How to Create Multiple Streams of Income and Earn More in 2024
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Here is a question for you: how many streams of income do you currently have? Think about it. Are they enough to cover all your living expenses and build up savings? Can they fund your dream life?
Take the time to ponder these questions and whether you are truly satisfied with your current financial situation. Unless you already own successful businesses or are working a particularly high-paying job, your current income may not enable you to achieve your financial goals.
If you are looking to earn more money than ever in 2019, this post will show you why you should build multiple streams of income and how to do it.
Table of Contents
Why You Should Have Multiple Streams of Income
Most of the time, we prefer to avoid thinking about dire scenarios and keep a hopeful vision of the future. But when it comes to your financial situation, you should face the uncomfortable possibilities and take action ahead of time.
What if you lost your job in the next month? What if your business fails? The best remedy against uncertainty is mitigating the risks by having many eggs in many baskets. Here are some of the advantages you can expect:
Financial Security
Building multiple income streams gives you much better financial security and lets you gather the money needed to pursue bigger ventures.
The beauty in having several income sources is that if you lose one source of income, you still have others to make up for it.
Higher Savings
Additionally, your savings will drastically increase over time and you won’t have to put up with the anxiety of not having an emergency fund.
Faster Debt Repayment
What’s more, if you have a debt to pay off, you will be able to take its weight off your shoulders much faster.
If you think about it, there is simply no reason not to seek a second source of income.
Short on money? Some ventures don’t require money to get started. Short on time? There are all sorts of side hustles that require very little time.
The possibilities are endless; you just have to take some time to determine your goals and your action plan.
Set Financial Goals, Find Out How to Make More Money, and Design Your Lifestyle
Be Clear About What You Want to Achieve
Ask yourself: what is the annual income you want to achieve one year from now?
It goes without saying that you don’t need to aim for a million dollars; instead, settle for a figure that is attainable while letting you live more comfortably than now.
Once you have figured out that number, break it down to monthly goals. This is because short-term goals carry a sense of urgency that will push you to remain focused and productive.
Pro Tip:
Even if you fall short of reaching your monthly goals, you will notice an improvement in your capacity to commit to your endeavors and actually make money. And once you succeed in achieving the annual income you were going for, you will have the experience and confidence to seek even higher goals.
Look for Ways to Make Money and Choose the Ones that Suit You
The second step is to figure out how you are going to make money:
- First of all, make a list of all the skills and knowledge you possess and which you can monetize, either by creating products or selling services.
- Next, search for extra income ideas that you can quickly learn and monetize.
- You can also look for mobile applications and online platforms that offer monetary incentives for users.
Your first ventures should require little time to start and have little to no upfront cost. It helps to determine how much money you can afford to invest in a single venture
Pro Tip:
Avoid those that require expertise you don’t have or have a costly “pay to play” barrier.
Once your brainstorming session is done, you should have a clear idea of what profitable activities you feel comfortable tackling.
Beyond Money: Think About Your Dream Lifestyle
Eventually, you want to free up your time while still earning the same amount of money, if not more.
You see, successful people aren’t content with making a lot of money: they also highly value their time. Because of that, they are always looking for ways to minimize the time spent doing work so that they can enjoy their lives and focus on the things that matter the most to them.
Pro Tip:
Your dream life most likely doesn’t involve working for hours every day; instead, maybe you want to travel the world, enjoy your passions, or build a family. To help, you can easily hire virtual assistants and other workers to do the busy work for you – more on that below.
Build One Income Stream at a Time
Trying to build multiple streams of income at the same time will result in spreading your efforts thin and spending more money than you can afford. Your time and attention are limited, so focus on one thing at a time and do it well.
Each source of income should follow a clear, well-structured model that consistently generates money. Remember not to spend too much time reading books or watching videos; nothing is more useful than gaining hands-on experience.
So after getting some basic knowledge, take action even if you don’t feel 100% ready and learn as you go.
Reminder:
- You will make mistakes along the way and that’s to be expected; just make sure to identify where you went wrong to fix it.
- Review your progress regularly and iterate on your model until you maximize the potential of your hustle.
To be able to focus on the next one, you need to reduce the time and effort spent on the current one, and that’s what the next section is about.
Delegate and Automate Time-Consuming Tasks
Find the People Who Will Gladly Make Life Easier for You
There are only so many hours in a day and the more sources of income you accumulate, the harder it will become to keep doing the work necessary to make money. When you are making good money but feel tired and overwhelmed, that’s when you know you should delegate some of your tasks.
Delegate, If Possible
Of course, whatever it is that you are doing has to be profitable enough to pay someone and still retain a good amount of money. You can easily go to freelance marketplaces like Fiverr and Upwork, or join communities (like Facebook groups) to find skilled people to work for you.
There is a plethora of online marketers, virtual assistants, content writers, SEO consultants and all sorts of freelancers ready to help you reach your goals – as long as you can identify the good among them.
Naturally, if you are an Uber driver or an Airbnb host, there isn’t much to be delegated. But if you work online, hiring people to help you work less and earn more is not only easy but also incredibly convenient.
Pro Tip:
To outsource part of a business model, you have to break it down into a series of tasks and determine which ones to delegate, with clear instructions and expectations.
It takes careful selection and effective communication to delegate tasks successfully, but the time and energy you save in the process are well worth it.
Automation Is a Timesaver
There are many solutions at your disposal to keep manual and repetitive tasks to a minimum:
- For instance, you can use Buffer to manage social accounts and team members in one place, as well as schedule your social media posts ahead of time.
- MailChimp is great for automating email sequences and engaging customers with just a few clicks.
- There is also QuickBooks, which allows you track to your expenses, send invoices, do taxes, and more.
Pro Tip:
Most business solutions are pretty affordable and will save you a great deal of time, allowing you to grow and build multiple sources of incomes.
On to the Next Stream of Income
So you have managed to build a source of income that makes you money consistently? Congratulations! Now back to work.
Every time you secure a stable income stream, you can afford to take more risks in the next one because even if it fails, you won’t find yourself in financial trouble.
Furthermore, you will capitalize on the business skills and the discipline you will have learned to succeed in your new ventures even more efficiently.
Reminder:
The more sources of income you have, the more confident and positive you will become in your life. Things like your favorite car or your dream vacation will no longer feel like a distant wish but a reality within grasp.
Suggestions to Create Multiple Streams of Income in 2024
Here are some extra income ideas you may find interesting. These suggestions are certainly not exhaustive, but they are reliable and pay well.
1. Take Surveys with Survey Junkie
Survey Junkie pays you to fill surveys for companies that need market data. The good thing with surveys is that you don’t need prior skills; anyone can start right away.
New surveys are available on a daily basis. Additionally, you don’t need to spend too much of your free time taking surveys – you can easily make use of your downtime like commutes or waiting for appointments.
Survey Junkie is probably the most reliable survey platform for hustlers who want to make extra money fast.
2. Save Money and Win Cash with Long Game
Long Game is a cool app for money-conscious people who want to save money. The basic idea is that as you save more money, you earn coins that you can use to play in-app games.
Winning these games lets you win cash prizes and even cryptocurrencies.
Long Game helps you develop the habit of saving money while having fun; be sure to try it out.
3. Become an Avon Rep
Becoming an affiliate for products you use is a proven way of generating an extra income. Avon has a large array of beauty products, from skin care to jewels, clothes, perfume, and more.
You can become an Avon sales representative and earn commissions for sales made through your recommendations.
Pro Tip:
You can also make money every time someone joins Avon because of you.
If you like the idea of making money by recommending beauty products you like and use, there are other companies that offer similar programs.
4. Invest Spare Change with Worthy Bonds
The Worthy Bonds mobile app was designed around the idea of investing spare change into bonds that pay 5% interest.
If you want to save and/or invest money in a simple way that lets you build wealth, Worthy Bonds is for you.
5. Get Paid to Get Fit with Healthy Wage
Looking to shed some fat? Healthy Wage is a fun way to do that. This application lets you make bets with your friends to hit a certain weight loss goal within a set deadline.
Healthy Wage takes the idea of challenge further by giving cash prizes to the winners.
If you have trouble committing to your weight loss goals, a monetary incentive coupled with the determination to not lose a bet will kick your motivation and discipline into high-gear.
And that’s not all: you get $40 each time you refer Healthy Wage to other people.
6. Rent Out Your Property with Airbnb
Do you have a spare room or apartment? If so, you have an income source ready to be exploited.
Airbnb is all the rage these days and many travelers prefer looking for hosts rather than hotels. Being a host is always a very rewarding experience if you enjoy meeting new people.
With good ratings and reviews, your place will attract even more guests and earn more money. So if you have enough space to welcome guests, join Airbnb and build a steady stream of income.
7. Invest in Real Estate with Fundrise
Fundrise is a crowdfunding platform that lets anyone invest in commercial real estate without having to go through a REIT (Real Estate Investment Trust).
You can start investing with a minimum of $500 and grow your portfolio and returns over time. Fundrise lowers the barrier for real estate investing and gives individuals access to real estate deals that, otherwise, would stay out of their reach.
If you want to get into real estate investing without committing huge sums, Fundrise is the right app for you.
8. Try Alternative Investments with Yieldstreet
Not all ventures should require active work; some of them should make you a passive income.
Yieldstreet lets you do that by becoming an investor who funds alternatives investments. “Alternative” means investments outside the stock market, like legal finance, commercial real estate, marine finance, etc.
Good to Know:
Note that loans are secured by collateral and annual returns are said to range from 8% to 20%. If that sounds interesting to you, learn how to start using Yieldstreet here.
9. Start a Blog
Yes, blogs still have audiences in 2019. Video content is wildly popular, but the written word isn’t going anywhere, so it’s never too late to start a blog. You can either focus your blog on expertise you already have or document your journey as you build it up.
Evergreen blog niches include, among others:
- making money
- personal development
- relationships
Pro Tip:
The beauty of having a blog is that not only you can grow a brand around it, you can also monetize it in any way you want. You can sell all sorts of products and services, from books to courses and even one-on-one coaching. You can also run ads and start affiliate partnerships once you build sizeable traffic.
If you prefer expressing yourself through writing rather than speaking, blogging is for you. While it’s a commitment that doesn’t pay from day one, the eventual returns can make a huge difference in your life.
10. Sell Your Skills
The great thing about selling a service is that you don’t need money (not a lot, anyway) to do it. Even a website is not a must when you’re starting out; what matters most is being able to find clients.
Make a list of all the things you are good at – think about what people turn to you for and what you were paid to do in the past.
Pro Tip:
You don’t need to be an expert in some complex field to make money; everyone has something useful that others are willing to pay for.
Something as simple as dog walking or creating professional resumes can bring you a nice extra chunk of money, provided you know how to connect with those who need you.
Some of the skills that are always in demand on the Internet include:
- designing logos
- doing voice-overs
- conducting market research
- coming up with business slogans
- writing content
- taking photos
Once you have decided on what you can sell, you can head to freelance platforms like Fiverr and Upwork to offer your services.
Bonus Tip:
There is also the option to ask people in your social circle for introductions to potential clients, so don’t forget about the power of offline marketing!
11. Start a Dropshipping Business
People buy things online all the time, so why not become the one who sells to them? Dropshipping is all about identifying the right product for the right audience at the right time.
Setting up a Shopify store and running ads is easy to learn, thanks to the many resources you can find online, many of which are free.
You will learn a multitude of useful business skills, such as:
- identifying profitable markets
- creating ads and product descriptions that convert
- growing an email list
- building a brand
Pro Tip:
However, you need to have some money you can play with, so do not try this sort of venture if you don’t have a stable income already.
While competition is fierce and markets change frequently, e-commerce is here to stay and those who know their way around it make some very impressive amounts. Read this post to learn all you need to know to build a profitable dropshipping business.
12. Become a Coach
Some people need a dedicated person to help them solve their issues and reach their goals. There are coaches for everything: fitness, business, relationships, etc.
Admittedly, finding clients when you’re starting out is not easy. They must acknowledge the value you offer them, willing to commit to working together, and be able to afford your rates.
Pro Tip:
But coaching can also be a very rewarding activity, and word of mouth will help you acquire more clients as you go.
And as with other types of ventures, you can take advantage of the internet and social media to make a name for yourself.
Bonus Tip:
If you manage to become a coach in an area you are passionate about, not only you will develop an additional source of income, you will also have a lot of fun doing it.
Wrapping It Up
Now you have a much clearer idea of how to create multiple streams of income.
As the gig economy keeps growing, there is nothing stopping you from seeking additional sources of income. Instead, you can look for opportunities, both online and offline, and leverage them as long as they remain profitable.
If you are working a job you don’t like, you don’t have to endure it forever – there are many ways to make more money than you currently do. While some of the suggestions in this post don’t necessarily yield a huge income on their own, the money you earn by having multiple income streams can quickly add up.
Reminder:
Granted, building multiple income streams is not a walk in the park; it takes time, effort, persistence, and a bit of luck. Remember that you don’t need to stick to one source income forever – always stay on the lookout for greener pastures while trying to reduce the time spent on working.
What’s your plan to increase your income sources and earn more money in 2019? Tell us in a comment below!
Author:
Logan is a practicing CPA and founder of Choice Tax Relief and Money Done Right. After spending nearly a decade in the corporate world helping big businesses save money, he launched his blog with the goal of helping everyday Americans earn, save, and invest more money. Learn more about Logan.