Jeff Dudan argues that early entrepreneurial experience is the best predictor of future success and urges teens and young adults to start a side hustle to learn marketing, sales, customer acquisition, basic accounting, and resilience. He lists four low‑tech, low‑investment side hustles that can deliver quick jobs and repeat customers: (4) grill cleaning (basic supplies; $100–$500 with upsells), (3) dryer vent cleaning (leaf blower, attachments; $125–$300 with hose replacement), (2) drywall hole patching (minimal tools; paint‑match upsell to increase ticket), and (1) dog training (classes or one‑on‑one, leverage group sessions and referrals). The episode closes with a call to action to take immediate steps, share the content, and check the host's book and brands.
Chapters
Hey, home fronters, I'm going to lay something on you. The greatest predictor of future success as an entrepreneur is an entrepreneurial experience early in life. And it doesn't matter what it is because chances are you will either fail or you will outgrow it quickly. But that's really not the point if you're in your teens or if you're in your early 20s. The time is now to get that side hustle moving. You need to be accelerating your education by trying, doing and ultimately failing. I've got four low tech side hustles for you to get started right now and you'll want to stay tuned for number one because I promise you won't see it coming and you won't be disappointed. Here is the only thing that matters for you right now. You will learn how to execute marketing and acquire customers. You will learn how to sell and gain confidence in the art of the pitch and get comfortable in rejection. Getting a door slammed in your face, getting a hard no, that is the next step to getting a yes on the next sale. And you'll learn things like basic accounting, how to file your taxes, how to account for costs. All of these things are critically important. So you gotta get your first one out of the way. These all are low tech businesses. These are all businesses that anyone can do. Now I had to think about like what is the requirement for these to be a low tech business that anyone can do. First of all, all of these businesses can be done with minimal equipment. You don't need a truck, you don't need a trailer, no big investments, you don't have to go to the bank, get a loan. These are going to be quick jobs. Most of these jobs can be done in less than one hour's time. So if you're working this is a side hustle, you can work it in. They're going to be done with your feet on the ground. So no real ladders. You're not working high. People are going to be worried about insurance. Are you falling on their property, breaking your neck? And there is opportunities for repeat customers and how to build a simple, obvious referral network for each one of these. Now you ready? Let's go. Working backwards. Number four, low tech side hustle. Grill cleaning. We all got them, we all use them. There are all kinds, smokers, wood pellet grills, high temperature gas grills. Some of these cost thousands of dollars and they get nasty. If I could start my grilling season with a deep cleaned and maybe a tune up for everything that's not working from the previous season for 100 bucks. I'm so in. You can do this every year for me. Simple supplies, some solvents, brushes, rags, polishes. Boom. You got yourself a business. And if you want to level this business up, learn how to do the replacement parts. Igniters, gas coils, the thermometers, the seals, they all go bad. Add a couple of products and leave behind like polishes or grill blankets for cold weather grilling, great brushes, all those types of things. You take your $100 one hour service and now you've moved it up to a four or $500 ticket. Prices only go up one way and side hustle land, and that is up. You know the types of neighborhoods who will cheerfully pay for this service. So canvas those neighborhoods with flyers with yard signs and build a book of business that you can do every year at your convenience. Working our way backwards now to number three, dryer vent cleaning. There are 15,000 house fires every year from clogged dryer vents. People hate doing this service and they never do this until the dryers are so clogged that they actually stop working and they're not drying clothes anymore. Or they smell smoke. No bueno. You need a leaf blower, an attachment, some kind of a snake, and a basic tool kit that has screwdrivers and small sockets. And voila, you're in business. This should be done in every home that has a dryer at least once a year. But it doesn't happen. What's the level up here, replacing the dryer hose? First and foremost, builders install a crappy plastic one you can offer to upgrade to a metal flex at a huge margin. So now you've taken $125 dryer vent cleaning. That's a 30 minute service, up to a 300 to $400 ticket. Easy peasy. And now maybe it's an hour. You can canvas neighborhoods for this or put ads on sites like nextdoor that focus on just the key neighborhoods that you want to work and make it convenient for your travel. And maybe set up a referral relationship with the appliance repair people or H Vac companies or duct cleaning companies. Sometimes these jobs are just too small for them to handle and they're looking for a referral partner to do these jobs. And you can schedule your customers for an annual cleaning again at your convenience. Rolling forward to the number two low tech side hustle drywall hole patching. People hate doing this themselves. Patching various sizes and shapes of holes and drywall takes time, patches and a little bit of Technique, not the easiest thing to do if you're a first timer. You might need a two foot step ladder at most, some blades, buckets, rapid dry sheetrock compound, a hair dryer and some sandpaper. And you've got an entire business here. You're probably into this thing for less than $200 now. You would not believe what people charge for this service. I had a company come to my house, a national business, and quote half a dozen holes in different areas. Plus they did the paint touch up and it was over $1600. I knew the supplies were going to be maybe $100, but we're in a do it for me world. So I had to make a decision whether I was going to do this myself or pay somebody sixteen hundred dollars to do it. There are so many referral or direct response online sites to get these leads and maybe yard signs at busy intersections as well. You want to level this business up? I. I've already said it. If you were listening to the clue. Paint to match. Lowe's, Home Depot, Sherwin Williams, they all have sophisticated machines for the purpose of matching paint. You take them a chip, they make a court. You touch it up, they sell the court to the owner. Bing bang boom. Big ticket for light work. In a short period of time, you won't break a sweat. Okay, I told you to wait for number one. Hopefully you're still here. Okay, we are going in a different direction here for number one. You're not going to see this coming. It's not a property service. But by the way, if you like the above and you want to move into the big leagues in property service, check out our five incredible brands at Homefront Brands. Okay. Did you know that There are roughly 80 million children in our country? That's a lot of pop Tarts. I know, but there are 95 million dogs in this country. Dogs are exploding in the US and not just in the microwave. Note to self, look for a call from PETA. The number one low tech side hustle is dog training. Now you probably thought I was going dog walking or dog sitting, but no, those take too long. Your side hustle has to be efficient, it has to be quick. And it needs to generate at least $100 for an hour to make it worth your time. You can do a class with multiple dogs at the same time. You can train the owners while you're training the dogs. You can move it to one on one. This is not hard. You need a couple of leashes, a muzzle, some treats. Invest a good bit of time up front. Learning the basics. It probably helps a whole bunch if you have experience as a dog lover, a dog owner and care a great deal for these animals. And if that is you, then this can be incredibly fun. I would go wherever dogs and dog owners hang out in person or online. Not that dogs hang out online, but people do as well as pet stores, supply houses and veterinarians to generate programs and a referral business. Dog training number one. Well, that's it folks. The active word inside Hustle is hustle. How can you make a difference in your future self today by investing some hustle in a business that will build confidence and capabilities for your future self. Don't be shy. Don't be timid. Don't be lazy. Take an action. There is only upside here. Look, this message may not be for you, but I guarantee you know somebody who needs this. Send them this link along with a link for a free copy of my book the Business Athlete's Regimen for a Great Life Through Better Decisions from the link tree on my Instagram and inspire them to get thinking and get moving. And please follow like subscribe and comment on the video. Feedback is the breakfast of champions and we need it every single day. Thanks for listening.
