Make Sure Your Side Hustle Doesn’t Wind Up Hustling You!
November 26, 2018 by Staff
Filed under Money/Business, Weekly Columns
(Akiit.com) If there’s one thing that liberals and conservatives can agree on (there are most likely a lot more than one) it’s that endeavor and entrepreneurship should be encouraged. After all, entrepreneurship is what makes this country great. It’s a path that can allow us to take our lives and our careers into our own hands and monetize the hobbies we dearly love. It benefits the economy and can provide a helping hand to those who are vulnerable to being swept under the rug in the corporate controlled culture of the modern workplace. It emboldens ordinary people; allowing them to smash the glass ceiling with their own bare hands and create their own opportunities in a climate that doesn’t offer up as many as it should.
However, starting your own business is inherently risky. Thus, to mitigate the risk, many choose to develop their businesses as a side hustle run concurrently with their day jobs to insulate themselves from many of the risks while gaining a foothold in a competitive business climate. However, while a sound stratagem, this also 
presents risks of its own. If you have chosen this path be sure to take steps to ensure that your side hustle doesn’t wind up hustling you…
Never, ever use company time or resources for your side hustle
A side hustle must, by necessity, be managed in your free time. If you use work time or resources like the company internet, telephone, photocopier to operate or promote your side hustle, this can land you in some very hot water with your employer and potentially whisk the monetary safety net out from under you.
Make sure that you develop your side hustle in your own time and it’s unlikely that you’ll encounter resistance from your employer.
Drive aware, drive smart, drive safe!
Many of us who own cars or motorbikes choose to use them to open up a potentially lucrative revenue stream. Whether it’s as an Uber driver or a delivery driver for Amazon, your vehicle can represent an extremely profitable hustle. However, if you make a living from your vehicle it behoves you to drive smart, safe and aware. If you’re doing a shift as an Uber driver on top of a full day’s work at your day job you must take steps to keep fatigue at bay. Allow it to get the better of you and at best you could make mistakes that damage your reputation and limit your future revenue, at worst you could be involved in a fatal accident. Needless to say, you must also invest in the proper maintenance of your vehicle. Don’t worry, your maintenance costs are tax deductible.
Remember, side hustle income is taxable income
Just because you’re paying tax on your day wage, this does not indemnify you against tax liability for your side hustle. It’s still your responsibility to declare all of your taxable income to the IRS. This is why you must log all of your tax deductible expenses and save all of your recipts.
There are only so many hours in the day!
Finally, while you should be lauded for your hard work, endeavor and ambition you must also remember that there are only so many hours in a day. Be wary of biting off more than you can chew and don’t let your ambition come at the expense of your work life balance or your relationship with the people you love the most.
Staff Writer; Mark Ross