In a climate of ongoing economic uncertainty and a cooling labor market, one tech recruiter is urging Americans to diversify their income streams—and fast.
Bonnie Dilber, a 42-year-old recruiter based in Washington, took to TikTok with a message that’s quickly gained traction: “Every American should have a side hustle in 2025.”
Dilber, who has worked in the volatile world of tech recruitment for years, says her advice stems from first-hand experience of watching job security vanish overnight.
“We’ve seen time and time again that the job market is unstable and fickle,” she told Newsweek. “Companies that were rolling out the red carpet and competing aggressively for talent in 2022 then laid off those same people 6 months later.”
“If you lose your job, you can lose everything,” Dilber said in her TikTok video, which has amassed more than 6,000 views since being posted to her account, @bonniedilber, last month.
@bonniedilber/TikTok
Her warning comes as both government and private data paint a complex—and often worrisome—picture of the labor market. While the U.S. economy added 228,000 jobs in March—exceeding analysts’ expectations—job openings have steadily declined, from 8.4 million in March 2024 to 7.6 million at the start of this year.
The unemployment rate has edged up to 4.2 percent, and major workforce reductions—such as a 10,000-job reduction tied to DOGE’s federal advisory initiatives—have left many workers uncertain about their long-term prospects.
Employee anxiety is clear. According to MyPerfectResume’s The Great Stay: 2025 State of the Labor Market report—based on a December 2024 survey of 1,115 U.S. workers—81 percent said they fear losing their jobs this year, and 76 percent expect layoffs to rise. An overwhelming 92 percent are worried about a potential recession in 2025.
The report also shows just how deeply concerns about instability are affecting career decisions: 63 percent of workers expect more business closures in 2025 than in 2024, and 52 percent believe burnout will worsen. Job insecurity (43 percent) and increased workloads (29 percent) are the top reported drivers.
“The Job Market Is Unstable and Fickle”
These are some of the reasons that Dilber argues that having a secondary source of income—no matter how small—is no longer optional, but essential.
“To me, anything that brings in extra money now is a side hustle,” she said. “Or even a foundation you have in place that you could quickly ramp up if needed could qualify.”
Importantly, Dilber stresses that a side hustle doesn’t have to be a fully formed business. “Perhaps doing some babysitting or pet care so you have reviews and a credible profile on Care.com or Rover would be something you could quickly scale up if you lost your job,” she said.
Dilber has personal experience of this too. Over the years, she’s built her own set of income streams—from tutoring SATs and ACTs to consulting, speaking engagements, and now monetized content across three social media platforms. “Currently, I have three social media accounts that are monetized, a newsletter that brings in money via ads and sponsorships as well as affiliate marketing, and I make some money from speaking engagements as well.”
While she explained she is fortunate not to need the extra income from side hustles at the moment, she said the security they provide is invaluable. “I’ve seen so many in my industry (recruiting in tech) who have found themselves out of work and that unemployment has lasted months or even years,” she said. “For me, having a side hustle is what gives me confidence even in a tough job market.”
Her advice to others? Look for something that lives at the “intersection of your skills and your interests.”