Your Side Hustle success starts with finding the money

September 18 is National Cheeseburger Day. This is just a random act on the part of whoever publishes the "National Day" calendar. But did you know that September 18 is associated with a real historical fact related to the hamburger?

In the late morning of Friday, September 18, 1885, after the hot rains stopped, two young brothers from Canton, Ohio sold the very first hamburger. Charles and Frank Menches became wealthy owners of several diverse businesses. But it's the story of their first "side hustle" as carnival dealers that begins our series highlighting how you too can become a Side Hustle MVP.

Charles Edward Menches was born on June 10, 1859. Six years later, on July 16, 1865, his brother Frank A. Menches was born. Their Franco-Prussian parents emigrated to Canton to start a new life in America. They embraced their adopted country and taught their boys everything they needed to know to excel. Both boys demonstrated athletic ability, agility and prowess.

In 1880, at the age of 21, Charles had a "successful season" with the Stickney Circus. A year later, he "performed a beautiful trapeze act" at a "big picnic" for the Germinia Ternverein at the Stark County Fairgrounds. In addition to his seasonal acrobatic circus gig, Charles ran a cigar store.

While Charles used his body for entertainment, Frank chose a more competitive path. In July 1885, the younger brother Menches won first prize in the contest of the Canton cycle race. A year later, he would win the gold badge at the Salem Firefighter Tournament Bike Race.

Despite his retail business, Charles' first love was the circus. He loved to play and he was good at it. But his antics on the wire and the flying trapeze had two downsides: poor pay and dangerous conditions. Neither suggested the job had what it takes to build a lasting career or long-term business. The cigar store may have been boring (and dangerous, judging by the number of times it's been robbed), but at least it provided a stable and reliable (if modest) income.

The small store, which Frank would later join, provided the brothers with valuable experience in counter sales. Charles used this knowledge as he looked for a way to transition into a safer and more lucrative circus business. He learned a lot from his fellow carnies. More importantly, he learned where the money was.

Performers didn't make money. Charles determined that two groups of people made money: the people who ran the circus and the dealers. Charles wasn't in a position to operate his own show yet (that would come later), but he was able to go where the money was. He started selling concessions and brought his brother Frank on board with him.

If there's a moral to this story, it's "Look before you jump". Before you create a product, before you start selling anything, make sure there is a market with an ocean of money full of people willing to spend.

That's how the Menches Brothers got the "M" for their MVP Side Hustle.

M stands for "money". What do you need to do to earn your "M"?

Although a misquote, the adage attributed to Willie Sutton, "I rob banks because that's where the money is.", offers a lesson to anyone who wishes start a successful business: go where the money is. If you want to set up a thriving side business quickly, you'll need to go to where the money is.

First, understand this common mistake budding entrepreneurs make (even and sometimes especially if they have significant business experience). It's so tempting to think of the "M" as meaning "market". They make the mistake of assuming that "market" and "money" mean the same thing.

These two terms are not synonymous. Assuming that "market" means the same thing as "money" can be a costly lesson for entrepreneurs. This is a lesson that the Menches brothers fortunately understood very early.

Charles already knew the market: circus and exhibition visitors. It was a big market, a captive market, and a market with cash flowing ready to be spent. Yet as he delivered his performance product to this market, he found that he was not making the money that others were making. Instead of focusing on the market, he correctly focused on where and how the market was spending money. Tracking cash flow revealed the profitable advantage the food concession business had over the acrobat performers.

Yes, finding a market is important, but it's only the first step. Your real goal is to find out how this market spends its money.

Which brings you to another common mistake. The size of the market does not matter. The size of the sale does.

For...