How to know if a side hustle is worth your time or just draining your energy
By Dan Kauna, May 5, 2026There is a reason “hustling” feels almost patriotic in Kenya.
According to the KNBS Economic Survey 2025, “Kenya’s informal sector accounts for 83.6 per cent of total employment in the country.”
For a generation navigating a tight job market, a side hustle is a survival strategy.
A 2024 GeoPoll survey of 749 Kenyan youth aged 18 to 35 found that 71 per cent reported having side hustles, regardless of employment status.
“Despite the variations in employment status, the majority of respondents (71%) reported having side hustles – small-scale entrepreneurial activities that supplement their income.”
But here is the honest question nobody asks at the start: is yours actually working?
Not every hustle that keeps you busy is keeping you ahead. Some are quietly costing you sleep, relationships, and focus – while returning very little.
Knowing how to evaluate a side project honestly, before burnout makes the decision for you, is one of the most underrated financial skills you can build.
The honest audit: Time, money and what it is actually costing you
Start with the simplest math. Write down how many hours a week your hustle takes. Not just the active working hours, but the mental load: the back-and-forth messages, the planning, the chasing of payments.
Then look at what you are actually earning from it. Divide one by the other. That is your real hourly rate.
If that number is lower than what your main job pays you per hour, the hustle is a loss – at least for now.
That doesn’t mean you should quit, but it does mean you need a clear, time-bound plan for when it changes.
“In three months, I want to be earning at least X” is a plan. “It will pick up eventually” is a hope.
Also track your energy.
The World Health Organisation’s International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11) defines burnout as a syndrome that results from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed, marked by exhaustion, growing cynicism, and a drop in one’s ability to perform. That last part matters.
Knowing when to stop
There is a cultural script that says quitting is weakness. It is not. Stopping something that is not working is a financial decision, the same as any other.
Ask yourself three questions. First: has this hustle shown any meaningful growth in the last 90 days, in income, in clients, in skills?
Second: if the money disappeared tomorrow, would you still find the work interesting enough to continue?
Third: is this hustle taking time from something (rest, your health, a relationship) that matters more than the return you are getting?
If the answers are no, no, and yes, you have your answer.
Not every hustle you start needs to become a business. Some are experiments. Some will teach you what not to do next time. The ones worth keeping are the ones that are growing, sustainable, and not costing you more than they give back.