12 Side Hustles You Can Do From Anywhere
12 Side Hustles You Can Do From Anywhere
Are you thinking about retiring early? The good news is that you don’t have to stick to the typical 9-to-5 routine to make it happen. Things are changing, and there are more ways than ever to secure your financial future. In this article, we will talk about a new approach: saying goodbye to traditional work hours and exploring side gigs that could bring in extra money and speed up your journey to early retirement.
It’s time to shift how we see work, try out some different opportunities, and work towards a retirement that suits you. Let’s dive into the world of side hustles and see how they can change the game for your retirement plans.
Sell Trip Itineraries
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Sites like Thatch and Localities help you create and sell products like travel itineraries, maps, and recommendations. You can also sell them on marketplaces like Fiverr and Etsy. Why not share your experience?
Sell Spreadsheets
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If you’ve got a knack for Google Sheets or Excel, you can turn your spreadsheets into income. These can be business-oriented products like budgets and Gantt charts, but they can also be lifestyle products for consumer use, like these:
- Disney rides by average wait times
- Four-week meal planning chart with ingredients and recipes
- Planting guide for zone 7A
- Vacation budget planner
You can sell your spreadsheets with an e-commerce site or on Etsy.
Design Custom Products
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You don’t need to be a graphic design whiz to create custom stickers, t-shirts, and other products, you just need a catchy idea. You can use tools like Canva to create your designs from templates and then upload them to sites like Spreadshop, Printful, Amazon, and dozens more.
Manage Social Media
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Tons of companies and even other digital nomads need help with social media management. That can include brainstorming concepts, writing posts, scheduling campaigns, designing graphics with sites like Canva, and shooting and editing video for TikTok, YouTube, or Instagram with tools like CapCut or Adobe.
Use sites like Upwork, Freelancer, and Fiverr to promote your services, and be sure to list all the software programs you have experience with, including scheduling tools. If you’re offering writing, editing, or design, create a portfolio of your posts to showcase your skills.
Be a Freelancer
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Speaking of freelancing, there are a ton of roles that large and small companies like to hire on an as-needed basis. These include:
- Writing: Copywriting, technical writing, and more. As companies tinker with AI tools like ChatGPT, they even need people to enter prompts and to humanize and fact-check the writing.
- Virtual Assistance: Proofreading, scheduling appointments, answering emails, or making calls. Your fluency in English is often a plus.
- Graphic Design: Posters, flyers, social posts, and more. If you’re an illustrator, you can command even more money, but if you’ve got an eye for aesthetics and the right software tools, you can get started.
- Marketing: Designing, scheduling, and sending email campaigns, managing tools like Hubspot and Salesforce, or handling SEO or analytics projects.
Online Tutoring
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Both kids and adults need help in subjects like math, reading, science, history, test prep, languages, and coding. If you’ve got a knack for a school subject, you can use your skills to help someone else. You can register with dozens of sites to offer services, like TutorHunt, TutorMe, VarsityTutors, Tutors, Skooli, and Wyzant.
Quality Testing Websites, Apps, & Games
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Testing digital products is a fun job that will come naturally to many digital nomads. It’s basically clicking through a website, app, or game like a typical user and documenting any problems you find. If you like trying to break things, you’d make a great website tester! Register at sites like TesterUp, UserTesting, Testbirds, TryMata, Scrambly, and BetaTesting.
Online Coaching
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We all sometimes need a comforting voice to help us find direction, get started on a project, or give us advice when we’re in a dilemma. Online coaches help folks through any number of challenges, whether it’s making a decision about their career, choosing a school or major, finding a fitness or nutrition program, setting boundaries in a relationship, or creating better habits. There are a number of coaching platforms where you can launch your business, like Teachable and Upcoach.
Train AI
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Our new robot overlords have to learn somewhere, and you might as well make a living off of it. Remotasks offers gig work training chatbots and other AI tools. Maybe if you train them right, they’ll spare you in the revolution.
Content Creation
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If you’re creative, dedicated, and bold, consider turning your life experiences into content. More than mere influencing, content creators help inspire, educate, and lead others to live their fullest lives. The most successful creators try a lot of different content platforms and then build a full brand on what works for them, including:
- Blogs
- Social Media Posts
- Web Stories
- Online Courses
- Podcasts
- Long-form Videos
- Short-form Videos
Content creators make money through the platforms where they post, by recommending affiliate products and services, by selling ads, and by making user-generated content for brands.
Virtual Event Planning
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With more events happening online, there’s a need for people who can organize them smoothly. This could be anything from webinars to online conferences. If you’re good at organizing and communicating, you might consider becoming a virtual events coordinator.
You have a few options to get ready for a side hustle in event planning. One way is to go to college and get a degree in hospitality, or you can earn a certificate in event planning after high school. Some event planners start by working as an assistant to someone who plans events. Another path is to become a Certified Special Event Professional (CSEP) through the International Live Events Association. There are different routes, so you can pick what suits you best.
Online Surveys
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If you’re looking for an easy way to earn some extra cash, consider doing online surveys. Companies are willing to pay people to share their thoughts on different products and services. While it might not be a full-time job, taking surveys can be a simple and flexible side hustle.
Websites like Swagbucks and Survey Junkie connect you with opportunities to give your opinions on various topics. The pay for each survey might vary, but the money can add up over time. All you need is a computer or smartphone and some time to share your thoughts and make some additional money.
Take Your Time
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The most important thing about building a side hustle (or even a main hustle) is to be patient with yourself. It takes time to learn new software, acquire skills, build audiences, and get good at what you’re doing, but you will!
The best process is to have a long-term plan, give yourself grace, and have someone you can talk to when you hit a hurdle. Facebook groups and subreddits for other people in your hustle are a great start. Good luck and happy travels!
➤ Expatsi Guide to Expat Jobs, Digital Nomad Jobs, & Working Abroad
Want to Move to Europe? Here Are 16 In-Demand Jobs and How to Apply.
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Can you guess the most in-demand jobs in Europe? At least 15 countries reported shortages in these 16 fields, and there are more than four and a half million jobs listed on this portal.
➤ Want to Move to Europe? Here Are 16 In-Demand Jobs and How to Apply.
10 Countries Where You Can Retire With $2,000/Month
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If retiring in the U.S. feels unattainable, there are options for moving abroad that may be within your budget.
➤ 10 Countries Where You Can Retire With $2,000/Month
10 Countries Where You Can Retire With Just $150,000 in Savings
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The median amount that Gen Xers have saved for retirement is $40,000, with as few as seven years left before reaching the retirement age of 65. The good news is that with a little hard work, you can still find a comfortable retirement abroad.
➤ 10 Countries Where You Can Retire With Just $150,000 in Savings
Jen Barnett is the co-founder of Expatsi, a company that's helped thousands of Americans on their moving abroad journeys. She created the Expatsi Test, an assessment that recommends countries for aspiring emigrants based on lifestyle data. Jen has an MBA from Emory University with concentrations in marketing and innovation. Prior to Expatsi, she created Freshfully and Bottle & Bone—two businesses in the local food space—and spoke at TEDx on being brave. She lives in Mérida, Yucatán, along with her husband and co-founder Brett, pitbull mix Squiggy, and two rotten cats. How can she help you move abroad?
