At the beginning of Summer 2023, Dallastown Business and Entrepreneurship teacher Rob Donatelli was cleaning out his trash bins when a light bulb sparked in his head.
Donatelli then came up with an idea.
Figuring that most people probably don’t clean out their garbage bins on a regular basis, he saw an business opportunity – power washing trash cans.
“It’s something you just don’t think about a lot, but it really makes you feel good about what you’re doing,” Donatelli said.
He got the word out by posting on his personal social media his price point, $20 for 2 trash cans, and printed himself out 500 business cards and flyers from VistaPrint.
He visited numerous different neighborhoods and put his cards and flyers on mailboxes. While doing this he was able to network really well and meet a lot of great people.
“I really enjoyed getting to know so many people through cleaning this summer,” Donatelli said.
He went on to clean over 100 trash cans over the course of the summer, that’s exactly what he would call a “good side hustle” that even lead to more opportunities.
“Although it started just as cleaning the containers, a lot of people then asked me if I could do larger jobs for them.”
He cleaned sidewalks, benches, and more for some customers.
To students looking at his business and wondering, “this is awesome, but how am I going to be able to do it?” Donatelli sends his own message to you:
“Everyone should embrace the entrepreneurial spirit, because there’s always a problem out there just waiting to be solved. ‘It’s all in the way you look at the world’.”
“You’re never too young to start a business, a side hustle, anything, it’s a mindset and a way of life.” He also added.
When asked why he enjoys entrepreneurship, Donatelli says there are many reasons.
“You have to stay fresh, innovative, and find new ways to help the community out, because it makes us feel good as humans, because that’s all we are at the end of the day, just a human.”
In fact, Donatelli has enjoyed finding ways to get involved in his community since he was a kid.
His first hustle was outside his family store in Pittsburgh, setting up food tables to sell snacks and drinks with his dad.
That is what started his love for side hustles, and he loves providing needed services, even if they are small.
Since then, he’s tackled many other projects including writing and publishing a book called “A Teacher’s Quest.”
“I think it is something that will definitely continue,” said Donatelli.
Donatelli hopes his various business pursuits show students that starting their own business is possible.
All they have to do is see an opportunity and follow it.
