In this day and age, we not only pleasure from the regular full time jobs that we have. Most of do want to have a sense of fulfillment in what we do. Hence, some of us are engaged in side hustles outside of our regular full time jobs to bring about meaning to our lives. The bonus is that we get to supplement our main source of income doing something we enjoy. Some of us manage to scale our side hustles so successfully that we are able to quit their full time jobs to fully focus and scale their side hustle to become a full time sustainable business.
This blog came about because I wanted to have a place to consolidate what I have read or learnt into a platform where I can easily have access to. Also, by putting what I have consolidated online for everyone to see, I am inviting you readers to leave comments to facilitate the sharing of knowledge. I believe that knowledge should never be kept private because this is how we all grow and become a better version of ourselves.
Granted that there are multiple sites listing various side hustles one can start off on. As you would have noticed by now, there is no one size fits all approach when it comes to choosing your side hustle. It all boils down to your interest and if you are willing to invest time into improving the skill. As for myself, I did not have much knowledge in web development and experience in writing when I first started this blog. I simply improved my skills along the way (hopefully!)
I have listed some of the side hustles in this article which I have done before or am currently doing which I think is practical and does not require much effort. Feel free to add on to this list!
READ: Passive Income Ideas that Anyone Can Try
1. Giving Tuition
Giving tuition is one of the first jobs that I had while I was studying in university. The fees are largely decided by the middleman (i.e agent) who collaborates the work schedule and rates with the tutor and tutee. Once decided, you are able to start the giving tuition with the schedule decided by the student. Of course, you are able to choose if you are comfortable with this assignment before taking it on. In many cases, giving tuition is a long term commitment because it takes time for a teacher- student interpersonal relationship to develop and for the synergy to take effect.
With the Covid-19 situation going on, many services have been digitised. This includes the provision of tutoring services. Online tuition services such as Champion Tutor and Smile Tutor are available for sign up in Singapore. All you need to do is to register your interest as a tutor and wait to be assigned to students. Since the teaching is done online, it saves on your travelling time as well.
If you think you have not kept up with the ever changing syllabus of Singapore’s education requirements, why not try teaching English online? There are multiple sites that offer this service. Generally speaking, you need to be a native English speaker and have a Bachelor’s Degree to be qualified. Other must- haves include having your own desktop/ laptop, webcam, headset and a reliable internet connection when you conduct those classes.
How much you can potentially earn giving tuition in Singapore: A private tutor can earn between SGD 30 and 40 per hour for primary level student. The range varies depending on the experience of the tutor and the subjects being taught.
Resources for giving Tuition in Singapore:
Resources for Teaching English Online:
– VIPKID
2. Doing Online Surveys
Doing online surveys to earn credits in exchange for cash or vouchers is one of my favourite side hustles because it does not require much effort and can be easily done on the go. My go-to survey platforms are Milieu (Referral Code TQPIIF to sign up) and Happy Dot. One can easily sign up for an account with them and check in regularly for surveys pending to be completed by user. The accumulated credits can then be exchanged for vouchers such as Grab Points, Dairy Farm Vouchers and Food vouchers to name a few. Although doing online surveys does not provide a consistent income, the time- effort input- output is worth doing so.
How much you can potentially earn doing Online Surveys: A few months to accumulate sufficient points to exchange for a SGD $10 Dairy Farm voucher.
Resources: Milieu (Referral Code TQPIIF to sign up) and Happy Dot
Please contact me at contact@everydayinvestinginyou.com with your name and email address if you want me to refer you to the Happy Dot Program. You will receive your welcome gift after completion of the registration survey. I, the referrer will receive points for every successful referral.
3. Doing Mystery Shopping
Signing up to be a mystery shopper in Singapore is relatively simple. All one has to do is to sign up for an account online and go through a relatively straightforward phone interview. The next step involves waiting for an assignment to match your profile before you are called up.
The benefits include being able to consume the products you are evaluating. For my case, I was assigned to be a mystery shopper for a F&B outlet in Singapore. I had to evaluate their service standards such as the food presentation and how long I had to wait before I was served amongst many other scientific criteria that was presented in the questionnaire to be completed after the assignment.
How much you can potentially earn as a Mystery Shopper in Singapore: According to a poll by Indeed, the average salary per day is SGD $52.18. Do note that this is not a consistent source of income. It is recommended to supplement this with other side hustles.
Resources:
4. Participating in a Focus Group
Anyone who is keen can sign up to be included into a focus group’s database. Once they have a project that potentially matches your profile, you might be contacted by the researcher to check your availability and interest.
The focus groups I attended lasted one and a half hours on a weekday which means if you have a regular full time job like myself, you will have to apply for time off. It was not a big deal for me because I have leave to clear anyway. As the name suggests, the researchers will ask each participant in the focus group questions to understand their opinions and thought process. The results of this studies will be used by them to gauge the consumers’ before new products or services are launched.
How much you can potentially earn participating in a Focus Group: The fee can range from SGD 50 for three hours to SGD 120 for one and a half hours, depending on the topics and focus group company.
Resources:
5. Food delivery or Carpool Services
If you commute to work by car, consider offering carpool service to passengers who are going to the same location as you. This not only allow you to earn some cash back from your road trip, you can also potentially make a few new friends along the way.
With more Singaporeans preferring to eat out and ordering take-aways at the comfort at their home, the demand for food delivery services has risen. With that in mind, you can consider working part time during weekends as a food delivery person serving the consumers in your neighbourhood. The demand for such services will be there for a long time.
How much you can potentially earn from making deliveries and carpooling: According to Grab, one of the leading companies in Singapore that offer such services, the driver for carpooling services can expect to receive between SGD $8 and $12 per pickup on average. As for food delivery, the base is SGD $5 with incentives given if targets are met.
Resources:
– Grab
– Food Panda (Referral Link: https://fdpnda.app.link/N4h2HfF8P7)
We both receive SGD $10 Food Panda voucher when you make your first order.
6. Selling Stock Photos
If you love taking photos, consider selling your photos to earn some extra cash. There are multiple sites which provides stock photos for users such as bloggers to download as they may not have the resources to curate their own stock photos for their content creation.
Selling your stock photos can potentially increase your exposure and expand your photography portfolio for almost at nil cost. Your photos will be seen by the end users worldwide without much promoting efforts done by your end.
How much you can potentially earn selling Stock Photos: According to data taken from this blog, stock photos earn between 25 cents and 45 cents per image, per month on average.
Resources:
7. Affiliate Marketing
If you have a blog and would like to monetize it, affiliate marketing is one of the methods you can explore. It is easy to sign up and with the plethora of affiliates available, you will never run out of choices. Choose retailers that are related to your blog niche to increase your probability of generating sales.
It does not take much effort to generate affiliate backlinks to your website and writing a short description of the product or service that you are promoting. I personally include affiliate links on my blog.
How much you can potentially earn doing Affiliate Marketing: Depends on how often you post and your reader outreach.
Resources:
– Refer to my Affiliate Disclaimer Page for more details
8. Friend for Hire
This might be a bit controversial idea for some, but if you are open to the idea of spending time with strangers in exchange for cash, this might be might be one of the easiest ways to earn some extra cash on the side. Though there are rules in place to ensure the safety of both parties, it is better to err on the side of caution.
How much you can potentially earn: Varies from SGD $80 to $400 per hour, depending on the duration and activity as stated in this interview by a local Youtuber.
Resources:
– Maybe.sg
READ: Wealth Made Easy: Millionaires and Billionaires Help You Crack the Code to Getting Rich
Everyday Investing in You is inviting members to join in the Side Hustle Singapore Lean In group. This group is targeted at working professionals who are side hustling. This group serves as a motivation for one another to push on and also to share any resources.
Internet & digitization has given us a wide range of opportunity to do side hustle. One can easily make money by doing digital marketing, managing social media of some companies, data entry, etc.
Yes, we can easily put our skills to good use!
A lot of these ideas are applicable to Canada! Although, I find the one “friend for hire” an interesting one 🙂
Hey Minda, yes all these ideas can be easily achieved by anyone. It doesn’t take alot of time to implement them. The friend for hire is a fresh take of earning money for your time. 🙂
Great post and all great side hustle ideas! It’s always a good idea to create multiple income streams, especially in this day and age, to be financially secure.
Hey Corinne, totally agree. Especially when some of the ideas are not hard to implement and doesn’t take up much time.
Hey! I agree and thanks for the side hustle ideas. It’s good to have other sources of income besides your main jobs. Thank you! If you could give my iTunes podcast a try. Maybe you could subscribe and leave a rating or short review for my iTunes podcast. It would mean a lot to me. Thank you! Here’s the link: https://podcasts.apple.com/ph/podcast/fashionmusings-microcast/id1493434302
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