24 Things You Can Do TODAY To Create YOUR Power Hustle!

What do you think of when you hear the word “hustle?” Many people see hustling in a negative light. They think that a person who hustles is someone who is dishonest, fast-talking and conniving. What if I told you that the word hustle was first used in the 1800s to describe a person moving aggressively towards success? It defines a person who is clear about their goal to succeed and actively moving towards that goal! Is that you? Are you a hustler? Do you have a clear financial goal outlined that you are committed to achieving? 

The times have changed! Gone are the days where working for a company for 20 years is rewarded with a retirement and gold watch. Now companies will often “downsize” more seasoned employees to be able to hire two or three for the salary of that one. Social Security is a joke and even if it’s around when you are older, do you really want to live off $797 per month? I don’t think you can do very much traveling and enjoying retirement with that. There’s much to complain about, but complaining doesn’t change anything. It’s time for us to get passionate, educated and moving towards creating financial independence!

Psalm 112- 1-3 tells us that the man who fears God and honors his commandments will be blessed with wealth and riches in his home. Why are so many Christians broke? I believe it’s because many believed riches would just happen – like fall out the sky. While I’m fully convinced that God can have someone walk up to me and give me a million dollars, I’m also convinced I can make my own million (and when the other person shows up, I’ll have 2 million)!

Almost 18 months ago I decided I needed to become a hustler (remember that’s a person moving aggressively towards success). My husband has a good job and we live fairly well, but that wasn’t enough for me. I got passionate about leaving a legacy of wealth for my children. I want them to go to school without student loans and to help them purchase their first homes and invest in their business and our current income didn’t make that a reality! I wanted to be a millionaire overnight, but it doesn’t work that way. It takes a plan, a mind shift and ACTION to create wealth so I started with a goal that stretched me but didn’t overwhelm me! My goal was to make an additional $40,000 without having to work 9-5. I wasn’t sure where to start so I decided to try several different avenues to accomplish my goal. By the end of 12 months I had accomplished my goal! It wasn’t easy. I had to be willing to be committed to the outcome but flexible in my approach.

One thing I learned is “opportunity is everywhere.” The more I looked for opportunities to make money the more I found. Not every opportunity I found was for me, but I found enough things that I loved to do until I was able to accomplish my goals. Now over a year in the process I’m learning how to monetize my passion and get paid for doing what I love. I believe everyone can do it!

Even if your goal isn’t to be an entrepreneur, I encourage you to find additional streams of income because the last several years have proved trying for many people. When gas goes up so does everything else and most employers aren’t giving raises to match the speed of gas prices, but you still have options!

Below I’ve listed 24 things you can do TODAY…every item on the list was actually tested (by my friends, clients or myself) so I know they work!

1.     Have a garage sale – I know a couple of people who paid their mortgage doing this – Most people have a bunch of stuff they don’t use. I bet you do too!

2.     Have a private sale, inviting people expressed appreciation for your fashion sense – I had a friend make $300 selling costume jewelry she wasn’t wearing – You can sell shoes, clothes, art, etc. This is an upscale garage sale!

3.     Babysit – you know at least one couple that would like to go out tonight without the kids!

4.     Sell books on Amazon – Especially textbooks – I made $100 in less than 2 hours (check out www.amazon.com for more information)

5.     Sell your gently used items to a consignment store – One of my clients made $150 at one store selling items she was no longer wearing.

6.     Braid or Twist hair (this service is usually in high demand especially if you are GOOD!)

7.     Use your truck to help people move items or pick up items from a store

8.     Use your truck to haul off unwanted items

9.     Sell your cds/dvds – A lot of stores will purchase these items if they are in good condition

10. Sell cookies, cakes or cakepops or other desserts – People love sweets!

11. Sell plates, especially soul food – People love good food and a lot of us hate to cook

12. Prepare someone’s taxes (only if you are qualified)

13. Donate plasma (that would be LAST for me)

14. Provide rides for people who need to run errands (this could become a fulltime business – there is a great need for transportation for the elderly)

15. Do alterations for people – both tall and short people are always looking for a good tailor.

16. Design a t-shirt and sell it (have your customers pre-order and pay) – This is where my company “Conquer Tees was born” check out .www.shunstrickland.com for a few cute and empowering t-shirts!

17. Clean homes

18. Organize closets and/other spaces

19. Sell your gold (make sure you shop around for the best price)

20. Make and sell gift baskets

21. Sell your old phones and electronics

22. Sell handmade items – scarves, quilts, jewelry

23. Be a personal trainer – works better if you are in shape

24. Tutor

I’m sure there are many more ways to make money. Maybe you can’t do all of these, but you can do at least 1! Doing one is a great start! The more you train yourself to look for opportunities to make money outside of a traditional 9-5, the more opportunities you will see. With the money you earn, you could pay off a debt, take a vacation or my favorite – use the money to invest in something that will make even more money. The purpose of this list is to help you see – you have options! You aren’t stuck! You don’t have to wait on your boss to give you a raise or the market to improve. You can improve your own economy, starting TODAY!


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Progress or Excuses: The difference between winners & losers

Progress is defined as “onward movement” to a destination. Have you ever noticed that we expect progress from others? If you have kids, you expect to see the way they clean their room or the kitchen improve. We don’t expect to tell them the same things at 16 that we had to tell them at 6. Who wants to wake a 14 year old up to go to be bathroom to avoid an accident? Not one of us. We also demand progress from those around us. We expect our spouses, friends and co-workers to improve. We don’t want to keep talking about the same issue. We expect our places of employment to make progress. Please don’t pay us the same wages as when we started. When people and situations don’t make progress we get frustrated. Have you ever talked to your spouse about telling your kids the same thing repeatedly? Or talked to your “good” girlfriend about how tired you are of dealing with the same situation with your hubby? I bet you have! It’s easy to see when others need to make progress, but do you require progress from yourself?

I attended four parent teacher conferences this week and I noticed that all of the teachers talked about growth and progress. Each teacher explained where my child had started, where he or she was currently and what they were expected to do to make “satisfactory” progress. Throughout our childhood, our parents, teachers and coaches set benchmarks for us. They tell us what’s expected and how to measure if we’re improving, but once we’re out of school and organized sports, how do we continue to measure our progress? Do we even care? Are we content to live year in and year out dealing with the same problems? How do you tell whether you are growing? What is your measuring stick? Are you making "satisfactory" progress?

There’s an old saying, “If you plan to fail, you fail to plan.” I must admit it took me a little time to accept this as a truth for my life. By nature, I’m kind of a fly by the seat of my pants girl…if you know what I mean! So the thought of actually writing down a plan seemed a little restrictive to me. But after being self reflective, I noticed I wasn’t making any substantial progress in certain areas of my life. The more I read about planning and goal setting, the more clearly I could see that my failure to plan was the reason I was stagnant in those areas.

These questions are examples that will help you locate where you are and clarify where you want to go.

1. What do I want my life to look like in 1 year, including health, wealth, relationships and spiritual walk?

 

2. Where am I now in these areas?

3. What will it take for me to get from where I am currently to where I want to be?

 

4. What will I gain if I accomplish these goals?

 

5. What will I lose if I don’t accomplish these goals?

It’s not enough to want progress; we need strategic steps to get there because nothing just happens! Change doesn’t have to take forever, but it must be purposeful. It must be a conscious decision to consistently make quality choices that agree with our goals. Developing a written plan that I revisit often helps me remember why I’m not eating chocolate cake or why I’m not going to the mall with my girlfriends because a compelling why, helps me stay focused and progressing.

If you are ready to move forward then , don’t just think about it…INK it! Put it in writing! 

Without a written vision to guide your daily decision making you’ll struggle to make progress and