Summary
This document provides news and information about people seemingly making easy money in their spare time with a side gig hustle. A disclaimer and some advice for actual financial success is found at the bottom of this document.
An Ideology
There seems to be no substantive benefit for those who cling to and promote the idea that quick riches are easily achievable. The beliefs seem to be an ideology perpetuated by the faithful. The anecdotal stories of a few who have achieved great riches are like biblical miracles. They do not need to be reproducible. There is an excitement to hear about such stories of success, even if you can’t produce it in your own life. It is perhaps similar to those who participate in lotteries, knowing at some level the majority of participants only get poorer.
Stories as Click Bait
These get rich quick stories are popular and used as click bait even by legitimate news outlets — presumably for clicks that result in more page views and ad revenue.
Like a Casino
These get rich quick stories are similar to the displays in casinos that announce winners. They create the illusion of easy money opportunities being plentiful.
YouTube Examples
To find some examples, a YouTube video search on the words “year old makes a month” (without quotes) will produce a list of videos. The common words in titles convey the age of the person and how much they make a month. So, this is why that search works.
Common Themes
Common themes include:
- People who have dropped out of college before making it big.
- Young people in their 20s making big monthly earnings.
- People who had nothing doing something that made them rich in a short period of time.
- People who have been fired or laid off who soon become wealthy.
- People with little experience or training becoming very successful.
One or more of these common themes make the success stories sound achievable for anyone.
Parents must be telling their children, “Your cousin Stacy is making $8K per month without even working a job. Why can’t you be more like Stacy?”
The general key to success seems to be: “Remember, there are many examples of people being hugely successful even if they started with no money, no experience, having been fired, or dropping out of school. So, you can do it too. If you can believe it, you can achieve it. No dream is too high if you always reach for the sky.” Etc.
News
Stories are provided below in chronological order with the most recent at the top. Some are videos and others are written news articles.
CNBC (3 Aug 2024)
“My Amazon Side Hustle Brings In $409K A Year — At Age 17” — Bella Lin, 17, is the founder of GuineaLoft, a company that sells products for small pets, including guinea pig cages, bedding, food feeders and water bottles. In 2024, GuineaLoft has brought in an average of $71,000 per month in revenue so far. That’s more than double compared to last year, when the company brought in $34,000 a month. [Source]
CNBC (18 Jul 2024)
“29-year-old quit her job to sell flowers from a pickup truck—now she brings in up to $16,000 a month” — This woman’s advise for those seeking success: “If you’re living with your happiness, the money will follow.” She likes flowers so she decided to sell flowers from the back of a pickup truck. [Source]
CNBC (20 Jun 2024)
“35-year-old’s income streams made her more than $500,000 last year—some are completely passive” — This woman has multiple income streams and some are completely passive. With passive income, you need not exert any effort and the money just rolls in. [Source]
Aussie Biz Chic (17 May 2024)
“How I Quit My 9-5 to Run a 7-Figure Business in 18 Months” — Are you dreaming of quitting your day job? I was in your shoes back in 2020. Determined to break free from the corporate grind, I devised a plan to start my own business, and it worked! In this video, I’ll share the exact steps I took to transition from my 9 to 5 to working full-time on my dream. Join me as I walk you through my journey and provide practical tips to help you do the same. [Source]
CNBC (12 May 2024)
“41-year-old who makes $160,000 a month in passive income: This is ‘the business model that has set me free’” — This guy got laid off and decided to become an entrepreneur making passive income earning $160,000 a month working less than 5 hours per week. [Source]
CNBC (3 May 2024)
“32-year-old mom’s Poshmark side hustle brings in nearly $4,000 a month—she only works 3 to 4 hours a day” — This woman started out on the path to riches by selling an old shirt for $8 and making $5 profit from the sale. Pretty soon she was brining in $4,000 per month with only 3-4 hours per day of work. [Source]
CNBC (11 Apr 2024)
“Justin’s: How I Built A Peanut Butter Company And Sold It For $281 Million” — Justin Gold put his homemade nut butters in Whole Foods, but still couldn’t turn a profit. A 2006 mountain-biking ride inspired a new product that put Justin’s on the map. [Source]
CNBC (9 Apr 2024)
“My Side Hustle Now Brings In $25K/Month – Here’s How I Did It” — Liz Chick started making and selling art to get reprieve from her “windowless office” job. Now, she runs an art studio in Brooklyn and makes $5,500 per month. [Source]
CNBC (25 Mar 2024)
“34-year-old making $49,000 a month in passive income: What I always tell people who want to build successful side hustles” — Ryan makes $49K per month through his multiple social media outlets where he teaches people how to make money through passive income streams. [Source]
CNBC (20 Dec 2023)
“This 29-year-old brings in more than $600,000 a year without a college degree—here’s how” — Jenny Nguyen’s artwork sells for as much as $500 to Hollywood’s elite — even though it vanishes in a matter of weeks. Nguyen, 29, is a celebrity nail artist and the owner of JennPaintt Nail Lounge in Los Angeles, where she offers a range of services, from manicures to eyelash extensions. [Source]
CNBC (24 Nov 2023)
“26-year-old brings in $33,000 a year from 2-minute side hustle that cost next to nothing to start” — If you have just a few minutes available, even without much experience, you could bring in an extra $33K per year. [Source]
Noah Kagan (30 Sep 2023)
“I Was Homeless… Now I Make $5M/Year” — In this video, I learn how Mark Jenney went from being homeless, to starting over 30 companies and selling RV Share for $100M. Since then, he’s grown an Airbnb business to $12M+ a year while working only 30 minutes a week. [Source]
CNBC (1 May 2023)
“24-year-old earns $5,450/month in passive income from a car wash she bought for $0 down: ‘I only work on it 20 minutes a day’” — The car wash business can be lucrative.
CNBC (26 Dec 2022)
“‘I work just 4 hours a day’: This 29-year-old’s side hustle brings in $2 million a year” — This woman shares some secrets to success. You may want to take notes: “Mike and I are intentional about balancing work and life. Our work days always include meditation, exercise and time in nature.” Also, “On Mondays, for example, I do more creative activities like setting goals and brainstorming business strategies and content ideas.” And this tip: “By 3:00 p.m., Mike and I like to be off-roading on our four-wheeler or hike local trails with friends. Being in nature keeps me grounded, calm and creative, so it’s a priority for me.” For the full story, click the source link. [Source]
CNBC (6 Dec 2022)
“How I Earn $6,500/Month In Passive Income” — Amberly Grant, 34, vowed to be a millionaire after reading her first finance book at age 15. Then, in college, she discovered the FIRE movement, which stands for financial independence, retire early, and began working toward her dream of retiring early. Living in Denver, she was hired as a full-time project manager, started investing in real estate and launched a financial education side hustle. Today, Grant has accumulated a net worth of $835,000, and recently welcomed her first child. [Source]
Acorns (18 Aug 2022)
“How a 28-year-old managed to retire early and earn $16,000 a month in passive income” — The original title was eventually shortened to “How to retire early” and turned into a general article on retirement. Presumably from the title, the original story was about the woman who started selling flowers from a pickup truck. [Source]
Motiversity (16 May 2022)
The thumbnail preview image for the video below claims, “Getting rich is super easy.” This video seems to be a compilation of Jeff Bezos speeches and comments.
“I Got Rich When I Understood This” | Jeff Bezos” — I Got Rich When I Understood this! In this motivational video, Jeff Bezos shares some of his most POWERFUL Business advice that will help reveal the secrets of becoming successful, rich and become the entrepreneur of your dreams! [Source]
CNBC (30 Apr 2022)
“I Quit My $35K Job To Grow My Side Hustle – Now It Brings In $141 Million” — Tori Gerbig, 35-year-old founder and CEO of Pink Lily, walked away from her insurance job making $35,000 to grow her online clothing business. In 2021, the business brought in over $141 million in sales. [Source]
Channel 4 Entertainment (17 Dec 2020)
“This 17 Year Old Makes $50k a Month Selling Slime” — Meet 17 year old Marisa who makes a fortune by making and selling slime. Devoting time to creating beautifully shot ASMR videos of her slime is one of Marisa’s marketing secrets; with millions of views and followers on her YouTube and Instagram pages, she’s owning her status as the slime queen teen. [Source]
Advice
Most of these income “opportunities” are exaggerated and inflated portrayals of success. A story will claim that someone “makes” a certain amount of money, and when you get into the details, you’ll find that’s their total earnings. After their expenses are paid, the actual profits are much lower.
Influencers who produce travel and van life videos will make it look like they are on a perpetual vacation just having fun. They won’t show how much work goes into their lifestyle and the demands of producing video content.
Generally speaking, there are no universal shortcuts or tricks to make lots of money quickly and easily with little effort. Yes, you could win the lottery, but not everyone can win the lottery.
An approach that might work for a significant number of people would be the following:
- Get a trade school education to gain a skill that has marketplace and workplace value. There are several 2-year degrees or certifications that can result in $50K to $100K or more per year income. If you can make $100K per year, then in 10 years you will have earned $1 million. What you do with that $1 million will determine how well you do financially.
- Try to live on $36,000 per year. That’s about $3,000 per month. In some cities that would not be sufficient to live. So, you’ll need to find a city where the cost of living is low, but your income can still be high. Live in a cheap efficiency apartment that is close to work (or public transit to work) and a grocery store. Avoid expensive hobbies such as gambling, expensive cars, alcohol, cigarettes, boats, luxury travel, collectables, etc. Avoid anything that shifts your money from interest earning to a depreciating asset.
- Save and invest in low risk high yield accounts or investments. Some high yield savings accounts pay 4% to 5% per year. There are brokerage accounts with no fees that let you have money in low risk mutual funds. Avoid risky investments or investments that fluctuate greatly.
That’s it. Those are the three steps. You won’t retire in a mansion. You won’t retire with a yacht. However, you could be able to live a modest life into your later years if you make some sacrifices along the way.