What If It Does Work Out

Here are some other top hacks I’ve learned from fellow entrepreneur friends:

When on the phone, walk around, tidy up, empty the fridge, fold your laundry.

Turn off all social media notifications on your phone and laptop.

Plan the next day’s outfit on your commute home.

When waiting for someone (in person or on the phone), write a to-do list or respond to old emails and texts.

Do squats while drying your hair/brushing your teeth.

Go with a friend to get a manicure or go for a walk, doubling up your pampering and fitness to-dos with friendship catch-ups.

Catch up on motivational podcasts while running errands such as dry cleaning or going to the bank, to the pharmacy, or out on a jog!

Skype loved ones while you are cooking.

Obey the two-minute rule: if you can do it in two minutes, do it on the spot! This prevents a mammoth to-do list buildup.

Every Sunday night, spend four minutes planning the week ahead.

And yes, you will feel tired sometimes. That’s OK! Power through it by focusing on your end goal. My friend Lauren Grant, owner of her own party planning company, The Grant Access, says, “Finding the energy to side hustle is the hardest part! It’s literally a second full-

Here is my time-tested formula that I use with new clients who come to me, eager to start their own side gig but not sure where to start. It’s called the Skill Distiller Formula.

The Three-Step Formula to Uncover Your Skills (That Will Pay the Bills!)

I created the Skill Distiller Formula to help my clients understand the strengths they already have inside of them. It will uncover the skills that will form the basis of your side hustle strategy using only three simple steps.

1.Think of three big problems you’ve solved or successes you’ve had.

These don’t have to be work-related. And they don’t have to be impressive by anyone else’s standards. Just brainstorm three things that you’re proud to have achieved or three problems you’re proud to have solved.

Over to you

Write all your concerns down. But don’t stop there. Keep asking yourself after each one: And then what? And then what? Keep writing. I promise it won’t end up with you toothless, living under a bridge.

As my friend Sean Behr taught me, “The American game of baseball provides a great lesson in failure and rejection. The best baseball players in the world fail 70 percent of the time when hitting a baseball. When a baseball player fails there is no ongoing gloom; there is no long sense of failure—only another opportunity to hit in the future. I think that’s a good analogy for those starting their own business.”

There are two lessons here:

1.You have to be resourceful. Who do you know within your network (including a few degrees of separation) that could be a great connection for you on your entrepreneurial journey?

2.Important people are more approachable than you realize. Because people rarely approach them.

My “colleague” Arianna really hooked me up. There are opportunities everywhere if you open your eyes and look. Who might be a possible mentor? The side hustle really puts you in that positive, go-getting, magnetic zone. With a negative, closed attitude this massive opportunity would never have been seized. And it almost wasn’t.

“Whenever you have a problem, repeat over and over, ‘All is well. Everything is working out for my highest good. Out of this situation only good will come and I am safe.’ This simple affirmation will work miracles in your life.”

–Louise Hay, motivational speaker, founder of Hay House

actually showing you what you need to do next. After all, the sensation is often no different from excitement once we reframe it. We’ll deal with ways to move past that fear in the next chapter, but for now, let’s pause to respect and honor our fear as a vital and necessary part of our growth. Think of five times you were afraid of an event (maybe public speaking, asking for a raise, confronting a friend or relative about something) and after the event you realized you didn’t have to worry so much.

How did things work out?

Are you glad you did it?

What does this reveal to you about what you can do next?

Over to you

Think of two instances where fear has prevented you from doing something that might have been harmful. What was the outcome? You can be grateful to your fear for this.

Think of three times in your life where you were afraid to do something that you didn’t feel ready to do but found the courage and pushed through anyway. What were the positive things that came out of each of these three experiences?

Consider one big, current fear. Identify whether it is a harmful fear or an ego-based fear—having enough or being enough. If it is a legitimate fear—something that will result in serious harm—thank your fear for keeping you safe. If it is the more likely fear there only to protect your ego from risk, you can say, “Thanks, fear. I can take it from here.”

Consider how you can view your current fear as an opportunity to learn, grow, and unearth more of your inner power. That feeling stirring within you is something good waiting to happen. Your fear is

found the website of a New York City life coach and asked if I could take her to lunch to learn a bit about her business. I did the same with another coach. I loved meeting them. They opened up my eyes. Their work was really meaningful to them. And they did it full time! They ran their own schedule (freedom!) and helped people

The lesson? You are in the driver’s seat of your life. Your fear is not. Fear will always accompany you, no matter how much you could pay a Park Avenue