Editorial Team
By: Amanda Winstead
A side hustle is terrific for bringing in some extra money. However, it is hardly ever thought of as something that helps move you up in a corporate career.
Side hustles are especially advantageous when it comes to learning new skills. Many, if not all, of the skills you learn through managing a side gig have benefits in the corporate world that often lead to a promotion.
Let’s talk more about learning new skills and how else a side hustle can help you move up the corporate ladder.
Mitigate Financial Stress
Some people find themselves starting a side hustle because they want another source of income. But, at the same time, there are so many others that do it because they’re under an intense amount of financial stress.
Financial stress can be incredibly harmful to your mental health. It can trigger anxiety, depression, and behavioral changes. The adverse effects of financial stress can also spill into your professional life, causing you to lose your motivation, passion, and efficiency at work.
Creating an extra source of income through a side gig can alleviate financial stress and prevent it from negatively impacting your professional career. In addition, less stress allows you to stay engaged in your current role and enthusiastic about improving yourself in the corporate world.
A side hustle can also help you learn skills that are easily transferable to the corporate world.
Learn Transferrable Skills
Transferrable skills are simply abilities and talents that you can take with you to any job or career. Side hustles present an excellent opportunity to learn transferable skills that can help you move up the corporate ladder.
For instance, effective communication is necessary for any position, but it becomes more and more critical the higher you go on the corporate ladder. This is because you’ll be working with more people, have additional responsibilities, and leading projects.
When it comes to your side hustle, you’ll wear many hats. Whether you’re working with a supplier, new client, angry customer, or new partner, you must be able to communicate with everyone effectively to ensure your side hustle’s operation is seamless.
Here are some additional transferable skills that you develop with a side hustle that can boost your corporate career:
- Business savvy
- Money management
- Collaboration
- Problem-solving
- How to grow your finances
- Adaptation
- Creative thinking
- Leadership
- Empathy
- Active listening
- Data analysis
You can include these skills on your resume when applying for higher positions and back your inclusion of them with real-world experience because of your side gig.
Lastly, a side hustle is beneficial for growing your professional network.
Grow Your Professional Network
You likely have some sort of professional network already established because of your corporate career. With that being said, your side hustle can extend your professional network. You’ll meet other business owners, freelancers, and so forth, also hoping to climb the corporate ladder who can support you throughout your journey with tips, resources, and kind words.
You’ll also meet professionals who can potentially be a source for finding new opportunities in the corporate world. Whether they want to hire you themselves or know of an open position, it’s good to have solid professional relationships.
All in all, your professional network gets even bigger when you have a side gig, furthering your opportunity to make connections with people that can help you move up the corporate ladder.
Conclusion
Although it isn’t a common thought, your side hustle can absolutely help you move up the corporate ladder. First and foremost, a side hustle can mitigate financial stress and allow you to remain motivated and engaged in your current role, furthering your ability to climb the corporate ladder.
You can also learn skills that are easily transferable to your corporate job through your side hustle while developing business savvy that makes you even more of an asset in higher positions.
Lastly, a side hustle is one of the most effective ways to grow your professional network and make connections that boost your side hustle’s success and your efforts to climb to the top of the corporate ladder.