Side hustles are a favorite topic in the blogosphere, especially among bloggers who focus on increasing income.
You won’t believe what I recently found out started as a side hustle.
If you aren’t aware, side hustles are things people do on top of their full-time job to increase income.
They can be as simple as working a shift on the weekend at a retail store or as complex as trying to launch the next billion-dollar startup.
Regardless of what the side hustle is, the end goal is the same: increase income beyond what you make at your full-time job.
I was very surprised to find out that the comic strip Dilbert started as a side hustle.
I found this out because I’ve recently been reading How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big: Kind of the Story of My Life by Scott Adams. For those who do not know, Adams is the founder of Dilbert.
What most probably assume about Dilbert is that Adams has always been a cartoonist. I mean, why wouldn’t you think that? Another assumption many would likely have is that Dilbert was likely one of his only side hustles. Also not true. He had many failed side hustles before finding success with Dilbert.
Some of Adam’s failed side hustles and ideas are:
- Meditation Guide
- Computer Game
- Computer Game (#2)
- Psychic Practice Program
- File Transfer Program
- Various Websites
- Grocery Home Delivery
- Restaurant
- Restaurant (#2)
He goes into a little detail about each of these failed side hustles (and more that I didn’t list) in his book, but there’s something about reading about someone’s failed business ideas that is motivating. It makes me look at my failed business ideas and realize that there are others out there who have tried multiple things, failed at all of them, and then finally found something that turned into a huge success.
One piece of advice from Adams that I think is worth sharing (and remembering) is to always have a side project going that can potentially be worth a billion dollars. I think this is fairly consistent with what I look for in a side hustle, which are:
- Location-Independent
- Ability to Outsource and Sell
I totally understand that some people are wired to be employees. A large majority of people I know fall in this camp (perhaps as many as 99% of the people I know or have met).
If you don’t fall in this camp, though, it’s always better to build something that you can sell, or something that you can create once (like a comic strip) and sell over and over again.
I’m fascinated by people like Adams who are willing to give something a try year-after-year and continue to try new ideas. Some people will find an idea that takes off relatively quickly (Mark Zuckerberg and Facebook come to mind), others will only find success after countless hours spent on countless side projects. Some may never find success, however you define it.
Check out DC’s new book Hustle Away Debt to learn everything you wanted to know about making money through side hustles!
Did you know that Dilbert started as a side hustle? If not, were you surprised to hear that? Do you have a side hustle or plan on starting one?
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Photo by Shawn Campbell
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Oh wow! We engineers are particularly find of Dilbert – he’s been posted in every office I’ve worked at. Super interesting and somehow very motivating!
indebtedmom Haha yeah we love Dilbert at my work too. It’s always funny to read, and somehow it’s shocking how relevant it is to our office!
Wow, that’s crazy…but in a good way! :) I always loved Dilbert when I was in an office and can’t even imagine what Adams has made and will continue to make on it. It just goes to show you the importance of not giving up when you run into things that just don’t do well and continue to think outside the box.
Cool stuff…didn’t know that. I don’t think my current side hustles could ever be worth a billion dollars. I get what he’s saying but that’s overly optimistic. I’d settle for a tenth of that. :)
I didn’t know Dilbert was started as a side hustle. That is awesome!
I don’t have any side hustles right now. However, my freelancing business all started out as a side hustle and I love it!
FrugalRules Adams said he has made more money than he could possibly spend or use in his lifetime. I’m sure it just keeps compounding since he probably makes a large chunk of his income from passive sources.
Brian @ Luke1428 I’d be happy with a million haha. It has forced me to rethink my side hustles as well. I want to focus on things that have more potential for scalability or to be outsourced.
SenseofCents Yeah it’s pretty crazy that Dilbert started as a side hustle. Even more so it’s crazy that it was definitely not the first thing that he attempted.
Oh wow, I had no idea it started as a side hustle. What a lucrative hustle! I wonder what the Psychic Practice Program was about? :)
Prior to blogging I had a few other side hustles- being a personal trainer and network marketing among them. Thank goodness I found something that seems to be working out!
Interesting- I would have never guessed!
Neat, I had no idea. I assumed he was a regular newspaper cartoonist! Would you recommend the book?
I had no idea, but these things make sense when you think about it. I have had numerous side hustles that never took off or just didn’t really pan out completely. It took a lot before I found one that would produce quality income.
Wow! What a great find. Thanks for sharing this. I think learning that Dilbert started as a side hustle really shows what your side hustle can turn into. And learning about the failures also helps motivate people and to keep hustling with what you love.
The oddest and most creative side hustle I know is from a local guy. He is honestly a bit crazy, but his family took bankruptcy a while back because their business failed. On the side he developed a machine that basically would vacuum up prairie dogs out of their holes. They are a huge problem here because they destroy yards, but even worse, can wreck the infrastructure of things like airport runways. The only real way to get rid of them was to use poison, which got all kind of people in a tizzy about the environment. Anyway, his machine sucks them up and then he transports them to wildlife preserves so the birds can eat them. He has gotten all kinds of government contracts to clear out airports and military facilities and is now a millionaire. I guess you should never give up!
Huh, I had not idea. Great reminder to think creatively and pursue what you enjoy! I suppose you never know exactly which idea will pan out.
I had no idea that Dilbert started as a side hustle, but having worked the cube life for years, I love Dilbert. I also love stories like this about all of the failures that uber successful people have had. It’s an important reminder to not give up on the things that you love because you never know when all of your hard work will pay off.
I had no idea Dilbert started as a side hustle…that’s awesome! And yes I was pretty surprised. I’ve definitely got my share of side hustles rolling, one I look forward to talking to you about on Wednesday!
Practical Cents Yeah it’s a pretty amazing story! Haha he took some hypnotist classes in his 20s so it has to do with that. Definitely was fun reading about some of his other side hustles that didn’t pan out.
brokeandbeau I had a few failed side hustles before the blog/writing as well. I like my current side hustle, but I’d like to do something a bit more scalable as well. I think blogs have limited potential payoff, but it’s worked out well for the past couple years so I will continue it.
TheWriteBudget Me either, I always assumed he was always a cartoonist. I need to stop assuming things so often!
moneypropeller I assumed that as well. I would HIGHLY recommend the book. In fact, I might even re-read it :0 Which is something I pretty much never do.
DebtRoundUp I’d be interested in hearing about your past side hustles, Grayson. I know my post about my failed businesses was pretty popular. I won’t speak for everyone, but I personally would love to see more posts like that from people who have tried different things that didn’t work out.
theFinancegirl I know, it was shocking to hear (and exciting!). I think it will be a great example for future side hustle posts.
I had no idea that Dilbert was a side hustle. And I bet if you dig further, there are probably tons of successful businesses that started out as side hustles. You brought up an excellent point about the best side hustles being location independent and sellable. Those are things are think about even more as I retirement beckons. I’m still a few years away, but when I leave my “traditional” 9-5, I still want to work, but on my terms and preferably that business is already in place prior to retirement.
I had no idea! I also had no idea he had started so many other side hustles that he failed at. That’s perseverance my friends! I’ve had side hustles that have petered out, but I wouldn’t consider that failing since I can probably pick them back up if I want to. I would really like to find more passive income streams though…I just have no idea what.
Nope, did not know that, but interesting! I think there’s a lot of entrepreneurs out there that have had plenty of failed ideas, but we don’t really know about them as they’re so well known for their successes. Everyone starts somewhere, but it is inspiring to read about how many failures others had to face before making it big. It gives me some hope!
That’s really interesting. I have to say, I probably took away the wrong message from Adams’ story: being risk averse, it confirmed my thinking that a side hustle is not for me. The payoff can be huge, certainly, but the risks of failure are great. It might even be likely.
No, I did not know that, thanks for sharing that fun fact. Dilbert cartoons are awesome. Sometimes I would incorporate them into some powerpoint presentations for project kickoffs or training. I had to assess the audience to see if it would work.
Eyesonthedollar Holy crap. That guy is awesome!
Mrs. Frugalwoods Definitely! I think there’s something to be said about testing things out and seeing what works. Most business ideas will fail or not pan out. You only really need one to work, though.
blonde_finance I love reading failure stories too, preferably from someone who had an idea that finally panned out. As a resident cube dweller, I love Dilbert!
Joshua Rodriguez Yes I look forward to discussing your ideas, it sounds promising for sure! I think it’s always good to have at least one idea rolling, if not more, and figure out which work and which don’t.
ShannonRyan I agree 100%. Having some sort of passive, non-location dependent business going can make early retirement possible and can make “regular” retirement more comfortable (and fun imo).
Beachbudget It may be wrong to say all of his were failures as well, since some of them were him actively ending the hustle because it didn’t “take off.” Who knows what would have happened if he would have stuck with developing computer games? He may never have become a multi-millionaire with Dilbert.
JourneytoSaving I think it’s unfortunate that most people – myself included – just assume that successful entrepreneurs succeeded on their first try. I find it refreshing to hear about the failures and challenges they went through before that ultimate success.
DonebyForty There isn’t a WHOLE lot to lose, though. Adam had a successful 9-5 in banking during all these side hustles and pursuits.
debt debs That’s a great idea! I think that would be an absolute hit with the right audience. I know I would love it.
You can definitely have fun and make money in a side hustle. I only wish I had done the Dilbert side hustle myself.
All I needed is a better sense of humor, a better drawing ability, and a way to market the cartoon and it would have been me.
DC @ Young Adult Money DonebyForty In a financial sense, yes. But time is our most precious resource. It’s probably more precious in our twenties and thirties than any other time.
It’s all a matter of tradeoffs. I feel like I make enough now to not want to trade all my evenings hustling on something with a negative expected financial return. But that’s why I’m not an entrepreneur. To someone else, that sounds like a great risk to take, because the upside is potentially big.
DonebyForty DC @ Young Adult Money Ah I see your point, and it’s a good one. Time is definitely a precious commodity and is actually the reason I am not going to pursue an MBA. Too much of a time sacrifice without enough upside.
No Nonsense Landlord You should check out his book. He describes how incredibly lucky he was as far as timing goes for DIlbert to be successful. There was even a series of strange (lucky) events that happened that made it possible, otherwise it may have never been a big-time comic. I appreciate Adams’ being open about how much luck is involved.
Wow – like most others DC, I had no idea this was a little side-hustle! It’s awesome to see all the things he tried that didn’t work too – it really opens your eyes to the fact that many people who seem to succeed with these things don’t have some magic ability to conjure up genius ideas – they just keep trying and testing and when something works, they run with it!
I have some very small ideas I’d like to keep chipping away at, but I’m not putting every ounce of my spare time and energy into it at this stage. But definitely inspiring to see what is possible out there! I also like spending much of that spare time with my family at the moment :)
Sometimes it takes a lot of failing to win big. I didn’t know Dilbert was a side hustle. That’s cool!
This was a fun and informative article. Two of my favorite things. Good job!
Jason@Islands of Investing Yeah and he even admits he’s not GREAT at anything, just good at a few things and continued to try things until something worked out. It’s always a challenge balancing family time and work. Your time can be consumed by either one pretty easily.
MoneyMiniBlog Yeah it’s always cool to find out about small side hustles that turned into big businesses. Glad you enjoyed the post!
I’m a big fan of Scott Adams, especially having worked in his former industry: Telecommunications. Thanks for highlighting his book. It’s one that is definitely on my reading list.