4 Side-Hustles for an extra $1000 per week for travelers!

Now, let’s dive into the 4 side hustles that can help you earn an extra $1,000 per week. Some side hustles require specific skills, while others need none at all—but don’t worry if you have no experience as all of them can be easily learned on YouTube. How do I know this? Because that’s exactly what we did. I’ll break down each side hustle, covering the tasks you can be expected to work on, the tools you’ll need, and how much you can charge. And at the end, I’ll rank each side hustle by how easy they are to get started if you have no experience.

1. Video Editing

As of 2023, over a billion hours of video are watched on YouTube every day! And TikTok isn’t far behind, with over 1 billion monthly active users and more than 2 billion downloads globally. The rise of video as a marketing tool is undeniable. In 2023, 91% of businesses incorporated video into their marketing strategies to grow their brand and revenue.These stats show just how essential video has become for businesses looking to market and grow their brand. If you have video editing skills, you’re in high demand!

As a video editor, you’ll have the chance to work on a variety of exciting projects like:

• Online Courses: Helping clients launch their courses by editing their instructional videos.
• Social Media Reels: Creating engaging reels for social media channels to boost your clients’ online presence.
• YouTube Videos and Podcasts: Editing long-form content for YouTube or podcasts, turning raw footage into polished final products.
• Event Recap Videos: Editing highlight and recap videos for past events for them to use for sponsorships.

How much can you charge as a video editor?

The average hourly rate for video editors in the United States is approximately $31.60. This rate can vary widely depending on factors such as the editor’s experience, geographic location, and the complexity of the projects. If you have experience in video editing, it’s advisable to charge more than $31.60 per hour, and for beginners, I would say that this rate is a reasonable starting point. As you become more proficient and efficient at editing, consider transitioning from an hourly rate to a per-project pricing model. This shift can help maintain your cash flow and better reflect the value of your work as you take on more complex projects and deliver faster turnaround times.

Tools/Software for video editors:

Investing in a quality laptop is crucial for a smoother and more efficient editing experience. I vividly remember the struggle of editing on my 10-year-old MacBook Pro; the footage lagged, and exporting even a small project took an hour. To avoid this frustration, I recommend at least a MacBook Air with 512GB of storage. If your budget allows, a MacBook Pro will provide even better performance.

When it comes to software, you have excellent options like Final Cut Pro, Adobe Premiere Pro, and DaVinci Resolve. Personally, we prefer DaVinci Resolve. The best part? DaVinci Resolve offers a free version with nearly all the features you need to handle 90% of client projects. Ultimately, any of these tools can deliver professional results, so choose the one that suits your workflow and preferences best.

2. Virtual Assistant

Being a virtual assistant involves providing administrative, technical, or creative assistance to clients remotely. This role allows you to work closely with the owners or founders of a company, providing valuable insight into how to run a business successfully.

As a VA, you can be expected to provide services in these categories:

• Admin Support: Managing emails, scheduling appointments, data entry, and taking notes in virtual meetings.
• Customer Service: Answering calls and responding to customers.
• Social Media Management: Assisting with scheduling posts, engaging with their community, or creating content.
• Online Research: Conducting market research, competitor analysis, or finding contact information.

How much can you charge as a virtual assistant?

A VA typically charges anywhere from $5 to $50 per hour. I strongly recommend not charging less than $25 per hour. Why? Because the value you bring to a business is far greater than what the title “VA” might suggest. You’re an essential part of the team, and your contributions are worth every penny.

Tools/Software for virtual assistants:

The great thing about being a VA is that other than having a laptop and a decent Wi-Fi connection, most tools that you will need will be provided by the client.

It’s a fantastic opportunity to learn other skills while you are working as a VA.

By working closely with the business owner, you’ll start to notice gaps in skills that the business needs—gaps you can fill. For instance, one of Tamz’s clients mentioned that she was looking for a video editor for her new course. Tamz jumped at the chance and got the job, and now she regularly edits content for this client. That’s why I believe being a VA is the most underrated side hustle on this list.

Many people overlook it because it doesn’t sound sexy or cool. But think of a VA role as the top of the funnel in a business. It’s a low-ticket item that can lead to higher-ticket deals. Here’s another story to get you thinking: One of Tamz’s clients was hosting an event and needed a video editor to edit some last-minute videos. Tamz offered to assist with this, and we ended up making an extra $7,500 for editing a few short videos.

So, don’t let the title fool you. Being a VA can open doors to incredible opportunities and earnings that can easily get you to earn $1000 per week.

3. Graphic Design

Even though video content is trending, graphic designers are still in high demand. In fact, about 81% of businesses utilize graphic design in various formats, and 80% of small businesses recognize its crucial role.As a graphic designer, your creative talents will be in constant use.

Here are some tasks you can expect to take on:

• Designing Logos and Brand Identities: Crafting unique logos that capture the essence of a brand.
• Creating Marketing Materials: Designing eye-catching brochures, flyers, and posters to promote products and services.
• Making Graphics for Social Media Posts: Developing engaging visuals for platforms like Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.
• Designing Website Layouts: Creating intuitive and attractive website designs that enhance user experience.
• Designing Book Layouts: Arranging text and images in a visually appealing manner for publishing companies.

How much can you charge as a graphic designer?

Freelance graphic designers typically charge between $15 and $150 per hour, with the average rate being around $32.30 per hour. As with video editing, once you become more proficient in design, consider transitioning to a per-project pricing model rather than charging hourly.

Tools/Software for graphic designer:

The best tool to kick off your journey is Canva. It’s incredibly user-friendly and offers a wide variety of templates for everything from YouTube thumbnails and corporate presentations to flyers and brochures. The best part? Canva has a free plan that you can use to get started. Once you have a few clients and need more advanced features, you can upgrade to the paid plan, which is only about $120 per year.

However, if you aim to work with larger companies on more technical projects, it’s worth adding Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, and InDesign to your toolkit. While Canva is perfect for about 90% of your projects, Adobe’s suite offers advanced capabilities that Canva can’t match, ensuring you’re well-equipped for any design challenge.

4. Web Design

Having a website in 2024 is crucial for establishing credibility and engaging customers. With 75% of consumers judging a company’s credibility based on its website design and 67% more leads generated by businesses that blog, it’s clear that good web design is essential. 94% of consumers report poor web design will make them suspicious of the website.

Here are the two main tasks that you can assist clients with as a web designer:

• Designing and Building Websites from Scratch
• Providing Website Maintenance for Existing Websites

How much can you charge as a web designer:

If you decide to hire a professional, freelancers typically charge between $50 and $100 per hour, bringing the total cost for a basic website to approximately $1,000 to $5,000. So as you can see, building a website can get you to that $1000 So as you can see, building a website can get you to that $1000 per week goal quite easily. On average, you would only need to build 2-3 websites to reach your goal.

Tools/Software as a web designer:

Here are the tools that we use to build websites for our clients. For design, we use Canva and Adobe. For hosting and domain, we use Bluehost. For the WordPress theme, we use Astra Pro. The benefit of having Astra is that it’s not only one of the most lightweight themes you can find, but it also comes with hundreds of templates that you can use to assist you with building websites faster. We use Elementor (the free version) to convert our website into a drag-and-drop site builder.

Building a website might sound daunting, but that’s only because you might still think you need to know how to code. Those days are long gone! In 2024, drag-and-drop site builders like Elementor make creating a website incredibly easy and accessible to everyone, no coding required. I will be honest, there is a learning curve involved in some of the more technical aspects of building a website, but I am confident that if we could learn how to build websites, so can you.

Rating the Side Hustles

If I were to rank these side hustles by difficulty, here’s how they stack up:

1. Virtual Assistant (1/10): Super easy to get started with just a laptop and internet. No special skills required, making it the perfect entry-level gig.
2. Graphic Design (4/10): Canva makes it user-friendly, but having a creative eye is essential. While templates help makes things easier, good design skills take time to develop
3. Web Design (6/10): AI and web builders have simplified entry into this field, but it’s still more complex than graphic design. There are many nuances in web design that only come with experience.
4. Video Editing (6/10): Learning the basics isn’t too hard, but mastering it takes time. If you talk to anyone in the video industry, they will tell you how hard it is to find a GOOD editor. Similar to web design, there are some nuances that you learn from experience. The other thing to consider is that the barrier to entry is slightly higher for video editing compared to the other side hustles as you’ll need a decent internet connection to handle large files that you need to send and receive from customers, and you will need a decent laptop to edit the footage.

Conclusion

Those are the 4 side hustles that can help you make an extra $1,000 per week. Each one offers unique opportunities and challenges, but they all share the common advantage of being doable from anywhere in the world with just a laptop and internet connection.

Jump into one of these side hustles today and let me know in the comments which one you’re excited to try. And don’t forget to check out this post on the 5 lessons we learned while scaling our business past six figures.

Thanks for reading, and I’ll see you in the next post!