It was one of those simple ideas that hits you so hard you can't believe you missed it. "So you’re saying all I need to do is become a controller?" I asked, a light bulb switching on in my head.

"Yep, that’s what I’m saying," he replied. "Based on what you're making from your spare room, it wouldn’t take many properties to generate a significant income."

On the flight home a few days later, I was buzzing with hope. I did exactly what he suggested, and the funny thing is, I reached financial freedom faster as a "controller" than I ever did as an owner. In my twenties, becoming an owner took me three years, a pile of mortgages, and millions in real estate. As a controller, it took none of that.

Within six months, I was able to walk away from my six-figure job—all from managing just five properties. That single decision freed me from a job for life and gave me the time to build the lifestyle I wanted. Becoming an Airbnb controller gave me a second chance, and to this day, it's one of the quickest ways I know to create cash flow.

The Power of Being a Controller

Being a controller means you get to enjoy the benefits of ownership without having the resources of an owner. It's a powerful model that runs on relationship capital. You just need to show a property owner that you managing their asset is a win-win. You can genuinely help them make more money with less work, all while building a lucrative and ethical side business to earn money for yourself.

Think about my friend Randy. He lists his friends’ cars on Turo, a car-sharing app. He handles the listings, and they split the revenue. He’s built a nice income stream on autopilot with cars he doesn’t own but simply controls through a profit-sharing agreement. It's a perfect example of a Turo side hustle.

Affiliate marketers are another classic example. They get the right to sell someone else's products. I let affiliates sell my products, and we split the sales 50/50. They created nothing and own nothing, yet they can make a fortune just by controlling the right to sell. I have affiliates who have made over $100,000 in a weekend this way.

Different Ways to Control Assets

You can control all sorts of things, not just physical property.

• Controlling Attention: Influencers do this constantly. They direct their followers' focus to products and offers, earning a commission. When you see a link to an Amazon product on a blog, that's someone controlling attention. I do this myself with companies I believe in; each link is another small income stream. You don't need to own the products—you just need to control the eyeballs.
• Controlling a Network: This is the foundation of multilevel or network marketing. You don’t own the company, but you leverage its platform and control the network of people in your downline to generate passive income.
• Controlling Flow: Drop shippers are masters of this. Using platforms like Shopify, they build virtual storefronts and sell products to the public without ever buying, manufacturing, or delivering anything themselves. This is a popular online business side hustle. Many big brands you know are essentially just massive controllers, forwarding your order to a factory and taking a cut. This dropshipping side hustle is one of the most accessible scalable side hustles out there.

Technology has opened up these opportunities. The Airbnb side hustle, for instance, wasn't possible before the platform existed to manage bookings and payments. New platforms are emerging every day, creating more ways to control assets without owning them. An asset doesn't care who profits from it. You don't need to be the owner to make money; you just need to be in control.

What Kind of Entrepreneur Are You?

There are generally three types of "passivepreneurs":

1. Creators: They like to build things from the ground up, like writing a book or developing an app. This is for those interested in a freelance writing business or software development.
2. Owners: They prefer to buy assets, like real estate or dividend stocks. This is investing as a side hustle.
3. Controllers: They are good at negotiating and building trust to leverage assets they don’t own.

My own journey followed this path. I started as an owner with real estate, then became a controller with short-term rentals, and finally a creator as a digital marketer. You're not limited to just one path. The key is to find the one that fits you best right now and get started.

The Problem with Trading Your Time for Money

Most of us are taught to get a good job and trade our time for a paycheck. The problem is, your time is finite. You can't work 100 times more hours next month to make 100 times more money. Your income is capped, and the moment you stop working, the money stops. This time-based income is a dead end if you want true financial freedom.

The solution is to invest your time in activities that generate passive income or have the potential to. When I was juggling my job and my Airbnb business, I spent nights and weekends investing my leftover moments into that venture. It wasn't easy, but that initial sacrifice paid off. I went from working 50+ hours a week to just five. The time I invested came back to me with interest.

This is the core of starting a side business while employed. You carve out time to build something that will eventually replace your primary income, making the transition from a side hustle to full time possible.

Get Paid Once or Get Paid Forever?

Along with trading time, most of us fall into the trap of getting paid once for our work. A surgeon might make $400,000 a year, but if they stop showing up, the paychecks stop. The only way to make more is to work more.

The alternative is to get paid many times. When I created my first software tool, I put in the work upfront. But once it was for sale and automated, I got paid for that work over and over again, for years. My return on time became infinite. Every new sale increases what I made per hour invested.

Instead of asking, "How can I make more money?" start asking a better question: "How can I make more recurring money?" This shift in thinking is what separates a simple gig from one of the most profitable side businesses.

Watch Out for These Common Traps

As you start your journey, be aware of common pitfalls that can derail you.

1. The Planning Trap: Planning is useful, but many people use it as an excuse to avoid action out of a fear of failure. I spent a decade "preparing" to make money online without ever making a dime. The cure is to set hard deadlines. Planning should be 10% of your effort; execution is the other 90%.
2. The "Squirrel" Trap: It's easy to get distracted by new opportunities and jump from one idea to the next without ever giving one enough time to succeed. The cure is commitment. Decide on your goal, define what success looks like, and ruthlessly ignore everything else until you achieve it.
3. The Penny-Pinching Trap: Poor people focus on saving money, while wealthy people focus on earning it. When you focus on scarcity, you see scarcity. When you focus on abundance, you see opportunity. Instead of asking how to save a few dollars on gas, ask how you can double your income. The right questions create wealth.
4. The "Are We There Yet?" Trap: Impatience can ruin the journey. Being frustrated that you haven't reached your goal yet won't make you get there faster. Trust the process, enjoy the ride, and you'll often arrive sooner than you think.
5. The Side Hustle Trap: A side hustle is just a second job. It's not scalable and relies 100% on your effort. It creates the illusion of freedom but keeps you trapped in the "trading time for money" cycle. Don't just get a side hustle; build a side hustle business. Aim for a system that works for you, not another job that you work for. The goal isn't just more cash; it's cash flow.

Building passive income streams takes a concentrated effort, but it can set you up for life. Decide today that you'll do what it takes. You now have the map; the journey is up to you.