3 Reasons Why I Picked Up a Side Hustle Even Though I Don’t ‘Need’ the Extra Money

Hello everyone! It’s no secret that this year has been one full of ups and downs. COVID-19 continues to spread throughout the world, thousands of people have lost their jobs, numerous students have to learn from home, etc. This year has truly been unique and life changing for so many people. For the past few weeks I’ve been truly feeling thankful to still have my job, have my health, and be in a position to help others.

Two months ago I picked up a side hustle working part-time for a company that helps train and place underrepresented groups into tech jobs in sales and customer success. I myself went through the program and two years later was happy to help out in a small way to support a company that I believe in.

But, to be honest, I don’t really ‘need’ the money. Of course, it is nice to work on new projects and invest extra money into my brokerage accounts but I’ve been working only one job for the last 1.5 years until recently taking on a side hustle. I wanted to go into why I made this decision.

I Have Extra Time on My Hands

I of course have this blog to work on and my normal hobbies. But, to be honest, a lot of the activities that I normally like to do such as go to the movie theater, see live concerts and shows, travel to new destinations, and others have been stopped due to COVID-19.

I had so many trips planned and would normally go to see a movie, concert, or live event at least twice a month. But, that no longer exists. There were no spur of the moment events to check out, no happy hours, nada! This left plenty of time on my hands to fill. I decided to fill that extra time with a side hustle to take my mind off of all of the things that I currently ‘can’t do’.

I Wanted to Work on a Project Outside of my 9-5 Job

I love my full time job. I work with a great, all remote team of people and enjoy the software that I sell. I work in education technology and feel great knowing that I have a positive impact on the lives of teachers and students across the country.

Since we do work with schools, our sales cycle tends to be seasonal and align with the school calendars and holidays. Our low season begins around October and runs until around March. During these times my calendar is less busy, we focus on training new sales reps, and concentrate on planning for the next ‘busy’ season from June-Septemer for the upcoming school year.

Now is the perfect time for me to take on a side hustle for a few hours in the morning and afternoon that is different from my full time job. It allows me to use other parts of my brain and use my experience to help contribute to the other company.

I Love the Company’s Mission & Ethos

It’s no secret that tech seems to have a huge deficit of Black, Indigenous, Asian, and Latinx employees. Especially when it comes to positions of leadership. Often they are left out of the networks and not sourced into positions with SaaS companies and thousands of bright and talented talent are overlooked or completely invisible.

The company that I am side hustling for is dedicated to helping these underrepresented groups in tech gain the network, knowledge, and confidence to work in sales or customer success. They want to bridge that gap one person at a time. I myself went through the program and know how much it has helped change my life. If you are interested in learning more, you can check out SV Academy here and learn about the incredible work that they do.

In conclusion I’m thankful to be able to take on a side hustle at this current time and work for a company that allows me to be creative and positively impact the careers and lives of others.

Do you have a side hustle? If so, feel free to share your experience by commenting below.