10 Side Hustles I Wish I Knew About Sooner

While there are quite a few side hustles I wish I could forget, there are quite a few I wish I knew about sooner.

In this post, you’ll learn:

• Side hustle I wish I knew about sooner
• How to get started today
• Benefits of each side hustle

All of these jobs are accessible to new people in the field. Search any job board like Indeed, Upwork, FlexJobs and you’ll find job openings for all of these.

Recommended reading: Stop Falling For These 10 Side Hustles

Follow our step-by-step guide to start side hustling today.

Here’s a list of side hustles I wish I had known about sooner.

1. Graphic design

If you want to work remotely and set your hours, I recommend getting into graphic design. You can do a quick search on Upwork, Indeed, and FlexJobs and find hundreds of new job listings for people needed in graphic design.

Do you know nothing about graphic design? No problem, I didn’t either. I taught myself by signing up with Canva’s free account and using their free Design School. That’s just one of the many online free graphic design courses out there.

Ways you can make money with graphic design:

• Offer freelancing services to clients who need designs for their business
• Sell your graphic designs as digital products on Creative Market, Etsy, or Envato Market
• Partner with print-on-demand platforms like Redbubble, Society6, or Printful
• Social media graphics and content creation

Tip: Create a portfolio of graphic designs, including things like Pinterest pins, Facebook graphics, Instagram posts, stories, infographics, etc. Canva has tons of free templates you can use and make your own.

2. Social media management

Working as a social media manager is a fun way to get creative and help grow a brand online. You can find jobs for social media management on Upwork, as well as Indeed and FlexJobs.

What if you’re someone with no experience? You could offer to do someone’s social media management for free and work as an intern for a short while to build your portfolio and skills. 

Some of your tasks may include:

• Content creation and scheduling posts
• Responding to comments or messages
• Analyze data from social media platforms to see what’s working

These are just a few examples of the diverse job opportunities available in social media management. Depending on your skills, interests, and career goals, you can explore different paths.

3. Writing

One of the top ways I make money is through freelance writing, and it’s some of my highest-paid work. Working as a freelance writer is a great idea because you get to work a flexible schedule and there are no overhead costs. All you need is a computer.

There are writing jobs for all types of content including fiction stories, non-fiction writing, poetry, and blogging sites. You can write for blogs, and publications, and even self-publish your books or eBooks.

Freelance writing has the potential to generate a scalable income over time, making it a great way to work from home and make a good living.

If you’re brand new to freelance writing, I recommend this freelance writing course.

4. Making printables

Making and selling printables on Etsy is a creative side hustle that requires minimal overhead costs. Once you’ve created the printable, it can be sold again and again, essentially becoming passive income.

There’s also a free course on getting started selling printables. This side hustle is awesome because of the passive income potential and global reach of Etsy. Also, selling digital products requires zero inventory management, storage, or shipping logistics. 

You can create all kinds of printables including wall art, educational resources, planners, and so much more.

5. Virtual assistants

Working as a Virtual Assistant is something I’ve done for several years now and it pays well. I’m always finding new jobs pop up on Indeed and Upwork for simple tasks that pay up to $40/hour.

This job pays well because it’s usually listed by the owner of a company that needs to offload tasks and wants to hire someone who’s going to do the job well.  

You can search for virtual assistant jobs by searching “virtual assistant” or “executive assistant” on Indeed, FlexJobs, and Upwork. Apply for the jobs using a professional resume and cover letter (premade templates available in Canva for free). 

6. Mystery shopping

Working as a mystery shopper is a fun way to try out new products and services. My sister used to be a mystery shopper and we’d get to go to restaurants and shop for free. This side hustle offers flexibility and you can choose which assignments that fit your schedule and preferences. 

BestMark is one of the most popular mystery shopper websites and connects you with mystery shopping jobs. You can sign up for jobs with perks like free meals, products, services, and discounts. This is a fun job if you like to try out new things and give reviews.

As a mystery shopper, your tasks may include:

• Trying out restaurants and visiting retail stores
• Helping companies improve their customer service

7. Creating digital products

Creating digital products is a great way to make money from your computer and you can even use free software like Canva to do this. You can sell digital products on sites like Etsy, Creative Market, Gumroad, Sellfy, and many others. 

You can create things like:

• eBooks
• Online courses
• Templates
• Digital art and illustrations
• Stock images
• WordPress themes

8. Transcription

Working as a transcriptionist includes tasks like converting spoken audio or video recordings to text. Transcription helps improve accessibility and inclusivity by providing written text versions of spoken context. 

You can find transcriptionist jobs on sites like Upwork or Fiverr or apply to work at reputable transcription companies like TranscribeMe, GoTranscirpt, Scribie, and Speechpad.

To become a transcriptionist, practice typing and improving your speed and accuracy. Familiarize yourself with transcription guidelines and sign up for a free beginner transcription course. This course will teach you how to create a neat transcript, correct use of punctuation, and software to use, and even give you samples to transcribe yourself. 

9. Dog business

If you’re like me and love dogs, there are so many things you can do in this area including:

• Walking, boarding, and sitting
• Daycare
• Training
• Pet photography
• Grooming
• Pet transportation
• Making and selling dog treats
• Start a pet blog
• Start a social media account focused on your pet

If I didn’t already have four dogs, I feel like I’d pivot into the dog side hustle area, especially since there’s so much growth available in this area. Check out this guy making six-figure walking dogs! Not easy work, but he does it well.

10. Investing

Investing is something I desperately wish I’d learned when I was a kid.

Especially when you consider $1,000 at age 18 with a 9% annual interest rate would grow to approximately $709,000 by the time you’re 65. That is ALMOST enough for the average person, depending on your spending.

Key takeaways

• You don’t need a ton of experience to start side hustles
• Google can teach you almost anything and help you build your skills from scratch
• Side hustles can generate a good chunk of income

Are you ready to start a side hustle?

Recommended reading:

• How Much Money I Make In One Week With Side Hustles
• Stop Falling For These 10 Side Hustles
• How To Make $1,000 A Week