Skylar Hunyadi, a therapist and self-described side-gig connoisseur, began cleaning her 92-year-old neighbour’s home each week in June, and the arrangement has grown into a friendship.
She found the job by chance: while collecting clothing alterations, she told her seamstress she was looking for cleaning work. The seamstress’s sister had been driving an hour each way, twice a week, to clean for their mother. Hunyadi met the neighbour and her three adult children with flowers and a bag of Doritos before starting a few weeks later.
Cleaning Helps Me Decompress: A Therapist’s Favourite Side Hustle
She cleans on Mondays or Wednesdays from about 5:15 to 7:15 p.m. for $35 an hour, working through a task list and spending the last 45 minutes on a bigger project such as dusting or clearing out the fridge.
She enjoys the solitude, the uninterrupted audiobook time and the sense of making an immediate difference. The movement also offsets a job that involves a lot of sitting. She has learned to ask about preferences rather than assume, and appreciates the older decor.
Above all, she values the intergenerational friendship. After shifts, she watches “Jeopardy!” with her neighbour while eating a pre-packed dinner. She says too many people stay in their peer groups and miss out on the insight of other generations.
