The best way to eventually become your own boss is to start a side hustle and build your self-employed income, while you still have the safety and security of your day job.

What’s more is that starting a side hustle not only pads your income, but it also creates career-changing opportunities you wouldn’t have normally stumbled upon at your full-time job. Many side hustles have led to new jobs, surprisingly useful relationships, and lifelong friends. It’s also helped build the business I have today as a content marketing consultant.

However, building a side hustle to profitability with a limited amount of time outside of your day job is never easy. It takes ruthless prioritization, a psychological shift in how you view what’s most important in your life and the willingness to get very creative and scrappy on a daily basis.

If you want to be an entrepreneur, there are many reasons you should start small with building your side hustle customer-by-customer from the ground up. For one, the prospect of making more money on top of your regular pay is a powerful incentive, especially in a volatile economy. A long-time hobby can also motivate you to grow a business around things you love.