Let’s be real. After the last few days, you’re probably feeling fired up. You’ve shifted your mindset, you’ve even calculated your Freedom Number. The dream feels real! But then, the alarm rings on a cold Monday morning, and the problem hits you like a ton of bricks: your schedule is already packed. You’ve got the 9-to-5, the brutal commute, the kids, the chores… and you’re left wondering how to find time for a side hustle when you can barely find time to breathe.
It’s a perfect afternoon here in North Carolina as I write this…the kind of day that just seems to disappear. That’s what our time does. It vanishes, and that feeling of “I don’t have time” is the single biggest dream-killer on the planet. The solution is a hard truth: you don’t find time. You make it! We always make time for the things we truly prioritize. Therefore, the problem isn’t a lack of time; it’s a lack of a clear plan for the time you actually have.
This all sounds great, but it brings up the real challenge, doesn’t it? It’s easy to say “make time,” but how do you actually do that? Where are these magical, hidden moments in a day that already feels stuffed to the breaking point? The answer is that they’re hiding in plain sight, and I’m going to show you exactly how to find time for a side hustle.
The Truth About Time: You Don’t Find It, You Make It
Let’s reframe the problem. You don’t have a “time” problem. You have a priority problem and an energy problem.
Think about it. When your favorite show drops a new season, you find time to watch it. When a friend needs your help, you find time to be there for them. We don’t find hours lying around on the floor; we make room for the things that are truly important to us.
The reason you feel like you have no time for a side hustle right now is because the goal—your freedom—still feels like a vague, far-off dream. But after my last post where you calculated your Freedom Number, it’s no longer a dream, is it? It’s a number. It’s a tangible target, and a target that important is worth making time for.
The goal isn’t to find an extra 20 hours a week. That’s a recipe for burnout. The goal is to strategically manufacture 60 minutes a day. Just one focused hour. That one hour, compounded over a year, is 365 hours of progress. It’s enough to build a business that can change your life.
Here are four practical strategies to do just that.
Strategy 1: Conduct a Brutally Honest Time Audit
You can’t manage your time until you know where it’s actually going. For the next 48 hours, I want you to be a detective. Track what you’re doing in 30-minute blocks. Don’t judge, just observe.
You can use a simple notebook or the notes app on your phone. It will look something like this:
- 7:00-7:30: Woke up, scrolled social media in bed
- 7:30-8:00: Got ready for work
- 8:00-8:45: Commute (listened to radio)
- …and so on.
At the end of the two days, take a highlighter to anything that wasn’t absolutely necessary or truly restful. You will be shocked. The average person spends over two hours a day on social media alone. That’s not even counting aimless web browsing or TV time.
How to Find Time For a Side Hustle
This audit isn’t about making you feel guilty. It’s about revealing the truth: you have more time than you think. You just have leaks in your bucket. Finding that 60 minutes isn’t about giving up sleep or family time; it’s about patching the leaks.
Strategy 2: Master the “Power Pockets”
Not all time is created equal. Most people look for a big, empty one-hour block in their calendar, and when they can’t find it, they give up. The real secret is to leverage the small, underutilized pockets of time that already exist in your day.
I call these “Power Pockets.”
- Your 30-45 minute commute.
- Your 30-60 minute lunch break.
- The 20 minutes you spend waiting for your kid’s practice to end.
- The 15 minutes you spend in line at the grocery store.
Individually, they seem insignificant. But added up, they are a goldmine. The trick is to have a pre-planned, zero-setup task ready for each pocket.
- Commute Pocket: Don’t just listen to music. Listen to a business podcast or an audiobook relevant to the skill you want to learn. That’s your education time.
- Lunch Break Pocket: Don’t eat at your desk while scrolling. Take 30 minutes to brainstorm blog post ideas, draft a client email, or do market research on your phone.
- Waiting Pocket: Don’t mindlessly scroll Instagram. Use that 15 minutes to engage with potential customers on social media or outline your next piece of content.
By assigning a specific purpose to these pockets, you can easily reclaim 60+ minutes of productive time without changing your core schedule at all. This is a key part of how to find time for a side hustle.
Power Pocket
Strategy 3: Manage Your Energy, Not Just Your Time
Have you ever sat down to work at 9 PM, completely exhausted, and stared at a blank screen for 45 minutes? You were “working,” but were you productive? Probably not.
The most successful side hustlers understand that the quality of the hour matters more than the hour itself. It’s better to have 30 minutes of hyper-focused work during your peak energy window than 90 minutes of sluggish, distracted effort.
When does your brain work best?
- Are you a Morning Person? Wake up 60 minutes earlier. I know, it sounds awful. But the quiet focus you can achieve before the rest of the world is awake is unparalleled. Use this for your most important, creative work.
- Are you a Night Owl? Block out a sacred hour from 9-10 PM. This is your time. Let your family know. Put your phone in another room. Use this time for deep work.
- Do you get a midday surge? Can you use your lunch break for your most critical task, instead of just administrative ones?
Stop trying to force productivity when you’re drained. Identify your personal peak energy window and guard that 60-minute block with your life. This single shift will double your output.
The Motivation to Make Time
Look, these strategies work. But they require activation energy. They require a reason powerful enough to choose progress over comfort.
That reason is your Freedom Number.
You won’t get up an hour earlier for a vague idea of “freedom.” But you might get up an hour earlier to make the $94 a day you need to hit your Bridge Freedom number and walk away from a job that’s crushing your spirit.
This is why we calculated that number yesterday. It’s your fuel. If you haven’t done it yet, you’re flying blind. You’re trying to find motivation without a destination.
Take 15 minutes today and complete the worksheet in my Freedom Foundation Kit. Knowing your target is the ultimate cure for “I don’t have time.” It transforms that excuse into a question: “How badly do I want this?”
[Click Here to Download Your Free Freedom Foundation Kit and Find Your Motivation]
Time is your most valuable, non-renewable asset. Stop letting it leak away. A year from now, you can either be in the exact same place, or you can be 365 hours closer to freedom. The choice is yours, and it starts with how you spend the next 60 minutes.
“We all learned to walk one step at a time after MANY failures, but we all survived it because we didn’t quit!!!”
Disclaimer
The content provided by Doss Experiment, including all articles, guides, digital products, and resources, is for informational and entertainment purposes only. The authors and creators of Doss Experiment are not certified financial advisers, Certified Public Accountants (CPAs), or attorneys.
The information shared on this website does not constitute, and should not be taken as, legal, financial, or tax advice. All content is a reflection of our personal experiences, research, and opinions. It is intended to be a source of general information and inspiration for your own journey.
We strongly recommend that you consult with a qualified professional before making any financial or legal decisions. For advice tailored to your specific situation, please seek the counsel of a licensed attorney, CPA, or financial adviser.