How I earned $49K though my side job in one year
Shakes. Weight Loss Wraps. Skincare. Nail Art. Leggings.
Chances are that you know at least ONE person on your Facebook that is a representative for products listed above.
And I'm one of them too, but I'd like to think that I've found a fun and natural way to share my health and fitness journey on social media. And along the way, I was able to create a substantial second income while working a full-time corporate job.
In 2015 I earned $49,000 as a Beachbody Coach, while also working full time as a Senior Email Marketing Manager for a national retailer. While making this much through a side business is not all that common, I didn’t start out making the big bucks in Year 1 — I built my business (and income) over two years by consistently sharing my story on social media and finding hidden hours in the day.
Here is the story of how I made $49,000 in side income and the steps you can take to get on the path to doing the same.
Call Me Coach
Team Beachbody is multi-level marketing (MLM) opportunity, part of a growing tiered-business trend reminiscent of the Tupperware parties and Avon sales of yesteryear. The MLM strategy revolves around self-employed "consultants" selling products while recruiting additional sales people working their "downline."
My sister signed up as a Coach at the end of 2012, after learning about the Coaching opportunity from a drummer she knew on Facebook. She signed on, got her starter pack and encouraged me to sign up as well.
I was a habitual "quitter" of healthy products -- Weight Watchers, Nutrisystem, diet pills --- you name it, I tried it (and quit). Once I started to use the products and plug into the Challenge Groups, I saw results. Twenty-five pounds lost (and kept off), I can 100% say that I believe in these products and wanted to share them with my friends and family.
I didn't jump into sharing or promoting the products right away. In fact, I was worried what my friends and family would think of me if I started posting that I was a Coach. I enjoyed my job in Email Marketing and never thought that this "coaching thing" would amount to much.
It wasn't until I did a 21 Day Food Cleanse called the Ultimate Reset in April/May of 2013, that I actually tried to proactively work the business. I dropped 16lbs in 21 days and posted my results to Facebook. The response was overwhelming; 100+ likes and comments from my friends; and they started asking me about the program. Within a couple weeks I had sold enough of the programs to cover my costs of what I had paid to buy it. I then "coached" my friends through the program since I had gone through it myself.
After that I started to become more consistent with my social media posts and outreach to friends and family about Beachbody products, Shakeology and running my own accountability groups online. While I got some backlash about "selling" or "sweaty selfies," I kept posting and started to brand myself as a Coach. The rest is history.
Create Work Hours
The beauty of a side gig like Beachbody Coaching is -- you set your own hours. You can work as much or as little as you'd like (and that will really dictate how much money you make as well).
I started off working maybe an hour or so a day. I'd post on social media in the mornings before work, during my lunch break at my 9-to-5 job, and at night after work. During this time I wrote social media posts, send private messages to friends on Facebook, interacted with connections on social media, ran healthy clean eating groups, and more.
One of the most important things I learned was to my time and not respond to everyone in real time. I turned off notifications for Facebook and Facebook Messenger, so that I wasn't getting distracted with every like, photo comment or message coming through. This helped me focus and have solid "power hours" when it was time to work my business.
Identify Hidden Hours & Time Wasters
Netflix marathons. Date nights. Monday Night's Bachelor Episodes.
During the two years that I was building my business, I had to sacrifice my time to work my business. After working a 50+ work week, I would come home and start working on my second job. That meant skipping out on my favorite TV shows, nights out with the girls, or date invites on weeknights.
Identifying extra hours in the day meant reaching out to 10 more people -- and you never know if one of those 10 could be your next customer or rock star! I'm all about working smarter and not harder, so if I was sacrificing some of my favorite things I made sure that I was doing real WORK.
Be Persistently Persistent (and Consistent)
If you are persistent you will get it, if you are consistent you will keep it.
When working in an MLM business, I can tell you that CONSISTENCY Is key. It wasn't until I was 100% consistent in sharing and inviting that I started to see my business take off.
Think about it; if I'm preaching that I am a Health & Fitness Coach but I look like I fell off the bandwagon and stop posting on social media, why would anyone believe or want to work with me? You need to be consistent in dedicating time to your business and sharing what is is that you are doing.
This is important because 1. People are likely watching and not ready to reach out to you and 2. They are waiting to see if you will fail.
After 2+ years of consistency, I now have people come to me because they have watched my daily posts and know that I'm the "real deal" when it comes to Coaching.
Love Yourself
Running a side hustle isn't easy, especially when a lot of people don't believe 100% in what you are doing. I've dealt with a lot of negativity, being mocked to my face and behind my back, and constant "ghosting," un-friending of acquaintances on social media.
Does it hurt my feelings? Yes. Did I let it stop me? No.
But through personal development, I've come to realize that I don't need to please everyone. I am doing this for ME and I know how this company and these products have changed my life. And at the end of the day I'd rather surround myself with positive vibes and people that are open to new opportunities!
Personal Development has 100% changed my mindset. I now make time for ME for at least 20 minutes a day; learning new skill sets, sharpening my mind and pushing me to try new things.
Some of my favorites include: The Compound Effect, The Magic of Thinking Big and You Are A Badass.
Put on Blinders & Do Your Thing
Comparison is the thief of joy. In this business (and many others) it's so easy to get caught up in what other successful people are doing, and it can stall your own progress. Do not compare your life to someone else's highlight reel on social media.
My motto now is put on my shades, write down my goals, do my THANG and charge towards a life that I have always dreamed of living.
If you have ever wanted to learn more about my story and what I do, I'd love to chat with you! I'm hosting a Sneak Peek into what exactly I do next week. Or shoot me a note on Facebook with any specific questions you may have.
