Starting a Side Hustle in 5 Steps

Step 1: Start. it’s the Hardest Step

In today’s day and age, if you want to gain wealth and have optionality, you must create. In order to create, you must dream, imagine, and think of what brings you joy. In the beginning, there will be nothing but thoughts, ideas, and dreams.

To go from nothing to something is alchemy.

There will always be a beginning, and there will always be an end.

All great dynasties, empires, companies, organizations, products, and people adhere to this life cycle.

But you must still begin. 

You must have the courage to start. You must take the first great (and hardest) step. Take a leap of faith.

In my final year of medical residency, I took a leap of faith in the new year 1999. I registered my business name, Hostglobal.com, incorporated the company in Nevada and launched my website within three months.

I got my first client, who paid $300 per month. then, I got another one at $3,000 per month and then a third at $20,000 per month. All of a sudden, I was making more in one month than I was in a year as a medical resident.

Step 2: Own a Niche

Back then, I had many ideas (I still do)—some great and many bad—but I had to choose one. I had to make one idea work.

I wanted to build a Yellow Pages online, but that idea was too big and too broad.

I didn't have the time, resources, or skill set to go big, so I niched down to one category: Web Hosting (because I believed every business would eventually have a website and therefore need a web host).

Hostglobal.com was born when I registered the domain, created the website, and populated it with web hosting companies. I built a system to get reviews and ratings on each web host and then had these web hosting companies sponsor Hostglobal each month, pulling in $25,000 USD per month.

I started with a web hosting directory.

Amazon started with books.

Netflix started with mail-order DVDs.

Apple started with a personal computer.

Meta (Facebook) started as a networking site for Harvard students.

What's your niche?

Step 3: Have a Singular Clear Vision

What is your vision? 

What do you see as your end destination?

What is the success metric that measures your progress to your vision?

When you have clarity and can clearly see your idea's destination, it is much easier to navigate all the obstacles and resistance you will encounter as you embark on your side hustle journey.

After all, life is a journey full of obstacles that either strengthen or weaken one's resolve and spirit.

Envision your destination and articulate your vision. Simplify it to its core so you can express it in one paragraph, then one sentence and possibly in a few words.

All great companies, movies, shows, buildings, and relationships start with a person with a dream, then an idea, followed by thoughts on how to express that idea. Then, formulating and creating and building word by word, brick by brick, scene by scene, and editing it over and over again until it felt just right—until it worked just right.

Bringing an idea to life takes enormous energy in the form of thought and effort. But there are many ideas in your heart waiting to be born. Don't let them reside in the womb of your heart too long, for time passes impatiently.

Here are some of the world's most famous ideas; imagine if they had never been brought to life.

FedEx: Connecting the World Responsibly and Reliably (Overnight delivery)

Google: Organize and Make Accessible Information (Search)

Tesla: Accelerate the World's Transition to Sustainable Energy (Electric Vehicles)

Amazon: To Be Earth's Most Customer-Centric (Everything store)

Ford: Build the Best Vehicles Possible (Cars)

Southwest Airlines: Affordable Travel with Exceptional Service (Cheap travel)

IKEA: Create a Better Everyday Life (Cheap Furniture)

Costco: Deliver the Best Value Always (Cheap goods)

Netflix: Entertainment On Demand, Everywhere (Entertainment)

Disney: Make People Happy Through Magic (Happiness)

Step 4: Have an Executable Plan

What is your plan?
Can you execute it?
In what timeframe?
What are your constraints?
How will you overcome them?
What are your top 3 risks?

Design your plan in three to five steps, and start on the first step to make your idea real.

Your plans will change as you learn, encounter obstacles, meet new people, and get feedback. Adjust your plans. This process is called the path to product/market fit. You try to fit your product/service with your dream customers like a jigsaw puzzle.

This past year, I wanted our church lands to launch a tea lights festival. I had no actual position, only influence. We decided to go for it in October and launch in November. We had no product and very little money but many volunteers. I put together a website, 123festivals.com. I used artist renditions to show people what the experience would be like until we could make it real. I promised an amazing dining and guest experience, asking people to pay upfront, including a 20% tip.

Five days before launch day, the Parks Board told us that our customers could not use their section of the road to access our property. What?!

Fortunately, our property is on a waterfront, so we were able to charter boats to transport our guests to our festival by water. However, this created significant logistical and financial nightmares.

It was one of the most challenging things I've dealt with in business due to the extreme time constraints, obstacles from the Parks Board, and lack of expert resources. Ultimately, we chartered 1,800 guests over seven weekends.

Here are images from the first rough mockup by me.

Read the rest of my story at Ham.com along with my life lessons then and now (only a few minutes more but I hope will help you in your life)