Episode 112: When Did Everything Become a Side Hustle? When did everything we enjoy doing suddenly need to become a way to make money? If you enjoy playing video games, someone tells you to become a streamer. If you like taking pictures, you should sell your photography. If you enjoy writing, you should publish books. If you're interested in technology, you should start a YouTube channel or build an app. It seems like no matter what someone enjoys doing, there's always another person explaining how they can turn it into a business. Somewhere along the way, we started treating hobbies as potential sources of income instead of things we do simply because we enjoy them. In this episode, I talk about how hustle culture, social media, and the pressure to make more money have changed the way we think about our free time. I've experienced this myself because I've tried plenty of different things over the years. I streamed video games back around 2014 and 2015, created YouTube videos, explored different business opportunities, invested in stocks, and eventually started publishing books. Some of those things made money, others didn't, and a few I simply stopped doing because I realized I wasn't particularly interested in continuing them. Writing, blogging, and podcasting are different for me because they're things I genuinely enjoy. I was writing long before I ever published a book, and I'd still be doing it even if nobody paid me. That doesn't mean I don't want to make money from my work, but there's a difference between making money from something you love and doing something solely because you think it might make you money. One of the biggest reasons I think this mentality has become so common is social media. We constantly see successful streamers, influencers, and entrepreneurs showing off how much money they're supposedly making. I talk about Ludwig, one of the biggest names in streaming, and the incredible amount of revenue someone at that level can generate. But there's another side to those numbers that people don't always consider. Running a successful content business can mean paying employees, maintaining studios, managing production costs, and handling expenses that most viewers never see. The same applies to the people posing with expensive cars, private jets, and designer products. We're shown the lifestyle, but we rarely see what it actually costs to maintain or whether the person showing it off even owns what they're displaying. I also get into the reality of passive income because that's another idea that gets promoted as though anyone can start making money while they sleep. I earn money from my books, but that doesn't mean I can publish something and never think about it again. Sales change, keywords stop performing, descriptions need adjustments, and the market keeps moving. My dividend investments generate income too, but that required investing a substantial amount of my own money over time. Real estate comes with maintenance, repairs, and other responsibilities. There are legitimate ways to build additional income streams, but they usually require money, time, knowledge, or some combination of all three. The people promising easy returns rarely spend as much time explaining what it takes to get there. In this episode, I discuss: When hobbies started becoming potential businesses instead of things we simply enjoy Why everyone seems to believe they need multiple sources of income How social media and hustle culture have changed our expectations of success Why the rising cost of living makes additional income feel necessary for so many people How streaming became a career aspiration for people who originally just enjoyed playing video games The enormous revenue successful streamers can generate and the expenses that come with operating at that level My own experiences with streaming, YouTube, writing, publishing, and other business ventures Why I've continued writing and podcasting while walking away from other projects The difference between pursuing something you're passionate about and chasing an opportunity solely for money Why passive income usually requires more work or investment than people realize What I've learned about maintaining book sales and adapting to changes in the publishing market Why dividend investing requires actual capital before it can generate meaningful income The costs and responsibilities that come with owning real estate How online influencers use expensive cars, private jets, and luxury lifestyles to sell the idea of success Why selling courses about making money has become a business of its own The unrealistic expectations created by people promising easy financial returns What I've learned from working with small-business owners and seeing how they operate Why having a skill doesn't automatically mean someone knows how to run a successful business The importance of responding to customers, marketing, and putting in the work when starting a business How AI has created another wave of side hustles promising easy money Why generating books, apps, and digital products with AI doesn't automatically make them valuable The problems with flooding marketplaces with low-effort AI-generated content Why copying a successful product doesn't guarantee that anyone will buy your version How social media creates pressure to constantly chase more money and material possessions Why spending every free moment trying to make money can take away from the things we enjoy The difference between being constantly busy and actually being successful Why I believe people should pursue interests they would still enjoy even if the money never came One thing that bothers me about the side-hustle culture is how much of it revolves around selling people the dream rather than explaining the work. Someone watches a video about starting a dropshipping business, selling digital products, creating an AI agency, or publishing coloring books on Amazon, and suddenly they're convinced they've found the next great opportunity. What they don't necessarily understand is how competitive those markets are or how much work goes into getting customers. I've worked with small-business owners who were passionate about what they did but didn't fully understand the responsibilities of running a business. Something as simple as taking twelve hours to respond to a potential customer's message can mean losing that customer to someone else. Having a good idea is one thing, but turning that idea into a business that actually works is something entirely different. Artificial intelligence has made this even more interesting because the barrier to creating certain products has become much lower. I've experimented with building apps using AI, and I use these tools in my own creative work, so I'm not against the technology. What I have a problem with is the idea that someone can enter a single prompt, generate a product they know nothing about, and expect people to pay for it. We're seeing this with books, applications, digital templates, and all kinds of content being produced simply because someone believes there's money to be made. If you're going to publish a book, you should care enough to read it, edit it, and make sure it actually works as a story. If you're building an app, you should understand what it does and test it before asking someone to pay for it. AI can help people bring their ideas to life, but having access to the tools doesn't replace the need to create something worthwhile. At the same time, I understand why people are looking for additional ways to make money. Groceries, housing, utilities, and everyday expenses have become increasingly difficult to manage, and not everyone has the luxury of treating their free time as something they can spend however they want. For some people, a side hustle isn't about getting rich or buying expensive things. It's about paying bills and trying to get ahead. I'm not criticizing someone who genuinely needs additional income or someone who's passionate about building a business. What concerns me is how easily people can be convinced to spend their limited time and money chasing opportunities that were presented to them as practically guaranteed success. There's a difference between building something because you believe in it and jumping from one opportunity to another because someone online promised you an easy paycheck. I also think we've started confusing being busy with being successful. People talk about how many hours they work, how many businesses they're building, and how many income streams they have, but none of that automatically means they're making meaningful progress. I've had jobs where I was technically at work for hours without actually having hours of productive work to do. The same principle applies to running a business. You can spend all weekend creating products, watching tutorials, and planning your next venture without ever building something people want. And if you're constantly working toward financial freedom but never giving yourself time to enjoy your life, it's worth asking what you're actually working toward in the first place. Ultimately, I don't think there's anything wrong with entrepreneurship, wanting to earn more money, or turning something you love into a successful business. I've done those things myself, and I'll continue exploring opportunities that interest me. But I also think we need to recognize that not everything has to become another source of income. If you're passionate about something and want to build a business around it, understand what you're getting into and be willing to put in the work. If you're only pursuing something because someone promised you easy money, maybe it's worth reconsidering whether that's how you really want to spend your time. We used to look forward to our free time because it gave us an opportunity to relax, enjoy our hobbies, and step away from work. I don't think we should lose that simply b
