The future of entrepreneurship is not venture scale.

It’s small sustainable businesses built by real people that actually make money.

Replit CEO Amjad Masad put it well:

Today’s Silicon Valley definition of entrepreneurship is about blowing up fast. But the future is about building something that works, something you own, something that pays the bills and grows.

2026 will belong to the Builders.

People who combine skill, consistency, solving REAL problems, and personal visibility to create businesses that don’t rely on hype or funding rounds.

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) predicts: by 2030, half of all professionals will have a portfolio career.

I believe it will be much more than that.

Most people will not be prepared for it.

So many more will be forced into entrepreneurship because of how the world of work is changing.

Chris Koerner, often referred to as the "King of Side Hustles," is a serial entrepreneur known for building and selling multiple 7-8 figure businesses and starting over 75-80 businesses from scratch.

He advocates for rapid execution, validation, and leveraging AI to turn simple, unsexy ideas into profitable ventures.

His first side hustle started at age 9 selling lost golf balls from a local course.

I heard about him the first time on the Diary of a CEO podcast. A fantastic episode!

My favourite quotes and tips from Chris:

1. You can just do things.

You don’t need to be an expert. Don't wait for permission or perfection—take action, get results, then refine.

2. Ignore passion. Follow the profit until you can afford to follow your passion.

3. Original ideas don't create wealth. Executing proven ideas does.

4. If someone else is already winning, it's not competition — it's validation.

5. Motivation isn't enough, execution is. Overcome your fear and get started.

6. Until the pain of staying the same is greater than your fear of judgment, you'll stay stuck.

7. Once you stop caring what other people think, the game changes.

8. Everything is figureoutable. You either develop this muscle or you don't survive as a business owner.

9. What would I do if I only had 10 hours a week to work? That's your real strategy.

10. You don't need a team to think like a CEO. You just need better direction and courage.

11. You need to START in the weeds. Learn every detail. Then strategically climb out.

12. If you talk, think, walk and type faster then you will get more done.

13. Chris prefers low-employee, high-profit businesses.

I agree 100% with all of the above!

If you want to start a small online business this year, here’s how to actually get going:

How to get started with a small online business

1. Find a problem you want to solve and validate it first
   
   Before you build a product, talk to people in the space. Confirm they will pay for what you solve.
   
   Real demand > good ideas.
   
   🧺 Here are 68 validated side hustles you can start building today
   

2. Start with one offer
   
   Don’t launch 5 things.
   
   Pick one clear outcome people care about and refine it.
   
   Sell, sell, sell, sell.
   
   Then expand (if you want to).
   

3. Use platforms that already have an audience 
   
   Sell through email, LinkedIn, or marketplaces where your customers already hang out.
   

4. Build a minimal delivery model 
   
   Keep it simple, fast, and incremental.
   
   Ship and improve as you go.
   

5. Turn your expertise into leverage 
   
   Guides, templates, coaching calls, memberships - pick formats that scale.

Small businesses that work in 2026 all have one thing in common:

Visibility that converts into opportunity. 

Your personal brand isn’t optional anymore, it’s your competitive edge.

If you haven’t started creating content yet and posting from your personal page, start today.

👉 Download my free guide on how to build your personal brand and succeed on LinkedIn in 2026.

This guide will point you in the right direction: where to begin and what to focus on.

Let’s build something that works,
Hanna 👋