Ask HN: Side Hustle vs. Promotion? | Hacker News Reader

Ask HN: Side Hustle vs. Promotion?

I am trying to prioritise my time as effectively as possible. I have recently become really engrossed by the side-hustle/passive income success stories, not just because of the money they make but because of the learnings that are achieved in the course of setting up a 'home business'.

However, for a side-hustle to be successful, it seems to me that I need to create anywhere from 3-10 small projects before I happen upon the 'golden-child'.

From a monetary point of view (and effort prioritization pov), should I continue working on side-hustles/passive income, or is it more effective to work on increasing my salary via whatever method the market provides? (eg. internal promotion, competence building, job hopping etc.).

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A few things.

1. 3-10 small projects isn't necessary, good research and finding a problem worth solving is where you should spend your time first, then solve 1 problem (generally). A lot of engineers start with building projects instead of researching & talking to real potential clients on what to build. Start with learning first and you won't need to build 3-10 projects.

2. IMO Side hustle won't teach you much unless you are trying to build it into a real business. I have had lots of friends/co-workers who built a side project but didn't treat it as a business so they never really learned the great lessons that they could have.

3. You will likely make more money, at least in the near future, if you worked on your day job by getting promoted, new position etc.

My opinion if you are wanting to build something on the side and one day turn it into a real business, find a job you are very competent/comfortable at, that pays fair and where you aren't working much extra time. You'll have less daily stress and be more energized for you side hustle, plus you won't feel as challenged at the day job so you'll crave the challenge of building/learning etc. Also IMO, this is also most fair to the day job.

Why can’t you increase your marketable skills while also building a side business? The question might be what side project can you work on that could both increase the potential of a promotion or salary increase as well as setting up a little side income?

This is a good point - thanks!

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