I’m better at failing at side hustles than you are.
That almost sounded like something I’m proud of. I say it like someone reading off a war record. Some people have hobbies, and some collect stamps. I collected failed side hustles.
At one point, I had so many “ventures” on the go failure started to feel like the goal.
There was the USB turntable idea before Spotify ate the world. I decided to digitize people’s vinyl collections. Created a business name, printed business cards, and had a few conversations.
I heard nothing but crickets. Once again, I decided to move on.
Then came the t-shirt another failing side hustle. I bought about 20 funny shirts, thinking I’d flip them on eBay or Facebook Marketplace. One was sold at a yard sale, and the rest were donated to charity. At least someone got some use out of them.
I even tried soap—handcrafted, natural, the whole thing. I sold a few—just enough to get hopeful. Then… silence. No repeats. No referrals. That one taught me the brutal difference between interest and demand. It also taught me about margins, so I pivoted to candles.
And don’t even get me started on MLMs.
Yes, I did Amway and Discovery Toys and sat in rooms where everyone smiled too hard and clapped too much. I bought the starter kits, rehearsed the scripts, and made pitch lists. I got quiet when people asked how it was going—you know, the drill.
And then there was real estate. I got the license, paid the fees, and hustled the leads. Closed some deals. But the truth? It was just another grind with no floor and no ceiling. I thought I was building something—really, I was chasing commissions and watching my soul slowly leave the room.
💸 The Internet Marketing Money Pit
Let’s talk about the real monster: Internet Marketing.
I spent thousands of dollars trying to build an online business, using courses, masterminds, email systems, “done-for-you” funnels, and monthly memberships in secret Facebook groups that were anything but helpful.
I paid self-proclaimed gurus who had no business teaching anyone anything—except maybe how to sell you more garbage.
Each one promised that this time it would be different.
And made it sound like I was just one mindset shift or one automation away from freedom.
Each one cashed my money and forgot my name.
It took me years to realize the truth:
Most of these people weren’t trying to help me succeed—they were trying to keep me stuck just long enough to buy the next thing.
That realization stung because I wasn’t lazy, delusional, or trusting the wrong people.
So yeah—those failures were expensive, humiliating, and brutal. But they also opened my eyes.
Now I know what real value looks like.
I know the difference between a hype machine and a strategy.
And I know that if you’re reading this and still stuck in that world—I’ve been there. I get it.
Here’s what all that taught me:
I didn’t fail because I was lazy. I failed because I was looking for absolute freedom in systems designed to eat people like me alive.
Tired of falling for the same hype I did?
I built OnlineSuccessClinic.com to be the site I wish I had when I was trying to figure this out.
No MLMs. No bullshit. Just straight-up tools and strategies that actually work.
Most of what’s sold as “entrepreneurship” isn’t. It’s just glorified sales jobs with fancy language and no support. Or it’s a copycat business model built to funnel money while you stay stuck at the bottom.
But I kept going. I’m insatiably curious, not because I’m a glutton for punishment. Every time I failed, I’d think, “Okay, why didn’t this work? What did I miss? What part of this was hype, and what part was real?”
Eventually, I started spotting the patterns. The lies. The traps. The nonsense.
I stopped chasing quick wins, started building systems, stopped listening to gurus, and started trusting myself. I stopped hoping something would click and started clicking publish.
That’s when things started to shift.
So, no, I’m not one of those fake success stories in which a guy claims to have “made it” after his third attempt.
I’m a guy who spent decades failing forward, learning everything the hard way, and now builds slower, more thoughtful, and more honestly than he ever thought possible.
Failure was my side hustle. Now, it’s my superpower.
Because I don’t flinch when things go wrong anymore, I don’t run when something doesn’t sell. I don’t care what people think when I try something weird or launch something new.
I’ve earned my scars. I’ve learned what works.
And I know—without question—that the only reason I’ve got any edge today…
…is because I failed more than you.