4 Tips to Have a Successful Dietitian Side Hustle

Many dietitians are struggling with huge debt, high cost of living, and salaries that aren’t quite enough to cover all of it. The average dietitian is making about $60k a year, and that simply doesn’t go very far if you’re living in many places in the United States. Unfortunately, most dietitians also work for large health providers who set their salaries, benefits, and hours, and they don’t provide them with the flexibility to have a serious discussion about their value. 

As a result, many dietitians are looking for extra ways to supplement their income by joining the 44% of Americans who have a little hustle on the side. But what they’re discovering is that their skills are highly valued and there are a lot of potential customers out there. In fact, there are plenty of ways that private dietitians can deliver much-needed services to the public, support colleagues and friends, and help people in their profession develop their careers.  

By creating great content, producing webinars, developing online courses, and giving people great dietary guidance, dietitians are finding that their part-time gig might just become a full-time job. However, it’s not as easy as setting up a website—you have to understand your target audience, find your niche, and learn a thing or two about running a successful business. 

But it can be done! Here are our top four tips for setting up your successful dietitian side hustle!

1. Adopt a Business Mindset

Let’s take a look in the mirror and admit something to ourselves: dietitians are not always the most profit-driven people in healthcare. The reason we went into this field is because we wanted to help people, not because we were trying to get rich, right? 

Most dietitians just aren’t bottom-line thinkers, but if you’re reading this you’re already halfway to admitting it matters. After all, even though we aren’t the ones putting a price tag on our work in most employment situations, somebody at your healthcare institution definitely is. 

The only difference when it’s a side hustle is that person is you.

And who’s better to determine what you’re worth? Capitalism can feel ugly in the healthcare field, but a great place to start is looking at all the objective costs you incur doing business. There are: 

• Supplies
• Materials
• Expenses for scheduling software
• Your website
• Many other things including the gas you put in your car. 

Sit down, figure out what you spend, and see what that means for you per hour.  

Then there are the things you need to survive every month: 

• Bills 
• Rent 
• Food 
• Those pesky student loan payments. 

Factor some portion of those things into your hourly rate.

Finally, Think about what you want to get out of your side hustle. You’re not doing this for fun, remember? Are you trying to pick off a mortgage payment, cover your coffee addiction, or cut back on your hours? And don’t be ashamed if the answer is “I want to go to Jamaica every year.” You’re working for it—you deserve it! There’s no shame in wanting more than breaking even in your life. 

Once you understand what you need, you’ll be well on your way to discovering what your services are worth, and better still, you’ll be starting to think like a Dietitian Boss!

2. Explore Marketable Services

If you’re looking for a dietitian side hustle, then the chances are you’re not trying to do more of your regular work. That means finding new avenues of income, and as it turns out, there are a lot of things available that fit well in a supplemental income model. 

Here are some of the options you can pick and choose from to give your bank account a boost:

• Ebooks and materials for dietitians are a great way to generate some passive income.
• Webinars and courses allow you to help your colleagues. 
• Web subscription services like online communities and resource libraries. 
• Private consultations and remote dietitian services allow you to work from anywhere—like Jamaica (remember that?).

 

 

These are all great starting places, and with a little up-front effort, an investment in a slick website, and a bit of marketing and networking thrown in, you’ll be able to start converting these into a successful business that you can continue to grow. 

3. Niche Down

Niching down means thinking of what services you’re comfortable offering and then focusing most of your efforts on targeting a small but receptive group of clients. It can seem very counterintuitive, especially at the beginning when you’re just trying to find someone who’s interested. 

While your practice at a large healthcare institution may be one-side-fits-all, selling a particular product means you’re looking for specific people. On top of that, marketing to everyone is impossible; it creates confusing branding and waters down your resources. 

The goal of finding your perfect nice is part and parcel with understanding exactly who would benefit from what you’re selling—and therefore be willing to pay for it. Think very hard about the value proposition of your dietitian side hustle, set your pricing accordingly, and market to your target audience.

4. Network!

We all know that dietitians aren’t always the most social creatures on earth, but you’ll need to get used to the idea of connecting with people. Running a business all on your own can be scary, and fortunately, there are plenty of peers and mentors out there who can help. You just have to go find them!

By joining communities of like-minded dietitian entrepreneurs, you’ll discover that building a business is something everybody does together. Your connections will share ideas, and believe it or not, you’ll contribute to their success as well. Also, networking can help you meet valuable partners who will be able to grow and augment your services. When everybody’s niching down, there will be a natural flow of customers between them. 

With a great network of supportive colleagues, your dietitian side hustle will stay as healthy as your clients. 

Become a Dietitian Boss

It can feel scary stepping out into the business world, even if it’s just for a little extra money on the side, but there’s a huge upside to going it alone: you’re your own boss! That means you get to make the rules, decide when to work, and most importantly, do everything right that you’ve always thought was done wrong. 

And you know what? You don’t have to go it alone, because here at Dietitian Boss we’re giving ambitious dietitians the skills and confidence they need to take charge of their careers and build a better financial future for themselves and their families. 

My name’s Libby Rothschild and I’m a registered dietitian who had to figure out how to become a businessperson when I made the leap into private practice. Today, our team at Dietitian Boss is helping dietitians everywhere get started on their dreams with private coaching, mentorship, resources like The Library, and all the seminars and materials you need to get your dietitian side hustle firing on all cylinders. 

And best of all, our community of dietitians, lawyers, and business people can give you all the answers you need to navigate all the aspects of running your own business. We’d love to hear from you!

Get in touch with us today, and ask us ANYTHING you want to know about becoming a Dietitian Boss.