Study: Over 44 Millions Americans Now Have a ���Side Hustle���

The side hustle era is fully upon us, largely thanks to the Internet, where it���s much easier for people to earn extra money by engaging in more entrepreneurial sorts of endeavors that have little in common with traditional, part-time jobs.

As reported by CNN Money, there���s a new study from Bankrate that reveals over 44 million Americans now have some type of side hustle.

Not only that, the money is real. As Bankrate���s Sarah Berger notes, ���It isn���t spare change from a lemonade stand.��� According to the data, 36 percent of those engaging in a side hustle earn at least $500 per month.

Interestingly, although its younger adults ��� young ���Millennials��� ��� who are more likely to have a side hustle, according to Berger, it���s actually older adults���those closing in on retirement age (53 to 62)���who are more likely to earn at least $1,000 a month from their side gigs.

That���s not surprising. It���s reasonable to assume that if more ���seasoned��� folks are involved in the gig economy to make extra money, it���s because they really need it, and so will be more serious and deliberate in the pursuit of it. Additionally, older adults often have built-in advantages when it comes to making more dough, particularly if their side hustles are related in some way to careers in which they worked for decades.

The number of ���side hustlers��� is on the increase, and they���re pursuing all kinds of interesting, entrepreneurial activities to make their extra money. You may be one of them now.

If not, chances are getting better you will be, one day soon.

By Robert G. Yetman, Jr. Editor At Large