A simple system for us kid (and pet) wranglers, home managers, and hustling housewives
There’s no “make $10k per month” hype or other nonsense here.
This is for kid (and pet) wranglers, home managers, and hustling housewives who don’t have 12 hours a day to spare but still want to make some “fun money.”
I’m Christina, an introverted metalhead (hell yea!🤘🏻), mom, wife, and creator of Hustling Housewife.
This all started with a tweet. A tweet that frustrated the hell outta me. (It was still Twitter back then.)
Paraphrasing, the tweet said that in order to succeed at building a big business, you need to disappear for three weeks. Go into monk mode. Work 12-16 hours a day. Eat the same foods every day. Grind. It Out.
“Whaaatt? Who’s going to do the laundry and go grocery shopping while I’m gone?”*
Then, I read a post on Substack with a similar “lock yourself away and get absolutely insanely obsessive about your goal” message, and it solidified my annoyance.
“I work part-time, make dinner for my family, tackle Mt. Laundry every day, clean the toilets… Where is this 12 hours?”
Neither of these posts are wrong. If you want to build a big business, you do need to work long hours and become obsessed about reaching your goals.
Then I realized it’s not their fault I was frustrated. Their posts weren’t talking to me. Their posts were talking to other “bros” who either don’t have a family, or have a spouse who helps manage the kids and home while they work their tail off.
Those posts aren’t for those of us who are the spouses managing everything in the background.
Of course I was frustrated. I was trying to set unrealistic goals based on someone else who has a totally different lifestyle than I do.
My expectations were too big!
Once I figured that out, everything became so much better. So much more fun.
I dropped the “make $10k per month” systems and instead started focusing on creating (and documenting) a mini digital empire.
I use the word “empire” loosely because it just consists of writing on Medium and Substack, making tiny digital products, and affiliate marketing.
I don’t have any marketing funnels. I don’t have a content calendar. I don’t have clients. I just create things when I feel like it.
I keep things simple because our plates are already overflowing, so why add more stress? I believe creating should be fun and should make a little money too. Why not?
Spot it. Solve it. Share it.
This is my entire system. It doesn’t require anything special, especially overthinking!
Spot it. I see a problem out in the world. It’s usually a problem I have. An annoying one, not a “let’s overhaul our entire lives” one. Something simple, but irritating.
Solve it. I write an article or build a small guide that solves it. It doesn’t have to be anything fancy. It just has to be useful.
Share it. I document what I did and how it went. The lighter, once-a-week version lives as a free Substack. The full details will be included in The Secret Project.
Then I do it again. Over and over, plus a little affiliate marketing sprinkled in, until I've claimed my own weird corner of the internet.
Let me show you some things I’ve managed to do with this simple spot it, solve it, share it system…
Realistic, non-“guru” numbers.
I don’t have any big, impressive numbers, but I feel good about what I’ve been able to accomplish in the cracks of my day. This is realistic for anyone who doesn’t have 12 hours to hide away and Grind. It. Out.
Over 1,000 Substack subscribers. (This could be more if I liked writing Notes… 🙃)
Over 8,600 followers on Medium.
800ish email subscribers
I’ve made over $5,000 on Gumroad by creating guides that started as “small things that solve one problem.”
One Medium article that netted me just under $3,500, two $1000+ articles, and 22 articles that made between $100-$999. You can see the full list here.
None of that is life-changing money. But it sure is good concert money! 🤘🏻
Where to start.
If you want the backstory on why I do things this way and why I stopped chasing “big business” advice that wasn’t built for people like us:
If you want to see the actual plan behind the “empire”, this is what I’m building and why I’m documenting it in public:
This is one of the “ah ha” moments when things finally clicked for me (you can try this neat, but weird idea too):
(I’ll keep adding to this list as I write more — for now, these three cover it.)
Where to go next.
Not sure where to click first? Go in this order:
Subscribe to this Substack → free, one email a week, short and sweet. Start here if you’re just browsing.
Join the Secret Project waitlist → also free, but it’s the full 365-day play-by-play. Go here once you know you like what I’m doing and want the details.
Browse the Gumroad shop → small, cheap products that solve one specific problem. Go here when you’ve got a problem you want solved today.
Read my top-earning Medium articles → if you’re a writer yourself and curious what’s actually worked for me financially.
Hey, thanks for reading all of that.
I probably would have skipped most of it. And maybe you did. But if you did, you won’t know what this little note connects to 👇.
*Yes, the people in my home could take care of the laundry and grocery shopping while I was gone. But would they…?
The best thing I like about reading your stuff is that you’re so down to Earth and real about it. It’s about enough, not excess, and that’s cool as hell.