If you’ve ever been in a tight spot with money, then you’ve probably wished that you’ve had another stream of revenue. For instance, you might be a freelancer that relies solely on work from a handful of clients, and when that well dries up you’re probably looking at a week or two without any pay. Similarly, if most of your income is from advertising revenue on your blog and it goes down for a day due to a bad web host, you might have less money to work with for the rest of the month.
Situations like this pop up all of the time and we usually have emergency funds saved up for that purpose. Sadly, this shouldn’t be the case and emergency funds should only be used in real emergencies. For instance, if your computer breaks down and you have no way to finish your work, or if your car stops working and you have no way to get to work.
The 9-5 Worker
If you work a basic nine to five job then you’re probably set for life. You probably have a decent amount of income from your job, you might have a partner and kids, and you might have made plans on how you’ll be spending the rest of your life. However, what happens when that routine is disrupted because your company goes bust, you’re replaced at work, or you’re made redundant because of new technologies? It’s not something we like to think about, but if your only source of income was your nine to five job, then you’re going to be in some trouble.
You might have some emergency funds saved up to help you get by without work for a few months, perhaps your partner’s income is enough to sustain your lifestyle, or you might resort to selling off a few items in order to secure some extra funds. Sadly, there’s nothing you can do besides job hunt once again and look for a new career. This is why it’s important to have another source of income.
Side Income
There are many ways to get a bit of extra income and it largely depends on what you’re willing to do. You might think about investing in homes if you have a lot of extra income and the house prices near you are cheap enough to buy as investments. Getting a foot into the real estate market not only gives you some additional income, but it can even turn into a full-time career if you work hard enough. It’s a tough market to crack due to the amount of work and experience you need, but it’s certainly something that you can do as a hobby assuming you have the money to start.
You could also turn your money into other forms of investment. For instance, how about starting up a business like a cafe? As the manager, you don’t actually have to work in the establishment itself, but starting up does take a considerable amount of effort and you’ll likely have to pour in a lot of money and time at the beginning. Once you’re done setting up, however, you’ll have employees running the business for you, and you’ll be able to make additional income as well as turn your business into a full time endeavor should it become more profitable and promising than your regular job.
Smaller Sources of Income
Of course, we don’t all have large piles of cash laying around to start a business or invest in a home. This is when something like freelancing comes in handy. Depending on what job you do at work or what hobbies you have, you could turn something into a freelance career with relative ease. For starters, if you do a lot of writing at work or if you have a passion for reading and writing, you could start a freelance writing career or a blog as a side-job. Freelancing can be turned into a full time job with enough patience and dedication, but because you can pick and choose your assignments, it makes the perfect side job.
Alternatively, starting up a smaller online-only business that focuses on your hobbies is also another fantastic way to secure more income. For instance, if you have a hobby for crafting cards for different occasions, you could set up a store on a website such as Etsy. There are multiple ways to turn a hobby into a profitable gig, but you need to do a considerable amount of research and put some effort into marketing your services.
Mia Guerra
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