Building A Side Gig - Part One
Start With The End In Mind
A friend asked for ideas to build their consulting business.
You can apply what follows to your career and life. These tips go way beyond creating an additional income stream.
Side Gig Experts
Start by subscribing to Justin Welsh’s newsletter. He’s in the business of advising folks like you.
Justin does a good job of explaining how to get up and running in a low-cost manner.
The website (linked above) has 24 free articles you should read. Take notes and write down your answers to his questions.
Will You Enjoy Success?
The #1 thing you need to brainstorm about.
What do I like to do?
My answer has been the same for 20 years.1
Train.
Learn, then Write About It.
Spend Time With My Wife.
For any assignment, job or side gig to work…
It should not constrain what I want to do, or…
If it constrains my life then… the constraint should be worth it.
The goal is to be engaged not busy.
Can Simplification Get Me There?
Next up, what’s the life you want to live?
In the boom times of 2005-2008, I had a vision of the good life. It was heavily influenced by my time in finance…
Gigantic main home.
Second home in a pleasant winter climate.
Ski condo.
Thankfully, I avoided building an expensive infrastructure that takes time away from what I want to do…
Let’s change the question…
How do you want to spend your time?
Most everyone I know thinks they need more wealth. Therefore… they spend most of their time seeking wealth.
Wealth might be on your list.
That’s OK.
But make sure you know your list.
As well as what is NOT on your list.
When I considered what I did NOT want to spend my time on…
Working to make money to pay the carrying cost of assets I don’t care about.
Taking care of luxury assets for other people.
Being interrupted by “urgent” issues concerning assets I don’t care about.
Picking up the slack for people who are not making a fair contribution.
Circling back to my dream home and dream portfolio… I realized my dream life would make me miserable due to the constraints it would put on my life.
So I tallied up all my non-performing people, assets, habits… and turned them into:
Cash flow producing assets that don’t take time.
Increased free time.
A long way of saying you should watch out for…
Oversized Main House
Secondary Retirement/Vacation Home
Get Away Place - requires a flight to access, not convenient to maintain
Family Assets That Don’t Generate Cash Flow2
Every hour spent on admin (especially, taking care of assets and adults) is not available for something useful.
Train.
Learn, then Write About It.
Spend Time With My Wife.
Come back to your want-to-do list and make sure your dream portfolio supports that list.
Side Note => The retirement cottage or vacation location, will look different when you are older.
Can you walk to the grocery store?
What’s the door-to-door time for your most reliable adult child to reach you?
How about your best friends?
Where will you go if you get sick?
Simplify now.
You’ll save a multiple of what you can earn consulting.
You’ll free up time to do what you want.
Go directly to the life you want to lead.
The greatest return on time invested was understanding how I wanted to live.
Then simplifying my existing life to get there.
Part One was a warning to avoid the trap of thinking more cash flow is the answer. We need the right life structure before supplemental income will do anything other than support misdirected spending.
Create a life you don’t need to leave.
Part Two focuses on Niches, People and Problems.
Cultivate cheap habits.
This can be anything from boats, to RVs, to real estate held for adult children & grandkids.
Gordo, this piece comes at a pivotal point in my career trajectory. Wondering if you can share some guideposts or insights on how to quantitatively/qualitatively evaluate when the side gig becomes the main gig. I think about your finance career and how that pivoted to the world of endurance athletics.
As always, appreciate your continued transparency and guidance.