There is, in my opinion, no shame in the hustle. We all land on times when we need a little extra cash to get through the day. For me personally, it was creating a wedding photography business that netted over $200K over the course of 10 years in profits. However, what if we don’t have all the time in the world to create a separate business? I polled my Instagram followers for quick and easy side hustle ideas (that go beyond food delivery) that you could consider either right now, or when it is safer. As hundreds of responses poured in, many were extremely similar. However, I did link to a few that were quite unique!
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Sell your own stuff – social distance approved
Go around your home and find things you don’t need, or even, things you don’t need right NOW but are high in demand (@captain_fi for example sold gym equipment at a premium that he would buy back later). In the US, consider Facebook, Mercari, Poshmark, Ebay, Craigslist, and local platforms!
To do so in COVID-19 times, you can consider contact-less delivery (I’ve bought baby stuff and used garages as a means of transferring items) and also cleaning the products before you put it in the mail.
If healthy, sell your plasma
I first saw this idea posted by @labcoatsandliabilities maybe years ago when I first began following her. The payment is typically by your weight, and there are limits on how often you can do it.
Buy broken stuff, fix it, and sell it for a profit – social distance approved
This one is a bit more involved, but if you’re handy, your skills really come in hand. You can flip things that are on sale a lot – some people often offload furniture in desperation when moving and leave it on the curb, for example (happens a lot in cities such as New York City!). @minimalishmom does exactly this – buy, refinish, and flip furniture
Gig economy / virtual teaching – social distance approved
Uber, Doordash, Grubhub, these are all gigs. Also consider great gigs such as VIPKid (@familylivingintentionally , @danleylom all recommend it) and/or Gogokid (thanks @teacheralma.online!) if you are certified to teach and you’d be teaching Chinese students virtually, or you can start your own online tutoring service using just a video camera!
Career help – social distance approved
As you’ve probably already seen from my current content, lots of people are looking for help with their careers! You can make money editing people’s resumes, editing their LinkedIn, or even help with applications for grants for example.
Surveys, consumer research, focus groups, field agent – some are social distance approved
Online surveys are a quick way to make a few dollars here and there. The REAL money (and I used to run these) are in in-person focus groups. If you are willing, able, opinionated, and fit the focus group criteria, I have sometimes seen people make $200 from a single focus group of an hour or so. It does help if you are a consumer (for example, I strike out all the time because I don’t buy things), and you have to be comfortable sharing your opinions and sometimes, even being filmed. Field Agent is an app through which you can run small consumer research tasks such as taking a picture or buying something in a store. @budgetingintheburbs ran a lot of Field Agent gigs to side hustle while she ran errands and @the_manic_millennial says that she can sometimes earn $100/hr with surveys and studies
House and home errands – some are social distance approved
Do you have time, an able body, and can do housework? There is house sitting, house cleaning, pet sitting, pet walking, just to name a few ideas! Babysitting is always a common and quick way to make money, though difficult during Covid times. One follower told me that they once made over $1,000 over Thanksgiving by watching dogs for 8 families. For people who have left their homes, you could consider also offering repair and fixer-upper services or landscaping.
Become a call center rep – social distance approved
Nowadays more and more call centers are allowing you to work from the comfort of your own home, so this was a great idea mentioned by a few.
Sell your art – social distance approved
Currently a lot of people who sew are making masks. Are you a stock photographer? Take photographs of ordinary items and make money from the royalty. One follower suggested a very interesting idea of selling photos of your freshly manicured feet on stock photography websites. Apparently these photos are hot in demand from salons! @imjustglynnis makes business graphics. @breakingbaddebt sells commissions on deviantart.
Do something related to your career – the definition of a side hustle
I see a lot of teachers pick up tutoring shifts. There are nurses who pick up triage and flu clinics. Someone in real estate mentioned that they also do admin work for other real estate investors. If you’re a notary and title agent you can get extra money by doing notary via online signing companies. Many therapists, if they work for an institution, also side hustle with their own practices.
Bartender, server
There’s a reason this is a very classic and popular way to side hustle. The hours are best in the evenings and weekends, and if you are particularly personable and great with customer service and land a job at a higher-end restaurant, you could be making a lot on tips alone!
Events
Catering companies are a HUGE source of gig jobs. You typically don’t need a lot of experience being a server or helping with back of the kitchen. Many events occur during evenings and weekends which make this perfect for those with full time day jobs. Brunch shifts are also known as less popular within the food and beverage industry.
Write – social distance approved
Magazines, blogs, and even corporates, farm out their writing to ghost writers. You could earn $50 – 100 per article. You can also consider being a transcriber.
Where to find gigs
Mechanical turk was recommended by @levankill who submitted a KILLER list of side hustles.
Rover for pet sitting.
The gigs section of your local Craigslist page (has a lot of catering, for example, and where I got started with photography!)
Upwork is a huge website of all kinds of side hustle needs that you can apply for
Taskrabbit for a variety of tasks
ProSapient, GLG, Guidepoint Global, Third Bridge – if you’re senior in your field, you could become an expert that investors, consulting firms, and banks, could call as they do market research. My company uses these networks and I’ve seen experts charge up to over $1,000 an hour. Requires deep knowledge. This is particularly lucrative for people in medicine, academia, and people with senior operating knowledge at private sector companies.
