Nailed the Sideline Hustle

My website Watching Working Living is written without commas as I never hit pause. When I paid for a domain on the internet I thought my site of blogs, vlogs, podcasts, interviews and reviews about work, culture and exercise would start as a sideline hustle and blossom into a career.

Now I know that co.uk has as much impact as BA (Hons), MA and FCIPD when it comes to making my name and tasting fame as an influential blogger and podcaster. My deep search of ‘how many bloggers and podcasters are there?’ found there are more than 600 million blogs and four million registered podcasts on the internet.

That is more competitive than the jobs market I swim in, which I keep being told is very tough and full of talent. Everywhere is very tough and full of talent! The battle for attention, eyes, ears, minds and money never stops and takes no prisoners. Names from sports, media, politics, business and anyone with a keyboard, microphone and wi-fi has become a commentator and storyteller.

I have attracted views from nearly every continent in the world and emails from dodgy email accounts claiming they can help me grow my audience and make money. I will not be preyed upon. Thank you to everyone who has read and commented on my blogs. If ten people like my content, a hundred people will and if I build my brand, I become an investment opportunity.

I don’t just write, I am a podcaster too, if you include the podcasts I have recorded for my employer. My first podcast for my website is taking longer than expected. I have a full time job, a family and need to watch films and TV shows, read books and exercise to have something to write and speak about. There is not enough time in the day to compete with BBC, The Guardian, Financial Times and every other international publication.

If you liked my blogs on ‘Death of the Saturday Job’ to discuss the decline in teenagers combining work and studies and what this means for employers, my podcast on this topic will be ready soon. I should be recording it now but I am writing this and listening to The War Game which imagines how a Russian attack on the UK could play out – and invites real-life former ministers, military chiefs and other experts to figure out how to defend the country.

It's a fascinating podcast that tells a terrifying story of how unsafe we are in a dangerous world. I have no military experience or access to prominent guests which means I can only depend on myself and a handful of volunteers to report on what I see, hear and feel. Write what you know, stay in your lane, don’t contact us, we will contact you. There are multiple boundaries and obstacles to success.

The Financial Times article Profit from podcasts? A reviving industry is all ears stated ‘Podcasts briefly became a new front in the streaming wars in the early part of the decade, after distribution platforms such as Spotify made an aggressive push into what was previously a niche industry. But after the Covid-19 bump, the amount of new material wilted and advertisers proved circumspect.’

It added that numbers are still growing with podcasters 550mn tuning in last year, and another 100mn could join by 2027, according to marketing consultancy Backlinko. Video has given the podcast format a shot in the arm with over 250 million watching video podcasts in 2024.

If I were in my early twenties I would naively believe that more listeners and viewers mean a greater chance of success. I am in my mid-forties and far more talented and capable than I was twenty years ago. If I keep writing and creating, I will attract audiences and advertisers and have a new income stream.