I majored in journalism in college, but fell into tech sales after graduation. Over the past 17 years, I’ve worked my way from cold-calling as a sales rep to a Director of Sales. But after having kids I started craving a creative outlet and decided to start writing again in 2024.
I didn’t set out to make money from it. My first several pieces were unpaid personal stories for a parenting website. When the editor reached out and asked if I wanted to try freelancing, it gave me the confidence to see if I could turn my writing into a side hustle. In 2024, I made $8,995 from various publications.
In 2025, I spent more time and effort freelancing and made $30,411. I also started teaching American mahjong lessons, which brought in an additional $2,902. All in all, that’s just over $33,000 before taxes.
I love my side hustles, but I’ve had to make major trade-offs with my personal life and don’t know if the work is sustainable.
Having extra income from my side hustles is great
Taxes in the freelancing world are higher than in corporate jobs, so I take home a lower percentage of my earnings. You pay Social Security and Medicare taxes on top of your income tax for freelance work, taxes that an employer typically pays. Still, I’ll probably net close to $20,000 from my side hustles in 2025.
These gigs aren’t necessary to make ends meet. I’m fortunate and privileged that my husband’s and my W-2 jobs are enough to provide for our family. I choose to pursue them because I genuinely love doing them.
Because of that, I consider my side hustle money my “fun” money. It’s become the guilt-free cash that I use for things like specialty workout classes, new clothes, or to put toward travel with friends. I’ve also saved some of it, too. It’s rewarding to see the extra income because it is a lot of additional work.
Breaking into the freelance writing world is hard
I work for a local mahjong organization, so I don’t have to do any marketing or admin work. People request lessons and then instructors sign up for them, so I have the flexibility to choose what lessons I teach.
But the freelancing world requires a lot of hustle. It’s effectively the same as cold-calling in sales to get an assignment.
I pitched at least two new story ideas every day in 2025. That meant brainstorming ideas, researching potential sources, and crafting pitch emails to various editors. The work paid of,f and I wrote for 19 different publications last year, something I’m really proud of, but it was a daily grind.
I don’t feel like I have time to relax now
I averaged about three writing assignments and one mahjong lesson each week last year. I needed to work around my corporate job, so most of my writing work happened before my kids got up or after they went to bed. That typically meant writing from 5:30 to 7 a.m. and then again from 8:30 to 10:30 p.m. Lunch breaks became the time I’d schedule interviews, so I’d eat at my desk to compensate.
Most of my mahjong lessons happen on weekday evenings. Each lesson is about a three-hour commitment, including driving to and from the venue, setting up, and teaching.
I like to be busy, but with parenting, my corporate job, and my side hustles, I didn’t feel like I had any time to relax and recharge. I also couldn’t invest as much time into friendships or my marriage as I would have wanted to because of my side hustle commitments. This unintentionally created additional stress and anxiety, which I know is bad for my well-being.
In 2026, I need to find a better balance, even if it means less money
The extra income from my side hustles is amazing, but I want to protect my free time more in 2026. I don’t want to stop writing or teaching mahjong, but I can’t sustain the amount of work I’ve been doing.
My time management improved in 2025, despite the numerous tasks I had to complete. I’ve also learned how to better prioritize different tasks and plan future action items so that everything gets done on time.
I’ll still work on my side hustles, but will spend less time on them so that I have more time with my friends and family. Yes, this will mean less “fun” money, but it’ll be worth it for a better work-life balance.
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