneur. In fact, adult sidepreneurship has grown by 32%, particularly among female entrepreneurs. Today, we're exploring the appeal of these side opportunities to help you decide if a sidepreneurship could be the right type of business opportunity for you. But before we do, welcome to Sticky Brand Lab, the podcast where we share essential business tools, shortcuts, and advice from leading entrepreneurs, industry experts and our own real-world experience. So professional women, like you can mindfully launch your side-business quickly and without breaking the bank or feeling overwhelmed because the only thing more empowering than knowledge is being able to take confident, decisive action.

[00:01:42] Lori: For the first time, American Express in it's 2019 Annual Report on Women Owned Businesses in America, looked at sidepreneurship. Traditionally, holding down a full-time job while performing outside job duties was thought of as a part-time job or flexible work. And it's what gave rise to the side-gig and side-hustle. However, a new trend is booming among women and it's given rise to the sidepreneur, defined as an entrepreneur who works fewer than 20 hours per week on her own business. And with that in mind, hey Nola, what's been your experience with the side-gig side-hustle and sidepreneur?

[00:02:21] Nola: Well, I've had experience with all of the above. And I'm just going to give you some examples and then we can reflect back and you'll see why I put them each in each slot. So, I had a couple of side-gigs. This is a few decades ago now, but they were basically weekend jobs I got to pay down this credit card that I had racked up to go on this fantastic vacation. I took my mom to Holland Michigan. Cause I couldn't take her to all the way over to Holland, but you know.

[00:02:47] Lori: Holland, Michigan actually is very beautiful.

[00:02:49] Nola: Especially during the tulip festival. Yes, my God. So, I just got this credit, went all out, had this experience and then got a couple of part-time jobs. One working for this organization as a respite worker to help this mom take care of her autistic child. And that was just a weekend job. And then at nights on weekends, I got a job as a barista at a coffee house. So that was my side-gig. Then I had a couple of side-hustles over the years, and that was where I had my own thing going on from my home. My very first one was selling products through this legitimate multi-level marketing company. And later on, I did my own freelance copywriting as a side-hustle. Both of these I got because I really needed to supplement my income. And those met the criteria I had at the time. Later, I leveraged my expertise, uh, create a side-business with an eye toward potentially taking it full time. To do that. I turned my freelance work, which I had been doing as a side-hustle, and I expanded it into more of a creative and consulting agency. And with the mindset of a sidepreneur, I basically identified my niche, incorporated it, built a website, networked, and really got entrenched as possible in that industry. So, those are my examples.

[00:04:08] Lori: Cool. You know, I was thinking about that for myself as you were talking. And when I was in undergrad, I was working on a degree in psychology and my minor was in family. And so I thought, well, this would be a really good opportunity because I was planning to go to grad school. So I wanted to work with kids and families in particular. And couples. So my side-gig was actually teaching parent education classes. And I later did a side-gig as an adjunct professor at the college that I had graduated from while I was going and working on my master's degree. And then my side-gig that I actually did was after I left working for an interactive agency, we had a part-time actually my husband started a business as a paddleboard shop. So we were selling paddleboards and we were doing paddleboard lessons. And I saw the opportunity for a brand of t-shirts for paddleboard. Cause there was one for surfing. So I was going to do what later became GB Brand Partners. So I was doing copywriting as my side-hustle while I was going to launch this business. And what ended up happening is, I launched GB Brand Partners rather than the t-shirt business. I kind of kept that on the side for a little while.

[00:05:34] Nola: It's funny how that works.

[00:05:35] Lori: And then, another side-gig that I had while working a full-time job that I thought was going to turn into a business was as a dating coach. And it was really the dating coach that opened up the opportunity that later made me switch careers in general and get out of mental health and couples counseling. Even the dating coach and go into interactive agency and digital writing and digital marketing and everything that launched that career. And you could say now that my side-business is with you in Sticky Brand Lab, in our podcast, as we launch that.

[00:06:19] Nola: That's right. So, out of everything that you did, what would you say is your favorite? You know, when you were talking about all those things, all of a sudden, I started thinking of, oh, I did that, and I’d oh yeah, and I did that and, oh yeah, I did that. I was an adjunct professor as well, but you know what, out of all of them, I don't know if there's a correct answer, but I have to say being a barista at the coffee house, really rocked. It was a ma and pa. It was like a privately owned. It wasn't a chain. And it was in the Chicago area where there's a big blues scene. And I worked on weekends when they had music nights. So all these musicians would come in for the weekend and. Uh, they would actually work for tips. Normally they were highly paid, but they love this coffee shop. They love the crowd as well. And I would just hold up the basket now and then and tell people, okay, come on, everybody put your money in the basket. We want these people to come back and I'd pass the basket around and then I, and make introductions. And then I turn around and make these beautiful drinks with designs on the foam. And it was just so much fun. And the walls were full of books. And I like books. It was like a library party.

[00:07:29] Lori: I almost feel like the skill set that you developed in your barista, you're applying to our podcast.

[00:07:37] Nola: I had not thought about that. Well, speaking of the podcast, before we actually launch into our topic, how would you say we're hoping this episode will help our listeners?

[00:07:49] Lori: I think I kind of just alluded to that, right when you were talking about that connection between the barista and the Sticky Brand Lab podcast, and the reason for defining it is because it really helps you think about if your mindset is to go down their path of entrepreneurship, what road leads you there? What's the most direct route there rather than the circuitous road, which kind of more circular and spiral in its’ nature, which can kind of sometimes take you off track. Although I would definitely, wouldn't say that's a bad route because In doing each one, a side-gig and knowing what a side-gig is, a side-hustle and knowing what a side-hustle is, and a side-business and knowing what that is, I can see which skills impacted my future and what I'm doing today. So that was the reason for wanting to define this. And I think the other is, so much of the time, people use these things interchangeably. And entrepreneurship, and the entrepreneurial journey, is very unique. And that's something that a side-gig usually can't lead you to. So when you know what those distinctions are, and for right now, there are some clear and distinct differences between a side-gig and a side-hustle, and understanding those can help you determine which one will help you reach your professional, entrepreneurial, or even your financial goals.

[00:09:24] Nola: That's a good point. So, let's start with the side-gig definition. A side-gig is more often the second or third or fourth job you do and get paid for doing. And usually the second employer, that side-gig employer is aware that you have a full-time job and they're willing to work around it. They're willing to be flexible so that doesn't conflict. Another key aspect of a gig is that you may not likely be passionate about it. It may not be something you want to, you know, focus your whole career on and you may not even need to because the whole goal of a side-gig is to provide you with money, to put towards something such as, you know, there's a common perception of waitresses working toward their acting career. And that happens a lot, I guess, especially on the west coast. Their waitressing is a side-gig and their career focus is acting. Other purposes of a side-gig may include like paying down that vacation credit card, like I was talking about. Or, saving for a vacation or making some large purchase gifts or saving up for that house down payment, or even hurrying up and packing more into your retirement plan. So those are basically the primary distinctions of a side-gig. So Lori, if someone was thinking that maybe one day they would start a side-hustle or a side-business, do you think that's working a side-gig? Could actually lead to starting the side-hustle or even the side-business? And explain your answer.

[00:10:55] Lori: Okay. I will. Well, you know, it's not a clear black and white, I think a side-gig has the potential. But I would say when I think about the side-gigs that I've done, they really don't lead to a side-hustle or a side-business. However, saying that, here's the caveat. I do think like when I was in school and I did parent education classes because I was focused on going to grad school later and I wanted to get my feet wet, it really helped me figure out the things that I wanted to do. More importantly, it helped me figure out what I didn't want to do.

[00:11:35] Nola: Right.

[00:11:35] Lori: Like when I was an adjunct professor, I thought maybe I would go on and education would be what I would do. So you can kind of see that overlap in teaching parents, education classes, and as an adjunct professor. And as I got into it, I realized it didn't bring me the same kind of joy that, later, the side-hustle brought me. So when I started my side-hustle as a dating coach, that opened up a world to me that led me in a career change. So I think more often than not a gig is a gig. It's something you do in addition to, but not likely to lead you down that path. In my opinion. Do you think differently?

[00:12:19] Nola: I think you're probably right in that that's the most common. I will say that when I was having such a blast as a barista, as my weekend job on top of my full-time job, I actually started thinking, gee, I wish I had my own coffee house. And I would do it this way, and then I would do it that way and we'd have so much fun. And I did research it. And while I was doing the research, I also was asked to come in and take inventory, which really sucked. And then, and then, then the shop owner was, I guess I came in on a bad day and she was talking about what a drag it was and how she really wanted to get out of it. So I guess I got to experience the glamorous parts and I may have, if I had the resources at the time may have actually jumped into something, but who knows if I actually would have liked it or not. But you're right. I think that generally you're getting a side-gig because it's the easiest way to get money at the time.

[00:13:13] Lori: So just to recap, a side-gig you're usually hired by an employer and they're paying you. As the barista, you were paid by the owners. Usually you have a primary job or you're doing something full-time such as being a student. So some really good examples, a common examples to the side-gig are, rideshare, like Uber and Lyft or Uber Eats, a holiday work, you'll often see people get on with FedEx or someplace during the holiday season. Even a virtual assistant or doing outreach customer service in the service industry, pet-sitter, even a tutor could be a side-gig. Those are all examples. So before we discuss the side hustle, Nola. Do you think a side-hustle is just another way of saying a side-business? After all, they can be two forms of working for yourself.

[00:14:12] Nola: You know, when I first started thinking about that, or if you had asked me back in the day, I would have said, well, of course it's a side-business, of course. I mean, literally, I'm sending out invoices and I'm collecting dollars for my time, products, I mean, that is a business. Right? And I'm doing it on the side. So literally it is a side-business. But when you think about it in comparison to side-hustle, I find that like, for instance, when I was working that side-hustle as a freelancer and eventually grew it into side-business, the distinction was mindset. I mean, hustling for side income for the end goal of, you know, meaning the bills or making sure I can pay off that credit card, it's a different mindset than founding your own part-time company for a long-term and for more than the money. Maybe perhaps for more personal or professional fulfillment. So before I go any further, let me just define exactly where we see the side-hustle. What is the definition of a side-hustle? Think of it as a side job that you're actually interested in and even maybe even passionate about. And usually it's something that you're doing for yourself. You work for yourself as a freelancer, although you're still keeping that primary position and you may have even established your own company and brand. I had to have some kind of a website in order to sell my freelance side-hustle, for instance.

[00:15:36] Lori: Ditto. I did that with dating made simple. That was my coaching. So I had a website. I had that. So agreed. You can have a brand, even though it is a side-hustle.

[00:15:50] Nola: Absolutely. And you will still retain your primary full-time job with every intention to do so, but you're self-employed or you work on contract and you are paid directly by your customer or client. So it's like a level in of ownership, an example, again, could be the freelance worker, teacher, tutor, social media assistant, virtual assistant, even selling your crafts on Etsy. Those are all examples of side-hustles that you do where you're the one engaging in that business.

[00:16:22] Lori: Agreed. And even there's some overlap, you know, like we talked about the virtual assistant, so you could be hired as a virtual assistant as a gig, or you could establish yourself as an independent virtual assistant.

[00:16:35] Nola: Exactly. Exactly.

[00:16:38] Lori: So what are some of the benefits, then, would you say, of starting a side-hustle versus starting a side-business?

[00:16:46] Nola: Sure. I would say that side-hustles, again, they're great for supplementing your income. And even though you work for yourself, you're usually not motivated by a long-term goal or vision, but as you might expect, the two are very similar. Their differences can greatly depend on whether or not you have a business goal that you're trying to achieve, or whether you're working for more disposable income. For example, like I had said in doing that freelancing work, it was a really effective side-hustle for bringing in an extra income stream. And when my mindset shifted that, Hey, you know what, I could really get into this and shifted into more of a entrepreneurial mindset. That's when it expanded into a side-business and I was really willing to give it more than eight hours a weekend. I was really willing to give it all I got.  Now. I've said what's the benefit of starting a side-hustle. What would you say is the appeal of starting a side-business?

[00:17:48] Lori: So, you know, while you were talking about the side-hustle, I was thinking about the thing that came to mind, which was, you can be really good at something and that doesn't mean it's your passion or your purpose. And often when your career starts to hit kind of that wall for you internally, that's when you know, you're really good at something, but it's not fulfilling that joy, that passion, that excitement that fuels you or that fueled you in the beginning. And a side-business, it has a learning curve to it, but you're so motivated and excited to learn it that you don't think of it as a challenge in a negative way, you think of it as an excitement. And that excitement permeates other areas of your life. I think when you think of it as a business, there's a different intention and a different motivation behind it. You're actually seeing the long-term potential. Now whether that long-term potential is to keep it as a stream of income versus grow it into my full-time business. Either way. It fits your lifestyle and the goals that you have for yourself. That's how I see it. So for many women in particular, it gives you a sense of control over what's happening in your life. Both individually, personally and professionally, as well as financially. The numbers for starting small businesses have really grown during the pandemic and it's given women a sense of opportunity and autonomy in their work and control over how they spend their time. So that's really leading to what that definition of a side-business is versus a side-hustle. You can see that there are overlaps, but they really take different paths and journeys.  And so for clarity sake, I'm going to use some definitions here for distinguishing those two. So one significant difference between the side-hustle and a side-business as mentioned is the long-term goal. With a side-hustle, your goals are more immediate. Your focus is on what's right in front of you. So it's getting the client, getting the income. Your vision isn't forecasting. It's very limited to the here and now in the present focus and customer focus. Whereas with your business, yes, you are immediate focused. You're establishing yourself as a business and trying to get a customer, but you're also seeing the long-term potential for growth. So your side-business can be far more lucrative because it gives you a control over pricing. You realize you're bringing an expertise to the table and you can establish yourself as a subject matter expert, and you can own your price, whether that's for a package, for a consultation, for a service, for a product. You're creating your business with a desire and a commitment to follow your purpose in life, or maybe because it stirs up passion, something that your career isn't giving you. And I think the other definition for distinguishing the two is, with your sidepreneurship, it's really a desire to create flexibility for yourself or for the people that you hire. And you're looking at this business as something that's sustainable over the long-term and you're looking for a way to fit it into the lifestyle that you want to create yourself for yourself. So when you think about it from that standpoint, not only does entrepreneurship present a path for women to close the pay gap and rise in leadership on their terms. Running your own company gives you the opportunity to collaborate with or hire ambitious like-minded women and gives you the opportunity to foster a new generation of leadership roles for the future.

[00:22:10] Nola: That is a great definition of a side-business and the kind of mindset that goes behind that. And it's true that, you know, it's not like there are demarcation lines. There is overlap. There is some gray area, but there's also some key differences. And again, just to clarify, a side-hustle, just to differentiate, it's designed to be an additional source of income. Or, perhaps even a way to pursue a hobby. And you might even have the goal of trying to grow your hobby into an additional income stream. And usually a side-hustle is about using whatever extra time you have available after your main job, which is your primary focus. Although starting a side-business definitely requires more investment than a side-hustle. You'll likely see a larger return. If you create a successful business plan and putting the time, energy and money required.

[00:23:04] Lori: Agreed. Totally, totally agreed. And your sense of excitement originates within that.

[00:23:11] Nola: Absolutely.

[00:23:11] Lori: So we hope listeners, this has been a very helpful and informative episode for you and that it makes all the difference in you getting started on your side-business so you can create your best and most exciting life. Not sure how to create a side-business? Want help with your branding? Contact us at stickybrandlab.com/contact. We'd be happy to help you. If you found the information shared here today helpful, let us know by posting here where you're listening or on our Facebook page. This way we can learn more about your business, your goals, ideas as well as send you love, encouragement, and congratulate you on the amazing and courageous decision you've made.

[00:23:54] Nola: Be sure to come back next Tuesday and every Tuesday for another informative, inspiring and motivating episode. And remember action creates results. So tap into your desire to create a business and brand you love by taking 1% action every day. Small steps, big effects.

[00:24:12] Lori: Do you have questions about creating a personal brand, side-hustle or small business? Sign up for one of our clarity sessions. For more information, contact us at stickybrandlab.com/contact.

[OUT-TAKE]
[00:24:28] Nola: I wouldn't even say it was lucrative. Let me rephrase that. Cause it was not lucrative.
​
[00:24:38] Lori: It was an extra income stream, but not a lucrative one.