I Tried 5 Popular Side Hustles for 30 Days

When you hear the word Side Hustle on the internet, everyone says:
“Passive income!”
“₹1 lakh in 7 days!”
“Zero effort, big money!”

But that’s not all in the real world.
No hustle works without time, effort, and consistency.

I tried 5 trending side hustles in a month.
Some hustles are a waste of time.
Some hustles are like slow poison — lots of effort, zero reward.

But only one side hustle worked, even though it was real, practical, and had no followers and basic skills.

Here’s the unfiltered breakdown.


Side Hustle #1: Dropshipping — Don’t let anyone lie to you about “Passive Income”

When you watch dropshipping videos, you’ll see Lamborghini backgrounds, Bali beaches, and big numbers.
What is it really like:

Product research

Shopify setup

Ads spend

Returns

Customer complaints

…this is samsara!

I tried it for 30 days.

Final account:
₹4,000 ads spend
₹800 profit
(Actually a loss…)

Time?
Daily 3–4 hours.

No followers.
But money burn is definitely needed.

Verdict: Not beginner-friendly. Time waste.


Side Hustle #2: Affiliate Marketing — You won’t make a single rupee without content

Affiliate marketing is good… but zero income without content creation.

In 30 days, I:

15 threads on Twitter

20 posts on Instagram

8 articles on Medium

Put affiliate links.

Result? ₹1,200 commission in 30 days.

Worthy?
Yes, scalable in the future.
But for a beginner?
Slow. Very slow.

Verdict: Long-term is good. Short-term income is not.


Side Hustle #3: YouTube Faceless Videos — Easy to make, hard to rank

AI voice + stock videos = faceless YouTube channel.
Heavy trending.
Nanthaan tried.

I posted 12 videos in 30 days.

Views?
162.

(162 views for 12 videos. That says everything.)

Monetization?
No work.

If you want to grow on YouTube:

SEO

Thumbnail

Watch time

consistency

…all this takes months/years.

Verdict: Slow for a beginner. Not possible without patience.


Side Hustle #4: UGC (User Generated Content) — If you have camera quality, you have a chance

Brands won't think of you as an influencer.
Only the content you create works for them.

In 30 days I:

Created 7 sample UGC videos

Sent 30 emails to brands

Reply?
Only 2.
Paid work?
0.

UGC is possible for a beginner.
But the competition is very high.

Verdict: Possible — but not fast.


Side Hustle #5: Digital Products — Sell Even With Zero Followers (The Only One That Worked)

This is what made me feel amazing.

In 30 days I:

4 simple PDFs

2 Notion templates

1 small guide

Uploaded to Gumroad.

Linked to Medium articles.

Result?
30 days → ₹14,750 in sales.
Zero followers. Zero ads.

Nothing went viral.
Just consistent value.

Why did it work?

1. Digital products one-time effort

Create once, sell many times.

2. Zero maintenance

Customer support minimal.

3. People pay for shortcuts

If they want to save time, they buy PDFs, planners, guides.

4. Long-term passive income

The PDF uploaded yesterday will sell today too.

5. No need to build an audience

Medium + Gumroad = perfect beginner combo.

In short —
This side hustle is what gave me value for my time and money.

Digital products are simple but powerful clicks.


Brutally Honest Summary

Dropshipping: High hype, low profit.

Affiliate Marketing: Good — but slow.

YouTube Faceless: Realistic-6 months minimum.

UGC: High competition — high luck factor.

Digital Products: Low risk, high reward, fastest beginner success.


So what should you do?

Whether you’re a beginner, have zero followers, or just a laptop or mobile —
a simple PDF or template can get you started.

Small ideas:

30-day planner

Habit tracker

Budget sheet

Simple checklists

Instagram content ideas

Study planner

Digital products:

Fastest first income

Real passive income

Least risk

Highest scalability

This is no joke.
It works — because the internet runs on information.


Final Line

I didn’t waste my time for 30 days.
It taught me an important truth:

“Not all side hustles are equal —
but the right side hustle gives you freedom in your work and life.”