Entrepreneur advice from a mom who built a million-dollar business
Julie Berninger, 33, has tried many a side hustle. She’s kept a blog that’s brought in thousands of dollars per year. She’s had a podcast that, though was never an income stream, enabled her to meet hundreds of side hustle and financial experts. And her Etsy store, where she sells items like bachelorette party activity lists, brings in $1,000 per month in passive income.
After years of dabbling, it occurred to Berninger that she could teach some of the side gig lessons she’s learned. In 2019, she teamed up with fellow hustler Cody Berman, and the two founded Gold City Venturesa business of online courses focused specifically on building additional streams of income.
The two started with courses about freelancing, blogging and opening an Etsy store for printables like the one Berninger has. The latter has been their most popular course by far, and in 2021, Gold City Ventures brought in $1 million revenue.
Berninger, who lives with her husband and daughter in Massachusetts, quit her job in July 2021 to focus on the business full-time. Here’s her career advice for other entrepreneurs.
Work in corporate America
Berninger spent years working at companies like Amazon and MetLife. She recommends