The Realities of Starting a Side Hustle from Nothing

When you scroll through social media, it seems like everyone is launching side hustles and making thousands of dollars overnight. Shoot, even I have recommended side hustles on this blog and made it seem easy. From print-on-demand shops to affiliate marketing to digital products, it can feel like there's a gold rush happening—and you're late.

But here’s the truth: starting a side hustle from nothing is hard. Really hard.

You Probably (Definitely) Won’t Make Money Right Away

One of the biggest misconceptions is that once you start, the money starts flowing. In reality, you might work for weeks or even months without seeing a single dollar. You’ll spend time researching, experimenting, building, and tweaking—often with nothing to show for it at first.

If you're starting with zero audience, zero capital, and zero experience, your side hustle is going to grow slowly. That doesn’t mean it won’t grow—it just means you’ll need to be patient and persistent. This is usually when most people give up and decide "that was just a scam".

You Will Second-Guess Yourself Constantly

There will be moments when you wonder if you’re wasting your time (and why you're wasting your time). When your friends are going out or relaxing and you're working on a logo, writing a blog post, or filming a video that gets 7 views, it’s easy to feel like quitting. Especially if people around you are also telling you it's pointless.

Imposter syndrome is real. And without immediate results, you’ll question whether you’re “cut out” for it. (Spoiler: you are, but it won’t feel like it at the time.)

It Can Be Mentally Exhausting

Balancing a full-time job, family responsibilities, and then pouring energy into a side hustle late at night or early in the morning is no joke. Burnout is a real risk, especially if you’re chasing unrealistic expectations. Take it from someone who has tried almost every side hustle imaginable.. trying and trying and making no progress or very little progress is exhausting. Trying to convince people around you that you WILL make money with this one day... is exhausting.

You’ll need to find a pace that’s sustainable for you. Some days you’ll make progress. Other days you’ll need rest. That’s normal.

You Might Feel Isolated

When you’re working alone on something no one else understands, it can feel lonely. Your partner might not get why you're spending hours designing a product that hasn't made a single sale. Even if they're the most supportive partner... they will still eventually get to the point where they question why you're putting so much time and effort into something they don't understand the value in. Your friends might nod supportively, but they won't fully relate.

Finding community—even if it's online—is a game-changer. Just being able to say,

“This is hard,” and hear “Same here,” makes a difference.

You'll Learn So Much (Even If You “Fail”)

Even if your first (or third) side hustle doesn’t take off, the process will teach you skills you can’t learn from a course or a YouTube video. You’ll become more resourceful, more disciplined, and more resilient. After trying and failing several side hustles, I can honestly say that it has made me so much more determined to find the right one and make it work. No matter what.

You’ll learn what works for you. And that experience compounds.

It Can Be Deeply Rewarding

This isn’t all doom and gloom. There’s something incredibly empowering about building something from scratch. That first email subscriber. That first $10 sale. That first blog post someone shares.

They feel like a win because they are. They’re proof that you started with nothing—and now you have something. Even if it's just money for a coffee... that's something! It shows this can work.

Final Thoughts

Starting a side hustle from nothing isn’t a quick fix or a guaranteed income stream. It’s a long game. One that requires grit, humility, and a willingness to keep showing up even when nothing is happening. A willingness to learn and accept critical feedback.

But it’s also a chance to reclaim your time, your creativity, and maybe, one day, your freedom. The goal, for me at least, is to live a life that isn't restricted by what we can "afford". I want to be able to give my kids the life I never had. I want to provide, just like my husband does at his 9-5, if not more so. I want financial freedom, travel freedom, and freedom with my time. Don't you?

And if you’re in the middle of it—just know: you’re not behind. You’re just building quietly. And that’s okay.