How to Find the Perfect Side Hustle - Nick Loper Interview

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Aug 07, 2024

How to Find the Perfect Side Hustle - Nick Loper Interview

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Nowadays, when financial independence and flexibility are of great value, side hustles have stopped being just a trend and have become a lifeline for many people. Nick Loper is at the forefront of this movement. He is the driving force behind Side Hustle Nation and hosts The Side Hustle Show.

In this interview, Nick shares the inspiration behind his thriving community, offers practical advice for aspiring side hustlers, and reflects on how this journey has transformed his professional and personal life. Through his insights, we learn the mechanics of building a side hustle and the mindset and strategies that can turn a simple idea into a sustainable income stream.

In this article

The inspiration behind Side Hustle Nation

Joy Wallet: What inspired you to start Side Hustle Nation?

Nick: I'd seen firsthand how empowering a side hustle could be — it was what let me quit my corporate job! I wanted to spread the word about this lower-risk brand of entrepreneurship.

Resources for aspiring entrepreneurs

Joy Wallet: For someone who wants to start a side hustle, what can they learn and get to know from your website and The Side Hustle Show?

Nick: We share tons of side hustle ideas and case studies from side hustle entrepreneurs on how they built their businesses. It's very much a "Choose Your Own Adventure" type of resource where you can gather ideas and inspiration and learn from people who've gone before you.

Overcoming challenges

Joy Wallet: What are common challenges people face when starting a side hustle?

Nick: The most common challenges are:

Time — "There's never enough time!"
Money — "I don't have any money to start a business!"
Ideas — "I don't know what business to start!"
Marketing — "I need more customers!"

All of these are real challenges, but you can overcome them.

Aligning passion with profit

Joy Wallet: How can someone determine which side hustle is right for them (for example, if you have a certain passion for something or a hobby)?

Nick: If you're between several options, try the "excited" test: which one excites you the most? Go for that one first.

Another consideration is the "what if it works" test. Project out three to five years of doing the side hustle. Assuming it does well, is that a win for you, or are you still working 60-hour weeks? We tend to focus on the downside risks, but we want to make sure the path you're pursuing is worthwhile on the upside as well.

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The power of networking

Joy Wallet: What role does networking play in building a successful side hustle?

Nick: It depends on what niche or market you're going into, but building a strong network will never hurt. Starting with a service business, it's important that other people know who you serve and how you help them so they can potentially refer you to others.

For me, starting the podcast was the best accidental networking I've ever done. All of a sudden, I had a commitment to meet someone new every week, and that snowballed into so many new relationships and introductions. It's been really powerful and gratifying.

Evolving landscape

Joy Wallet: How has the side hustle landscape changed over the years?

Nick: The landscape has certainly evolved and will continue to change in the future. One of the biggest shifts is moving away from personally-branded blogs and websites. The content people used to blog about is now posted to social media instead, with website content now geared almost exclusively toward SEO.

We've also seen the rise of dozens of peer-to-peer platforms and apps that make it easier than ever to start a "plug and play" side hustle offering handyman work, delivery gigs, ridesharing, dog walking, tutoring, and tons of other services.

Balancing act

Joy Wallet: What advice do you have for someone balancing a full-time job and a side hustle?

Nick: The last thing you need is a second job you come to dread, so maintaining a balance is essential. The real key is to keep consistent with your side hustle and block off the time on your calendar dedicated to it.

There are never enough hours in the day or the week, so you have to be really diligent about where your limited hours are going. It comes down to prioritization.

Essential tools and resources

Joy Wallet: What tools or resources do you recommend for new side hustlers?

Nick: Resources like Side Hustle Nation or The Side Hustle Show are a gateway for new side hustlers. It allows you to get a sense of what opportunities are out there. From there, you can do deeper dives on the topics that interest you by finding someone who specializes in those areas.

The online presence

Joy Wallet: How important is having an online presence for a side hustle?

Nick: If someone Googles you and the results turn up blank, do you even exist? For customer-facing side hustles, having even a simple brochure-style site is really important from a trust and credibility-building standpoint.

But beyond that, you might find other marketing channels far more effective with less effort. We've heard from The Side Hustle Show guests who do almost no online marketing and just rely on local word of mouth and have still built their business to $100,000+ per year.

Don't use a fully functional website and elaborate social media presence as an excuse to procrastinate on doing the real work.

Lessons learned

Joy Wallet: What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learned from your business?

Nick: It's all just an experiment. Test things out, see what works, and try again. Lather, rinse, repeat.

Resilience in business

Joy Wallet: How do you handle failure or setbacks in business?

Nick: It's super frustrating when projects don't work out the way you hoped, but as long as you've kept your downside risks low, it's usually not life-threatening. I try to chalk those setbacks up as learning experiences and move forward. It's really all you can do.

Emerging trends

Joy Wallet: What trends do you see emerging in the side hustle space (for example, we have seen an AI surge in the last few years)?

Nick: AI is certainly making an impact in almost every industry, which is equal parts exciting and scary. (Should I have just fed these questions into Chat GPT and had it answer them for me?)

One significant shift across all social media is toward short-form videos, and there’s an algorithm shift away from a traditional "follower" model. The creators and brands who are great at making compelling short-form content will do really well because the platforms are now showing that content to a much broader audience than just their existing followers.

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Cash back shopping online & in-store.
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Entertainment that pays.
From web browser games to our popular Swagbucks Daily Trivia app, you can get paid to play games. Create or discover the latest short videos on Swagit.

JoyWallet Special: $20 registration bonus when you signup on iOS or Android.

Personal impact

Joy Wallet: What impact has Side Hustle Nation had on your life?

Nick: I'm so incredibly grateful to be able to do what I do. I mean, deconstructing different business ideas and learning and sharing about creative ways to make extra money — it's a dream job.

The biggest benefits have been a flexible schedule for family life and building a strong financial foundation.

Finding joy

Joy Wallet: What’s one thing that brings you the most joy in life?

Nick: Watching my kids (currently six and eight) soak up the world, learn, and grow every day. Parenting is the biggest challenge but also the most rewarding when your kids start asking meaningful questions and thinking about things differently.

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