Chris Guillebeau

almost every hustle idea that’s worth pursuing shares three qualities. You want your idea to be feasible, profitable, and persuasive.

High-potential ideas have characteristics like these:

• A simple path to turn the idea into reality that you can describe in one sentence

• Something that you know how to do or can easily figure out

• Solves a problem or makes someone’s life easier in a specific way (and that they will be willing to pay for)

• Is low maintenance and easy to deliver without a ton of preparation or follow-up

• Will bring in income not just once but on a recurring basis

When considering different side hustle options, pass over ideas that are merely interesting. Choose high-potential ideas instead!

Try applying this mode of thinking wherever you go. Whenever you encounter groups of people, ask yourself What do these people need or want? And as you go through daily life, ask yourself, What opportunities are lying in wait for someone to profit from? In other words, look for ways to transform your ideas into valuable assets.

Drawing on your own logical intuition and a small amount of research, you should be able to ask and answer questions like these:
• What will you need to get started, and how much will it cost?
• What potential obstacles stand in the way of launching your idea?
• How hard will it be for you to get your first sale?
• Has anyone ever done something like this before?
• If everything goes right, what’s the best-case scenario?
• If everything goes wrong, what’s the worst-case scenario?

FEASIBILITY: The ability to begin turning the idea into action in a short period of time

PROFITABILITY: The potential to make money from this idea, also in a short period of time

PERSUASION: Not only is this a good idea, it’s a good idea now

To narrow our list even further, let’s add two more qualities to the mix:

EFFICIENCY: How quickly can this be executed?

MOTIVATION: How excited are you about this idea?

Time is important because you don’t have a lot of it—so you’ll want to choose an idea that is as efficient as possible. Second, motivation also matters. Your side hustle should be at least a little fun, if not a lot. You don’t want to burn out on it. You want it be something you look forward to, not something you dread or treat like a chore.

He calls this method “Start with one.” It’s built on the key principle that there is one person—whether you call it your avatar or your ideal customer—who desperately needs what you have to offer. Start thinking about that person, and focus entirely on serving them.

One day at the gym, she got to talking with a woman who asked what she did for a living. Shannon mentioned that she did IT work for a nonprofit and freelance web design on the side—despite not having any actual clients.