A young woman who has made £28,000 with her “side hustles” this year reveals how others can cash in big before the year ends.
Elena Assimakopoulos works a 9 to 5 job but has been boosting her earnings with extra income avenues for years.
And she’s not done yet – the 26-year-old is set to pull in a total of £35,000 by 31 December from her side gigs alone.
Not afraid to share her tips, Elena has gone viral with millions of views on TikTok, where she details the jobs she has tried – revealing which are the most lucrative.
“It feels great to be able to save a significant amount especially whilst living in London,” Elena, who works full-time as a marketing lead, told Absolutely Business.
“I know it is very hard for young people to be able to save anything at all in the city as life is so expensive at the moment.
“It’s definitely worthwhile starting a side hustle – or a few in my case – however, this is not something to take lightly.
“I didn’t get here overnight.
“I have worked very hard and sacrificed a lot the last few years.
“I wake up at 5am every day to work on this before my 9-5 and have had to reduce my socialising hours which can sometimes put a strain on relationships with loved ones.
“My motto is to try to be 1% better every day.
“By doing just one small thing each day to move closer to my goal, no matter how small is a win.”
The young woman spends between 2-3 hours a day on her side hustles, on both weekday mornings and occasionally evenings and weekends too.
SOCIAL MEDIA VIDEOS = MONEY
In a TikTok that has garnered 2.2 million views, Elena details her three main secondary income streams that can be done on a short-term basis.
The first – and newest of which – is user-generated content (UGC).
Having built up a following of over 22,000 on TikTok, Elena gets paid to create videos for brands – called user-generated content UGC) – which she says has proven fruitful.
She added: “I have unlocked this new side hustle income stream recently which is going great.
“This is something I plan to put a lot more effort and energy into for the rest of the year.”
She said she gets paid “quite a decent amount” to create the videos for brands – who post it on their own channels, meaning those without a following can get involved.
Elena charges between £200-400 per video, and said it means often receiving free goods such as beauty advent calendars “without having to be an influencer”.
CLEAR YOUR CUPBOARDS
Next up, Elena makes a point of selling things around the home that she no longer needs or wants – and she recommends thinking outside of the box here.
She said: “Go through all of your cupboards, and not just the clothes – go through tech and random stuff, like a lamp shade for example.
“People will buy it.
“So put it online and start selling it.
“It’s so easy – honestly there’s no excuse if you want to make money.”
TAKE ON SMALL TASKS IN YOUR SPARE TIME
Finally, Elena shares her “ultimate favourite” side hustle – using a site called Prograd, which compares various side hustles and helps users earn money by doing things like completing surveys, earning cash back on purchased goods, and tutoring.
She does “quick little side hustles here and there” via the site, adding: “If you get bored of doing the same side hustle over and over again, this is the place for you.
“Even if you have a spare half an hour or two hours, you can just go on the site and see what opportunities are available to make a bit of extra cash that day.
“It’s a solid win.
“Those are my three favourites if you don’t want to do a long-term side hustle.”
Despite her hard work, Elena warns against overdoing side hustles and burning yourself out.
She said: “By doing just one small thing each day to move closer to my goal, no matter how small is a win.
“Don’t put too much pressure on yourself or decision paralysis will get the better of you and you will end up doing nothing.
“It’s definitely harder also to stay motivated in these winter months, but taking vitamin D and getting enough sleep has really helped me.”
Viewers have applauded Elena for sharing “realistic” opportunities to make cash.
One person commented: “Some great options. Thanks for sharing.”
“So nice to hear some realistic side hustles for a change,” another said.
Someone else added: “I sell a lot on vinted and have found home stuff has sold way better than I’d expected! I thought it was just clothes when I started!”
“This is the content I need,” one person wrote.
Another viewer said: “This is super helpful.”
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