People everywhere were turning to side hustles during the COVID-19 pandemic to earn some extra cash and pass the time.

Even Christian Alshon gave something different a try in 2020 as things took a turn for the worse across the globe.

"I was an Uber Eats driver because I needed a job. I was home for the summer. I normally would’ve taught tennis, but that was all canceled," he explained. "I decided to do Uber Eats because one of my friends was doing it and earning $11 to $17 an hour."

While driving around in his father's Ford Explorer, it wasn't long before Alshon discovered a strategy to boost his income.

"I found that I could earn almost $20 an hour because there’s a technique where you take shorter trips and you only accept the trips that are in the better neighborhoods," he revealed. "If you stay compact in the nice neighborhoods, you rack up trips quickly over a shorter amount of time." 

Over the course of three months, Alshon delivered about 600 orders and scored a 97% satisfaction rating along the way.

And he genuinely enjoyed the gig because it allowed him to simultaneously study for school by listening to educational podcasts and audiobooks for his economics degree.

"I would do Uber Eats from 6 a.m. to noon, which was prime time for Uber Eats," said Alshon. "By then, I already made $100 that day, which is solid for a college kid."

He didn’t just use his earnings to have fun, though, electing instead to invest in stocks.

Alshon was putting his studies at the University of Chicago to work.

“I had learned how to budget and create an income statement. To this day, every dollar I make, I budget," he confirmed. "The money I made through Uber Eats and the stock market paid for traveling to pickleball tournaments at the beginning of my pro career."

Talk about a solid move that paid dividends in the long run.

It was a sign of maturity and vision.

“I think the biggest reason why college and pro athletes struggle is because they don’t know how to budget and manage their money,” he mentioned. 

With that in mind, Alshon recommends that anyone with aspirations of turning pro in pickleball take their finances seriously - because it's more costly than you think.

Honestly, though, wouldn't it be cool if Christian delivered the Chick-fil-A sandwich you just ordered on Uber Eats? I think it would be awesome.