Top 10 Gift Ideas for Side Hustlers

Do you have an entrepreneur on your gift wish list? A friend or family member who has mad skills in a service or product outside of the regular 9-5 job? With a little gift ingenuity, you could help get that go-getter started on a side-hustling path! And then you’d have the thrill of knowing their success started with your thoughtfulness. SCORE!!

I’ve personally tested every product I’m about to recommend, and some of them had breakthrough benefits. Consider these options:

Best garden/landscape tool: Radius Garden’s Rootslayer 22011 shovel

Serious gardeners/landscapers pondering a side hustle will need tools. And they probably already have a favorite—one regularly stashed in their aprons, pockets, wheelbarrows or gripped tightly in their gloved hands. I thought I did, until I gave this 5-pound marvel a try on a full-southern-sun, high-humidity, 100° day, and OH MY WORD…it was a real game-changer.

The multi-purpose, jagged-edge design not only rips through roots, it also plows through compacted clay and dirt, easily trenches for planting, and saws the soil contents with precision…eliminating the need for a separate hatchet, saw, spade, or smooth-sided shovel. And, hello carbon-steel teeth. Whoa! I mean, the tool designers call it an “assassin shovel” for a reason, folks.

Radius Garden sells a series of Root Slayer products—trowel, soil knife, edger, mini-digger, drain spade, weeder, post hole digger—and most of them will wind up in my tool stash, I assure you. But start off your gardener/landscaper with the 22011, and inspire their inner ground assassin itching to rake in some dough. 

Best charcuterie board: 
Home Beets’ Square Acacia Wood Cutting Board with Handle​

Anyone considering a catering side gig needs to learn how to design and fill a show-stopping charcuterie board. We’ve come a looooooong way from simply slapping meat and cheese onto a well-used, wooden cutting board that’s weathered stains, bleach, and—possibly—tapped a few bottoms. I feel you, frustrated moms!

Charcuteries start with the board. It’s the foundation of a variety of feasts—bowls of olives and nuts, jars of wafer rolls, plates of chocolate, rivers of cured meats, chunks of cheese, a sprinkling of fruit—with the wood grain gradually revealed as guests graze. And that’s why this board is my go-to. It’s large enough (17” x 13”) and sturdy enough (1/2” thick) to bear the sweet-and-savory load, with a non-slip handle perfect for transporting the finished product.

And the square design fits every charcuterie theme (all the rage!), ranging from FALLcuteries to fruit-and-chocolate to s’mores to holiday to breads-and-butters. Think of board design this way: If average cooks could put together a stunning board, why would they hire a caterer? They wouldn’t. So, get your budding caterer on the must-call list with this board.

Best recording microphone: FIFINE USB Metal Condenser 

If you have an emerging podcaster, YouTuber, audio-book reader, online-course teacher, singer or interviewer on your gift list, a professional recording microphone is a must. This one’s sleek, sturdy and affordable. It looks very high-end. And you know what other feature on this microphone wins the day? It’s plug and play.

Now, this means nothing to you savvy electronics geniuses who never melt down when equipment or applications go haywire. But I’m a vortex of electronics despair. Bizarre equipment failures are almost routine. I can stare into a camera lens and the battery dies. So finding this FIFINE microphone that simply plugs into my laptop’s USB port was exhilarating.

Bonus: It stands on a little tripod, ignores background noise, and features a 5.9’ cable. You’ll be a gifting hero, credited with getting your side-hustler’s voice out there, loud and professionally clear.

Best massage instrument: OLsky Deep-Tissue Massage Gun 

Maybe you know a masseuse or massage therapist who completed training, got the license, but never followed through on joining a salon. And the dream drifted away. Maybe becoming a concierge massager—one who goes to clients’ homes—could generate interest and earn some money on the side.

Help kick-start that side-hustle dream with OLsky’s portable, rechargeable gun. I have this massage tool, and let me tell you: It’s awesome! With 9 massage heads and 30 speed levels, you can drill away leg, arm, back, torso and neck pain like a pro. OR…you could hand it over to an actual pro and let the inspiration roll.

And check this: Professional salons use this gun for an up-charge! Every time! 

Best handyman ladder: HBTower Step Ladder with Handrails 

Virtually everyone I know is looking for a reliable on-the-side handyman—usually for fairly simple tasks, like installing a chandelier, changing a beeping smoke alarm, painting, hanging art. You know—tasks requiring a sturdy ladder.

The HBTower step ladder is what my personal, live-in, spousal handyman uses, and it’s available in 3-, 4-, and 5-step versions with an attachable tool bag. It’s collapsible, fairly light-weight, and transportable in a car/SUV vs. a truck.

Perhaps you know a very handy man—or woman—who just needs a ladder to start a side hustle. Make it happen.

Best laundry device: 
​BLACK+DECKER Vitessa Advanced Steam Iron, ICR2020

Do you know someone with incredible ironing skills? We’re talking sharp creases, a light touch with delicate fabrics, pleat perfection, crisp cuffs. Help exploit those skills with a serious tool, because being a concierge “presser”—one who travels to homes and irons, or a take-home ironer can earn some serious on-the-side cash. 

I did a lot of research before I settled on BLACK+DECKER’s Vitessa ICR2020. While I appreciated features like the SmartSteam technology, stainless-steel soleplate, and automatic shut-off, it was the tangle-free RETRACTABLE CHORD that sold me. I love to let that thing rip!

Ironing is a heavily under-appreciated skill…until you’re desperate for a smooth collar. Inspire the talented ironer in your life with this tool. Then hand off a ruffled blouse for a test run.

Best bartender gadget: TINANA 2.5 Inch Silicone Ice Ball Maker 

Soooooo many parties I’ve catered or attended needed a bartender. Why? Because no guest wants to stand in a haphazard line to self-pour some room-temp sparkling wine into a plastic tumbler. If you know a hard worker with personality who just happens to have a liquor license, inspire that worker with TINANA’s ice ball maker.

This gadget makes 12, 2.5” ice spheres at one time, in stackable trays, inside—wait for it—a portable large-capacity ice bin. Why is that important? Well, large ice cubes melt slowly in signature cocktails, keep drinks seriously cold, and look super-cool.

Which makes the bartender super-cool. Which garners generous tips. Been there…saw it happen.

Best cleaning device: Bissell Little Green Cleaners 

Do you know a house cleaner looking for a niche side hustle? You should introduce them to the wonder of Bissell, offering a variety of affordable, portable carpet and upholstery cleaners any industrious worker can use: Cordless SmartMix, Multi-Purpose, Max Pet, Pro Portable, HydroSteam. 

But anyone could start with the petite Little Green model for home and auto carpets, and most furniture. I used this little marvel on a petsitting client’s rug, and her words to me were: “You should clean rugs professionally!!” Tempting…

I like how this little sucker is transportable in a car/SUV, weighs a little less than 10 lbs, includes Bissell’s Spot & Stain formula with Febreze Freshness and features exclusive tools. Niche hustle + happy customers = wads of cash.

Best driving tool: Ivation’s Plug-In Electric Cooler & Warmer 

Some side hustles require serious time in a vehicle with little pause for personal pit-stops. Think: meals, snacks, beverages, medications. For those gig workers, consider gifting Ivation’s 27-quart (25 L) portable thermoelectric fridge with a 12-volt car adapter. It’s a travel marvel!

With a flip of a switch, you can maintain drinks at an icy-cold 40°F OR hot food at a toasty 130°F. Let’s hear it for dual-function! Bonus: It’s quiet, safe, and weighs a little over 10 lbs. I give it 5 stars for convenience and ingenuity.

Best book:
"Queen of the Side Hustle: Unleashing Your Potential for Extra Income"

Shameless plus alert! Anyone considering a side hustle could use a little help getting started, am I right? Yes, I am…because I’ve been hustling for years in a variety of occupations, and I’m currently stacking SIX of those on a weekly basis. And I wrote a book to help other hustlers become a cash machine like me.

In 10 short, chatty chapters, side hustlers learn how to monetize their downtime the RIGHT way—finding their niche, honing their skills, managing their time, increasing their value…all whilst hurdling over obstacles like marketing and contracts and taxes and difficult clients. You know: Those little irritants making even the most-determined gig worker want to quit. Let’s not quit. Let’s make some cold, hard cash!

Bonus: Each chatty chapter has accompanying, downloadable worksheets to inspire action. Available in print, digital and audio versions.