Tuesday 17 January 2012

On Money: Supplementing Your Income


Last week I talked about money and its importance in today world, we looked at the limitation of having no money and also saw the advantages of being rich. One thing that was the highlight of that post was the fact that poor people are confronted by circumstances where they income is stagnant while their expenditure rises every year if there are increases in their average earnings the gains are eroded by rise in the cost of living. It is a vicious cycle that traps a lot of people into poverty. Here are the facts according to the Joseph Rowntree Foundation: in the past decade the average cost of living has risen by 43% while the incomes of low earners has risen by just 7%, on the other hand the income of high earners has outstripped the rise in both consumer and retail price index by a whooping 49%. It is said that a single person in UK will need at least £15000 to afford a minimum acceptable standard of living, a couple with two children will need at least £31200. Which leaves one option for you, will you settle for the average or you will seek ways to increase your income and reduce your outgoings. Companies do exactly that, it is the maxim that they live with, everyday they seek ways to increase their earnings and in equal measure they also look for ways to minimise their costs. There is no reason why you should not be doing the same, everyday you should be on the lookout for ways to increase your income and reduce your outgoings.

Before we explore ways to supplement your income there are some few home truths that need to be acknowledged. When people talk of ways of increasing their income they are always thinking in terms of huge amounts, to them an increase can only mean hundreds of pounds anything that earns them small amounts of earnings is disregarded. Your supplementary income is directly proportional to what you earn right now, it is wishful thinking that you could have a supplementary income that earns you hundreds of thousands of pounds when in fact you do not earn that now in your main job. So to ignore or look with disdain to anything that earns you an extra £10 a month is to close your eyes to the opportunities to at least make a difference in your income levels. If you think earning an extra £10 a month is derisory and not worth your effort try paying your monthly rent or mortgage with £10 less than what you are required. Use the same analogy that its not a lot of money as an explanation to your landlord or mortgage officer as to why your rent is £10 short see if they buy that. There is a Chinese proverb that says "A journey of a thousand miles begins with one step" you have to start somewhere, the amount of money you want to make as supplementary income might be huge in line with your aspirations but you will have to start modestly acknowledging maybe as a fact that you do not have the resources to potentially earn you large amounts in your spare time now but whatever you can make at least you have made an effort. If you started with £100 at the beginning of the month and then found ways to increase that to £110 at the end of the month you can not dismiss that gain as insignificant. Its the first step in our journey for financial independence.

Ways To increase Income

1)A second job is a good way to increase your income if you have time and energy, even if it will be for only two hours a day that will give you an extra £10 a day. Which you would not have earned had you not taken a second job.

2)Earn money from your hobbies, you are good at baking, why do you start selling cupcakes at school fairs, festivals, from home on the internet. You are an artist you can earn extra money by selling your art at private galleries or direct to the public at fairs, festivals and market stalls. Are you into photography, could you sell your services as a photographer, covering weddings, christenings, parties, graduations ....e.t.c. So you can sing have you considered basking? So you are a writer, have you thought of earning money from blogging.

3)Do you have a spare room in your house? Have you thought of taking a lodger who's rent could give you a extra income. If you are baulking at the idea of living with a stranger have you thought of renting your home to TV Production companies who rent ordinary homes to film adverts and episodes of their programmes? Do you live nearer top town, parking is expensive in the CBD have you thought about renting your parking to shoppers?

4)Sell stuff, start with your second hand goods, from clothes to books and CDs, there are numerous sites in which you can list from eBay, Amazon, Friday-Ad, Gumtree, Facebook, Twitter, on your own website. We are hoarders naturally and when you do our spring clean we are usually surprised by items we purchased long ago we no long use. Remember one man's trash is another man's treasure.

Now here is the challenge for those that joined our Facebook group What Will You Settle For, let us list other activities or ways in which we can increase out income.

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