Here at the Nostalgia Diaries, we love it when people find their “must,” the thing they feel like they were born to do. Aleia Walker is the perfect example of this. An entrepreneur at heart, Aleia managed to side hustle so hard she was able to escape her corporate job, and today’s Music Monday post features 4 of the songs that helped make her dreams come true.
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4 Songs for the Side Hustle | Aleia Walker
This list is pure motivation for the time period I was struggling to build my side hustle enough to quit my corporate 9 to 5. There were serious down in the dump moments but I strongly remember plugging in my headphones so that I could get a few minutes of hype to get me through the rest of my day. Some days these songs were solely responsible for my smile and others they were 100% motivation to work on my side hustle after a full day of work + traffic-riddled commute.
1) (2000)
And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance.
I hope you dance
A lot of people around me didn’t understand what I was doing or why I was doing what I was doing. I was actively working to leave a long-standing company and take a job in something I didn’t go to school for. They weren’t always helpful with the day to day motivation but I did take some of the things I heard growing up, like this song I heard from my mom, and help me get through the hard days.
2) (2013)
I wake up looking this good
And I wouldn’t change it if I could
What modern day woman does not use Beyoncé to motivate herself? I treat this snippet as a metaphor to mean that my version of femininity looks exactly how it should look. At the time, I was working trying to leave a “stable” corporate job to pursue work as a full-time freelancer in the male-dominated world of tech! Sometimes I needed the extra boost.
3) (2008)
But I could tell from the start,
You had love in your heart,
And you want it so much,
To let it go.
So, I have to start this off by saying I’m an old soul trapped in the body of a millennial. This song is all about being proud of your accomplishments and strutting your stuff in front of the haters when you make it. I’m not an ‘I told you so person’ so I really connected with the idea of showing my success instead of just talking about it.
4) (2013)
Give jah thanks and praise
I said in everything give jah the thanks and praise
Just remember this in everything you do
When I was finally able to quit the corporate job, I knew the work had just started but I was so excited to get there and start living my career on my own terms. But I knew that I could not forget that I had help getting there. And that I needed to be grateful for getting where I had and remember moving forward that nothing is given to you before it’s supposed to.
Aleia Walker is a web designer/developer + holder of all the freelance resources + instructor at Skillcrush. She helps freelancers fight their fears and teaches them how to escape their 9 to 5 by taking their side hustles full time. You can find Aleia over on her website, http://www.aleiawalker.com, and on her social media accounts: , , Pinterest, and Instagram.
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Thank you, Aleia!
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Except one (the third one) I listen all the songs…and I like them a lot…
So glad to see this up today!
Happy to see a like minded soul.
P.S. The third one is a gem too!
The third one doesn’t play…I heard it after searching…yes its a gem also…
I agree with Flawless. 🙂
Yes to Flawless! *praise hands emoji* Great recommendations, Aleia!
Thanks Lindsey!