Out of the 88.9 million Nigerians in the country’s labour force, 71.2 million are self-employed, 12.96 are salary and wage earners, and the remaining 4.74 million are unemployed but looking for work.
These statistics show that over 80 percent of Nigerians who can work have taken their future into their hands by creating jobs for themselves because there are only nearly 13 million jobs for nearly 90 million people. And the majority of those Nigerians who earn salaries and wages cannot survive on these alone, so they must create additional income streams. Even some self-employed Nigerians cannot survive on their entrepreneurship revenue alone and have to take up side hustles.
Enter the side hustle: a side hustle is a small business that someone pursues in addition to their main job to earn extra income. Side hustles usually provide either a daily income or an income you don’t have to wait a month for. These include web designing, language tutoring, event ushering, public speaking and content videography, just to name a few.
A successful side hustle can become a full-time business, giving you control over your career and future. If done diligently and to the highest standards, the side hustler will begin to gain a reputation as a high performer and can begin to charge a premium for their services, leading to more income. More income can make them employ others who they will pay salaries or wages to.
Side hustles are so diverse that they offer opportunities to everyone over the age of fifteen (which is the legal age to start working in Nigeria) no matter their educational level, background, languages spoken or physical appearance. Side hustles solve problems that Nigerians encounter daily; and Nigerians are willing to pay for these problems to be solved. So, you don’t need academic degrees to sell airtime, run a cab-hailing service or make meals. But you do need academic qualifications to be a charge-and-bail lawyer, business advisor or physiotherapist. All these can be side hustles.
Side hustles allow you to keep your main job. Someone can work at an office or remotely from home and still have a house cleaning, plumbing or nanny business. These latter jobs in the beginning years of them being side hustles will not come every day so the side hustler can still earn their salaries or wages while making additional income when the side hustle requests come up.
You will develop more skills when you operate a side hustle. When you realize that you really need an additional income and it makes you take on the responsibilities of your employer such as finding a shop or office space, dealing with an industry regulator and buying work equipment, you will be pleasantly surprised that you can do these things. Because as an employee your job is to come to work, do your job, go home, repeat for four weeks and get paid, without knowing or caring where your employer gets your salary from! A side hustle will even make you a more efficient employee because you will be able to empathize with your employer after being in their shoes.
Most importantly, a side hustle will give financial security. Nobody knows when or if they will be fired by their employer. Firings are caused by several factors, not all to do with the fired employee. Sometimes the employer simply cannot afford to keep that employee. Sometimes the employee may not fit the company culture. Sometimes the employee is not competent at the job. There are several reasons, and the real reason may not be told to the fired employee. A side hustle will help cushion the blow of a lost salary, particularly when this side hustle has been done for a long time. That is why the quicker an employee starts a side hustle the more beneficial that side hustle will be to them in the long run.
Dr. Sonnia Agu is the Founder, SapioWorks.
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