The Easiest Micro Hustle to Start (and Sell) This Month

Turn your ideas into income with easy-to-make digital products that sell themselves

I still remember the first digital product I ever sold.

It was a $7 PDF guide. Nothing fancy. Just a simple written explanation (with screenshots) of a process I’d seen a video of.

And when it sold, I made $28. It felt like magic! That first thrill of money arriving from something I’d created once, while I wasn’t even at my desk.

That little PDF gave me the confidence to create a $37 video course, which went on to make about $30,000.

Then I tried a $197 membership, which brought in $117,000 in just seven days, followed, over the last 15 years, by dozens of digital products.

Some have flown, others have completely flopped. But every single one has been ridiculously simple to make & test compared to running a big business.

Back when I started in 2010, it wasn’t as easy as it is today. There was no Teachable where you could just upload your video and hit publish. You couldn’t embed a YouTube video inside your own course.

I had to duct-tape websites and payment buttons together and hope it didn’t all crash (I still remember crying head in hands trying to upload and embed a video into a web page!)

But now you can record a video straight from your phone, upload it to a platform (like Substack) in minutes, or hop on Zoom and call it a workshop.

You can create a planner in Canva, publish a journal on Amazon, or even sell physical products without touching inventory thanks to print-on-demand.

That’s why I love digital products as micro hustles. They’re light, flexible, easy to test, and once created, they can keep working for you while you travel, rest, or just go about your life.

Why Digital Products Make the Perfect Micro Hustle

Digital products tick every box for freedom seekers over 50:

• Low effort, low cost, low barrier to entry. You don’t need warehouses, shipping, or stock.

• They fit into your life. You can build them in spare hours around your current commitments.

• Once created, they sell again and again. That’s true leverage. Earn while you sleep.

• They use your experience. You’ve already solved problems, organised systems, or built knowledge that others will pay to shortcut.

In short: digital products give you freedom without the overheads.

Examples of Digital Micro Hustles

You don’t have to create a massive online course to succeed. In fact, the smaller, simpler products often work best.

• Printables & Planners — budget sheets, habit trackers, meal planners, travel planners.

• Low-Content Books — journals, logbooks, colouring books, gratitude diaries on Amazon KDP.

• Mini eBooks & Guides — 10–20 page PDFs solving a specific problem.

• Templates & Checklists — social media calendars, packing lists, spreadsheets.

• Workshops & Recordings — a one-hour Zoom call that you later sell as a replay.

Each of these is a micro hustle. Easy to create, light to run, and stackable over time.

Where to Sell Them

• Etsy — perfect for planners, printables, and templates.

• Amazon KDP — ideal for journals, low-content books, and Kindle guides.

• Your own Substack or blog — sell guides, planners, and workbooks directly to your readers.

• Gumroad or Payhip — simple platforms for selling one-off downloads.

And the best part is that you don’t need to pick the “perfect” platform to start. Just pick the easiest & cheapest one and get your first product live.

The Micro Hustle Strategy: Stack & Compound

One product won’t make you rich. But one product will teach you how it works.

Then, when you begin to stack 5–10 products, that’s when you’ll start to see steady income.

A planner here, a printable there, a mini guide, a journal. Suddenly you’ve got a portfolio of little earners.

That’s exactly how my own business grew. I didn’t set out to build an empire. I just kept trying things along the way. A PDF here, a video course there, a membership when I felt ready. Some worked, some didn’t, but over time, I learned how to read the feedback and create more winning products, which gradually compounded into freedom funding income!

And that’s the power of digital products as micro hustles. They’re small bets that can add up to big wins.

How to Create Your First Digital Product

The key is to keep it small, simple, and quick.

Your first product doesn’t need to be a massive online course or a 200-page book. You first need to prove to yourself that you can create something of value and put it out into the world.

Plus don’t do what I have repeatedly done which is to create something huge before testing the market.

Here’s how to start:

1. Pick a problem you’ve solved.

It might be budgeting, meal planning, gluten-free travel, trip organising, or even creating a simple system that’s made your life easier. What feels obvious to you could be a game-changer for someone else.

2. Decide on a light format.

• A printable or planner (budget sheets, packing lists, travel planners)

• A mini guide (5–10 pages on solving a specific problem)

• A short video workshop (recorded on Zoom and sold as a replay)

• A journal or logbook (Amazon KDP makes this easy)

3. Create quickly.

Use Canva, Word, or Google Docs. Aim for clarity, not perfection. Short, useful, and simple beats long and polished.

4. Choose a platform and publish.

• Etsy for printables, planners, and templates

• Amazon KDP for journals or Kindle guides

• Gumroad or Payhip for PDFs and downloads

• Substack or your blog for direct-to-reader guides

5. Tell people it exists!

I’m terrible at self promotion. It makes me feel icky and all the stuff. But there’s no point creating something if you’re not going to tell anyone about it.

Create great content, build an email list and promote your product loud and proud!

Lastly, set a deadline for all this to happen.

Don’t leave it open-ended. Give yourself maximum 30 days. Publish something small, and let the market teach you.

Your first product won’t make you rich. But it will give you proof that people will pay for your knowledge, that you can create something of value, and that you don’t need a huge business to begin.

That proof is what builds belief. And belief is what carries you forward.

Your First $50 Could Change Everything

Digital products are the definition of a micro hustle: small, simple, and powerful. You create something once, and it can keep selling for months , even years, with little extra effort.

Don’t underestimate the small stuff. My first $7 PDF only made $28. But it proved what was possible. That little win gave me the courage to keep going, and those micro hustles turned into a lifestyle that’s still funding my freedom today.

Your first $50 could be just one printable away.

So don’t wait for the perfect idea or the perfect time. Open Canva, sketch something out, and publish. Let the market teach you.

Nothing will move you forward faster than taking action. Make it happen!

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Ready to stop overthinking and get your first product out into the world?
The 30-Day Product Launch Playbook walks you step by step from idea to income in just one month.

You’ll learn how to:

• ✅ Choose the right type of digital product for your skills and lifestyle

• ✅ Create it quickly without tech headaches or endless tinkering

• ✅ Set up simple systems to sell it on autopilot

• ✅ Launch in 30 days, even if you’ve never sold online before

No overwhelm, or endless planning. Just a clear path to your first product out in the world. Take the first step today and see how much can change in the next 30 days.

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