My Life in Side Hustles

I’ve always been a maker. A crafter. A “what-can-I-make-next?” kind of kid. Whether it was handmade birthday gifts, DIY nail art, or a rainbow loom creation I was convinced would start a jewelry empire, I was addicted to creating. But that creativity came with a need for supplies. And supplies? They cost money.

Enter my first love: the arcade. Specifically, Chuck E. Cheese. As a kid, I was obsessed with the claw machines, the skee-ball, the sticky little hand toys you win for 500 tickets. But you can’t exactly craft your way into a Chuck E. Cheese visit. You need funds. So that’s when my entrepreneurial spirit kicked in — a mindset that, in hindsight, has been with me ever since.

The Universal Starting Point: A Lemonade Stand

Like many kids before me, I set up a lemonade stand. But I wasn’t about to throw a plastic table in the yard and call it a day. Oh no — this was a full-blown operation. I hand-painted signs, made flyers (a little taste of early marketing!), offered both classic and pink lemonade (the people need options), and passionately waved down cars like I was working commission.

And it worked. Not just once, either — I ran multiple lemonade stands over the years, and each one funded a few glorious hours at Chuck E. Cheese. It was my first taste of turning effort into reward, and I was hooked.

My mom, bless her, probably wasn’t thrilled about the constant supply requests,, but she saw the hustle. I was always onto the next thing.

Squishy Resale Empire

In sixth grade, I got my first phone and discovered a magical new world: Amazon. I was fascinated by the idea that you could order pretty much anything and have it show up at your door. Combine that with my newfound access to internet trends and things started snowballing.

One trend that took over at the time was squishies — foam toys that were huge on social media and in the vending machine at my school. I realized they were being sold in bulk on Amazon for way cheaper than what people were paying individually. So I asked my mom for some seed money and boom — I was in business.

I sold them at school, posted Snapchat “drops,” and coordinated playground pickups like some kind of middle school mogul. It was short-lived, though — the assistant principal eventually shut me down. Apparently, slinging squishies on school property is frowned upon. Still, it was my first real taste of margin, marketing, and managing demand. And I loved it.

Pandemic Pivot: Tutoring

My junior year of high school, I was on spring break with friends in Seaside, Florida when the world shut down. Like many of us, I thought we’d be back in school in a couple of weeks. Two years later… yeah.

With school online and my restaurant job at Fuzzy’s Tacos on pause, I was bored out of my mind. And broke. So I started thinking about what I could do from home. I’d already taken most of the core classes in high school, and I’d always been good at school, so I figured — why not try tutoring?

I started with friends and friends-of-friends, then branched out to community Facebook groups. And to my surprise, it took off. I had so much repeat business that I ended up cutting my hours at Fuzzy’s once it reopened — I was making more tutoring anyway, and I genuinely liked it.

It taught me a lot: how to communicate clearly, how to explain things in different ways depending on the person, and how to run something on my own. I kept tutoring once I got to the University of Miami, mostly through word of mouth, Facebook posts, and GroupMe threads. I stopped once classes picked up junior year, but it’s something I’d definitely consider picking back up after graduation.

Lashes on a Budget

College brought a new challenge: finding a lash tech. Back home in Texas, I had my go-to girl. But in Miami? The prices were shocking, and the styles didn’t match what I was used to. I tried three places — one even landed me in a sketchy part of town where I got followed in a car. Not ideal.

So I said screw it, I'll figure it out myself.

I did hours of research, bought all the supplies, and started learning. Was it smart to use professional-grade adhesive and razor-sharp tweezers near my eyes? No. Did I do it anyway? Absolutely. And honestly? I got really good at it.

I didn’t have a studio — just the couch in my apartment. But my prices were affordable, my work was solid, and it filled a niche. Eventually, I had to stop because it started to take a toll on my back, and new lash products made it easier for people to do them at home. But for a time, I had a legit little lash business that taught me a lot about pricing, word of mouth, and providing something that fills a gap. And I’m proud of that.

My Current Venture: Gel X

After mastering lashes, I got curious about what other beauty treatments I could learn to do myself. I waxed and tinted my brows, perfected at-home tanning, and kept up with makeup trends. But I wanted something more creative — and then came nails.

I’d never been big on getting my nails done regularly (expensive, time-consuming), but during senior year, someone gifted me a Gel X appointment. Watching the tech work, I realized — this looks like something I could learn.

So, I did. I researched products, watched TikToks, read blogs, and built my Christmas list accordingly. It turns out, a whole nail setup costs about as much as one professional set — and the payoff has been amazing.

There’s something so fun and satisfying about nail art. I’ve been getting better and faster with each set. Now, I do nails for myself and friends, and like with lashes, people started asking for appointments. It’s fun, creative, and something I genuinely enjoy — and I don’t see myself stopping anytime soon. In fact, I think it’s my best venture yet.

The Bigger Picture

If there’s one constant across every phase of my life, it’s this: I don’t do things halfway. Whether it was a lemonade stand with hand-painted signage or learning how to apply professional-grade lashes alone in my freshman dorm, I’ve always been the kind of person who goes all in — especially when it’s something I care about.

But more than that, I’ve always found a way to turn the things I love into something bigger. My hobbies never stayed hobbies for long — they became little businesses, word-of-mouth side hustles, and lessons in how to market, brand, and deliver something people wanted. Whether it was because I needed arcade money, had too much free time during a pandemic, or just couldn’t justify another $100 appointment, I made it work — and I made it profitable.

Now, as I’m entering the workforce, I want to keep doing exactly that. I want to build a career around creativity, passion, and smart execution — just like I’ve always done. The projects may look different, but the drive hasn’t changed.

This is how I’ve always operated: find what lights me up, go all in, and figure out how to make it work.