This Side Hustle Spotlight Q&A features Victoria Carroll, a U.S.-based professional voice actor who created a full-time career with the freelance service platform Fiverr<\/a>.<\/i><\/p>\n What was your day job (or other sources of income) when you started your side hustle<\/a>?<\/b> Related: This Mom Started a Side Hustle on Facebook \u2014 Now It Averages $14,000 a Month and She Can ‘Work From a Resort in the Maldives’<\/a><\/b><\/p>\n When did you start your side hustle<\/a>, and where did you find the inspiration for it?<\/b> What were some of the first steps you took to get your side hustle<\/a> off the ground?<\/b> What were some of the biggest challenges you faced while building your side hustle<\/a>, and how did you navigate them?<\/b> Related: This 26-Year-Old’s Side Hustle That ‘Anybody Can Do’ Grew to Earn $170,000 a Month. Here’s What Happened When I Tested It.<\/a><\/b><\/p>\n How long did it take you to see consistent monthly revenue? How much did the side hustle earn?<\/b> What does growth and revenue look like now?<\/b> You’ve turned your work on Fiverr into a full-time business. What do you enjoy most about this career?<\/b> Last year, I was able to fund and complete my first feature film (a documentary on a shaman that’s coming out this year), which included traveling to Peru to shoot, edit and post-produce the project. I also got married and<\/i> pregnant \u2014 all while working “full-time”!<\/p>\n So, as a filmmaker and new mom, my freedom is absolutely priceless.<\/p>\n Related: This Former Flight Attendant and Her Roommate Started a Side Hustle With Just $2,000 Each. Then It Earned Them Nearly $600,000 \u2014 and Counting.<\/a><\/b><\/p>\n What’s your advice for others hoping to start successful side hustles<\/a> of their own?<\/b>![\"\"](\"https:\/\/assets.entrepreneur.com\/images\/misc\/1721141411_victoriacarrollsidehustle.jpg?width=1000\")
<\/i>Image Credit: Courtesy of Fiverr. Victoria Carroll. <\/sup><\/p>\n
I was living abroad in the Czech Republic and working as an actress and filmmaker before I did voiceover work, but my income was always low (and sporadic), so I mainly supplemented it by teaching preschool. I did all sorts of things before becoming a full-time freelancer, though \u2014 I was a Disney princess<\/a>, a promotional model for brands, I gave English lessons to Czech students…you name it!<\/p>\n
I joined Fiverr, which is a platform for freelancers of all kinds, in 2018, which I fully credit for my current career. I had just finished my first large voice acting and motion capture project for a videogame (Kingdom Come: Deliverance<\/i>) that was becoming quite popular and generating a ton of buzz, but I was still living paycheck to paycheck<\/a>. A friend suggested I pursue voice-over more seriously and mentioned that they had just hired a voice actor through the site. I was really excited to give freelancing a shot. The prospect of being able to work from anywhere in the world and create my own schedule \u2014 especially in my field, which demanded a lot of flexibility for auditions and filming schedules \u2014 was really exciting.<\/p>\n
My first step was setting up a professional home recording studio. I bought a fancy microphone and soundproofing gear. From there, I did research on what clients were looking for in a recording artist and how to best set up my profile on Fiverr<\/a>. This included creating videos and voice reels of my work, writing a good bio and figuring out how to best communicate project details to meet client’s needs.<\/p>\n
I poured everything into building my career as a freelancer<\/a>, meaning I often worked seven days a week. Sometimes my days were 14-plus hours long, too \u2014 and I spent the majority of those hours in a small, dark home recording studio. I also worked holidays, and although I saw success with all the time and effort I put in, I definitely got burnt out<\/a>. After about a year or so of bending over backward to accommodate dozens of clients a day, I began to set clearer boundaries on when and where I was available and for what price. I have a rule about not working on Sundays now \u2014 and I try to avoid weekends in general if I can. I’ve also set stronger requirements for what types of projects I’m willing to take on and for what rates.<\/p>\n
I hardly saw any revenue for the first six months. Then, I began to make around $1,000-2,000 a month on average, and it slowly increased from there. By my second full year on Fiverr, I made around $70,000 \u2014 the most I had made…ever!<\/p>\n
Since I started, I’ve been lucky enough to almost double my monthly earnings each year. Through Fiverr<\/a> alone, I’m currently able to pull in around $250,000 a year.<\/p>\n
I think time is our most precious and valuable resource, so having the freedom<\/a> to make my own schedule is by far my favorite thing about this career. I never did well with jobs that required me to show up at the same place every day for several hours a day. Fiverr is incredible from a time-saving<\/a> perspective because the catalog of your past work is displayed on the site, along with thousands of honest reviews from previous clients to establish trust, so you’re not wasting time auditioning for jobs or seeking out gigs \u2014 the work comes to you. It’s fun to wake up each day and see what new jobs I’ll be taking on; it keeps things fresh. It’s also nice not having a boss to answer to! I’m fully in charge of how my business operates.<\/p>\n
Be prepared to sacrifice a large amount of time and effort<\/a> in the beginning to establish yourself. When I speak to other freelancers about how they got started, they usually say the same thing. I don’t think there’s a shortcut for that. In the beginning, I worked long hours for low pay. But I was able to pay my dues, build up a huge portfolio and forge nice, long-term relationships with brands and companies. If you make that investment by building up a portfolio and client base<\/a> in the beginning, it will pay off when you’re established.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n