To think “Side Hustle” can get in the bin?

[courageiscontagious]

I am so sick of my feed being full of people “girl bossing” their “side hustle” like it’s a good thing.

it feels like propaganda to make us think there is anything empowering about having to work a SECOND JOB in this dumpster fire of an economy.

One generation ago a man could buy a house and support his family on his one income with only a high school education.

Now, my husband and I have five degrees between us and we both have to bust our arses to support fewer children than my parents had.

FUCK SIDE HUSTLE CULTURE. It’s just another way to make us blame ourselves for being poor when there are systemic and structural factors fucking us over.

end rant.

Side hussle is a term very much used in the UK. I don't beleive the older people I know would of heard of it but I'm 40 and hear it all the time.
I've had 2 sides huddles that i love. I don't need them to cover any costs, I just love the feeling of making a sale, I have a big entrepreneurial side so it feeds that.

thecountessoffitzdotterel they were also hair pins as well as clothes pins.

Takeouts and nurseries were not as commonplace in the 80s, but there was certainly plenty to spend money on if you had it. I had a friend whose parents were both full time professionals. She was certainly more middle class and went on foreign holidays, ate out in nice restaurants, had a four bedroomed detached and a nice car and the latest gadgets and electronics- soda stream, video recorder, exercise bike, branded clothes and makeup, etc. They wouldn't have been able to live like this on one working class income. The difference is that in those days people lived within their means more.

They existed in very small numbers compared with dress pins through the medieval and early modern periods when the term had its origins, hence mudlarks/archaeologists finding relatively few.

i don’t think working class couples have ever really been able to live on one wage, going through my family history many generations of women going back to 19th century worked and I don’t think my family is unusual

If you worked in a pub or supermarket you wouldn't call it a side hustle so it must only mean self employed.

100% with you OP.

First bone of contention is that the cost of living even a modest lifestyle outstrips income potential for vast swathes of people in full time work.

"Side hustles" often generate little in the way of meaningful extra income if they are "legit" once you factor in things like overheads - if it's a service you may need insurance or qualifications that cost, if it's online selling the competition is huge and you need advanced tech skills to maximise your SEO, and be proficient at navigating multiple platforms to maximum exposure. You also have to factor in the extremely high expectations of customers who are used to Amazon speed of delivery and variety on the scale of cheaper large online platforms which I won't name as MN automatically hides the posts in case of spam.

For every 1 person apparently "girl bossing" their "side hustle" there are thousands wrangling courier fubars and arguing the difference between cerise and puce with someone who has actually decided their pug didn't need a new bandana after all, and weeping with frustration because a bad review has gone viral as a result.

I'm often accused of being a negative Nancy and unwilling to put on the effort to improve my own dire financial situation, but I've done bricks and mortar retail as an independent and tried the online thing, and do know what I'm talking about. There aren't enough hours in the day if you have family responsibilities and a job for all the admin, and you have to be "on it" virtually 24 / 7.

There is almost an element of delusion about it all these days, as if determination alone will do it. But it's like Fight Club, so we're not supposed to talk about it.

Maybe! But I wa actually wondering about the subjects

I agree, but we families didn't expect to buy houses, either. And families of men in the professions could afford to live on one income in a decent house, usually with at least one servant - which was fortunate, as if women were allowed in a particular profession at all, there were often marriage bars so they would have been forced out on becoming a wife, and if there wasn't an official bar, there was usually a social one in practice. Plus lower wages and no access to promotions.

When I learned about the pinning of clothes, I realised a pinafore was just literally named.

To me, a side hustle isn't a second job as in employment, but an activity you earn money from, be it tutoring, coaching, an app, a craft, etc. It could become a job if successful, but it's not like food delivery or cleaning where someone else employs you.

Moonlighting is a second job outside of the normal daylight hours job, but to me, it also has connotations of being slightly dodgy.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DMR1YvoupFo/?igsh=NGRvc3pjZjNiZzBj

this just popped up in my feed- an American woman who is mystery shopping, carvertising and literally becoming a surrogate to pay off debt.

Couldn’t agree more with this. While some have the wealth to live a ‘wellness’ dream!

I promise it’s something sensible. I have gone into a “helping” sector though so not as lucrative as if I went to work for a tobacco company.

Agreed

Fair enough.

I agree OP that the economic environment is very different to how it was when your parents were young. Our lives are better in some ways but definitely worse in others.

I also don’t think hobbies and passions need to be monetised.

words on fire OP - totally agree!

And some side hustles produce the most niche products and services. “Oh I build unique play equipment for rabbits because when I had a rabbit I noticed it looked a bit bored.” Hilarious but also annoying!

Side line is better surely? I hate side hustle and boss whatever.

Side Gig is a better term, imo.

The women I know with a side hustle work part time as they want/need time at home with children and make up some of the loss in wages by making some money with a side hustle.

It seems a lot if working full-time.

I'm probably more than a generation older than you but always had to work as my husband's salary wouldn't cover the mortgage and basics like eating. Obviously some people lived that life but nowhere near all of us.

Hard agree. I despise the monetisation of hobbies under capitalism, and the drive to have 'productive' hobbies.

I wasn’t asking to try and catch you out! I was just interested I promise! 😊

@courageiscontagious In the good old days only 10% went to university. So of course a secondary school education supplied trades and lower managerial jobs. I’m 70 and in my generation teachers needed degrees for secondary teaching and nurse degrees came in. However it was easier to buy a home. Many people even then did have to save up for a deposit.

You also need to look at what degrees you have and where you live. Not all degrees are a great platform for high earnings. Career choice matters too. If you are a London lawyer with your degrees you would be ok. I’m assuming you haven’t aimed for this. If you live in a cheap area, two teachers certainly can buy a nice house! No problems. So look at job snd area you live in. The country doesn’t owe you anything. I’m guessing lowish pay means little repayment of loans. The government stumped up for them in the first place. Hopefully your parents didn’t pay up front and spend a house deposit equivalent. I’d stop moaning and take action.

My DH makes the most amazing cheesecake- a friend suggested seriously that he should sell them. But they cost about a tenner to make just for the ingredients and there’s no way anyone would pay that lol.

Yes, because we know from threads on here that people expect to pay tuppence for home made cakes. Every other week there is one moaning about it