In August 2018, I’m going to write all about side hustles. To start us off, we have a guest post by Millionaire Mob, a blog focused on ways to better your financial future. They have helped thousands of people with bettering their financial future through passive income, dividend investing and travel hacking.
The quest for financial freedom motivates different people to pursue different things. One sure way I’ve found which is speeding up the time to achieve financial freedom for me is to engage in a variety of side hustles.
What is a side hustle you ask?
A side hustle is an extra business that you run beside your full-time job to generate additional income. While your full-time job is your primary source of income, a side hustle is a secondary source of income. In order to achieve wealth, you must be able to increase your income over time. I love doing this with my day job income, my investments and my side hustles.
Creation of side hustles is rapidly gaining grip as a budding number of Americans discover the massive benefits of starting one. According to a recent Bankrate study, it’s estimated that around 37% of U.S. adults have a side hustle, but what’s even more outstanding is what those side hustles are paying. On average, a person earns approximately $686 per month from their side hustles. This proves that a side hustle is a key to achieving financial freedom.
I have pursued different types of side hustles to build financial stability. If you pick the right side hustle, invest sufficient time to it, you can generate huge profits from it.
To discover suitable sides hustle to pursue, you first need to find a niche that gets you excited. Then do a thorough research to find out what other people in such a niche are doing to earn additional income. Choose your target customers and provide solutions to different needs of people in that niche. For greater results, choose an activity that complements your full-time job.
The Benefits of Side Hustling to Achieve Financial Freedom
There are a number of incredible benefits I get from side hustling:
- Creation of an additional source of income
- Ability to pursue purpose and meaning
- Diversification
- Self and professional development
Let’s go through them in more detail.
Creates an Additional Source of Income
Benefit number 1 of side hustling is without a doubt that side hustle creates an extra source of income. Financial freedom may mean different thing to different people, but one common thing is it gets you to a level where you never have worry about money.
A side hustle puts extra coins into your pocket that can help you meet some of your financial obligations like bills, emergencies, and debts. If you have a debt, you can use your side hustle income to pay them off. You can also use a side hustle income to save or to cater for emergencies. Side hustle income can also help you increase your retirement savings.
The beauty of creating a side hustle is that the money you make often isn’t the cash you use to pay your basic bills. Rather, it is bonus money that comes from that extra effort you put in your side job. Thus, as long as you’re able to use and save enough from your primary income, your side hustle revenues could allow you to enjoy the luxuries you may have previously forgone or could not afford. You are able to enjoy your life and live free.
A side hustle can also help you accumulate wealth. If you use your extra income to make investments like when you purchase stocks, currencies, real estates and other alternative investments, you will obtain financial freedom faster. A side hustle can, therefore, help create a positive impact on your personal financial ratios.
I like to establish a habitual savings and budgeting methods with my ordinary day job income. After I have conquered a pattern of habitual savings and budgeting, I layer on an additional side hustle income that enables me to accelerate my savings and investing. This can be very powerful.
Ability to Pursue Purpose and Meaning
Another subtle meaning of financial freedom is the flexibility to pursue what you really want in life and to be who you really are. While a side hustle helps put extra bucks into your pocket, it also offers a higher flexibility because it gives you more money options and helps you pursue your other personal interests.
A secondary gig also helps you to pursue and fulfill your meaning and purpose in life. If you are able to turn your hobby into an income generating activity, you derive a lot of purpose from it. Even better, you can discover new interests and passion that you can pursue to boost your business and yourself.
Diversification
Benefit number 3 is side hustles help you to diversify your financial situation. It is not wise to put all your eggs in one basket. Do not count on a single business or opportunity if you really want to become financially free. Rather, try to focus on numerous opportunities to avoid getting into financial crisis if one stream of income hit a snag.
A side hustle is an ideal way to hedge yourself against the risk of losing your primary source of income. It can also help you maintain your lifestyle even if you unexpectedly lose your full-time job.
A majority of people find themselves financially stressed when they lose their primary source of income especially during that period between getting laid off and finding new work. But having a side hustle might allow you to relax a bit and take your time before you find a new job as opposed to accepting any offer that comes your way because you are in a financial emergency.
A side hustle becomes the ideal employment insurance in the event you face a layoff.
A side hustle also boosts your confidence. It gives you the motivation to go beyond your comfort zone. A famous quote on financial freedom and side hustle creation goes, “If you are not willing to risk the usual, you will have to settle for the ordinary”. Jim Rohn. To fulfill your dreams, you need to hustle and invest a lot. An investment with low risk most of the time result in low returns. A general rule of the thumb in financial investments is, “the higher the risk, the lower the returns.” To get high returns, you have to be a risk taker.
Achieving meaningful goals in life requires sacrifice and risk-taking. James W. Frick once said, “Don’t tell me where your priorities are. Show me where you spend your money and I’ll tell you what they are”. Make your side hustle a priority and avoid spending money on things that you don’t need if you want to attain financial freedom. You certainly become financially free when you become money “grown up”.
Self and Professional development
Benefit number 4 of side hustling is if your side job involves an activity that complements your full-time job, it will certainly help you add value to it. A side hustle creates an outlet that allows you to further yourself personally and professionally. You can get much more than just an additional income from your side hustle when you create a job that develops your skills. For example, you can start a freelancing gig where you write or train about financial matters if you are employed in a bank or any other financial institution.
A survey by Bankrate shows that 44% of younger workers with side jobs state that the side hustles made them more valuable employees at their primary jobs. 45% said that it helped them become more organized. A side hustle gives you a chance to develop key skills and evolve career-wise and personally which results in lifelong impact.
Because you have the full-time job that helps you to settle your bills, you can use the extra income to advance your education, gain new experiences and search for the right opportunities. A side hustle can help you build relevant skills if you want to make a career change or transition into a new field or into entrepreneurship.
If you aren’t spending at least 5 hours per week learning, you are being irresponsible. What are you doing to learn something new today?
Why you should start earning side hustle income
Side hustle help you to not only earn extra income but also gives you a long-term business strategy if you want to transition from full-time employment by helping you find purpose as well as develop your professional and personal interests.
I hope this article has given you some valuable insights. Are you going to start earning a second source of income? Let us know in the comments below. We’d love to hear from you.
Author Bio: Millionaire Mob is where people come together to find the best travel deals and financial advice. We specialize in dividend growth investing, passive income and travel hacking. Our advice has helped thousands of people travel the world and achieve financial freedom. Millionaire Mob will provide you the best advice to help you learn and grow along the way. Follow us on Instagram, Twitter and/or Facebook for all the latest updates.
