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Who doesn’t dream of sitting on the beach, sipping lemonade, and watching the checks roll in without having to work?
This, ladies and gentlemen, is the good life. And you can do it, too, if you figure out a way to start collecting residual income.
Building a healthy flow of residual income is one of the best things you can do for personal finance and your net worth, especially as you get older. Remember, the trick is to work less and make more as you get closer to your golden years.
Here’s how it works.
Residual income is the process of receiving payments after the income-producing work is complete. It’s a passive income stream that enables you to make money while you’re essentially twiddling your thumbs.
In other words, you do some work — like write a song, take and post a photo, write a book, or write a blog post. Once that’s done, you generate a solid residual income stream and get paid whenever people use or access your product, whatever it may be. Talk about supercharging cash flow!
Chances are you’re already working a full-time or part-time job. If you’re bringing in money and working for it, you’re earning active income. In short, you’re performing services and getting paid for them.
There’s nothing wrong with earning active income. We all need to do it to pay the bills. In fact, most people tend to continue earning active income even after they start collecting large amounts of passive income, thereby accelerating their net income.
For example, professional musicians generate passive income by selling copies of their live concerts. They make money by playing the show (active income) and then they make money by selling that concert forever (passive income).
There are some pretty incredible benefits that come with collecting residual income.
It’s impossible to overstate this benefit: Residual income means collecting money without having to generate active income.
In most cases, this works by selling a product or service that’s fairly automated. Or, you might get involved with real estate investing and generate passive income off of rent. To do that, you’d probably want to hire a property manager to oversee the day-to-day.
As an example, think of an author like Stephen King. Every time Stephen King sells a copy of one of his famous novels, he gets a direct kickback. Not bad for a prolific author who’s very popular!
For you, this could mean crowdfunding an idea, seeing it take off, and then opening up an online store on Shopify and other online platforms to earn some cash every time someone makes a purchase.
Living off residual income can be very difficult unless you’re a rock star or YouTube sensation who creates a landmark piece of work that goes viral, enabling you to collect on a regular basis.
For most people, residual income is best put toward building a retirement fund. It’s a way of bringing in extra money, supplementing your lifestyle, and helping you prepare for the future.
Here’s where it gets really good, too. By investing passive income, you can generate capital gains, receive dividends, and earn interest — meaning you can significantly grow residual income without having to work very hard (more on that below). This is one of the smartest things that you can do as an investor, regardless of the amount of money that you’re bringing in.
Here’s another cool part about residual income: You can use it to produce more passive payments.
For example, suppose you take a really stellar picture and post it online in a stock photo store, and a company sees your work. You can then turn around and use that example to build a portfolio and do similar projects.
In short, by combining active work with passive income, you can lead to even more residual payments — making your financial situation stronger and stronger.
This begs the question: How do you actually collect passive income?
This can be achieved in a few different ways. In some cases, you can link your bank account directly to the source for direct deposits. Most of the time, payments will come in the form of individual checks.
Sometimes — and this is important — you’ll have to be diligent about tracking down your residual payments. After all, not everyone is honest, especially online.
If you’re looking to make residual income off of content (like photos or videos), consider using a tracking service that will enable you to hunt down your work when it spreads to various channels, giving you the power to collect payment when people use your property.
One of the most tried and true methods of collecting residual income is to purchase real estate.
This is often accomplished by buying an investment property in a populated area, like a beach or ski town. In this case, a home buyer will usually put a down payment on a piece of property that is a small fraction of the overall selling price.
For example, you may put down $20,000 on a $200,000 property. Then, over the course of the mortgage, you use a service like Airbnb along with a rental management provider to oversee the property and deal with guests. In this scenario, rental income can be an excellent source of passive income.
If you buy a house in an area with year-round traffic and exciting nearby destinations, then you can collect residual income and pay down the mortgage quickly. And as long as you break even at the end of every month, you could increase your initial down payment significantly when you eventually decide to sell.
Here’s an important thing to remember: Not all homes are investments and not all investments will yield residual income.
In other words, most people buy their homes to live in them, meaning they aren’t typically in a position to sell their home when the market suggests they should. Selling a home can take many months or even years.
What’s more, homes can depreciate in value over time. In most cases, it’s the land underneath the domicile that appreciates in value.
If you want to make residual income off your home, you would be better advised to buy a place with an extra room or two and a spare bathroom, or a multi-family house with a whole separate unit. This way, you can still live in your house and collect passive income.
This strategy is rapidly growing in popularity among investors who live close to big cities. For example, you might be able to partner with a business associate who only spends a few nights each week or month in town and needs consistent lodging.
This person could make a great part-time roommate, providing friendly banter and camaraderie in exchange for a place to stay. You could even work out this type of arrangement with multiple working professionals at a time.
You should be very careful before you decide to purchase a rental property. If you’re thinking about moving in this direction, remember that location is absolutely key for success. Buying a place that’s too far from areas of interest — like bars, restaurants, and ski mountains — could make it difficult to attract steady renters, especially during down seasons. And the last thing you want to do is get saddled with an extra mortgage with no way of paying for it.
One popular way to make money off real estate is to leverage real estate investment trusts (REITs). By purchasing REITs that pay consistent dividends, you can collect passive income at periodic intervals without having to do much at all.
The benefits of using REITs is that you can make money in real estate without having to buy an entire property or deal with the hassle of managing an actual piece of property and potentially difficult renters.
This means you won’t have to pay for maintenance or upgrades or even expensive property management companies to watch the property and clean up after guests. In this light, REITs can help you reach your financial goals while yielding healthy returns if you invest smartly.
How exactly can you start earning residual income? As it turns out, it’s not that hard.
Here are some easy ways that you can get started producing residual income to pad your bottom line. If you are strategic about this process, you can generate monthly income without having to do much or any hard work. All it takes is an initial upfront investment in the form of time and labor and you’ll be good to go.
Affiliate marketing involves promoting third-party products in exchange for a commission. For example, you could work as a blogger and strategically embed advertisements and links to partnering websites. When people click on the links and buy products, you can collect commissions.
There’s a catch, though: Affiliate marketing is hard work. For example, if you start a blog, you’ll still have to post content and attract viewers organically. And this can take a significant effort.
If you’re thinking about starting an affiliate marketing project, consider expanding and hiring a small team to manage it for you. Treat it as more of an investment so that you can spend more time sipping lemonade and less time doing the creative heavy lifting.
Another strategy you can consider is buying an existing blog that already has a strong foundation of readers. If you decide to take this route, just make sure that the traffic that’s coming to your website is legitimate and not full of bots. You’ll also want to purchase a blog that’s interesting and in demand.
Learn More:
Yet another way that you can earn residual income is through a peer lending app like Credible, LendingTree, and SoFi. All three of these apps are perfectly legitimate — and tried and tested by investors like yourself.
These types of apps bring together loan seekers with financial backers who are in a position to provide capital. Most services offer flexible loan terms, along with a variety of metrics and services designed to help lenders understand who they are providing money to.
By using these apps, it’s possible to sit back and collect interest on the money that you loan — essentially acting as a credit provider, without having to do any of the legal work. Options are available to loan money to both businesses and consumers.
Of course, peer lending can still be risky. Be very careful before deciding to loan any investor money, as you could wind up losing out in the long run. Use the available tools to vet your clientele, and don’t be afraid to walk away from a deal if it’s not in your interest.
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If you’re considering going the peer lending route, then you should definitely also be investing money in the stock market.
Just like with REITs, dividend stock options can help you bring in regular income at various intervals — like on a quarterly or annual basis. The more dividend stocks you purchase, the more money you will earn.
Keep in mind that, if you decide to invest in the stock market, you’ll have to manage market volatility which can eat into your residual earnings — and, if you’re not focused on the long term, could keep you up at night.
There are various ways that you can push back against market volatility, though, like investing in index funds or exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
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A high-yield savings account (HYSA) is similar to a traditional checking or savings account except it’s typically offered through an online-only bank.
In short, a HYSA provides interest rates that are significantly higher than the national average that you’ll find at a leading bank. The more money that you put into your HYSA, the more money you will earn on a monthly basis.
Just remember that HYSA interest rates are variable and subject to the state of the overall economy. They tend to rise when the Federal Reserve increases interest rates and drop when the Fed cuts them.
Even during a downturn, HYSAs can still produce much stronger results than regular old savings accounts — and they’re a decent way to earn interest without trying very hard. In fact, the hardest thing that you’ll have to do is avoid touching your money and moving it out of the account.
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One great way to build residual income is to fund a business like a restaurant. If you have a little bit of money to put on a down payment, and the right connections, you should consider going in on a business as a silent investor.
This will enable you to bankroll the organization and get paid based on its success without having a spotlight on you.
Of course, know what you’re getting involved in before you go ahead and make that kind of investment. The restaurant industry is incredibly difficult and many organizations wind up going belly-up within their first year.
However, if you follow the rules and provide great food at reasonable prices, a restaurant can be a cash cow … and you might even get discounted meals or drinks at the bar.
If you’re considering taking this route, look for areas of need in your community. Spend some time studying maps and try to find services that may be lacking (like pizza, Chinese food, or a bakery, for example).
You could either start a business from scratch or look for a struggling organization that may need an injection of capital.
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If you have considerable credit card debt — like $10,000 or $20,000 — then you should consider building residual income to pay down accounts with high interest. This will, in turn, lower your monthly payments while also working to pay down your bills. The hope is that in time, you will be debt-free.
This is also a good lesson in avoiding credit card debt. Nobody likes seeing their money go toward credit card interest payments. Be smart about how you leverage credit to avoid this pitfall.
In general, you should be skeptical about network marketing.
Of course, not all network marketing models are Ponzi schemes. There are a few legitimate network marketing companies that can make you money with, if you treat them like a full-time business and know how to hustle. If you have a great product and a strong team selling underneath you, you could actually do quite well for yourself. Just keep in mind that there are a significant amount of scams in this space to watch out for.
It’s possible to earn passive income through an online business, leveraging a platform like Amazon or starting a social media account on a site like YouTube. In fact, starting a YouTube channel can be a great way to earn income.
Just keep in mind that there’s a fine line between passive income and active income. If you’re putting hours of effort every week into your online business, then it’s not really passive income. Passive income is designed to reward you for not doing anything.
If you’re considering starting an online business, then you should think about a way to aggregate content or leverage existing assets to reduce the amount of work you’re putting in.
As you can see, it can take a little bit of work to get started. But once you set up a residual cash flow, you’ll be in a great position to keep earning more money as time goes on.
Here’s a disclaimer to think about: If you keep your expenses low, the money will start rolling in. As such, it’s a good idea to have a plan in place for how you will manage your residual income.
Look into starting an investment portfolio and a savings plan to stay on top of your finances so that you will know exactly where to funnel your money on a monthly basis. Diversify your income using index funds, mutual funds, ETFs, and individual stocks.
In addition, you should also look into cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin as emerging investments to consider. Even if you don’t end up buying them (they are incredibly risky), you should still have a solid understanding about how they work and how they can potentially earn you income.
If you’re good about managing money, and you keep these tips in mind, you will put yourself in a great position for long-term financial success.
There’s only one thing that remains to be seen: What residual income streams are you going to unlock on your path to financial independence?
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For a young professional, one of the hardest habits to break is relying on your employer for money and happiness. If you want to get ahead in life, you need to work for both of these things. There’s no such thing as a free lunch.
The truth is you’re probably not going to get rich on year-end bonuses. And there is a big difference between working for someone else and getting two weeks of paid vacation per year and being in control over your own schedule.
If you want to live the good life, with more money and flexibility, you’re going to have to become financially independent. And for most people, this requires taking on one or more side hustles in addition to your full-time job.
But where should you even start? This article provides some business ideas that you can consider to bring in extra income and start putting more aside to plan for your financial future.
A side hustle is a part-time job that you take on to supplement the income from your day job.
In some cases, you can build off your full-time job and do things that are related to your profession and skill-set. In other instances, you may want to consider taking on a different line of work in your spare time to avoid burnout.
Generally speaking, it is legal to work one or more jobs in addition to your full-time employment. So, you won’t have to worry about breaking the law by working a side hustle.
That said, your employer may restrict working a second job depending on the nature of your profession. For example, if you are heavily involved with your company and bound by a non-compete clause, your hands may be tied when it comes to taking on a second job.
Best practices call for scouring your employment agreement that you signed when you started your full-time job. In certain cases, you may even want to consult with an attorney in advance to avoid any potential legal complications that may arise after getting started. If you fail to take the proper precautions, you could find yourself dealing with a potential lawsuit.
The good news is that most people don’t have to worry about binding non-compete clauses and can probably proceed without having to jump through many hoops. But it always pays to be careful before taking on a new endeavor.
So, why should you consider starting a side hustle? There are many reasons for doing so, which we’ll briefly examine next.
By working a side hustle, you can bring in more cash and start socking it away toward retirement. The more money you bring in now, the less you’ll have to work later in life. There’s never a better time than right now when it comes to making money.
Let’s face it: Being in debt is no fun. That said, there’s no reason to be ashamed if you fall into debt. Plenty of people do for various reasons.
By working a side hustle, you can pay down student loans or credit card debt and get yourself in a situation where you can start saving more. Starting a side hustle is an excellent way to pay down debt and create a better financial situation for yourself.
We’re living in an unstable world, where many workers are at risk of displacement. The best way to protect yourself is to keep learning, growing, and expanding your skills. If you get complacent, you’ll get lazy. And being lazy is a terrible trap to fall into.
Working a side hustle can teach you valuable skills that you can use to improve your trade and knowledge and become a more well-rounded person.
Make no mistake about it: Investing in yourself is one of the most important things you can do in life. Try to learn something new every day — like how to become a blogger or how to open up a shop on Etsy — even if it’s something small and seemingly insignificant.
In the past, people went to school, got a degree, went into a certain field, and then worked until retirement. However, the world has changed significantly. It’s up to you to build your own career and determine where you want to go in life. And by starting a side hustle, you can open doors that you never thought were possible.
Keep in mind that if you start a side hustle, there is a nonzero chance that you can become extremely successful beyond your wildest imagination. Plenty of people have done it before. And you can do it, too, if you set your mind to it.
Here are a few important things to keep in mind before launching a side hustle.
One of the hardest parts about working a side hustle is time management — especially if you’re already working a full 40 hours or more every week. Starting a side hustle could require getting savvy about how you spend time in the mornings, evenings, and weekends.
That’s right — you might have to say goodbye to your Saturdays and Sundays if you’re considering a side hustle. You’re about to start working a lot more. But as millions of side hustlers who own small businesses know well, it can all be worth it.
A word to the wise: Make it a point not to work too hard or you could risk burning out. And if you absolutely need a day off, budget time for that. Go slow at first, so that you don’t bite off way more than you can chew for your side hustle and regret your decision.
Another thing to keep in mind is that if you’re successful, paychecks could start to roll in faster than you anticipate. If you’re not careful, this could create some unintended consequences.
For example, if you’re working under the table or freelancing as a 1099 employee, you’ll still have to pay taxes on the money you earn. Consider working with a tax advisor so that you don’t fall behind and owing a large chunk in earnings to Uncle Sam when tax season rolls around.
In addition, you may also have to start hounding people for money you’re owed. When you work a full-time job, it’s easy to get spoiled having checks roll in every week or two like clockwork. This is not always the case when you work a side hustle or found a startup.
Over time, though, you’ll learn to strike a balance and understand when to be patient and when to be aggressive about payment. If you’re not careful, some people are going to try to take advantage of you.
It’s also a good idea to set up a retirement plan if you haven’t already done so to delay having to pay taxes on capital gains and dividends when you start investing your side hustle money.
Even if you’re legally allowed to start a side hustle, your employer may not like the fact that you’re working extra on the side instead of devoting all your spare time to the company. So, it’s best to be smart about how you promote yourself if you want to avoid any awkward conversations. For example, broadcasting to LinkedIn that you’re working on the side may generate questions — mainly because it could signal that the company isn’t paying you enough.
That said, if you’re a savvy business person, you may be able to use your side hustle to your advantage when asking for more money from your employer when it’s time for a raise.
Only you can determine whether this is a smart move. But it is a potential way to get more out of your full-time job.
As we said, there is a legitimate chance that you’re going to start bringing it a substantial chunk of money once you start a side hustle. However, be smart about quitting your day job and going to work full-time for yourself. This can be a risky move if you’re not prepared.
Before you quit and start working for yourself full-time, make sure you are in a position to absorb risk. You should also take a look at your side income, think about how stable it is, and determine how you can potentially bring in more leads for yourself.
Remember that working for yourself can seem great. But there are hoops that you have to jump through to make it work — like paying taxes, bringing in new customers, budgeting for seasonal dips, dealing with competitors, and more. Be smart before you take the plunge and turn your side gig into your full-time profession.
Now that you have a basic understanding of how side hustles work and what you should consider before starting one, here are some ideas to help you make more money online or offline in 2021.
Demand is at an all-time high for online food delivery, as many local restaurants have shut down their dining rooms and many consumers are staying home to stay safe. In some areas, you can make up to $50 per hour in your spare time once you optimize this side hustle by driving for apps like Instacart, Postmates, DoorDash, and Grubhub.
Driving for a rideshare service is another excellent way to bring in cash on your own schedule at a decent hourly rate. As long as you have a solid car and a clean driving record, you can download Lyft and Uber and start driving around picking up passengers. This is a great option for people who live in populated areas.
If you’re savvy on social media and you have a healthy following to prove it, consider starting an online business and working with companies as a social media advisor. Many companies are looking for help with their social strategies and they may hire you on a part-time basis to manage their accounts. That means you can make money acquiring new followers, tweeting, and posting on sites like Facebook and LinkedIn.
One thing to consider is that companies may want you to be available throughout the day as a social media advisor. If you can’t swing this, consider working as a consultant on a monthly retainer. Instead of making yourself available during the week, help the company develop a social media strategy and content creation plan to help drive more sales from their social channels.
Another way that you can make money on social media is to become an influencer. This strategy involves building a social media audience and working with brands to promote products via photos and videos.
You can make a lot of money as an influencer and you can also get some great perks like free products and services. However, the tradeoff is that it’s hard work and requires a big commitment to do a good and consistent job.
Talented design professionals who know how to work with programs like Photoshop, Illustrator, and Gimp should consider working a side hustle as a freelance designer.
You can bring in a healthy income designing things like t-shirts, mugs, and hats. Or you may want to go into website, logo, or email design.
Freelance design is an excellent way to bring in extra cash and make a name for yourself in a particular niche industry. With the right approach, you’ll be able to sell your artwork and put your skills to the test.
Freelance writers can also bring in money producing digital content for companies. Organizations often like working with writers as 1099 employees because they are flexible to work with and cost less than full-time employees. If you’re good and capable of turning around work quickly, you can make up to $0.50 per word with scalable potential.
Regardless of whether you’re in design or writing, here are some sites to check out.
If you have particular industry knowledge or an area of expertise and a way with words, you should consider starting and managing your own blog.
Here’s the trick to making money with blogging: advertise. You can use a service like Google AdSense to host ads. And if you start to build content and a regular audience, you may even be able to negotiate your own advertisements with partnering companies.
If you are digitally oriented and love numbers, there is a growing demand for online bookkeeping. Much like freelancing, this can be especially lucrative and secure — especially if you can partner with organizations that are making a lot of money and are in high demand.
For roughly $100, you can get certified to be a notary in most states across the U.S. As a notary, you can be an impartial witness when people sign loans and other documents. This is something that you can do in your spare time by visiting homes and businesses. This is a great way to make an extra $1,000 to $2,000 per month.
Working as an online proofreader is an excellent way to earn money for yourself. Just like blogging, you can start off slow and work your way up the ladder to earn more money.
As an added bonus, you’ll get paid to learn about exciting things like technology, food, or cars while helping others hone their ideas and present great work.
If you want to learn more, I recommend this FREE 76 minute workshop that will teach you how to create your own proofreading or copyediting business.
Amazon isn’t just for buying cool items and gifts. There are a few ways you can make money on Amazon, too.
Amazon Handmade is a service that makes it easy for artists to sell wares and handmade gifts. You can use Handmade as a platform to offer your items to the general public. It’s kind of like Etsy, online Amazon-style.
Another way for creatives and even industry experts to make money on Amazon is to use Kindle Direct Publishing, a platform that lets you write content and sell your work to the public. If you have a following online, this could be a great way to keep more of your profits compared to a traditional publishing arrangement.
If you have a community, blog, or website, you can make money by working as an affiliate. This involves strategically linking to Amazon and receiving commissions when someone buys products after clicking your link.
Want a glimpse at just how many affiliate programs are out there? Check out my list of 101 awesome affiliate programs.
If you have a specific area of expertise and you’re good at working with others, you should consider teaching a course online. People are willing to pay decent money to learn new skills, meaning you could make a killing if you can plan material and connect with others.
VIPKid is a platform that lets you get paid to teach English to students in one-on-one sessions. You can set your own schedule so that you can work where you want and when you want without having to commit to specific hours.
Another site that pays you to work as an instructor is Udemy, a platform that lets people create online courses and tutorials for global audiences. Udemy is a great way to earn money as an instructor on a flexible basis.
Working as a virtual assistant can be a steady source of cash — if you have the time and flexibility to devote to the job during the day. This is great for people who work nights or at odd hours and are looking for another gig to bring in some extra cash.
Working as a virtual assistant can be demanding at times and it’s important that you interview the individual to make sure that it’s a good fit. You’ll be doing things like scheduling meetings and speaking engagements, arranging transportation, and handling logistics. It might not be glamorous work. But it’s a great opportunity to network and meet new people while also bringing in more money on the side.
Oftentimes, you can find virtual assistant opportunities through sites like LinkedIn and Craigslist.
If you want to learn more, here’s a 30 days to Virtual Assistant Success course.
Dropshipping is a type of business model that allows you to sell items without having to maintain any stock.
In short, the customer places an order from an online store. Then your store automatically routes the order to a dropshipping partner. From there, the partner processes and fulfills the order — giving you a cut of the proceeds without having to do any of the work.
To start a dropshipping business, you’ll first need to find an ecommerce provider that lets you host an online store. For example, Shopify is one company that can serve as a dropshipping enabler.
If you’re looking for an easy way to make a few bucks without putting out much of an effort, consider working with sites that provide access to online focus groups and surveys.
These sites don’t have super high payouts. But they’re a great way to earn small monetary rewards and even gift cards to your favorite stores.
Disclaimer: These two sites are legitimate. But there are a lot of scams out there, so be careful when using survey sites to make cash.
If you’re working from home or in an office during the day, consider putting your car to use on a site like Turo, which lets you rent your vehicle to anyone in the local area. This can help make you make car payments or pay for gas and repairs.
If you have a house or rent an apartment, you can make your private space available to people from around the world who need temporary lodging using a site like Airbnb.
Airbnb is a great service because it gives you the flexibility to set house rules and vet who is renting your space. The site offers great visibility and safety services and makes it easy to accommodate guests.
This is an excellent way to pay down your mortgage or reduce rent by bringing in extra cash without having to do much at all besides keeping a clean and welcoming space. It’s also a great way to meet world travelers and grow your personal network.
Craigslist is a bit like the Wild West in that virtually anything goes, so you have to be careful when using this site to find work. However, if you’re savvy about using Craigslist and willing to sort through scams, it’s a solid go-to source for work.
You can use Craigslist to find virtually any type of employment, ranging from temporary labor jobs to long-term arrangements. You’ll be surprised at what you can find on this helpful directory. Just be safe about who you do business with on Craigslist, as it’s loaded with scams and could even put you in physical danger.
If you have a lot of collectibles or electronics, consider selling your unwanted treasures on a site like eBay.
The way to make money on eBay as a side hustle is to sell an item, use the proceeds to buy another item, and then turn around and sell that at auction. If you get good at this, you can bring in steady money without having to do much work at all. eBay is a trusted platform and it can be a solid revenue generator if you have an eye for good deals and are good at online marketing.
You should also look into ItsWorthMore, a site that lets you sell your used electronics for cash.
It has never been easier to flip books online thanks to new apps like Bookscouter, which enables you to scan any book and find out how much you can sell it for across many different used book buyers. So, if you are a book lover with a full library at your disposal, consider putting some of those on the market. Side note: Jeff Bezos started selling books, too…
Like a blog, a podcast can be an excellent source of revenue if you can identify a niche topic that provides value, create strong content, and sell advertising space.
People are often intimidated by the idea of starting a podcast because they think they need professional-grade audio quality. However, the truth is that anyone can start a podcast. It’s the quality of the content that counts.
For example, maybe you are an amazing storyteller or you have friends and business connections that can offer value in the form of business content or comedy. All you need is a condenser microphone, an audio editing platform, and a site to host your material and you’ll be on your way to launching a program.
If you have enough money saved to put a down payment on a house and pay a mortgage, you may want to consider buying a rental property. This is a great way to make passive income if you find a place in an area with a steady stream of tourists — like a beach town or ski town.
Just keep in mind that real estate can be risky and expensive. If you don’t have the means to get involved with real estate, you should consider investing in real estate through a real estate investment trust (REIT). This can be immensely profitable with far less hassle. You can buy into a REIT through a brokerage firm like Fidelity or Schwab, or use a REIT-focused platform like Diversyfund.
For an animal lover, there’s nothing better than getting paid to take care of furry critters. You can make a decent income walking dogs or petsitting animals like cats and birds.
Starting a dog walking business is something that you can do pretty easily — without having to set up a website. However, you may want to take out insurance to cover yourself in case something bad happens.
As an added bonus, dog walkers are typically paid under the table for added flexibility. Of course, you’ll still have to pay money in taxes. So it’s important to keep a running record of your income to avoid running into trouble with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
If you’re better working with kids than animals, then you should look into babysitting. Being a sitter is another flexible and convenient way to get paid for doing relatively easy work (assuming the kids aren’t total nightmares!).
Working as a babysitter may require you to give up your nights and weekends, so make sure that you’re available during those times if you decide to go this route. Also, keep in mind that consistency and availability are requirements for this job if you want to do well. Above all else, parents want babysitters that are patient, able to work with kids, and around when their services are needed.
There is always a strong demand for handiwork. So, if you are good at doing household work like shopping for groceries, raking leaves, or painting, you should look into a service like TaskRabbit.
It largely depends on who you are driving for and where you are located. Keep in mind, too, that if you work for a company like Uber or Lyft, you’ll have to give them a cut of every ride.
It can potentially be more lucrative making a side business driving people around town. Consider starting your own business and shuttling around people as a personal driver. This is a great way to cut out middlemen and earn more cash.
The short answer is that it doesn’t matter. In fact, you don’t even have to tell other people that you’re working more than one job to make ends meet or get ahead. What you do to earn a living is your business and your business alone.
The best way to make money with ecommerce is to leverage an existing platform like eBay, Etsy, or Amazon and offer great products. It can take time to master this hustle. But if you are selling great products, come up with successful marketing strategies, and put in the work, you can earn a significant amount of income.
It’s easy: Have a brainstorm and think of all the various ways you can make money. Think about what you really want to do and isolate the top two or three moneymakers. Stick with one at a time and master it so that you don’t put too many irons in the fire. You’ll know when you are ready to expand and take on more work.
Passive income is money that you bring in without having to spend too much ongoing time or money. For example, renting properties can be an example of passive monthly income, particularly if you hire a property management company to take care of all tenant relations.
The only way to get ahead in the gig economy is to hustle. At the same time, you have to manage money wisely and put your money to work in the stock market or in a high-interest savings account. Let your money grow as you bring it in and resist spending all of it. It can disappear faster than you think.
Whether you’re trying to get ahead in life or make up for lost time, working a side hustle is an excellent way to bring in extra income. The bottom line is you have unlimited earning potential, and you most likely have the skills to start making more for yourself.
Remember that the best side hustles are the ones that let you bring in extra money while giving you complete control over your schedule. A great side hustle complements your full-time job while pairing you with local business owners and community members who need services. With the right side hustle and the determination needed to make it succeed, you can make a lot of money working for yourself in your spare time.
And take my word for it: There’s nothing better than the feeling of being your own boss.
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Online learning is the need of the hour now, and it is here to stay with so many online course platforms available. There were only a handful of websites that offered online courses a decade ago, but now you have many platforms you can choose from.
Selling courses is a great way to make money online, sharing your expertise with your students. In fact, the e-learning market is forecast to surpass 243 billion US dollars by 2022.
With everyone turning to online learning, there is a huge demand for comprehensive online courses in every niche. If you have a good knowledge of a topic, there is a good chance you could make a side business out of course creation.
Well, this is the first question that will pop in your mind if you are passionate or knowledgeable about a specific niche.
Here are some simple steps to start creating profitable courses:
With over 100,000 course creators, it’s easy to understand why Teachable is a popular choice for creating and selling online courses. As a course creator, you have a lot of freedom to cater to your audience when using Teachable. You can create videos, assignments, quizzes, and even course completion certificates.
Teachable also wins points when it comes to payment options. It offers coupons, subscriptions, memberships, bundles, and a lot more features. It even takes care of the EU VAT.
Price – It has three plans ranging from $29 to $249 per month (billed annually), with the $99 plan best suited for beginners. The $99 and $249 plans have no transaction fees and include coaching and course products as well as priority product support. However, the $29 plan does have a 5% transaction fee.
If you are new to course creation, then Teachable is the best place to start your business because of its affordable prices and support features.
Sign up to start creating your unique courses with Teachable.
Kajabi is another winner when it comes to online course creation. As well as many of the content creation features that Teachable has, Kajabi also offers unique designs for course page builders, making it a better platform for promoting your course.
It also offers great customer service and in-depth training resources once you join, under Kajabi University. One of the best features of Kajabi is you can access your platform via its Apple or Android app.
Price – It offers a free 14-day trial period. Once you have finished the trial, you can sign up for one of its three plans, which are billed annually. Its Basic, Growth, and Pro plans cost $119, $159, and $319 per month, respectively. It doesn’t have any transaction fees for the courses.
Just like Kajabi, Thinkific has a lot of options to create and sell your online courses easily, even if you are a beginner. It has some amazing, easy-to-use templates that help you make your course without any hiccups.
You can use any content like text, video, voice-over presentations, quizzes, surveys, etc.
The biggest advantage of Thinkific is the ease with which you can create your course from scratch. You can add your content and build your website with the click of a button without needing any technical expertise. It even makes the marketing side of the course creation a breeze with its full suite of business tools.
Price – What sets Thinkific apart from other course platforms is that it has a FREE plan that allows you to create three courses and have unlimited students. This is a great way to test how your first attempt at course creation goes. In addition to the free plan, Thinkific offers Basic ($39/mo), Pro ($79/mo), and Premier ($399/mo) plans.
Thinkific also offers a 30-day money-back guarantee, which is a big plus.
Sign up for Thinkific to create your first course.
If you are searching for online course platforms that offer a one-stop solution for your course creation, dig into LearnWorlds. This platform offers highly customizable templates and widgets to help you gain more attention. It also offers a lot of student engagement tools like tests, quizzes, assignments, and a chance to design and develop your own branded digital certificates.
It’s truly easy to design and create your first course with LearnWorlds with its in-depth online resources and support.
Price – It has a 30-day free trial for newbies, but there is a $5 fee per course sale. It also offers three tiers of paid plans, Starter ($24/mo), Pro Trainer ($79/mo), and Learning Center ($249/mo). The two higher tiers offer many features, including unlimited landing pages, custom certificates, and membership sites, and these tiers do not have any transaction fees.
Sign up here to get started with LearnWorlds.
Another uber-popular platform to create and sell courses online is Udemy. Though Udemy might not have many customizable options to create courses, it is great to test your first course idea because your course will get a high level of exposure with Udemy.
The biggest advantage with Udemy is it’s totally free to create courses on this platform, and the process is pretty simple. Once you sign up and submit your course, it’s reviewed and published. Keep in mind that most Udemy courses are video-based and must be at least 30 minutes long.
Udemy also takes care of the marketing side of your course. You can use its promotional features to get more exposure for your courses.
Price – It’s free to create and host a course on Udemy, but it has a rev-share model that’s explained here.
Podia is particularly an excellent choice if you want to create deep engagement with your students through features like webinars and a membership. Its course builder is pretty user-friendly. With Podia you can create a dedicated storefront for your courses.
The only drawback with this platform is it does not have student engagement features like quizzes, assignments, or certificates. Overall Podia is a good place to start if you are new to course creation.
Price – The pricing is also very simple with Podia. Along with a free trial, it also has two plans. The Mover plan costs $39/month and the Shaker plan costs $79/month. One of the best things about Podia is you don’t pay any transaction fees for your courses. Learn more about Podia’s pricing here.
Whether you are a creative nerd or a finance pro, you can easily share your knowledge with Skillshare’s money-making courses. Skillshare has a large audience who are mainly into creative learning. Creating courses is a breeze on Skillshare; head over to the website and start drafting a class. The classes are made up of video lessons, which are around 30–40 minutes in total length, and class projects.
Skillshare works best for course creators who are in niches like photography, drawing, illustration, freelancing, design, etc.
Price – Your earnings through Skillshare are mostly through royalties that you earn for the number of minutes Premium students watch your classes. You can also earn a referral fee of $10 for every student who signs up for Premium membership.
If you are not a fan of stand-alone learning management systems (LMS) and want to create a course on your WordPress site, then LearnDash is the way to go. LearnDash is a popular plug-in trusted by universities, Fortune 500 companies, and other organizations to create and sell their online courses. It has all the features and more of a dedicated LMS platform and offers a lot of options for monetizing your courses.
Price – It offers three plans: Basic ($159), Plus Package ($189), and Pro Package ($329). Keep in mind that these are all annual payments, which makes LearnDash the best choice for beginner course creators. All three plans offer a demo site template and a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Another easy course creation platform for beginners is Ruzuku. It offers a lot of premium features like hosting and streaming audio and video; hosting and displaying PDFs, Word docs, PPT, and other files; hosting video broadcasts with slides, group chat, and automatic recording; and more. Its course builder makes it easy for anyone to create courses in minutes. It is also known for its incredible support and training resources.
Price – Ruzuku does not charge any transaction fees on any plans, and it offers unlimited video, audio, and data hosting along with unlimited courses on every plan.
It has three plans: Bootstrapper ($74.75/mo), Up-and-Comer ($83.08/mo), and University ($125/mo). If you want to test this platform, you can sign up for its 14-day free trial and test the waters. There is also a 30-day money-back guarantee if you are not happy with the platform.
Academy of Mine is for serious entrepreneurs who want to create highly customizable courses online. The biggest, and probably the best, feature of Academy of Mine is the flexibility with which you can personalize your course website. It offers many options like timed quizzes, assignments, certificates and badges, gamification, interaction with you and other members via forums and discussions, and much more. A dedicated account manager with 24/7 support is one of the perks of using this platform.
This platform is more suited to large organizations or businesses as the pricing is on the higher end.
Price – It has only one price: $9,997 per year. You can request a free trial and demo if you are interested in going ahead.
WizIQ has an advantage over other course creation platforms as it features HD live video conferencing and focuses on live learning. It has many features like in-depth analytics for course creators and students, a course builder where you can create courses in minutes, a mobile app for on-the-go learning, etc.
Price – Its pricing starts from $25/month, which is quite affordable if you are just starting. Its pricing tiers are Professional, Enterprise, and Pay-per-Use.
If you are unsure about it, you can start its 14-day free trial and see how it goes.
Another easy and flexible course creation platform is Zippy Courses. You can create and sell your courses in no time with this easy-to-use platform. There is no limit on how many courses you can create, and it integrates with a lot of email providers like ConvertKit, AWeber, Infusionsoft, Drip, Constant Contact, and more.
Price – It has two pricing plans: Standard ($99/mo) and Professional ($199/mo). Neither plan has any transaction fees.
No matter what you are interested in, if you are passionate about your niche, you can create a successful online course to make money. With so many flexible and customizable course creation platforms, you can create and sell a profitable course online to your students.
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You must have come across paid research studies if you have ever searched for extra income options.
These are a step-up from survey sites and require more participation, but they pay well.
Research studies are one of the many side hustles that are worth your time for the following reasons:
Though they are a good way to earn money on the side, you should tread carefully when taking part in paid research studies. There are many scams out there claiming to be legit. Always sign up only with trusted and legitimate research studies.
If you are ready to part with a good amount of your time for money—definitely more than your typical surveys—you can look into research studies.
This market research company pays its participants to share their views about products and services via video. You can record your answers on your smartphone, tablet, or computer.
Once you sign up, you can apply for studies in your dashboard. After some screening questions, if you are selected, you can record your answers through video. You get $50 for answering 10 questions about products, and payments are made via PayPal.
Related:
How to Make Money With Paid Focus Groups
16 Legit Websites for Product Tester Jobs
This is one of the more popular websites for participating in paid research studies online. It has many types of studies available including in-person interviews, phone interviews, multiday studies, etc. The studies can pay up to $150, depending on the duration and the type of study.
You can sign up on the website, and once you pass the screening survey, you can participate in the study you are interested in. User Interviews is available in the US, Canada, Australia, the UK, France, Germany, and South Africa.
Respondent is another research study website that has many paid research interviews available. This website works similarly to User Interviews. You can sign up online and choose the studies via the website or through email invitations. Once you go through the screening surveys, you can proceed with the study.
The pay is usually around $120 per study and is made via PayPal. Keep in mind that Respondent takes a cut of 5% from the pay.
ACOP has been around for a long time and is a trusted website for surveys and research studies. This survey panel is available worldwide, and it sends you invites for studies whenever they are available. Unlike other websites, American Consumer Opinion only pays in points.
You can accrue anywhere from 50 to 5,000 points for surveys depending on their length, which can be redeemed for cash via PayPal. You can also enter into sweepstakes or donate to charity.
Inspired Opinions is backed by the Schlesinger Group and has many diverse market research studies including in-person interviews, telephone interviews, online surveys, etc. It is available in the US, the UK, Spain, and Germany.
The in-person studies pay up to $100 for two hours, and the online surveys are paid in points that can be redeemed for Amazon e-vouchers.
Another website that provides various market research studies is Plaza Research. It has focus groups, online surveys, and telephone and in-home interviews.
It mainly looks for consumers, parents, kids/teens, students, physicians, and business professionals. The payment depends on the length and type of study.
Fieldwork has many focus group facilities in many cities in the US. You can choose to register on its database to be considered for online or telephone studies. It also has product trials, shop-along interviews, and online research opportunities.
Once you sign up, you will get an email invite for a study if you are selected. The reward for your participation can start from $75 for 1–2 hour studies.
This website has paid research studies for two demographics: general consumer/business professionals and medical/healthcare community members.
You can sign up from anywhere globally, and the pay can go up to $200, depending on the study.
Probe Market Research offers online and phone interviews as well as in-person studies. Once you fill out the online form with all the required information, the company will contact you if suitable studies come up.
The pay is usually between $50 and $400, depending on the study.
This popular survey panel often has product research studies available. In addition to high-paying surveys, Survey Junkie offers product testing, in-person focus groups, and phone surveys. The pay may range anywhere from $50 to $150 for these opportunities.
The best thing about Survey Junkie is it’s a legit survey panel with loads of extra income options like surveys and product testing. Just sign up and get started.
This website has regular studies available in pharmaceutical and market research areas. You can sign up with your details and get email invites for new studies.
It accepts participants from all over the world.
watchLAB offers paid focus groups, telephone and in-person interviews, and online studies. You can sign up online and get email invites, or check its Facebook page for new studies.
If you pass the screening questions, you can go ahead with the study. Online study payments are made via checks.
You can participate in online or in-person studies conducted by Carnegie Mellon University. The length of an online study ranges from five minutes to one hour.
Type of studies: Personal attitudes and beliefs, human judgment and decision-making, preferences, interpersonal perceptions, group performance, interaction with computers and machines, and public policy perceptions.
Pay: Payment usually averages around $8 per hour for online studies, or participants may be entered into a lottery to win a larger prize. In-person studies pay around $10 per hour.
The Behavioral Research Lab of MIT has many studies available, and you need to sign up online before you get started. If you are 18 years of age or over, live in the US, and speak and write English without difficulty, you can join the participant pool.
It offers both in-person and online studies.
Pay: The pay is around $11–$20/hour for online studies and $15–$25/hour for in-person studies.
Yale School of Management has both online and in-person studies. You can sign up to be considered for upcoming studies or like its Facebook page to learn about new studies.
Pay: The payment is usually cash or Amazon gift cards.
Harvard University Psychology Study Pool
You can participate in online studies with Harvard University Psychology Study Pool. Participants must be aged between 12 and 99 years old. Credit studies are for Harvard students, and payment studies are open for anyone.
Pay: Payment goes up to $25 per hour and is paid through gift cards.
Stanford Graduate School of Business
Stanford Graduate School of Business recruits participants for in-person or online studies. You must be 18 years or older and complete a prescreen form to participate. You can sign up for these studies even if you are not a US citizen.
Pay: Average pay is up to $25 paid in cash or gift cards.
The University of Texas at Austin Department of Psychology
This university has many in-person paid medical studies available; you can check them out here. They are suitable for current students and others as well.
Pay: Pay ranges from $20 to $150, depending on the study.
University of Nebraska-Lincoln
The University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Center for Brain, Biology and Behavior has studies related to brain functioning and behavior. It has both adult and child studies, and you can sign up online.
Pay: The pay is up to $100 per study.
You can find many research study opportunities with the companies listed above. Always go with trusted and legit websites when looking for paid studies.
There are many types of research studies; they can be in-person, online, over the phone, etc. How much you earn depends on the type of study and the duration.
They can range anywhere from $5 to $200 per study.
Yes, they are legit and pay well. Sign up for the right ones with all your details and respond to the invites on time. Keep in mind that standard research studies take more time and involvement than surveys. The upside is they pay more.
If you are looking for ways to earn money from home or to do side gigs without any commitment, participating in paid research studies for money is a great choice. Just take care to sign up only for authentic studies and choose only the ones that suit you.
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