A huge part of Studenomics involves exploring side hustles to see how the readers can make more money. More income brings you closer towards financial freedom.
You may have heard about driving for Uber, renting your place on Airbnb, and freelancing. You’ve likely never heard of working as a paint night model for extra money.
Here’s how Martin ended up becoming a paint night model without even applying for the job…
Thank you for being so confident, and so comfortable in your own body that you would let Laura Bilotta, AM 640 Radio Host and the Toronto matchmaker behind Single in the City dress you like a couture caveman for a dozen ladies to ogle and paint at her first-ever Wing Woman Paint Night in Mississauga.
How did Martin end up as the model for paint night?
The event was the Single in the City Wing Woman Paint Night in Mississauga.
The full story starts in January. The first scenes of this spectacle played out just before Martin went away on his winter vacation. We set the date of the event through emails with Martin on the other side of the world. What he didn’t know was that Laura had just written Single in the City’s – Wing Woman Guide Book, about the wing woman phenomenon. Why am I telling you all this? Because in a round about way, it’s how Martin came to be involved.
To bring out single girls you need male attractions, and in this case, we needed Adonis himself to represent the very idea of masculinity. He had to be the right kind of machismo – no chest hair, young, stylish; we needed a man who would inspire women and hopefully create an atmosphere conducive to personal growth and networking.
It worked, because Martin is handsome, muscled, and driven; he’s a prime example of ‘masculinity’.
An upscale Toronto jewellery store, On the Other Hand in Leslieville (Queen and Leslie) agreed to supply our Paint Night with chunky silver jewellery that would further inspire the participants. The silver bracelets, skull ring and bejewelled silver necklace really stood out against Martin’s well tanned skin and leopard print loincloth. Everything you see Martin wearing is for sale for approximately $3,800.
The plush velour ‘animal skin’ loin cloth was sourced from Designer Fabrics, also on Queen St in Toronto, for approximately $40 (for one ‘yard’ of material).
On Thursday April 5th 2018, Wing Woman Paint Night happened at The Port House in Mississauga. As the name suggests this waterfront venue is a real hotspot in the summertime. We took over the dancefloor and turned it into a makeshift paint studio (complete with drop sheets, canvases and painting easels) for twelve people.
The managers and staff here are fantastic and totally laid-back. Before the crowd showed up, the end of the main bar became a makeshift dressing room when Martin peeled off his shirt and pants and donned the leopard loincloth.
The garish garment was created on site by Toronto Makeup Artist Jennifer Turner. This all-in-one beauty professional dressed Martin, applied transformative makeup, and then styled our Stone Age male subject with the aforementioned silver ornaments. The character was complete when the bar manager donated a broom handle to serve as a spear, and this prop worked well to bring all the ladies’ eyes back to the bracelets and silver skull ring on Martin’s righthand ring finger.
The event: Paint Night with Julia Chatterji of The Studio Paint Bar.
With Martin in position on a stool by the closed patio doors, and all the ladies centered on 16×20 blank white canvases, Paint Night commenced a little after 7pm. Laura introduced Julia Chatterji of The Studio Paint Bar who started the participants off doing a background wash. They could choose any colour, and yet most selected a yellow-orange earth tone which could have been inspired by Martin’s tribal appearance.
Next the art students were instructed to find a charcoal crayon with which they could sketch Martin’s form on the coloured background. Most ladies started by sketching the young man’s chest and arms, and then his torso and legs and only after they had that right did they both with his head and hair (not one of the ladies bothered to draw Martin’s face, possibly because the instructor didn’t attempt it). Many of the painters went into great detail painting the subject’s abdominal muscles, which was also a departure from Julia’s instruction.
What’s The Wing Woman Collective?
It was Laura’s idea to gather together a crew of confident ladies and discuss the tenements of being a Wing Woman. What responsibilities does this person have? What role does this person play when they are helping another woman versus helping a man? And what are the lines that should not be crossed?
The Single in the City – Wing Woman Code of Ethics was unveiled that night.
In this artistic odyssey set forth that night by Studio Paint Bar twelve ladies painted a handsome hero while contemplating the human condition. The disciples learned basic art skills while nibbling appetizers and sipping chardonnay. The top five paintings (as judged by Laura and Julia) that night were awarded made-to-fit black walnut wooden picture frames! Every attendee got to keep her art plus a generous giftbag filled with beauty bar coupons and cosmetic samples. Laura does it right.
How do you pursue random side hustles?
Studenomics is all about financial freedom. The fastest way to get there is to make more money. I imagine that not everyone can work as a paint night model. The trick is find your niche.
Check out our case studies. Jacquelyn paid off $48k worth of debt, Matt quit his job to make tables, and Theo started his own tutoring company. These studies can serve as your starting point.
There are two tips for anyone looking to make some money on the side.
Test out a totally random niche.
The world has enough “general self-help” out there. It’s fun to read self-help books but at some point you must deliver something valuable and specific. These days it’s easier if you niche it down and focus on something highly specific.
What are some examples?
- Instead of general health, stick to one thing like training fasted or running marathons.
- Instead of creating general advice videos, focus on single parents in their 30s.
- Instead of fumbling through every social media platform, focus your attention on becoming the best on Instagram.
You get the point? Break your side hustle down so that you know exactly who your target market is. This way you can focus on the right people instead of aimlessly creating content that nobody cares about.
Promote yourself and get to know the players in the field.
Who’s making money in this field? Who are the main players?
Get to know everyone and study the best. Then spread the word about what makes you unique and different.
How do you do this?
- Follow everyone in your field on social media.
- Attend events whenever possible.
- Try to interview success folks in the niche.
- Take risks.
That’s how you can grow your side hustle these days. The goal is to make an impact while you get paid. You never know what random service you’ll be getting paid for one day.
And once again thank you Martin Dasko. It was a long night and you were very polite and kind and understanding even when publicly groped. You, more than any other person or component made the evening a big success.
This post was written by Rob Campbell – Marketing, Single in the City.