Here’s how it works.

Have you ever tried to get healthier and lose weight, but lost motivation before reaching your goals?

Maybe you’ve gone as far as joining a gym or buying expensive exercise equipment—only for them to go unused after your initial commitment.

But what if you could lose weight and make money doing it? Would that be enough motivation to stick with your exercise and diet regimen?

With HealthyWage, you can do just that. HealthyWage is an online company that uses cash prizes (up to $10,000) to make weight loss and fitness more fun and effective.

Side Hustle Nation Approved

HealthyWage

4.1

Bet on yourself to hit your weight loss goal, and win an average of $1300 when you achieve it.

Pros:

• Get paid to build healthy habits
• Set your own goals and timeline

Cons:

• You'll lose money if you don't hit your goal
• Prize may not be motivating enough

Calculate Your Prize

How Does HealthyWage Work?

HealthyWage is easy to use, and follows a 7-step process:

1. Calculate Your Prize
2. Set Your Weight Loss Goal and Timeline
3. Make Your Bet
4. Verify Your Starting Weight
5. Lose the Weight (that’s the hard part!)
6. Verify Your Results
7. Win Money (woohoo!)

Use the Prize Calculator

Start with HealthyWage’s free Prize Calculator to pick your weight loss goal and see how much you can win.

Important Note: Your minimum weight loss goal must be at least 10% of your body weight. For example, a 200 pound person would have to lose at least 20 pounds.

Your goal will include how many pounds you want to lose as well as the time frame (in months) in which you will lose them.

You also will set an amount that you want to bet per month. As you adjust the variables, you’ll notice the prize range goes up and down based on your input.

There’s no commitment yet, so play around with the calculator until you’re comfortable with the weight loss goal and prize range.

Pro Tip: Enter a dollar amount that hurts a little (or a lot). If you put an amount that’s meaningless to you, you’ll be more likely to throw in the towel when the going gets tough.

Enter Your Stats

Next, you’ll be taken through several screens where you’ll enter specific data about yourself, including:

• Gender
• Height
• Current Weight (which will be verified later — no padding the scale!)
• Waist Size

See Your Prize Amount

In order to see your prize amount, which is based on the date you entered, you’ll need to enter an email address and create a password.

To test this out, I entered a weight loss goal of 30 pounds in 9 months with a $50 bet monthly. My prize amount ended up being $500, or an 11% return on my “investment”.

HealthyWage uses “a proprietary algorithm” to calculate prizes so prizes might be different for 2 people entering similar information. I played around with different factors but it always presented a similar prize for me.

Just to be clear on how they’re calculating this, I’m putting in $450 ($50 x 9 months), and getting out $500 when I hit my goal — the $50 gain.

To me, that seems like a lot of cash to put at risk for just a $50 gain, but your numbers might look different and there’s the motivation factor of not losing it too.

(The average prize for goal achievers is $1,331.)

Your prize winnings amount is set during this initial setup of your individual challenge, up to $10,000.

The next step is to make your bet, lose the weight, and get paid.

Making Your HealthyWage Bet

Once you’ve received your prize amount, you decide whether you want to place a bet. If you do, you will enter your credit card information.

You can choose to pay all at once or make monthly payments.

Verifying Your Weight

This is one point I was really curious about. What’s to stop people from entering an inflated “starting weight” and cashing in when the pounds miraculously melt away?

The way HealthyWage combats this is by requiring users to verify your initial weight before the challenge starts. (You’ll also do this at the end of the challenge to see if you hit your goal.)

There are two ways to do this:

1. Download the HealthyWage mobile app (iOS | Android) and have one of their “referees” remotely witness your weigh-in.
2. Make a short weigh-in video and upload it securely to the HealthyWage website.

The only equipment you need to use HealthyWage is a smartphone and a scale. There are no other “official” weigh-ins during the process, but you can use the app to track your progress.

Finish your Challenge

Your HealthyWage challenge concludes on the appointed date given. To win the prize, you just need to achieve your weight loss goal in the timeframe you set up.

As mentioned earlier, your weight will be verified at the conclusion of the challenge. If you hit your goal, you’ll earn the prize.

If not, you lose the money you wagered on yourself.

The Science Behind HealthyWage

Academic research at Harvard, Carnegie Mellon, and the University of Pennsylvania found that:

• Cash rewards can increase the effectiveness of weight loss programs.
• People are more likely to take action when their own money is at risk.

HealthyWage relies on two scientific rules about human behavior: incentives and loss aversion. In simpler terms, the company uses both a “carrot” and a “stick” to motivate participants.

Participants have “skin in the game” by having to wager real money on their weight loss success.

(Though tons of people sign up for gym memberships that they never use so in a sense they are losing money as well.)

There’s something about wagering money, though, that motivates people differently.

In fact, a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that people who have a financial incentive to lose weight are five times more likely to reach their weight loss goals than people with no money at stake.

And it seems to be working — last year HealthyWage participants combined to drop over 850,000 pounds!

Those are great results in combating the obesity epidemic.

How Do I Get Paid by HealthyWage?

Upon winning a challenge, you will earn HW points, valued at one dollar each. HW points will be added to your account by the evening of your prize announcement.

With your HW points, you can do a few things:

1. Request a payout. (yes!!)
2. Use HW Points to join a new challenge.
3. Use HW Points to pay installments on a current challenge (this requires emailing HealthyWage’s accounting department to set up).

HealthyWage pays challenge winners by paper check or PayPal.

According to their website, there is a processing fee for a paper check of $7.00. HealthyWage does not apply a fee for PayPal payouts, but standard PayPal fees of 2.9% + $0.30 may apply.

Employer Programs

HealthyWage offers programs for companies and organizations looking to implement employee wellness programs.

This can potentially help businesses decrease healthcare costs and reduce the number of sick days.

4 Other Ways to Make Money with HealthyWage: Challenges and Referrals

Besides their HealthyWager Individual Weight Loss Bet, HealthyWage offers people other ways to make money. This is done through various individual and team challenges.

You can participate in up to 10 challenges at the same time — a chance to potentially double or triple dip your earning power for the same weight loss.

1. Jackpot Challenges

Available as an individual or team challenge, with Jackpot challenges your money goes into a pot. If you (or your team with the team challenge) loses 6% of your body weight at the end of the challenge, you win the pot.

2. Step Challenge

Connect your step counting device to participate in a step challenge. You can compete as an Individual or as part of a team to try to achieve specific step goals to earn a share of the pot.

3. $10,000 Team Challenge

Teams of 5 compete to lose the greatest percentage of weight to win cash prizes. The top prize is $10,000.

4. Refer Your Friends

It’s easier to make lifestyle changes if your friends are on the same journey. For every friend you refer to make their own HealthyWager, you’ll each earn a $40 prize boost.

That means if you can find 5 friends to join you, you could add $200 to your winnings.

Is HealthyWage Legit?

HealthyWage is legit. They’ve been around since 2009 and have paid out over $52 million to tens of thousands of winners. Participants have lost a collective 10 million pounds!

Still, some people ask if HealthyWage is an ethical company or a scam. They’re turned off by the fact that it resembles gambling.

On the surface, HealthyWage seems to profit off the fact that the majority of people simply don’t stick with diets or fitness plans.

Co-founder David Roddenberry says that HealthyWage “success rates vary, with between 25% and 40% of participants actually winning their bets.”

“If 100% of the people lost the weight,” he added, “We would be absolutely thrilled.” (Though I’m sure that would hurt the cash flow of the company!)

HealthyWage also makes money from sponsorships, corporate partnerships, and various fees—not just from users who fail to hit their health goals.

Although HealthyWage’s model seems like a gamble, participants have control of the outcome. They decide if they will put in the work and stick with their health plan.

The program is set up to offer higher prize payouts to people with large amounts of weight to lose, which can be hard to accomplish.

HealthyWage Success Stories

My favorite section of the HealthyWage site is their success stories section. That’s where you’ll find actual participants who made the necessary lifestyle changes to lose the weight—and win their bet.

The before-and-after pictures are striking (and motivating)!

For example, Matt in Massachusetts lost 44 pounds in 6 months and won $1050:

Tina in Florida took home $1073 after dropping 40 pounds in 15 months:

In Texas, Lashea lost 57 pounds in 7 months, which earned her $2307:

Michele in Nevada dropped 53 pounds over 9 months and took home $2100 in prize money.

You can check out these and other success stories here, or punch in your goal to see how much your prize would be.

In 2020, more than 45,000 people bet on their weight loss and won. Even celebrities like Sherri Shepherd are getting in on the action, winning $1,300 for hitting her weight loss goal.

HealthyWage Alternatives

HealthyWage isn’t the only weight loss betting website that can earn people money. Following the success of HealthyWage, other sites have popped up that offer similar programs.

Some of those websites include:

• DietBet — Similar to HealthyWage. Earn money by betting on yourself to hit your weight loss goal.
• RunBet — RunBet hosts games to keep you committed to running. Place your bet, start running, and win. You can run outdoors, on a track or on a treadmill. You just need to sync your program with an approved GPS app.
• CashWalk — Get paid to walk by tracking and claiming your steps in CashWalk. You can earn around $5 every 6-8 weeks in free gift cards. See our full CashWalk review for more. Get 100 bonus coins w/ referral code MR9W5.
• Evidation — Evidation pays you for keeping healthy habits. Connect various fitness and health apps and start earning money for tracking steps, sleep, meals, and more.

Who is the Ideal HealthyWage Participant?

HealthyWage is a great program for men or women who have a hard time losing weight on their own and need extra motivation.

Or, if you’re committed to making some lifestyle changes anyway, you might as well get paid!

Although HealthyWage can be used by anyone, people who have more weight to lose can make more money. The team challenges encourage a sense of community between participants as they try to reach goals together.

How to Succeed with HealthyWage

Because you’re betting on your ability to lose weight, it’s important to set yourself up for success with the right habits.

Those habits include eating healthy, portion control, and consistent exercise. What else can you do to make sure you meet your weight loss goals and win your wagers?

Have a Plan

To accomplish your goals, it makes sense to spend time formulating a plan for success.

What fitness routines will help lose weight most effectively? What changes do you need to make to your diet? How will you hold yourself accountable?

Use Fitness Tracking Apps

Use an app like My Fitness Pal or Noom to track your fitness goals and what you eat.

This allows you to keep track of your progress and adjust your plan throughout the process. I know I eat better when I’m consistently logging my meals and snacks in My Fitness Pal.

Find Accountability

You’ve already got money on the line, which is definitely one form of accountability!

But whether you join a HealthyWage team or have a spouse or friend help, find someone who can apply some positive peer pressure. This will help keep you accountable to your weight loss goals.

HealthyWage even has a built-in accountability feature called “Lifelines,” where you can enlist trusted friends or family members to support your journey. It’s free to be a Lifeline and they’ll be able to see your weight loss progress, your meal plan, and any mid-challenge photos you post.

Plus, if you refer friends to make their own HealthyWager, you’ll each earn a $40 prize boost.

Is Ozempic Allowed?

Yes. If you’re on a prescription weight-loss medication, you can still participate. This includes GLP-1 medications such as Wegovy, Ozempic, Mounjaro, etc.

(Surgical weight loss procedures like gastric bypass aren’t allowed.)

Is HealthyWage Right for You?

You can make decent money through HealthyWage, depending on your weight loss goals.

This won’t replace your day job salary, but if you’re already considering starting a new diet plan, it could be an added bonus.

If you thrive off extra motivation and have the self-discipline to stick with a fitness program, HealthyWage could earn you extra cash.

Your Turn

Have you tried HealthyWage yet? Did you win your bet?

Serious About Making Extra Money?

• Start Your Free $500 Challenge. My free 5-day email course shows you how to add $500 to your bottom line.
• Join the free Side Hustle Nation Community. The free Facebook group is the best place to connect with other side hustlers and get your questions answered.
• Download The Side Hustle Show. My free podcast shares how to make extra money with actionable weekly episodes.

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Listen in your favorite podcast app or directly in your browser.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is HealthyWage legal?

While HealthyWage calls their program a “bet”, it’s not really gambling since you technically have control over the outcome. Because of that, the site avoids gambling restrictions and remains legal.

Is HealthyWage legit?

Yes, HealthyWage is a legitimate way to earn money losing weight. How much you can earn will depend on how much you have to lose and your timeline for dropping those pounds. Check out our full HealthyWage review to learn how it works.

Does HealthyWage really pay?

After you verify your weight loss, you can choose to cash out your prize via paper check or PayPal. There is a $7 processing fee to get a paper check issued, but PayPal payouts are free (though PayPal may charge a fee). Check out our full HealthyWage review to learn how it works.

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What’s one small change you could make right now to instantly improve your life?

I’m talking about tweaks that are completely within your control—minor upgrades that deliver outsized returns on your happiness.

Today we’re talking 21 little life upgrades—small purchases, shifts, and habits you can adopt this year to improve your life.

I’ll be sprinkling in some of my own tweaks throughout, but we’ve also got a ton of suggestions from the Side Hustle Nation community on everything from work hacks to health habits to home upgrades.

If the format sounds familiar, we did a round of these in 2020 as well! I definitely encourage you to check that one out as well (episode 418) for even more upgrade inspiration!

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1. Portable Teleprompter

Steve Chou from MyWifeQuitHerJob.com recommended a portable teleprompter for all content creators.

He put it simply, “I make a lot of YouTube videos because it takes me forever to film a video unless I have it scripted. I need a teleprompter, but the problem is the one that I currently had is gigantic.”

But Steve found a portable version on Amazon that was “super light, came with its own carrying case,” and most importantly, allowed him to “film full YouTube videos on the fly.”

The portable unit I use is called the Padcaster Parrot. 

The Padcaster app loads your script, then this little Bluetooth remote controls the speed. You can slow it down to nail that tricky sentence, or speed it up when you’re feeling confident.

2. Improve Your In-Home Studio

Tyler Christensen from Creator Side Income wanted a professional-looking studio to make YouTube and Amazon Influencer Program videos.

He built out his basement with fancy lighting and bookshelves. But when all was said and done, Tyler still wasn’t happy with how it looked on camera.

It turns out that a simple canvas backdrop can make a world of difference.

“I went on to Amazon and for $10, I bought a canvas backdrop that photographers use,” he shared.

The canvas hides imperfections in the walls, looks great on camera, and is easy to switch out.

And as an added bonus, Tyler was able to write a product review on the backdrops as an Amazon Influencer. So his $10 backdrop investment gets him better video quality AND passive earnings from referral commissions! Pretty slick.

3. Attend Events

Networking. Ugh. I feel you—it’s not everyone’s cup of tea. But force yourself to be more proactive about event attendance this year.

As Shannon Weinstein of Keep What You Earn podcast emphasizes, nothing beats face-to-face relationship building. “One upgrade I’ve made this year is my effort to connect. I’m making a conscious decision to attend more events and grow my network this year.”

Events also present opportunities to learn, have fun, and potentially meet partners, clients, and promoters for your personal brand or side business.

4. Custom T-Shirts

Speaking of wardrobe upgrades, let’s talk about an easy way to spark daily joy—stock up on custom t-shirts and quality threads you actually love to wear! Here was my rationale this past year:

Life is just too short for crappy t-shirts.

So I ordered four soft, customized shirts from Printify in my perfect size and favorite style for less than $100 in total.

Whenever I pull one of these from my drawer now, it gives me a little energy boost and gratitude for following through on such a small but satisfying project.

While you’re at it, Marie Kondo that dresser and ditch your bottom 20% of clothes. 

5. Cloud Massager

When you spend all day sitting at a desk, your feet and legs can get stiff and sore. Upgrading to a Cloud Massager can provide soothing relief right at your workspace.

Simply slide your feet into the electronic massager and enjoy compression, rolling, vibration and sway messages while you work.

Rosemarie Groner from Busy Budgeter said this $260-ish splurge was life changing in terms of increasing comfort and energy at her desk.

“It feels so amazing to sit at your desk and have your feet massaged all day long.”

With the physical and mental perks, this little upgrade quickly pays for itself if you’re logging serious hours.

My only hesitation is whether I’d actually stay focused on WORK with all those sweet, sweet kneading sensations. But maybe that’s a risk worth taking if you easily get fatigued or distracted sitting all day.

6. Delegating Email

Email can be one of the biggest drains on productivity. Responding to inquiries, looking up information, and the mental effort it requires all eat up precious time.

But as John Jonas of OnlineJobs.ph explains, you may be able to escape the email chaos by delegating the task.

John started small by having his Virtual Assistant draft responses so he could review and approve them. As he explains, “I realized there’s a bunch of stuff that I don’t need to deal with in my email.”

After providing feedback to improve his VA’s skills over time, John was confident allowing her to respond directly without oversight.

The results? Massively reduced email workload and associated mental drain. Now his VA handles the tedious informational lookups and basic requests while John focuses on the bigger picture.

7. Treadmill Desk / Walking Pad

Maybe you already know that sitting for too long is not good for your physical and mental health. You also might have thought of buying a treadmill… but you hesitate because it’s expensive.

As Jacques Hopkins from PianoIn21Days.com and theonlinecourseguy.com discovered, you don’t necessarily need an expensive treadmill—an affordable walking pad can work just as well.

As he explains, “I found a great one on Amazon for around $200, and there’s even more affordable options than that. So remember, walking pad, not treadmill.”

He sets it to 1.5 MPH and hops on for certain low-intensity work like email in 1-2 hours daily. This auto-pilot movement keeps energy and step counts high without detracting from tougher tasks.

8. Walk a Mile a Day

Last year, I set a simple daily goal to walk at least one mile per day.

With two kids, I’m usually walking to school to pick them up anyway, so this forces me just to be more mindful of that 15-minute round trip on foot rather than using a bike or car.

We have great conversations when moving at walking pace, plus it guarantees I get some steps in instead of sitting too much on busy days.

9. Track What You Eat

What gets measured gets managed, right?

Simply paying attention to everything you put in your mouth can work wonders, as Chad Carson from the Real Estate Investing podcast discovered.

“Last year, I started tracking all of the food I eat with a free app on my phone called Fitbit,” he said.

The main benefit Chad emphasizes is awareness…just paying attention to servings and nutrition as you log meals improves eating habits naturally over time.

It adds just enough friction to make you pause and question if you really want MORE of those unhealthy snacks.

Plus, seeing aggregate data on protein/carbs/fats keeps things balanced big picture.

I have found similar results using MyFitnessPal.

Give it a shot for a week and see if it changes your eating habits!

10. Cut Out Sugar

Vincent Pugliese’s upgrade was to cut out sugar and bread from his diet. Within just a few weeks, he happily reported noticeable improvements in energy, weight management, and mental clarity.

“Most importantly, clothes fit much better,” he added.

You can learn more about Vincent and his work at Total Life Freedom.

11. Spice Up Your Life

Spices can make healthy food taste anything but boring. And this small change made a big difference for me.

My sister-in-law gifted us this Silverwater Secrets spice from a local restaurant (sorry, does not appear to be for sale online), and we’re hooked.

Find one near you for less than $10 and you’re actually going to look forward to eating the healthy stuff because the spice makes it taste so much better.

12. Work with a Trainer

Online teacher and course creator Jade Weatherington of TeacherJade.com explained that working with a trainer helped her make progress on “very specific body goals.”

Her trainer keeps her accountable and motivates her to show up and put in the work.

Jade also attends dance classes and sword fighting multiple times per week, further showing her commitment to fitness as the foundation for health and happiness.

13. Robo Vacuum

I recently upgraded my home with a robot vacuum we affectionately call “Eufy.” Every night, Eufy makes its semi-erratic journey around the downstairs and keeps me from sweeping multiple times a day!

14. Get a Pet

Hala Taha from the Young and Profiting Podcast shared how adopting a kitten has been a serious upgrade to her mental health.

“Petting a cat literally produces stress reducing hormones,” she explained. “Their purring is known to be medically therapeutic for humans” by lowering blood pressure and helping heal infections.

15. Incentivize Your Kids

Jamila Souffrant from the Journey to Launch podcast is a busy entrepreneur and mom of 3.

Mornings in their home used to feel rushed and chaotic. The typical screams of “where are my shoes?” and “brush your teeth!” set an unpleasant tone for the whole household.

On a whim, Jamila decided to incentivize morning routines by rewarding her kids with 20 minutes of iPad time. While screen time felt taboo before, she suspended judgement and gave it a shot.

With motivated kids and less stressful mornings, she can “actually enjoy myself and have coffee and get myself together without feeling ragged.”

16. Outdoor Hot Water Hookups

Kids love splashing in water year round. But their resulting muddy aftermath is not so adorable when tracked back inside.

Susie from Busy Toddler shared a great solution: adding hot water access to your outdoor hose!

Now Susie can spray down her kids before entering the house to preserve her floors (and sanity.)

No more shivering or whining either; the warm spray makes rinsing off almost fun!

17. Smart Plugs

This year, we upgraded our home with a couple cool Kasa smart plugs.

We were a bit hesitant about joining the smart home craze, but these plugs turned out to be super handy, especially for our Christmas tree lights.

The outlet behind our tree was really hard to reach, and every time I tried to turn off the lights, I ended up knocking off ornaments.

With the smart plugs, though, we could control the lights right from our phones using the Kasa app. We could set timers or turn the lights on and off whenever we wanted, without any fuss.

18. Hire a Cleaner

Does cleaning your home feel like a dreadful, endless chore?

Like Mindy Jensen from the Mindy On Money podcast and Bigger Pockets Money podcast, you probably assume you should just power through this tedious task solo to save money.

But putting a price tag on your precious free time and mental space is important too.

“So my husband and I sat down and decided that we were going to hire a house cleaner.” By outsourcing her most-loathed chore for just a few hours a week, Mindy bought back personal freedom AND now actually enjoys returning home to sparkling floors and surfaces.

19. Simplify Your Travel Experience

Paul Minors of PaulMinors.com shared his family’s airport parking hack. Whenever they’re heading out on a trip, Paul pays a bit extra for valet parking at the airport.

Paul says it’s a total “game changer” that makes airport transport “that little bit easier” when managing antsy, excited kids.

And depending on where you valet, you can sometimes pay a reasonable fee to also have your car cleaned.

While it may cost slightly more than parking yourself, Paul says it doesn’t add too much to their total vacation expenditure.

20. Splurge for First Class (within reason)

I recently booked my first ever first-class flight that wasn’t on points or miles… and it was worth it.

And that extra $100 ticket instantly improved the entire experience for reasons I didn’t expect.

Beyond the wider seats, free drinks, and elbow room, I landed with this profound sense of gratitude that lasted the entire flight. And even before that, I found this fun “anticipation” benefit of really looking forward to the trip.

And then I flew Southwest on the way home, because you gotta stay true to your roots :)

21. Use a Budgeting Tool

Getting control of your finances is the foundation that enables all other life upgrades (I should have put this tip at the top of the list).

And that’s why Rachel Jimenez of moneyhackingmama.com recommended using a budgeting app called YNAB (You Need A Budget) as a first step.

YNAB allows you to track spending and saving in real time across all accounts to see exactly where your money is going.

This visibility helps naturally guide better decisions aligned with your financial goals vs. mindless spending.

You can review your budget before each spending decision to ensure alignment with the “big picture.”

YNAB also helps Rachel manage business finances efficiently without the cost of QuickBooks. She uses a free YNAB extension called Toolkit for YNAB to generate financial reports straight from her personal budget.

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As the author of more than 70 books, Steve “S.J.” Scott is one of the most productive and disciplined people I know.

His latest title, Habit Stacking, became a Wall Street Journal Bestseller and served as the inspiration for this episode.

(Long-time listeners might remember Steve from WAY back in the archives; he was my guest in episode 9 where we discussed how to earn money as a side hustling author.)

This time though we’re diving into a few of the habits that allow Steve to continually drive his business forward, and lead a healthier and happier life. Plus, you’ll learn why we think they’re important and how you can apply them in your own life.

They’re not all directly business-related, but most take 5 minutes or less and are designed to:

• increase your productivity
• reduce stress
• prioritize your workload
• help you find a healthy work-life balance

Tune in to hear how Steve and I incorporate these habits into our daily routines (or plan to, in my case).

As you’ll see in the links section below, there are a lot of books, apps, and resources mentioned.

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1. Track Your Time

Track how you spend your time working on different aspects of your business.

You can create blocks for writing, marketing, social media, research, etc., and using an app like aTimeLogger to track your time across these categories.

The goal is to review this data monthly to see where your time is actually going and make changes if needed to better allocate your precious time. For example, aim to spend 30% of your time writing and 20% on book marketing.

Give time tracking a try for the next month and see what insights it provides on where you’re actually spending (or wasting) hours each day.

Just having that self-awareness should help you become more disciplined during working sessions.

Pro tip: when your significant other wants to chat for “just a minute”…stop the timer!

2. Review Your Goals Daily

I’m definitely guilty of not setting clear annual goals in recent years. And even when I do set them, I’m terrible at reviewing them consistently.

That’s why you should review your goals daily to keep them top of mind throughout your day. While some aim to set 12-week goals (inspired by The 12 Week Year), Steve takes a more holistic, less stressful approach by focusing on key areas:

1. Spending time with friends and family
2. Writing books
3. Book marketing
4. Working on his blog

To ingrain these priorities, you can create a daily reminder that pops up every time he opens his Chrome browser.

The tool Steve uses is a simple blank page with his goals listed. I use a Chrome extension called Momentum that serves a similar purpose — it asks for my main focus each day to imprint my goals every time I open a new browser tab.

The daily goal review habit keeps your priorities front and center no matter how busy life gets.

3. Write Down ALL of Your Tasks

The goal is to document everything you do related to your business—writing, marketing, research, etc.—in an ongoing list. Steve also suggests noting things you want to do but can’t yet.

You could put this in Evernote. You could have this as a text file and have this open at all times.

Review this cumulative list weekly or monthly to find opportunities to delegate tasks that:

• You hate doing
• Can’t do yourself
• Shouldn’t be doing

Options include hiring a VA through VirtualStaffFinder.com, freelancers, or automating through IFTTT and Zapier.

This helps you focus energy on high-impact tasks while unloading less critical items over time.

4. Fix Your “Broken Windows”

I love the analogy of “broken windows” from the Malcolm Gladwell book The Tipping Point. The idea is that visual mess and disorder in your surroundings can negatively impact your motivation and mindset.

I took a glance around my home office after he said that and realized I have toy clutter chaos everywhere!

It’s important to start your day by tidying up your immediate workspace. Something as simple as making your bed can trigger a positive mind shift to set the tone for productivity.

You want to minimize visual distractions that can divert mental bandwidth.

I find this theory applies to inbox clutter too – I’m way more stressed out when I have 100+ unread emails staring at me. But if I block out time to process and organize messages first thing in the morning, I feel calmer and more focused.

5. Wear a Step Tracking Device

I’ve seen friends and family members get obsessed with their Fitbits and step counts over the years. But Steve presented a compelling productivity angle that I haven’t considered before.

He uses step counts almost like a Pavlovian trigger to remind himself to take regular movement breaks. His Fitbit Charge 2 buzzes every hour, prompting him to get up and walk around for a few minutes.

Just a quick lap around the house or office lets your mind recharge a bit.

And apparently, if you do this every hour for a 10-hour workday, you easily accumulate 2,500+ daily steps without any other exercise.

I love this because I often find myself glued in place for much too long while editing podcast episodes. Now my goal is to implement this hourly step countdown to enforce breaks and mental resets.

The key is finding small ways to regularly move your body, which pays significant rewards in energy, health, and wellbeing over time.

6. Keep a Food Diary

I don’t think I’ve ever consciously tracked what I eat on a daily basis.

While I generally try to maintain healthy eating habits, Steve raised an interesting point about accountability, which is to keep a food diary using an app like MyFitnessPal.

Writing down everything you eat brings two main benefits:

1. Accountability and honesty about the calories you’re actually eating
2. Subconscious discouragement from making less healthy choices (when you know you’ll have to document them later!)

The idea here is “what gets measured gets managed.” So when you know how much you’re putting your body, you can start to make small choices to improve your health.

Now when you’re grabbing that second chocolate chip cookie, there’s a mental speed bump in place. Because you know you’ll have to document it later in your food diary! Over time this heightened consciousness can nudge you toward better decisions.

Give keeping a food diary a try if your current approach to diet isn’t yielding the results you desire. And leverage the data to consciously improve!

7. Research One Side Hustle

As the host of The Side Hustle Show, I believe learning about new income ideas can spark creativity and inspiration.

Choose one potential hustle to research for 5-10 minutes each day. I love this incremental approach as an “elephant habit” strategy.

You can explore opportunities from resources such as my book, Buy Buttons: The Fast-Track Strategy to Make Extra Money and Start a Business in Your Spare Time.

You can also maintain a spreadsheet tracking the required time, costs, equipment, and personality fit for ideas that intrigue you.

Critical questions to ask yourself for each prospect include:

• Do I have time for this?
• What equipment is needed?
• How much money do I need to invest upfront?
• Does this match my personality and skills?

The goal is to find ONE promising match to begin testing and see if it can scale rather than jumping from idea to idea. Use a tool like the pro calculator at ListenMoneyMatters.com to evaluate financial viability.

The goal here is to identity options aligned with your skills and interests. But don’t let analysis paralysis set in!

Once an idea seems viable and exciting, take action to get it off the ground even before you feel “ready.” You’ll learn the most by doing, and course correct as needed based on real-world customer feedback.

8. Break Down a Big Project into Manageable Steps

The eighth habit draws from David Allen’s Getting Things Done approach of breaking big projects down into specific next step actions.

Whenever you’re faced with something with multiple steps, you want to break it down into a single action that you can do in just one day.

You can use apps like Todoist to manage extensive writing pipeline, with 70+ granular steps assigned to each book project. This transforms an intimidating goal like “write book” into small, daily progress.

For example, if you’re planning to redesign your website, you could include:

• Identify a theme
• Get some new pictures taken
• Hire somebody to modify it

The key is to “identify the next actionable step.” Map out the full roadmap upfront into concrete checkpoints then tackle each piece along the way.

9. Follow an Evening Shutdown Routine

Establish an evening shutdown routine to create better work-life balance as an entrepreneur. Without definitive signals, it’s easy to endlessly work nights and weekends without enjoyment.

You can do a 5 to 10 minute practice at the end of each day, inspired by Cal Newport’s book, Deep Work:

• Review tomorrow’s calendar
• Make sure no critical tasks were missed
• Identify the 1-3 most important tasks for tomorrow
• Fully power down computer
• Plug phone into charger across the room
• Focus on family time/hobbies

Creating space for non-work activities and truly being present with loved ones requires the discipline to “turn off” each evening. Give it a try to prevent burnout!

10. Deep Breathing / Meditation / Progressive Relaxation

• Deep Breathing – As John Lee Dumas has noted in Ep 436, taking slow breaths deep into your belly is tremendously relaxing. Make time to focus on your breath.
• Meditation – A regular meditation practice clears mental clutter. Start small with 5-10 minutes daily.
• Progressive Relaxation – Based on the technique from the book Declutter Your Mind, systematically tense and release muscle groups across your entire body to melt away tension.

Pick one or two of these that appeal and make time to build the ritual. You may also find benefit in layering all three into an evening routine.

The goal is simply to infuse more mindfulness into daily life—to be fully present despite chaos and keep perspective on what truly matters. Small habits can yield huge changes over time.

Steve’s #1 Tip for Side Hustle Nation

“Identify your 80/20. Figure out what’s actually driving the results and focus on that first thing every morning.”

Your Turn

I hope you enjoyed exploring these 10 foundational habits. Even implementing one or two of these practices can pay huge rewards over time.

Start small and be consistent above all. Track your progress to stay motivated and build momentum. And let me know which habits resonate most with you or what’s working in your own routine!

Links:

• DevelopGoodHabits.com
• HabitStackingBook.com (no longer active)
• Steve on The Side Hustle Show in 2013
• aTimeLogger
• Toggl.com
• The 12 Week Year by Brian Moran
• Momentum (The Chrome extension I couldn’t remember)
• Evernote
• Chris Ducker’s 3 Lists to Freedom
• Virtual Staff Finder
• IFTTT
• Zapier
• I Done This
• Nudgemail | My Daily I Done This and Gratitude Journal Setup
• The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell
• Fitbit Charge 2
• Treadmill Desk Revolution
• My home office setup
• Essentialism
• MyFitnessPal | My HealthyWage review: Get Paid to Lose Weight?
• Buy Buttons
• Listen Money Matters property evaluation tool
• Todoist
• Getting Things Done by David Allen
• HARO
• Deep Work by Cal Newport
• Declutter Your Mind by Steve Scott and Barrie Davenport
• 10-Minute Mindfulness by Steve Scott and Barrie Davenport
• John Lee Dumas on The Side Hustle Show

Looking for More Side Hustle Help?

• Start Your Free $500 Challenge. My free 5-day email course shows you how to add $500 to your bottom line.
• Join the free Side Hustle Nation Community. The free Facebook group is the best place to connect with other side hustlers and get your questions answered.
• Download The Side Hustle Show. My free podcast shares how to make extra money with actionable weekly episodes.

The award-winning Side Hustle Show is a
Top 10 Entrepreneurship podcast
with over 1,200 5-star ratings!

Listen in your favorite podcast app or directly in your browser.

What are the quick, simple, and maybe a little “weird” productivity tricks entrepreneurs use to get more done?

Well, I’m always curious about that myself so I decided to ask 26 of my most productive and successful friends for the “hacks” and tools they use every day.

(And I added in one of my own to round out the list.)

This episode was a ton of fun to put together and I owe a huge thank you to everyone who participated! I know I learned of a few new tools to try and I’m sure you will to.

If you like this style of show, you might consider checking out last year’s round-up episode as well, which asked 25 people how they made their first side hustle or business income.

You can see the participants and the approximate timestamps of their advice below. Enjoy!

Related: I created The Progress Journal to help me focus on my most important work and be more effective every day.

Subscribe to The Side Hustle Show on iTunes!

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Or use the player app above to listen right in your browser.

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Participants:

1. Pat Flynn – (2:02) – Keep a 1-word Post-It note where you can see it. The word? Start.
2. Kate Erickson – (3:56) – Get rid of your dirty dishes.
3. Jaime Masters – (5:35) – Prioritize your schedule to reduce decision fatigue.
4. Robert Farrington – (7:47) – Start by checking yesterday’s earnings for motivation.
5. Jon Haws – (9:36) – Use Google Calendar to manage your life.
6. Claudia Pennington – (11:15) – Stop using your calendar as your to-do list. (Use Trello instead!)
7. Madalyn Sklar – (12:02) – The 6-Pack: Your top 6 priorities on a Post-It note each day.
8. Derek Doepker – (13:36) – 3 magic words: “Can I just” + a micro commitment.
9. Mark Horoszowski – (14:45) – Get some movement in first thing in the morning.
10. John Corcoran – (15:55) – Use a standing desk.
11. Benny Hsu – (17:36) – Consider renting an office.
12. Joe Saul-Sehy – (22:17) – Give yourself some background noise with a site like Coffitivity.
13. Matt Marr – (25:26) – Consider getting rid of your desk. Think of your hustle theme song!
14. Mike Greig – (28:44) – Work in places without an Internet connection.
15. John Lee Dumas – (29:56) – Use the Pomodoro method and set an actual timer for it.
16. Austin Netzley – (31:01) – Start your Pomodoro sprints by clapping your hands.
17. Monica Louie – (23:35) – Always have your earbuds in while you’re working.
18. Amber Hurdle – (34:39) – Set different playlists for different tasks.
19. Nina Babel – (36:18) – The 20/20/20 Rule: Every 20 minutes walk at least 20 feet away for at least 20 seconds.
20. Pete McPherson – (37:57) – Speed up your mouse sensitivity and use voice recognition software on your computer to write even faster.
21. Brock McGoff – (39:57) – Learn the keyboard shortcuts for every program you use.
22. Danielle Cuomo – (41:45) – Use RescueTime to see where your hours are really going.
23. Nate Hirsch – (43:07) – Use Yet Another Mail Merge to send email more efficiently.
24. Brandon Turner – (44:15) – Track the time you spend on your phone with the Moment app and try turning your screen black and white.
25. Grant Baldwin – (46:43) – Have a way to capture your ideas.
26. Bethany Bayless – (48:17) – Keep separate notebooks to compartmentalize different areas of your life and business.

Links:

• How to Make Time for Your Side Hustle
• LastPass
• ClipX | CopyClip for Mac
• HabitShare app
• Five Minute Journal
• Asana
• TextExpander
• Boomerang for Gmail
• Drip
• Trello
• Evernote
• Varidesk
• Magnet app for Mac | AquaSnap was the Windows alternative I found
• Apple Pencil
• Good Notes app
• Coffitivity
• RainyCafe.com
• Process Street
• Rize app
• Brain.fm
• Canva
• Tailwind
• Tomato-Timer.com
• Vidyard GoVideo
• Dragon Dictation
• CloudApp
• Freedom.to
• PhraseExpress
• RescueTime
• Yet Another Mail Merge
• Moment app
• Slack
• Screencastify
• Nomatic Planner
• Bullet Journal
• Zencastr
• Unroll.me

What do you think?

Any favorite ideas from the show? New tools you’re going to test out? Let me know in the comments below!

Pin it for later:

Looking for More Side Hustle Help?

• Start Your Free $500 Challenge. My free 5-day email course shows you how to add $500 to your bottom line.
• Join the free Side Hustle Nation Community. The free Facebook group is the best place to connect with other side hustlers and get your questions answered.
• Download The Side Hustle Show. My free podcast shares how to make extra money with actionable weekly episodes.

The award-winning Side Hustle Show is a
Top 10 Entrepreneurship podcast
with over 1,200 5-star ratings!

Listen in your favorite podcast app or directly in your browser.

Note: This episode originally aired in January, 2021.

A masterpiece life is built from masterpiece days stacked on top of masterpiece moments.

What do you want your life to look like in 3-5 years?

Once you know — and commit — to that future, you can start working toward it now.

To help us build more of those masterpiece days and work toward being the best versions of ourselves in our life and work starting today is Brian Johnson.

Brian is a serial entrepreneur who combines ancient wisdom with modern science to help people live their best lives.

You’ll find him at optimize.me, the app version of which has lived on the homescreen of my phone for the past few years, ever since my brother introduced me to his work.

This is an episode about taking a break from chopping down trees to sharpen the saw. This is about the seemingly small actions you can take on a daily basis to get from where you are to where you want to be.

Tune in to hear:

• what it means to have a masterpiece day and where you should start
• the framework Brian uses with his students and coaches
• which virtues he sees having the biggest impact on his students

Free Bonus: My Personal Printable Habit Tracking Template

Where Can Someone Get Started on Their Own Masterpiece Day?

“I think we all need to say, ‘what do I really want in my life? What’s really important to me? What’s my wildly important target?’” Brian told me.

Brian leans a lot on ancient wisdom in combination with modern science to find these answers.

He said this tells us we’re teleological, goal-driven beings. To have clarity on what we need to do on a day-to-day basis, we need to have a clear picture in our minds of what we’re going after in our lives.

Brian said if you have a deep “yes” to a really important goal, it becomes a lot easier to say no to a lot of the distractions that can get in the way.

What Framework or Exercise Can You Use to Get That Clear Picture?

Brian explained that making time for your side hustle starts by slowing down and asking yourself what you really want.

If you could wave a wand (within the constraints of your reality) and make something happen – what would that be?

Brian said that most of us lead busy lives and we rarely, if ever, take the time to ask ourselves this question.

If you do slow down and ask yourself this question, “interesting things will arise” Brian told me.

Not only is this exercise important, but it’s also backed by science. Brian said there is a scientific practice called a ‘best selves diary’, where people look forward 3-5 years and ask themselves what their life would look like.

Doing this cultivates your ‘hope’ muscles. You can then back up to today, and ask yourself what it is you need to do to achieve that goal you see in 3-5 years.

What if You Don’t Know How to Reach Your Goals?

It’s one thing being able to see where you want to be in 3-5 years, it’s another to have a clear understanding of how you’re going to get there.

This is where “most people are playing the wrong game,” Brian told me. “Most people are playing the ‘I wanna get rich, famous, and hot game.’”

But science is unequivocal. Good luck with feeling good about setting and achieving those goals.

The real question, Brian said, is “what is the point of life?”

Brian helps people take a step back from their current culture and introduces them to Aristotle and Martin Seligman. Aristotle is of course a well-known philosopher, and Martin Seligman is a psychologist and best known for his theory on learned helplessness.

Aristotle tells us that the purpose of life is to live with what he calls ‘eudaimonia’. This literally means ‘good soul’.

Simply put, this means being the best version of yourself, not setting material goals.

If you can more consistently do that, you’re going to feel great and science shows you’re also more likely to achieve the actual goals you want to set for yourself.

The English translation of eudaimonia is ‘flourish’, which is the name of Martin Seligman’s book. Brian said that in Martin’s book, he says if you want to flourish, you have to put your virtues in action, life with wisdom, self-mastery, courage, hope, and gratitude.

When Brian helps people create a masterpiece day, this is where he starts. With ancient virtues, and modern science.

Which Virtues Do You See Making the Biggest Impact for Your Students?

Brian said there are three virtues that science has shown are most highly correlated related with wellbeing or flourishing.

These are:

• Zest – This is another word for ‘energy’. If you aren’t living a healthy lifestyle and don’t have enough energy to get through the day, you’re going to struggle to achieve your goals. Focus on the fundamentals; eating, sleeping, and moving to work on your natural energy.
• Hope – There are three elements to the science of hope; seeing a future you’re excited about, having a sense of agency, and having a plan while being aware you’re going to have to take multiple pathways.
• Gratitude – Being grateful for the blessing you already have in your life is important. “Entitled people take things for granted, grateful people take them as granted”, Brian said. Grateful people are happier, more productive, and will be more successful.

These are the three virtues Brian focuses on and helps people operationalize into their day-to-day lives.

How Can Someone Architect Their Day Around Achieving Their Goals?

Brian goes to bed at 7 pm and wakes up at 4 am so he can do 3 hours of work before anyone else in his house is even awake.

Going to bed that early may not work for you. But when Brian is teaching people how to architect their ideal day, he always tells them that their day started the night before.

If you’re not getting a good night’s sleep, you’re not going to have that energy Brian spoke about to have your best day.

Brain said it’s vitally important that you have a “ramp down period” when your working day is done. You need to get away from your laptop or PC screen and give your mind and body time to unwind.

This is what Brian calls transitioning from work to love. Essentially, putting work behind him for the day, and focusing on family time.

He then gets 9 hours sleep overnight and is ready to start his day energized and before anyone else is up.

He also said it’s important not to waste your early morning energy. Don’t check the news, look at your phone, or get caught up with other distractions. Get right to work and focus on your goals.

Brian calls this “deep work”. People who partake in deep work are worth a lot more and get a lot more done.

“If you’re serious about wanting that thing, then every single moment in your life should be directed to that,” Brian told me.

That sounds intense, and it is!

Intensity and urgency is a big theme in a Masterpiece Day. Brian stresses that today is the day you have to start making changes, and you need to show up every day with your best self.

Identifying Your Kryptonite

Identifying a new habit that would have a positive change in your life is one side of the coin. The other side is identifying a habit that if you were to stop doing, it would also have a positive impact on your life.

Brian explained that for some people, the fastest way to have a positive impact on their life isn’t to start something new. It’s to stop doing a ‘thing’ that’s throwing you off your plan.

He calls this a person’s ‘kryptonite’, in reference to the mineral that sapped Superman of his powers.

What’s your kryptonite?

For Brian, it was “blowing himself up” at night with digital stimulation (Netflix anyone?). He found he was doing this on the days he was most stressed, which meant he was watching TV when he really had more important things to do.

This would then lead to a poor night’s sleep, he’d be lacking energy in the morning, and it was a vicious circle.

When he stopped staying up late watching shows, he turned a vicious cycle into a virtuous cycle. Suddenly Brian was getting a good night’s sleep, he had more energy, and was able to build on more positive habits.

What Was the Most Important Positive Habit That You Flipped?

The number one thing Brian said he’s done to improve on a habit was doubling his meditation.

He’s meditated every day for around 14 years (missing just one day) and attributes this to his strong mindset. Brian knew this was working for him, so he doubled his daily meditation time from 25-20 minutes a day to 50-60 minutes.

What Do Those 3 Hours Before the Rest of the World Is Awake Look Like for You?

As mentioned earlier, Brian’s Masterpiece day starts the night before by getting a good night’s sleep so he can wake at 4 am.

Here’s how Brian uses those first 3 hours from 4-7 am before most of the world (and the rest of his household) is awake:

• Taking supplements
• Journaling
• Meditating for 1 hour
• Stretching 5-10 minutes
• 100 burpees – Brian does these in sets of 11 with 1,000 seconds in between
• Deep work – Brian doesn’t allow any distractions in at all

Effectively, these 3 hours are split between 1 hour of meditation and 2 hours of alternating between working and doing burpees to keep active.

When his family wakes, Brian checks in with them and swaps to family mode. Afterward, he works out, as it’s much more beneficial to workout earlier in the day.

He then does his day’s work but focuses more on proactive tasks rather than the ‘deep work’ he does first thing in the morning.

Brain said entering your inbox is going to be one of the main distractions. It’s best to avoid emails during deep work mode.

If you want to get a headstart on some important emails, he recommends writing them up in draft using Dropbox Paper. Brian also uses an app called Just Press Record to record voice notes for his team members when they come online.

The goal of using those first few hours of the day is to be “creative, not reactive”, Brian explained.

What Tech and Tools Do You Use in Your Business?

Brian runs an online business and uses tools where he needs to. But he likes to keep it simple and use pen and paper whenever he can.

He journals using pen and paper and sees this as a tool in his business. Brian starts every day off by writing the same things, he writes “all-in 101%” on a piece of paper. This is a habit he picked up from his coach Phil Stutz, author of The Tools.

Brian also writes down the identities from which he lives. These are; energy, work, and love. He also writes down the virtues he’s going to embody on the day ahead, and what he’s going to get done.

Brain also has some fitness goals marked on a calendar on his wall. Every day, he does:

• 1 sun salutation
• 10 pullups
• 100 burpees
• 1,000 rowing meters
• 10,000 steps

Every time he hits one of these goals, he crosses it off with an ‘X’ and says “that’s like me.” This is a way of getting a dopamine hit and giving himself a boost — by doing the things he sets out to do each day.

What’s Next?

Optimize.me has been where Brian has spent most of his time over the last 5 years. This is where Brian developed a mastery series and has helped more than 3,000 people become better coaches.

Recently, Brian created a new company called Heroic public benefit corporation. This is going to be a social platform bringing together everything he’s done to date.

At the time of recording, Brian said he was still months away from launching his private beta. He’s currently in the fundraising phase and is raising $11,000,000 exclusively from his community.

Brian’s #1 Tip for Side Hustle Nation

“What do you KNOW you need to do?”

Links and Resources from this Episode

• Optimize.me | Optimize.me/sidehustle and use code SH10 for 10% off the core membership
• Heroic
• Oura ring
• The Progress Journal
• Flourish by Martin Seligman
• Deep Work by Cal Newport
• The Tools by Phil Stutz
• Atomic Habits by James Clear
• Tiny Habits by BJ Fogg
• Dropbox Paper
• Just Press Record

Sponsors

• Freshbooks.com – Start your 30-day free trial today!

Want More Side Hustle Show?

The award-winning Side Hustle Show is a
Top 10 Entrepreneurship podcast
with over 1,200 5-star ratings!

Listen in your favorite podcast app or directly in your browser.

Happy New Year! May this be a year of stacking up incremental improvements and optimizations — getting 1% better every day — that’s the idea.

To help out with that goal, I’m excited to introduce Chris Hutchins. He’s a serial entrepreneur, a new dad, a professional life optimizer, and host of the new AllTheHacks podcast.

The stated mission of All the Hacks is to help listeners upgrade every aspect of their life while spending less and saving more.

I think that’s a mission we can get on board with since this show is also about upgrading your life through entrepreneurship.

Chris shared a full docket of hacks in this episode to help you start your year off right, and I did my best to chime in as well.

Many of these are quick actionable ideas you can apply to make little upgrades to your life.

Tune in to this episode of The Side Hustle Show to hear 33 hacks covering work and productivity, networking, money, travel, and health.

Work / Productivity Hacks

1. Set up Recurring Calendar Reminders

Something I’ve been doing that has been helpful has been setting up recurring calendar reminders.

This has been especially helpful for infrequent stuff like quarterly tax payments and other filing requirements.

Like when I was in California, I had to file a “statement of information” but only every two years. So, these recurring calendar reminders helped me remember that.

In the details, you can paste in your process, so you don’t have to remember how to do your tasks and it’s all right there in front of you.

2. Learn Keyboard Shortcuts

When it comes to work and productivity, Chris said one of his main hacks is “being able to do more with my keyboard.”

Chris is a Mac user, and recommended the following apps:

• Rectangle – This app makes it easy to assign keyboard shortcuts.
• Spectacle – This app enables you to move windows around.
• Alfred – This app makes it easy to find and use things such as files, icons, etc. It also stores your clipboard for the last 3 months.

These apps help Chris operate at “peak efficiency” and save a lot of time searching for things or repeating keyboard strokes.

For people who spend a lot of time in their Gmail, learning Gmail shortcuts can be a game-changer. Using keystrokes, you can jump back and forth in conversations, open new replies, and navigate your inbox.

An app called TextExpander is also a huge time-saver. This tool enables you to bang out emails with just a few keystrokes by storing sentences and other blocks of text you can recall with a keystroke.

3. Use a Password Manager

Using a password manager so you can store all of your passwords securely in a central vault is another time-saving hack Chris shared.

Chris uses 1Password, and the app I use is called LastPass. Both of these allow you to securely save all of your login details and passwords, as well as share access with other people.

4. Get Phone-Only Apps On Your Computer w/ an Emulator

There are a handful of mobile apps Chris really wants to use, but there aren’t PC versions.

To get around this, Chris uses an Android emulator called BlueStacks. This enables him to download mobile apps and run them in a window on his computer.

5. Switch Video Meetings to Phone Calls to Multitask

Chris said that one of the things he’s been doing is to “push back on video meetings to force them to be calls,” so he can multitask while on a call.

This means he can do some laundry, go for a walk or a bike ride, and do a number of other things while he’s on a call.

6. Use Screen Capture Software

Following on from switching video calls to phone calls, a friend of Chris’ took it a step further and introduced him to a piece of software called Loom.

Loom enables you to record your screen, so you can record your side of a meeting when it’s convenient to you.

You can then send it over to someone, and they can respond asynchronously when they have time.

7. Time Blocking and Theme Days

I used to find myself working on something, then jumping off of one call and having 15-20 minutes before the next call and not having enough time to complete another task.

This prompted me to start blocking out time in my calendar and creating “theme days” so that I could focus on one thing.

Doing so meant I didn’t have to worry about jumping from one thing to another on a given day, and I’m able to stack similar tasks back to back.

8. Write Down Your Top 3 Priorities for the Next Day the Night Before

In conjunction with time blocking and theme days, getting consistent with writing down the top 3 priorities I have for the next day, the night before, has been good for productivity.

Doing this means that when work time starts, I know exactly what I’m going to be working on and can get started right away.

9. Eliminate, Automate, and Delegate Tasks

“When I think about productivity, I think about time. When I think about time, I think about trying to get more of it,” Chris told me.

How do you buy back time?

By outsourcing, delegating, and paying someone else to do tasks for you.

Chris said he did a short stint with Lyft, a ridesharing app where you can earn money taxing people around.

He said one thing this taught him is that he can earn $20-25/hr at any given time. So, Chris started to value his time in this price range, at a bare minimum.

If he has any tasks that he doesn’t want to do or needs to free up his time and he can outsource them for less than $20-25/hr, he will outsource them.

Networking Hacks

10. Ask for Wisdom and Don’t Waste Other People’s Time

Chris was recently on The Tim Ferriss Show, which doesn’t happen by accident, and has been featured on a number of high-profile media publications.

When I asked him how he was able to create these connections, Chris told me:

“It’s great to have a thing to talk about, and it’s always good to ask people for their wisdom.”

Chris likes to use the word “wisdom”, because it doesn’t flatter the person too much, but it does make them feel like they have something valuable to offer.

He also said it’s important not to waste someone’s time when trying to make a connection with them.

When pitching Tim Ferriss, Chris made it clear to Tim he’d done his homework. He’d listened to every episode of Tim’s podcast, read his blog, and told Tim he had questions beyond what he was able to answer through his content.

11. Don’t Always Try to Network With the Most Important Person in the Room

“A lot of the best connections I’ve ever made in my career were not made through the people who you would have thought,” Chris told me.

Chris also added that you’re connecting with someone you should offer as much value as you can with “no strings attached.”

If you do both of these things, you’ll be surprised by the connections you’re able to make.

12. Show Up in Person

Getting out from behind your computer screen and seeing people in real life can make connecting easier.

You don’t have to think about a cold email hook or a way to catch their attention when you’re right in front of someone.

A tip Chris shared is not to be afraid to be the first person to walk away. If someone is busy, show them you respect their time and tell them you’ll follow up with them by email later.

This is going to make just as much of an impression as being the last person to walk away, and might even leave a better impression.

13. Volunteer or Submit Speaking Proposals

Volunteering at a conference or live event is a good way to get to know the organizer and potentially the speakers.

Submitting a proposal to speak is also a great way to introduce yourself to the event organizers.

Home / Lifestyle Hacks

14. Use Automated Smart Locks

Chris uses August Locks throughout his home. These are WiFi smart locks that enable him to unlock his home from his phone so he doesn’t need to carry keys around.

15. Essential Oil Diffusers / Shower Spray

One of my favorite home additions is an inexpensive essential oil diffuser. It’s a quick and easy to change the feel and scent of a room.

Along those lines, Chris said he likes to use this Eucalyptus & Lavender Steam Shower Spray. A couple of sprays of this stuff and he has a shower that smells and feels like a spa.

16. Meal Prep Binder

We’ve started using a meal prep binder that has little sticky notes with our most common recipes and dinner choices on.

Multiple choice is much easier than coming up with dinners out of thin air. This has helped us cut down on mid-week trips to the grocery store and time spent mulling over ideas for dinner.

Chris uses an app called Paprika to do a similar thing. Paprika enables Chris to clip recipes he sees online, it then helps create a meal plan and has some cool collaboration tools.

Travel Hacks

17. TSA PreCheck Plus Global Entry

One of the best $100 I ever spent was on TSA PreCheck and Global Entry. This small luxury makes me happy every time I go through security.

18. Book Directly Through Hotels

When booking a hotel, Chris said you should always book directly with the hotel instead of using a third-party platform like TripAdvisor or Kayak.

You should then send the hotel an email after you’ve booked letting them know you’re excited about staying with them and asking any questions you have.

If you have a social media presence, even better, tag the hotel in a post. The purpose of the email is to introduce yourself to the hotel.

Chris said he’s had dozens of emails from listeners of his show saying that doing this has resulted in upgrades, free bottles of champagne, and all kinds of freebies just from this one “trick” as Chris calls it.

If you’re interested in more travel hacks, Chris had a travel hacking expert on episode one of his All The Hacks podcast.

19. Take Local Walking Tours

Walking tours are a great way to learn the history and trivia of a city you’re visiting. If you find a tour run by a local guide, you’re going to get some interesting nuggets of information.

20. Credit Card Points

Chris has racked up more than 12 million credit card points over the years, so he knows a hack or two about accumulating points.

There are a few ways Chris earns points. One way is that every time a credit card company offers a good signing up bonus, Chris jumps on it.

For example, at the time of the interview, Chris said the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card was offering 100,000 bonus miles (worth at least $1,000) for new signups.

You have to spend $10,000 over 6 months to earn the points, but if you were going to spend that much anyway, the sign-up bonus is like getting free money.

(The bonus is currently 75,000 miles when you spend $4,000 in the first 3 months.)

Another way to accumulate a bunch of points is to buy stuff on behalf of other people. Something Chris has done a bunch of times is organize a group trip and book everything on his cards.

It’s a win-win. The other people in the group do not have to worry about booking the same flights or hotels as everyone else, and Chris gets to run everything through his credit card.

If you want to get serious about earning the maximum possible points on your purchases, you’re going to need to get more than one card.

A couple of apps Chris recommended to help track which cards are best for which types of purchases are:

• The Points Guy – This app is great for telling you which cards earn the most points at which shops.
• CardPointers – This app does a better job of listing items by category so you can optimize your spending.

Related: How and Why to Get a Business Credit Card for Your Side Hustle

21. Look For Alternatives to Airbnb

If you’re looking for an Airbnb, Chris said you might save some money by doing a Google search for alternative booking platforms.

What Chris does is when he’s found a place he wants to book, he does a reverse Google image search on the pictures of the home.

This way he often finds the exact same property listed on other platforms — and often for a lower booking fee.

22. Use an eSIM

Almost all new phones will allow you to use an eSIM in your mobile. eSIMs are electronic SIM cards, meaning you can free up the physical SIM card slot in your mobile.

When Chris is visiting another country, he converts his Verizon SIM to an eSIM and uses a SIM card in his phone with local data.

This works out a lot less expensive as he avoids paying international rates from his Verizon SIM.

23. Use Google Flights

“If you’re not using Google Flights to find your flights, I feel like you’re missing out,” Chris told me.

Chris said he doesn’t know any other site that comes close to the speed and flexibility Google Flights offers when booking flights.

If you’re using points, Chris recommended Point.me to help you find all the different flights and destinations available to book with credit card points.

To get notified of great flight deals, check out Scott’s Cheap Flights.

Money Hacks

24. Automate Saving and Investing

Finding ways to automate things like investing and dollar-cost averaging has been helpful for me.

One thing I want to throw out there is to carve out a portion of your week to generate some sort of time-leveraged income.

Most people start out with 100% active income, effectively trading time for money.

If you want to eventually stop working, you’re going to have to cover your fixed expenses with passive or time-leveraged income.

If you don’t carve out the time to work on this, it’s never going to happen.

25. Search for Unclaimed Money

This is a fun one and it’s a bit like a treasure hunt — you can search for unclaimed money owed to you in every state that you’ve lived in.

All you have to do is visit Unclaimed.org, the National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators.

Chris has found $150 over the years and has talked to people who have discovered they had thousands of dollars unclaimed.

These funds are usually things like overpaid taxes, refunds, accounts in credit, medical bills that were adjusted, and so on.

It’s also a fun thing to do on behalf of friends and family. You can search on behalf of anyone, and if you find out someone you know is owed money they’re always going to be thankful.

26. Call Your Service Providers and Shop Around Each Year

When your cable, cell phone, or house utilities are up for renewal, it almost always pays to reach out and ask for a better deal or shop around.

A little hack Chris shared when doing this is to use live chat where available. This way you can get some work done while you’re waiting to speak to someone.

Or you can use a service like Truebill to negotiate on your behalf.

27. Search for Coupons and Promo Codes

Whenever you reach the checkout for an online purchase, Chris said you should look for coupons or promo codes to save some money.

Honey is a Chrome extension that automatically finds coupon codes for you. (I’m using one called Capital One Shopping.)

Chris also likes to jump on live chat and ask customer service if there are any codes.

He also said you can try abandoning your cart before completing a purchase. It may take a few days, but this often triggers an email offering a discount to encourage you to finish your purchase.

28. High Yield Savings Accounts

An interesting high yield savings option mentioned in this episode, BlockFi, is no longer in business.

Check out some alternative options here.

Health Hacks

29. Play Offense Instead of Defense With Willpower

I’ve found it effective to practice willpower once a week at the grocery store instead of 24/7 at home.

What I mean by this is, I’ll buy the right foods I want to eat during one visit to the store. This stops me from fighting the temptation once junk food enters the house.

30. Work Out in the Morning

Over the last 4-5 years I’ve been doing workouts in the morning, especially since having kids.

This is the only time I find I have the energy to get it done, and it’s the lead domino for the day. Even if it’s just 10-15 minutes, I know I’m going to feel better the rest of the day.

(Brian Johnson explained a morning workout is good for a 10-12 hour mood boost.)

31. Get Enough Sleep

“I think that sleep and exercise make time in terms of the efficiency you’ll have for the rest of the day,” Chris told me.

Even if you think you don’t have time to exercise or get the required number of hours of sleep that you know you need, Chris said it’s something you have to fit into your day.

Chris uses an Oura Ring to track his sleep and exercise. This is a ring you wear on your finger and it tracks your heart rate, sleep, and more.

32. Consider a Treadmill or Standing Desk

Chris loves being able to multitask and get some exercise while working. He recommended looking into getting a treadmill or standing desk if you spend a lot of time in front of the computer.

33. Negotiate Your Medical Bills

Chris said a big thing he learned last year is that there is a lot of room to negotiate on medical bills.

You may find things that are inaccurate, priced incorrectly, or just be able to get a better deal elsewhere.

Chris had an investigative journalist called Marshall Allen on his podcast who has been investigating the healthcare industry for years.

Marshall has released a book with templates you can use to respond to medical providers to get a better price and covers this topic in greater detail.

Chris said there is a lot of flexibility here, so it’s something worth taking a closer look at.

What’s Next?

“This is the year that I think I’m going all-in on everything related to the show,” Chris told me.

Chris is always looking for ways to optimize and upgrade his own life, travel, finances, and career.

You can join him and find out more ways to hack and optimize your own life by following him via the AllTheHacks podcast, his blog AllTheHacks.com, and a newsletter which you can find at AllTheHacks.com/email.

Chris’ #1 Tip for Side Hustle Nation

“Automate or outsource as much as possible.”

Links and Resources from this Episode

• AllTheHacks.com
• Rectangle – macOS app
• Spectacle – macOS app
• Alfred – macOS app
• TextExpander
• LastPass
• 1Password
• BlueStacks
• Loom
• Indistractable – by Nir Eyal
• August Locks
• Essential oil diffuser
• Eucalyptus & Lavender Steam Shower Spray
• Paprika – iOS App
• Capital One Venture X Card – Up to 100,000 bonus points at press time
• The Points Guy
• CardPointers
• Point.me
• Unclaimed.org
• Honey – Chrome Extension
• BlockFi – Up to $250 in free Bitcoin
• Oura Ring

Sponsors

• Freshbooks.com – Start your 30-day free trial today!

• Nearside – Sign up for your Nearside Business Checking account today!

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Top 10 Entrepreneurship podcast
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Struggling to perform at your best from the moment you wake till you go to sleep at night?

In today’s episode, we’re talking about a key component of your physical and mental foundation to be a high-performing human, and one that we probably don’t give a lot of thought to.

Still, it’s something you spend roughly a third of your life doing, so it’s a huge lever to pull in terms of optimizing your energy and your output in the world.

Yes, we’re talking about sleep.

I promise this episode won’t put you to sleep as we explore 9 quick ways to optimize your horizontal hours to wake up feeling superhuman.

To help walk me through these is Riley Jarvis from TheSleepConsultant.com and SleepForSideHustlers.com.

Riley started through his own health journey many years ago and discovered that sleep was the missing link that brought everything together.

After some biohacking and learning from top doctors in the field, he now helps others get the root of their sleep issues rather than masking the symptoms — all about building that foundation so you can feel amazing and be the best version of you.

Tune in to The Side Hustle Show interview to hear 9 of Riley’s top tips for getting a better night’s sleep:

1. No Caffeine After 2pm

“It’s case by case for each person all based on genetics and many other factors, but usually 2pm — or 8 hours before we go to sleep — is the sweet spot,” Riley told me.

Riley explained that caffeine has a half-life of about 7-8 hours. That means 7-8 hours after consuming caffeine, half of the caffeine is out of our system.

For most people, this is usually enough to stop the caffeine from harming their sleep. However, some people are more sensitive and will need to leave it longer.

If you are sensitive to caffeine — maybe you get the jitters or a huge crash — Riley said you can add butter or MCT oil powder to your coffee to slow-release the caffeine.

Another tip Riley shared is to drink water before coffee in the morning. Coffee dehydrates us, and we lose around a liter of water while sleeping naturally.

Try drinking 500 ml to a liter of water after you wake up and about 90 minutes before your first coffee of the day. Riley said you’ll feel a lot better for doing so.

2. Reduce Blue Light Exposure at Least 2 Hours Before Bedtime

Blue light really reduces our melatonin, the hormone responsible for helping us get to sleep.

When we wake in the morning, our melatonin level is at its lowest point so we’re awake and alert.

As it gets closer to the evening, our melatonin levels start to rise so we can get to sleep naturally.

However, by exposing our eyes to blue light Riley explained that we delay our body’s natural rhythm and the production of melatonin.

There are a few ways you can reduce the blue light you’re absorbing, these are:

Use Blue Light Filter Apps

For desktop or laptop users, Riley recommended a software called Iristech.co. This app reduces the blue light being emitted from your monitor or laptop.

For mobile use, both Apple and Android have native apps built-in that will reduce blue light. These are usually found in settings > display and will be called “blue light filter”, “night shift”, or similar.

Wear Blue Light Blocking Glasses

Riley said wearing blue light-blocking glasses for 2-3 hours before going will also have the same effect. His recommendation is the Twilight Classic range on Amazon. (Though I have a much cheaper pair!)

Dimming Lights

Dimming lights a couple of hours before you want to sleep will also make a big difference.

3. Keep Your Bedroom Temperature Cool at 70°F (20°C) Or Below

“Our bodies sleep most optimally in a cool environment,” Riley told me.

Part of the reason for this is that our bodies will naturally drop to its lowest temperature while we’re sleeping

If you keep your bedroom too warm, this will alter your body’s natural rhythm and interrupt the quality of your sleep.

If you’ve been sleeping in a much warmer room for a while, your body will have adapted, and you might not think it’s harming your sleep.

Riley said sometimes people need “a taste of what that new normal is” and recommends lowering the temperature in your bedroom to 70°F or below for a week or two.

4. Completely Black Out Your Bedroom

“We wanna block out our room as much as possible, pretty much to the point where we can’t see any light coming in,” Riley told me.

Riley explained that even though your eyes are closed while you’re sleeping, we have receptors that absorb and detect light around our eyes and on our skin.

If light is getting into your room, there is a good chance it’s affecting the quality of your sleep.

Riley recommends putting masking tape over any light-emitting diodes, using blackout curtains, and finding ways to block any other sources of light.

If you’re finding it difficult to create a completely dark room, Riley said you can try wearing an eye mask.

It’s not as effective as blocking out the light as those receptors are still going to detect light, but it’s better than nothing.

5. Don’t Eat Any Heavy Meals 4-5 Hours Before Bedtime

Riley said eating a heavy meal within 4-5 hours before going to bed can harm the quality of your night’s sleep.

There are two main reasons for this:

• Digesting food while you sleep can cause a spike in blood sugar or cortisol levels, causing you to wake.
• Digesting food takes a lot of energy and resources, resources that could be better used to help us sleep. This extra work can also cause your core body temperature to rise.

This one might sound counterintuitive to some, as eating a big meal can make you feel sleepy.

Riley explained that you may be able to fall asleep easier after a big meal, but you’re more likely to wake up and you’re not going to get high-quality sleep.

6. Don’t Perform Any Intense Exercise 4-5 Hours Before Bedtime

Intense exercise before going to bed can be very disruptive for sleep. Riley said a brisk walk or some light exercise is fine, but any exercise that elevates your heart rate is bad for a good night’s sleep.

7. Expose Your Eyes to the Sun Upon Rising and Throughout the Day

To help get or keep our circadian rhythm – the internal body clock that lets us know when we should wake, sleep, etc. – in sync, Riley said we should expose our eyes to the sun when we wake up.

When we wake up, our cortisol is at its highest and our melatonin is at its lowest. When we’re ready to sleep at night, our cortisol is at its lowest, and our melatonin is at its highest.

Some people can’t get to sleep because their circadian rhythm, or cortisol and melatonin levels are out of sync at night.

Riley explained that exposing your eyes to light when you wake up each day helps to sync your internal body clock.

Depending on where you live and what time of year it is, this might be easier said than done.

It’s gloomy in the winter months where Riley lives, so he uses a Wake-Up Light. This is a white light that you can shine on your eyes for 30 minutes in the morning to mimic sunlight.

Sleep Supplements

You should always get professional advice before taking any supplements to help you sleep, but there are some Riley has used and does recommend.

• Vitamin D – Per Riley, most people will need about 1,000 IUs for every 25 lbs of bodyweight if their levels are low.
• Melatonin – Riley said melatonin pills are really good, as long as you don’t take too much. Riley will take a little melatonin sometimes if he’s had a busy day and not had time to detach from blue light naturally. Riley said somewhere in the range of .2-2mgs is usually enough.
• L-Theanine – L-Theanine is a compound found primarily in green tea. It’s effective at reducing stress, relaxing the body, and reducing insomnia. Riley said this is a good supplement for people jacked up on caffeine and suffering from the jitters. Somewhere between 100-400mg should do the trick, you’ll have to find out what works for you.
• GABA – GABA is a naturally occurring amino acid that works as a neurotransmitter inside our brains. It’s one of the chemicals that makes us feel relaxed and can help us sleep better. Riley said GABA is a supplement that works well for some people.

8. Do a 20-Minute Guided Meditation Before It’s Time to Go to Bed

Riley explained that we should try and relax our bodies the best we can before we go to bed. One of the ways Riley recommends relaxing is by doing guided meditations.

The best part is that you can find some great guided meditations for free on YouTube. To get started, a couple of channels Riley recommended are The Honest Guys and Sam Harris.

Another thing Riley recommends is journaling for 5-10 minutes for going to sleep. Riley explained that we can wake up in the night due to our brains processing things we’ve been thinking about.

Getting thoughts down on paper can help combat this. Meditation and journaling “can kind of empty the mind, give it kind of this blank slate-effect,” Riley told me.

9. No Alcohol Before Sleep

“We want to reduce or at least eliminate all alcohol prior to sleep,” Riley told me.

Drinking alcohol seems sleep-inducing, but it actually reduces our REM sleep which is very important for restoring our mind for the next day.

If you enjoy a glass of wine with your evening meal, this shouldn’t be a problem. The sweet spot is usually cutting out alcohol 6 hours before going to bed for most people.

What’s Next?

Riley is currently working with people all over the world helping them get better sleep. He said people seem to be more stressed nowadays than ever before, so he’s in demand.

The tips he shared in this episode will help you form a good foundation for better sleep. If you want to go a level deeper, you can reach out to Riley and book a 1-on-1 consultation.

For general tips or more mainstream advice, you can check out SleepForSideHustlers.com where Riley offers some free training.

Riley’s #1 Tip for Side Hustle Nation

“Just start.”

Links and Resources from this Episode

• TheSleepConsultant.com
• SleepForSideHustlers.com
• How to Start a Sleep Consulting Business
• Iristech.co
• Twilight Classic blue light blocking glasses on Amazon
• The Honest Guys – YouTube Channel
• Sam Harris – YouTube Channel

Sponsors

• ODYS – Fly up the rankings with $100 off your first premium, vetted, aged domain and done-for-you SEO-optimized content from Niche Website Builders!

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Here’s a quick behind-the-scenes video of the marketplace. (You may have to request to join the Side Hustle Nation FB group to see it.)

Now in partnership with Niche Website Builders, you can easily add on a done-for-you content package from a trusted provider.

• Helium 10 – Start and grow your Amazon business with a powerful suite of tools and training resources.

Want More Side Hustle Show?

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with over 1,200 5-star ratings!

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How do you make time for a side hustle?

That’s one of the questions I get the most, and one of the reasons we return to the theme of productivity so often.

In this post (and podcast episode), I’ll share a 10-step process for making — and optimizing — time for your business, inspired by Side Hustle Show guests.

1. Find Your WHY: You Gotta Want It!

First up, WHY do you want a side hustle? What would that mean for you?

By definition, we make time for what’s most important to us. Otherwise we wouldn’t be doing it, right?

We all have different motivations, many of which are rooted in making extra money, but if we dig a little deeper to what that money affords us, it often comes down to a couple deep-seated desires:

1. A desire to move away from a frustrating, futile, or unhealthy situation.
2. A desire to move toward to a more satisfying situation.

Moving Away From Pain

Sa El was making good money as an insurance agent, but was working long hours and didn’t feel he much leverage over his time.

“I was afraid to stay where I was,” he explained.

That drove him to create SimplyInsurance.com, a site that helps people determine the right insurance product for them. Sa worked for almost a year before seeing any sort of income from the project, but his persistence paid off. When we spoke, the site was earning $13,000-15,000 a month from affiliate relationships.

Toward Something Better

Mitch Davis had a cool job working abroad in Japan, but wanted a little more financial flexibility. It was that desire that got Mitch off the side hustle sidelines.

“You gotta do something,” he explained. “Otherwise tomorrow, and the next day, and the next month, and the next year is going to be the same.” In other words, it would be insane to keep going through the motions and hoping for different results.

Often times that starts with a vision of what you want your future life to look like, and more on that in just a second.

2. Set the Vision

Several Side Hustle Show guests have mentioned the importance of coming up with a vivid vision of what you want your ideal life to look like in 3-5 years.

Among those was Brian Scudamore, the founder of 1-800-Got-Junk. When we connected, that brand was doing about $1 million in sales a day.

His #1 tip for Side Hustle Nation?

“Come up with your vision. What is your painted picture of where you’re going? What does your life look like in three to five years? Write it down.”

3. Make Decisions That Support Your Vision (not Sacrifices)

This is one of the most powerful mental re-frames I’ve come across. In our Masterpiece Days episode with Brian Johnson from Optimize.me, he told the story of George St-Pierre.

“GSP … was a garbage man … and he decided we was going to be the best in the world at mixed martial arts. His dad laughed, like ‘are you crazy?'” Brian recounted. But from that point on, it wasn’t a sacrifice not to go party with his boys and hit the gym instead — it was a decision.

Yes, you might want to binge on that new Netflix series, but what do you want more? What do you want instead?

Make decisions — not sacrifices — that move you toward your vision.

4. Get Other Stakeholders on Board

You don’t live in a vacuum. We have responsibilities to our significant others, to our families, and it’s probably not going to fly if you suddenly disappear without notice.

Derek Doepker explained you’re bound to face some resistance if you’re all of a sudden making a 180-degree turn, but you can gain buy-in if you approach it the right way.

“What’s the mutual goal?” he asked. “What is the highest level thing that everyone in that environment wants?” If you can tackle the challenge in terms of mutual benefits, that’s the fastest path to getting the much-needed support of your partner and other stakeholders.

5. Figure Out Where Your Time is Going Now

A detailed time audit is an eye-opening exercise to find out where your 168 hours each week are going.

Figuring out your time-spending baseline is an important first step. It’s kind of like budgeting in personal finance. If you don’t know where your money is going, it’s going to be really hard to come up with a plan to improve it, right?

Try this Mental Exercise

The next time you’re tempted to say “I didn’t have enough time,” try to replace that with the more honest version: “I prioritized something else.”

Other Time Tracking Tools

• aTimeLogger
• Toggl
• RescueTime

6. Find the Time That Works For You

Side Hustle Show guests are masters at finding time to fit their side hustles into their lives.

Maybe that’s:

• early in the morning and in the “cracks in your day,” like blogger Tami Smith
• lunch breaks and weekends, like Amazon FBA sellers Nate and Alysha Jackson
• after work, like copywriter Daniel Throssell

The time is there if you look for it — and if you want to find it.

7. Identify Your Highest Priority Tasks (and break them down into the smallest actionable chunks)

For larger projects, I find it very helpful to itemize out the smallest actionable steps along the way.

One example is I’ve been working on this book project called $1k 100 Ways, featuring a ton of creative side hustle stories from the community. Instead of putting “book” on my to-do list, I had lots small sub-tasks, like:

• coming up with the survey questions
• creating the survey in Google Forms
• marketing the survey
• reviewing the submissions
• getting the data into paragraph form
• formatting
• editing
• cover design

When it comes time to launch, I’ll have a similar task list related to marketing the book.

“Win Tomorrow Today”

Each night, I write down my top 3 priorities for the next day. That way, I know exactly what to tackle (and in what order) when work time starts.

John Lee Dumas called this “winning tomorrow today.”

For what it’s worth, I also find when I fail to do this, I spend far more time “ramping up” or getting distracted by email or social media. If you’re consistent about being proactive with your own agenda instead of reacting to someone else’s, you’ll make great progress.

8. Schedule It

There’s a saying that you can tell someone’s priorities by looking at their calendar. It’s one thing to identify your high priority tasks, but it’s another to schedule the time to actually tackle them.

Putting them on the calendar — making a meeting with yourself — makes it real.

“I use my Google calendar to schedule everything so that … I have a visual representation of what my commitments are,” Kate Erickson explained.

Whitney Hansen from Money Nerds described her system:

• Start by taking an entire brain dump list of all of the things you need to accomplish this week …
• Then put an estimated time for how long each of those tasks will take you…
• Next, prioritize your list..
• Finally, block off those tasks in your calendar.

She added, “If it goes on your calendar, it must be a results-based activity. I can’t just put on my calendar — it needs to be what you’ll produce during that time.”

Give Yourself a Deadline

Even though pretty much all of my deadlines are self-imposed, I find the mere act of writing down a “due date” makes me more likely to get it done.

(Like Kate, I’m using Asana for this.)

9. Reflect on What’s Working and Do More of That

And the converse: Figure out what’s NOT working, and stop.

Rosemarie Groner from BusyBudgeter.com explained it this way in our conversation about blogging ROI:

“If you spend your time doing the things that make you the most amount of money consistently, and you eliminate doing the things that make you less money consistently, your income naturally grows. It’s almost impossible to fail at this.”

My “reflection” process has 3 parts:

1. A daily check-in asking myself what I got done today. Did that align with my stated priorities? Did I do work that mattered? If not, why?
2. Quarterly progress reports, where I analyze the various projects I took on and the impact those had on my business.
3. Revenue attribution reports, where I try and determine where the money is coming from? Since the business has a few moving parts, it’s helpful to try and say “oh this was related to the blog, this came from the podcast, this came from YouTube, or this was probably from the newsletter.”

The bottom line here is to make sure and stop for a second to ask yourself if the hours you’re putting in are making any meaningful impact. Because if they’re not, you want to adjust course before you get in any deeper.

Book Recommendations

• James Schramko’s Work Less, Make More – A great quick overview that will get you thinking about your effective hourly rate and where it makes sense to invest your limited time.
• Perry Marshall’s 80/20 Sales and Marketing – One of my all-time faves on sales and marketing. There are so many cool examples of how the Pareto principle — the idea that 80% of your results come from 20% of your actions — can apply it in your business.

10. Automate, Systemize, Delegate

This is where things start to get really fun!

Now you’re in full optimization mode and business owner mode, instead of just trying to figure out where to get your next 30 minutes of side hustle time.

Eliminate and Automate

After you’ve eliminated your non-essential and low-value tasks, the next thing I look for is automation. Is there a way, with the help of technology, to get this done automatically?

Examples could include:

• Email filters in Gmail to automatically route messages to the right folder.
• Subscriber tagging and automations inside of ActiveCampaign (my email newsletter provider)
• Excel macros (I gave this as a super-nerdy example of creativity in my TEDx talk)

Take a look at Zapier or Integromat, or even IFTTT. These tools can help routine processes run on autopilot.

Create Systems

Your next step is creating systems.

What’s a system? Anything you do more than once!

For the tasks you do on a regular basis, write down the steps involved. Take a screen recording of you doing the work, and make a checklist of everything that has to happen.

If you eventually want to remove yourself from this process — or even just part of it — now you have a recipe you can use to train a helper.

I kept a lot of my systems in my head for far too long, and one thing I’m working on is to document those. Doing so helps reduce mistakes (when I forget a piece of the process), and makes it easier to hand off those tasks in the future.

Delegate

When does it make sense to hire help? My answer has historically been when the pain of inaction becomes too great.

Another tell-tale sign is when you find yourself doing necessary — but not optimal — tasks. These are things that need to happen to run and grow your business, but you know your time is better spent elsewhere.

Again I think it makes sense to start with a personal time audit. Once you have your results, you can see which tasks are taking up big chunks of your time.

From there, there are tons of places to find qualified remote help. Jacques Hopkins mentioned finding an excellent assistant on Upwork. I’ve used Fiverr for lots of one-off projects, and my most recent hire was through Gina Horkey’s virtual assistant matchmaker service.

For full-time remote help, you might consider OnlineJobs.ph or FreeUp. (The founders of each platform joined me on the podcast to discuss when and how to make your first virtual hire and begin to build out your team.)

Still, the simplest path may be to hire an agency that already specializes in what you need help with. Sean Marshall advocated for this strategy in his “rules of scale“, arguing that the speed and convenience of plugging into a (hopefully) well-oiled agency machine trumps the added cost over hiring a dedicated freelancer.

But this is part of what makes business fun — there’s no one right answer or best path forward. The best path depends on your unique situation, what you’re most excited about, and what your goals are.

Your Turn to Make Time

There’s always room to optimize and improve where we spend our hours, and I think that sense of progress is exciting and motivating. I’m learning more every day and trying to get better at my craft, and for that, I’m extremely grateful.

Hopefully this post helped you find a few extra hours a week to take your side hustle or business to the next level!

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What little purchases or changes have you made that had an outsized impact on your overall happiness?

This is something of a sport in our house.

Bryn and I kind of joke that we have this mission to optimize everything, whether that’s the:

• limited space in our house
• hours in the day
• money in the bank

We’ve taken great joy in these incremental improvements. We often ask ourselves, “How can we make this 1% better?”

If we can make those 1% improvements consistently over time, they start to compound and we’re way better off than when we started.

I put the call out to several friends and listeners:

What little life upgrade or optimization have you made recently — with great results?

Tune in to hear 21 little life upgrades — the habits, products, or tools that don’t cost a lot of time or money, but make a big impact.

Time-Saving Hacks

1. LastPass

LastPass is a secure password manager that saves, stores, and organizes all of your passwords. It also enables you to share logins and access with team members remotely without giving them the password.

It’s a free Chrome Extension, and you’ll never forget and have to reset a password again. This saves a ton of time and mental bandwidth!

2. Keyboard Shortcuts

If you’re using your keyboard for most of your work, learning some keyboard shortcuts can save you a substantial amount of time in the long term.

Just simple shortcuts to replace repetitive clicks, like these for Windows:

• Ctrl+Z: Undo
• Ctrl+W: Close
• Alt+F4: Close apps
• Ctrl+C: Copy
• Ctrl+A: Select all

Or if you’re a Mac user:

• Command-X: Cut
• Command-C: Copy
• Command-V: Paste
• Command-Z: Undo

3. TextExpander

TextExpander is a tool that makes text suggestions, inserts text snippets, and enables you to make your own keyboard shortcuts to input those text snippets.

If you find yourself typing the same things several times a day; such as your email address, business name, the same greetings, and so on, TextExpander can help speed this up.

You can save seconds with a simple keystroke, which quickly adds up to minutes, and possibly hours over the course of a year.

Gadgets

4. Wireless Earbuds

I know I’m late to the game on this technology, but if you haven’t gone Bluetooth yet, take it from me on the other side, there’s no going back.

These things will change your life — they bring me so much joy every time I use them!

The specific brand I have is called SoundPeats. They have around 15,000 reviews on Amazon and are a fraction of the cost of the official fancy Apple Airpods.

I don’t really have anything to compare them to, but I will say they deliver what they promise; they pair quickly and hold their charge for a long time.

5. Kindle

Early on I was anti-Kindle, I think because I didn’t want to buy a device, only to then buy books to go on that device.

But I’ve come around in a big way, and I’ve come to love my Kindle for lots of reasons:

• It reduces physical clutter in the house. It can store hundreds of books, where our physical bookcases can’t (or more accurately they’re filled up with kid’s books at the moment).
• There is an instant gratification on downloads vs. ordering a physical book or placing one on hold to pick up from the library.
• It’s easy to highlight and save the passages I like, even with Kindle library books.

Productivity Upgrades

6. Time Blocking

Whitney Hansen from The Money Nerds Podcast shared how she makes time for her side hustle by time blocking on her calendar.

Whitney said she starts by taking an entire brain dump of all the things she needs to accomplish in the upcoming week. Things like picking the kids up from school, going to the gym, replying to emails, etc.

She then puts the estimated time required next to each item and then prioritizes the list. Whitney then opens her Google calendar and blocks off time slots in her calendar for each task on her list.

She said the important thing is only put in results-based activities. This way, you know exactly what needs to be done and what the end result will be.

Whitney also said not to worry if you get your time estimates wrong — it’s a learning process. You’ll still get a lot more accomplished by going through this process and being more organized than before.

7. The Pomodoro Technique

Ashley Barnett from HitPublish.com has increased her productivity using the Pomodoro Technique.

For those unfamiliar with the Pomodoro Technique, it’s essentially a way to get more done by working in short bursts followed a small break.

Doing so helps you maintain better focus, not get distracted as easily, and when done for a long time can actually train your brain to focus harder for these short bursts of time.

At the beginning of the day, Ashley sets a goal for how many Pomodoros she’s going to do that day. She then works in 30-minute time blocks, followed by a 5-minute break.

8. Meditation

Mike Vardy of Productivityist.com has recently replaced checking out the morning news with a morning meditation.

In fact, he said he’s “embraced meditation big time” over the last month or so, and says it’s had a huge impact on his life.

Mike meditates for as little as 5 minutes a day, to as much as 40-60 minutes. He said it’s been a real game-changer and has helped him start his days with more clarity, he’s calmer, less frazzled, and more focused.

He meditates first thing in the morning, and the last thing before going to bed. Mike said this enables him to both start the day on the right foot, and clear the cobwebs at the end of the day.

Mike uses the Muse Headband, which tracks brain waves, heart rate, and some other metrics that are altered by meditating. He said this has helped “gamify” his meditating and encouraged him to take it more seriously.

9. The Habit Share App

Amber Hurdle of AmberHurdle.com and founder of the Velvet Machete Leadership Academy said her little life upgrade has been a habit sharing app called HabitShareApp.com.

This app allows you to set reminders and goals based on habits you’re trying to form or break. You can also link up with your friends and see what habits they’re setting via the app.

For example, Amber likes a drink, but she’s decided to break that habit. So, she sets a reminder to pop up on her phone around the time she’s tempted to pour a glass of wine, reminding her she doesn’t need that drink.

Likewise, she can check in on her friends and if she sees they haven’t been working out, she can send them some words of encouragement.

Amber said it’s a great app to help you and those around you stay on track and help keep each other accountable for forming good habits.

10 & 11. “I Done This” Tracking & Gratitude Journaling

Conrad Deas called in and explained how he uses the “I done this” method and daily gratitude method to keep a record of what he’s getting done and hold himself accountable.

He said he first heard about this in the post called The “I Done This” and Daily Gratitude Challenge I published around 5 years ago.

In this post, I explain how and why I started keeping track of what I was getting done each day. It was a little mindset/productivity work hack I picked up from Ari Meisel.

To do this, you need three tools (all of which are free):

• NudgeMail
• Google Docs
• Gmail

I explain how to do this step-by-step in the blog post I wrote, but basically, you’re setting up a Google form to arrive in your email box daily.

This form will ask you to fill out what you’ve done today and what you’re grateful for. It will then store all of your answers in your Google Drive, and you can visit them at any time.

Nick said he reflects on his progress and gratitude entries from time-to-time. Showing him that he’s making great progress, and maintaining that electronic record of everything he’s gotten done.

If your prefer physical journaling, I’ve baked both of these habits into my Progress Journal.

12. “Waiting On” Email Folder

James Bowen writes about productivity and learning hacks on his website, which you can find at LearnCodeRetain.com.

He teaches an audio course on productivity for developers on the new platform, Listenable.io.

The optimizing hack he shared is to set up a folder in your email inbox called “Waiting on”. You can then set up an email rule that creates a copy of every email you send and puts a copy in this folder.

James said he does this because whenever he sends out an email, chances are he’s waiting for someone to do something.

This way he has all of his “waiting on” emails in one place. The added benefits are that he doesn’t have to remember to make a copy of each email or go searching for them. He knows exactly where they are.

13. Embrace Outsourcing

Whitney Bonds of TriedAndTrueMomJobs.com said it only took her 3 years to get it, but she finally got it.

She needed to outsource some of the repetitive and time-consuming tasks within her business so she could focus on the tasks that will grow her business.

Whitney has been outsourcing tasks like revamping older articles for SEO and managing her Pinterest account. This gives her more time to be there for her kids, too. Which was one of the reasons why she started her blog.

Here’s some more info on making your first virtual hires.

Office Upgrades

14. Dual-Monitors

Jimmy is a web designer and consultant, and runs RedheadMG.com. An office upgrade he made that improved his productivity was investing in a second monitor.

He used to build websites on his single monitor laptop and found it challenging at times. Jimmy said using two monitors has been a complete game-changer for him in terms of productivity and multitasking.

The exact monitor Jimmy purchased is this 23-inch HP Monitor. If you’re interested, I have this 23.8 Inch Acer one myself.

15. Standing Desk

Steve Stewart from Steve Stewart Podcast Productions’ office upgrade optimization tip is an adjustable standing desk.

(Plus a Kangaroo Mat for comfort.)

It’s no secret sitting down for long periods is bad for your health, and Steve was well aware of this. He set himself a savings goal to buy a standing desk back in 2015, and was able to buy one in 2016.

Steve alternates between sitting and standing throughout the day and says not only is it better for his health, but it gives him more energy throughout the day.

He went as far as to say his standing desk is now his “favorite thing in the world, I can’t say enough about it”, Steve said.

Home Upgrades

16. House Plants

Another little optimizing hack from me is house plants. We’ve got a Snake Plant, a Fiddle Leaf Fig, and a couple of Monsteras.

Basically, I Googled “house plants that are hard to kill” as we haven’t had the greatest luck as gardeners. I thought it would make sense to start with something that was at least advertised as easy!

Plus, having plants around supposedly improves your mood and helps naturally purify your air. After all the smoke we had this summer, I’ll take all the help I can get!

17. Home Gym

Kelan and Brittany from TheSavvyCouple.com recently moved to a new house and upgraded by adding a home gym.

With the lockdown restrictions, they’ve made sure to prioritize fitness from home and said it’s had a huge impact on them.

They’ve found they have more energy, feel better not just physically, but emotionally too, and have been able to focus more on their business and family life.

18. Feetures Socks

Nick True runs a YouTube channel and podcast called Mapped Out Money. His life optimization tip is also around fitness, but this time in the form of socks.

Not just any socks, but premium socks called Feetures. They cost around $15-$20 a pair, but Nick says they’re worth every penny.

They’ve made his feet less sore after running, he’s more comfortable whenever he’s wearing them, and they feel so good they actually make Nick want to workout and run more just so he can wear them.

19. Wrinkle Releaser Spray

Jolene Blackbourn from Legal Learning Center has a cool tip to help remove wrinkles from clothes, without having to get the iron out.

She uses a Wrinkle Releaser Spray. All she has to do is spray her clothes, the formula relaxes the fabric, so she can tug the wrinkles out and leave it to dry for a short while.

Jolene said it will remove even the worst wrinkles within a few minutes.

20. Magnetic Knife Strip

A couple of other home-related upgrades I had on my list were a magnetic knife strip that mounts on the wall. This replaced the big, bulky wooden knife block that sat on the counter.

21. Magnetic Key Hooks

And finally, a pair of magnetic key hooks on our fridge have given us a consistent place to put our keys. It’s a little thing, but keeping them off the counter and not losing them has been priceless!

Community Suggestions

I asked Side Hustle Nation for their input over email, and here were some of my favorite responses.

22. Sharpen Your Knives

“I mean, wow, what took us so long?” —Austin L. Church

Related: You can actually start a knife sharpening business to help others make this upgrade!

23. Clear Out Your Closet

Austin recommended setting up a twice yearly wardrobe clear-out, so you only have clothes you love. I like this idea from the standpoint of reducing decision fatigue and decluttering your physical space.

24. Stretchy Jeans

I can’t believe I forgot this one in my original list! Apparently stretchy jeans have been “a thing” for women forever, but I’m a new convert.

They’re much more comfortable than the plain old regular denim variety. I got a pair of these from Amazon.

25. Squatty Potty

This inexpensive bathroom addition leads to healthier #2s.

26. Natural Latex Mattress Topper

Chris Loper also recommended investing in a 3-inch latex mattress topper, calling it, “Far better than memory foam, springy, supportive, breathable.”

27. A Nice Mechanical Pencil

Side Hustle Show listener Tyson suggested a nice mechanical pencil like Graphgear 1000 from Pentel for taking notes in books.

“I initially bought one for my daughter so she wouldn’t have to always sharpen pencils,” he explained. “I decided to get one for myself after feeling how well made it was.”

28. Books

Tyson added that buying books was his other little life upgrade. “They are by far the most knowledge dense of all media. For $20 you get someone’s life work. That is quite a bargain.”

29. The Calm App

Gordon Currie said the popular Calm app helps him relax and fall asleep.

30. Evernote

These days, some sort of “external brain” system is essential to capture and offload all the ideas and tasks that pop up. For Gordon, Evernote is that system.

31. Smartlocks

Josh Spitzer recommended installing a Smartlock combination lock on your front door.

He explained why this was worth the investment:

1. NO KEYS – I never need keys when I leave the house. If I’m driving, I need the car key of course. But I don’t have a bulky key ring in my pocket any more. I just use the combination to get in. This is also great when I leave to go on a run. I never have to carry a house key with me!
2. KIDS CAN ALWAYS GET IN – Even better, my kids don’t need keys. They can always get in the house, even if no one is home. Or even if people are home!
3. YOU CAN LET NEIGHBORS IN – Forget to feed the cat? Or going out of town and you want a neighbor to help with mail, newspaper, pets? You can just text your neighbor and give them the code to let themselves in.
4. HOUSE CLEANERS / CONTRACTORS – Hate giving copies of your keys out to house cleaners or contractors? Just make them a custom code and delete them when the job is over or if you switch to a new person.
5. SMART HOME CAPABLE – About to go to bed, but not sure if you locked the door? Just pull up the app on your smartphone and check it, then lock/unlock from your phone.

When “Optimization Culture” Goes Too Far

I’m all for stacking this little wins and improvements to add more joy, impact, and effectiveness to our days. But there probably comes a point of diminishing returns — where the pursuit of the next incremental gain keeps you from enjoying what you already have.

This quick video from the New York Times pokes some good-natured fun at “optimization culture” and raises the important question: what’s it all for? What will you do with the time you gain?

Sponsors

• Skillshare – The first 1000 listeners will get a free trial of Skillshare Premium Membership, with unlimited access to 25,000+ on-demand classes!

Want More Side Hustle Show?

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Big thanks to all our volunteers for sending in their ideas!

If you have a little life upgrade to share, please leave it in the comments below.

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We’re all dealt 24 hours a day. I believe how you spend that time, or maybe rather how you invest it, should give you some sort of return.

That could be a monetary return, sure. But it could also be a return in personal satisfaction or impact on others.

Today, I want to introduce a productivity framework to make time for your side hustle I’m calling The Productivity Pyramid.

Like most frameworks, it’s a work in progress, but here’s how it shapes up:

• Vision / Goals
• Projects
• Tasks
• Tools and Tactics

Or since a visualization is probably easier:

To help me talk through this is Kate Erickson. Kate is a master of systems, and over the last several years has helped grow EOFire.com into a multi-million dollar operation.

She also has a new podcast called Ditch Busy, which is all about helping you take back control of your time.

Tune in to hear:

• the goal setting and vision exercises Kate uses
• how she plans and tackles projects
• how she breaks down tasks and decides what to delegate
• the tools she uses to increase her productivity and get more done in those 24 hours

Goal Setting and Vision Exercises

When it comes to setting your goals and vision, Kate explained, “The most important thing is that you’re actually giving yourself time to do this.”

It sounds obvious, but how often do you actually set aside time where you’re not going to be disturbed to actually think about your goals?

Kate said most of us are so busy that we only ever work on the “surface.” We don’t get — or make — the time to go deeper and ask ourselves:

• “What is my desired outcome?”
• “Why am I doing what I’m doing?”
• “Where is this going to get me?”
• “What’s my end goal?”

Kate said the first and foremost critical thing is to schedule that time to yourself so you can ask yourself those questions.

Once you’ve set aside some quality time, you can start to write out the answers to those questions.

An important question is: “What would your perfect day look like?”

Only then will you be able to clearly map out what you need to do to achieve that perfect day.

Outcome Goals vs. Process Goals?

“Once you have your vision and you have a really strong WHY… some of those micro-goals can be those monetary goals,” Kate said.

But it should always be with the vision in mind that you have clear goals you want to achieve. Those goals may result in meeting your monetary goals, but Kate doesn’t set money-orientated goals.

The happiness is not in the money, happiness is what the money affords you, Kate explained. Such as more time with your family, nice vacations, experiences, and so on.

Lately, I’ve tended to set more process-oriented goals (like doing a daily workout, creating content consistently) vs. outcome goals (make $1 million this year), because I feel like I have more control over the process than the outcome.

How Often Should You Evaluate Your Goals?

Kate likes to check in quarterly on her goals but said it comes down to preference and what works best for each person.

She likes to work in small chunks, and really likes 90 to 100-day plans. Kate said longer periods, like a year, tend to include multiple plans and can easily become overwhelming.

For instance, my Progress Journal is built on 4-week time-blocks.

Plus, as 2020 has shown us, a lot can happen in a year to derail even the best-formed plans.

Related: Pandemic Pivots: How Entrepreneurs are Adapting to “Obliteration”

How to Structure Your Goals

“I really love the SMART goal setup,” Kate told me.

SMART is an acronym for:

• Specific
• Measurable
• Attainable
• Relevant
• Timebound

Setting the timeline and evaluating how realistic your goals are is an important piece of the puzzle for Kate.

Kate looks at the goals she’s written down and works backward through the SMART framework to make sure they’re realistic.

Choosing Projects

The second part of the Productivity Pyramid is projects.

“All of my projects that I start are very specifically rooted in the goals that I have,” Kate told me.

Kate never starts a project that isn’t geared to help her achieve her goals.

This is an area where Kate sees a lot of people going wrong. People are quick to start new projects and invest time into things that interest them, without evaluating if it’s going to get them closer to their goals.

Kate said she actually fell victim to this a couple of months ago. She decided to start focusing on Pinterest as a new platform to raise awareness of her podcast.

She set some goals around creating checklists and pinning to boards. But Kate said what happened was she ended up bailing on the two platforms that give her the highest ROI — Facebook and Instagram.

By adding Pinterest to her workload, she started losing traction with the platforms that were working for her. She ended up putting Pinterest aside and focusing on the other platforms as they’re delivering measurable results.

What Projects Are You Working on Right Now?

Aside from the new Ditch Busy podcast, another big project she’s working on right now is improving the SEO on eofire.com so they rank higher for podcast-related terms.

She’s hired an SEO team to help with this and is optimizing a lot of the content herself. Kate said it’s a time-consuming project, but each post she re-optimizes gets her one step closer to that end goal.

Plus, she loves working on content, so she’s having fun doing it.

Finding the Motivation to Keep Going

Looking back, Kate said there were a lot of 60-hour weeks building up the business to get it to where it is today. During this period she was motivated to get to where she is now.

Now she’s fortunate enough to be able to be more selective about what she works on. So she picks stuff that is motivating for her.

Kate typically sets goals and works on projects that get her excited and makes an impact on her audience.

Entrepreneurship and the lifestyle it’s afforded her has had a huge positive impact on her life. She’s incredibly motivated to spread that message and help others. (Which is what her partner John does by interviewing successful entrepreneurs on his podcast.)

Breaking Down Specific Tasks

The third part of the Productivity Pyramid is tasks.

Kate used her SEO project as an example of how she would define the tasks she needed to accomplish.

A lot of the tasks for this project are coming from the SEO team she’s working with. If she was doing this project herself, she would look at the micro requirements needed to get to her end goal.

Things like:

• How do I find out which posts I need to optimize?
• What are our highest traffic posts?
• What are the specific actions to take on each page?

Then she would dive into the research to find out ways to optimize those posts for more traffic.

Which Tasks Should Be Delegated?

Kate said there are a couple of approaches you can take to help you decide which tasks you should be delegating.

The first is to assign all of your tasks a value, such as $10, $100, $1,000, $10,000, and so on.

You can then start by delegating all of the $10 tasks, so you’re not spending your time on those yourself when you could be working on $100 or $1,000 tasks.

As the value you put on your own time grows, you can delegate more expensive tasks so you’re always working on higher-value tasks.

Another approach you can take is to simply ask yourself what you love doing, and prioritize your time to work on those tasks, while delegating the rest.

Related: Hiring Your First Virtual Assistant: When, Where, and How to Do it Right, with John Jonas and Nate Hirsch

How to Prioritize Tasks

“Action reveals answers very quickly,” Kate told me.

If you’re really not sure about how you’re going to tackle your tasks, Kate said you just have to dive into it.

You’re going to quickly figure out what you should be doing once you get started.

She reiterated again the importance of putting aside time to focus on tasks. Kate is a big fan of scheduling everything, she advises anyone to schedule dedicated time to figure out tasks.

She uses Google Calendar and schedules all of her tasks there in blocks of time. When new things come up, she will find a timeslot for it and not get distracted at the time.

She also uses Asana to track all of her tasks and do her project management. Asana enables her to track the progress of specific tasks and set completion dates.

What Processes Are Working Well Right Now?

Something Kate has been implementing into her daily routine is a morning sweep and an evening sweep.

She said this has really elevated her productivity and helps her shift from work mode into family mode.

Morning Sweep

When Kate first sits down to work, she opens up her calendar and Asana and checks that everything on her list is realistic.

She then allocates an amount of time to every task. Kate sets a timer on her phone for each of those tasks and for the duration of that time she gives 100% focus.

Evening Sweep

At the end of her working day, Kate looks at what she accomplished during the day. If there was anything that didn’t get done, she breaks down why and looks at how she can approach a similar task differently in the future.

By doing this, Kate said she’s been able to identify what she’s good at, and the things she’s not so good at.

Doing these “bookend” tasks at the beginning and end of each day has helped her to streamline her processes and increase her productivity.

What Tools Are You Using?

Here are some of the tools Kate is using to help manage her time and workload:

RescueTime – This is a software that runs in the background while you’re at your computer and gives you a report showing you where you’re spending your time.

If you get distracted by social media, RescueTime is going to tell you exactly how long you’re spending on it each day.

TextExpander – This software enables you to save snippets of text you use over and over and add them to an email, document, etc at the touch of a key.

Kate said her TextExpander report told her she saved 3 hours last month by using this tool instead of typing the same phrases over and over.

Boomerang – This is a software that works with Gmail. It enables you to manage your inbox more efficiently. You can schedule emails, have emails come back to you if they’re unread, and more.

And a few of my favorites:

• Zapier
• Canva
• ClipX | CopyClip

Kate’s #1 Tip for Side Hustle Nation

“Ask yourself your biggest priority every day.”

Links and Resources from this Episode

• DitchBusy.com
• EOFire.com
• Asana
• RescueTime
• TextExpander
• Boomerang
• Zapier
• Canva
• The Freedom Journal
• The Mastery Journal

Want More Side Hustle Show?

The award-winning Side Hustle Show is a
Top 10 Entrepreneurship podcast
with over 1,200 5-star ratings!

Listen in your favorite podcast app or directly in your browser.