The First Thing You Must Do If You Want To Start A Side Business

Written by: Carin Kilby Clark, Executive Contributor

Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.

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Did you know that there's a path to launching a side hustle business that is profitable and brings you fulfillment?

I haven't met any side hustlers yet that set out to create another job for themselves. But, if not created with the right foundation, that's exactly what can happen.

I know this from personal experience. I totally created another job for myself with my first side hustle business.

The mistakes I made so you don’t have to

My entrepreneurial journey began almost a decade ago with an administrative consultancy.

At that time, December 12, 2012, I had been in my field for 19 years. I completed my MBA the year before and was studying for my Masters in Project Management...and I worked alongside executives each day (still do). So, when various associates/friends started asking me for advice on managing the backend of their businesses (because they didn’t have a ‘clue’ how to do all that admin stuff), starting an administrative consultancy seemed like the most natural fit.

...and that's when Clue Consulting, LLC was born.

I bought the domain, registered with the SCC, put up a Facebook Page, joined Twitter, and started a website. A website I spent all night working on.

Obsessing over is more like it.

Once I felt like it was ready for the world, I sat back and waited for the world to notice. Build it and they will come, right? Yea, no. I'm sure you know that it doesn't quite work like that.

I researched how to get eyeballs on my website (research is my go-to in times of stress ‒ I want to know all the things lol). That led to starting a blog, posting on Twitter five times a day and Facebook three times a day.

All of those tactics have a place, just not the way I was doing it at the time (in my business's life) that I was doing it.

I was a few weeks in at this point and getting discouraged. The thought maybe this whole side hustle business thing isn't for me crossed my mind every minute of the day.

It was then that it occurred to me that the same entrepreneur friends that inspired me to start the business in the first place could be a great resource. And I hadn't even told them that I had this amazing solution for them yet.

So that was my next step. I sat down and wrote a letter to announce that my administrative consultancy existed and was open for business.

I then took pieces of what I wrote in that letter and shared it on my personal Facebook Profile... not my business page.

Low and behold, I got some responses. Emails were pouring in asking for more details, offering connections, and wanting to give my services a try.

I started working with a handful of clients and earned $3k by my sixth week in business.

That was awesome. I was so excited. I started doing the work. And, a few weeks in, I realized that I didn't actually like it.

I do administrative tasks for my full-time job and while I don't mind it, I certainly don't have a passion for it. So it's not something I want to come home and put in more hours doing.

Once I had this realization, I knew I had to make a change.

While creating posts for my business blog, I reignited a long-dormant passion for writing. So I finished up the work I was contracted for and then closed the doors to Clue Consulting almost as fast as they had opened.

This led to the first iteration of my professional blog which launched on April 15, 2013. I'm going to stop the storytelling here for now.

The first thing you must-do if you want to start a side business

For now, let's unpack the mistakes I made, how I decided to pivot so quickly, and the first thing you must do if you want to start a side business.

When I reflect on my business’s journey, I recognized that I never brainstormed. I never did a pros/cons list. I never really gave much thought at all to the type of business I truly wanted to start. I jumped head first into the default ‒ my skills, experience, and expertise.

That was a mistake.

Because you shouldn't choose a business idea on that criteria alone. That's why refining your business idea using my P4 framework is one of the first things we tackle in my Profit on Purpose coaching program.

To be successful in the short and long term, a profitable side hustle business foundation requires crystal clarity and intention when it comes to the type of business you want to start.

Now onto the pivot.

When I listened to myself ‒ my gut, intuition, inner wisdom ‒ I knew that there was no amount of time or space that would change how I felt about the administrative consultancy. I didn't want to invest any further into a brand and business that I felt was keeping me chained.⛓

The decision to pivot became a no-brainer at that point.

So what's the first thing you must do if you want to start a side hustle business? Get clear. Listen to yourself. More importantly, be honest with yourself.

Be. Honest. With. Yourself.

Self-reflection questions

Here are a few self-reflection questions to get you started:

• Why do you want to start this business?

• Is this business purely about earning money? Or do you want to make an impact, too? (it's perfectly OK either way!)

• What type of things do you enjoy so much that you could see yourself doing them for the rest of your life? No retirement.

When you have this type of clarity on your business idea, then it becomes so much easier to not only start but to also grow a profitable side business that fits your lifestyle and brings you fulfillment.

I hope this has been helpful for you! If you know anyone who might be interested in this article, please share it with them.

Follow me on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and visit my website for more info!

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Carin Kilby Clark, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine

Carin Kilby Clark, MBA is a leader in online business, digital marketing, and executive leadership. Her work in the lifestyle design industry has included the Amazon bestseller, Time Management Made Easy for Busy Moms, the forthcoming book Business Model Basics, and her popular former blog The Mommyhood Mentor®. She’s been featured on the topic of lifestyle in over 230 major media sites, such as ABC, Global Newsweek, CBS, Fox News, Los Angeles Business, NBC, CW, Reuters, Atlanta Business Chronicle, Thrive Global, The Huffington Post, and How To Learn. Carin is the CEO of Mixed Media Pros, the premiere marketing agency helping coaches, consultants, and experts increase sales with scalable digital products. She’s also the founder of Time to Thrive™, a lifestyle brand designed to nourish, uplift, and inspire entrepreneurial women in their pursuit of a more focused, intentional, and purposeful life. She writes, teaches online courses, and provides coaching programs on how to get unstuck and build a profitable business.