Screw Spend Less, Earn More | brokeGIRLrich
I read something over at Debt Discipline, it was an interview with a personal finance blogger who has been around for a few years now and pointed out that his favorite blogs had started to change. When he was first starting out he loved basic finance tips from places like The Simple Dollar, but since then he’s moved into more complex financial topics and ideas – the land of Mr. Money Mustache.
I’m definitely not that far along, but I have spent a fair amount of time contemplating the “spend less, earn more” motto and for a long time I’ve been trapped on the “spend less” side of that phrase – which isn’t bad. I think frugal habits have a place in your life no matter how much you make. Nonetheless, this month I really want to explore the idea of “earn more.” Two of my favorite things to read are J. Money’s Side Hustle series and The Pennyhoarder, but I never really put those ideas into motion. On the long road trips I took with my boyfriend every weekend last year, we would often talk about ideas for apps – that never went anywhere, and on more than one occasion, I would see an app just like what we were discussing pop up a few months later (seriously, I thought of this one 2 years before it came out, right down to the roadside oddities search function… sigh). Not that I have the first clue about how to develop an app, but it definitely makes me wonder about opportunities and what I miss out on by just not putting a little effort into them.
My own personal side hustle fail is doing surveys. When I was in grad school I actually had some free time on my hands, but I was so freaked out by all the loans I was taking out, I didn’t want to go out and spend more money, so I got into doing surveys, thinking I could pick up some pin money that way. I have spent HOURS of my life doing those surveys to the tune of $25. For me, that’s a fail. I’ve heard of some people making okay money doing surveys – I have no idea where they were doing them, but it sure wasn’t where I was – InboxDollars. If you want to spend time signing up for and then canceling lots of free trial offers, then you can make a few dollars over there (as I recall, I wound up doing that to get to the minimum amount to have my money released), but overall, it’s way too much hassle for too little payout. And I don’t know about you, but the payout is my favorite part. Anyone else out there got a good side hustle fail story?
That being said, I’m planning to write about a few side hustles I’ve been successful at over the years (substitute teaching, eBay and working overhire in theaters), because I think, that for me at least, the start of “earn more” isn’t necessarily going to be a huge chunk of change. However, little chunks of change can turn into big ones with good investing habits – at least that’s what I believe.
So to help with that, the giveaway this month is a copy of Robert G. Allen’s Multiple Streams of Income: How to Generate a Lifetime of Unlimited Wealth!
The Thought of the Month
Honestly, I’ve been in the spend less calm for most of my life. No one I knew personally did any side hustles, so it wasn’t until I joined the personal finance community that I was exposed to it. I think it’s awesome that so many people are successful with freelancing and other hobbies they have. It’s something I would like to do in the future. I just need to make time for it on top of my blog!
E.M. recently posted…January Budget Review
I love e-bay, but think I’ve sold just about everything that isn’t nailed down around the house. Really looking for a residual income stream, like an app, but still searching.
Brian@ Debt Discipline recently posted…Week End Round Up #18
Yeah, I would love to develop an app, but I have like no coding knowledge at all and not enough money to risk trying to hire others to do it.
I just started a side hustle of managing social media for a wedding company. It nets about $60 a week for about 3 hours worth of work. Can’t beat that. I also love using taskrabbit.com for odds and ends. I make around $250 off of it a month.
Michelle @fitisthenewpoor recently posted…Frugal Old Fashioned Date Ideas
I’ve heard about Task Rabbit but never tried it before. I’ll have to give it a look!
I’m working on the “earn more” side too. The “spend less” side is so limited.
Stefanie @ The Broke and Beautiful Life recently posted…Carnival of Personal Finance #449: Recommitting to Resolutions
Ugh, no kidding.
I have tried surveys too – I found them really frustrating and I think I gave up after about 15 hours worth of wasting my time. I advertised as a virtual PA once and got a filing job for some guy who hadn’t correctly filed his taxes for the last seven years no less. Tedious is the word that springs to mind! I got paid £100 but it wasn’t worth it – the job took ages to complete. It was a case of not knowing exactly how long the job would take!
Hayley @ A Disease Called Debt recently posted…January Debt Repayment Update
Wow, great article!
Amazon is the best, and selling website domains also makes great money. Try selling them online, and you can be $100 richer a week for just an hour or two of work.
David recently posted…2014 Investor Almanac
Earning more is where it’s at! I work as a brand ambassador, writer, mother’s helper, event staffer, taskrabbit and about anything else that is legal and I think is worth it 🙂
Dear Debt recently posted…Fill my need to read
I did typing years ago for people before computers. Being someone who is very accurate and able to spell, I was able to make quite a bit of money.
I have been running side hustles for years. You can only spend less to a certain extent and then you have to focus on earning more. I run the blog, write for other websites, do coding work, and a few other things. I like have diversity.
Grayson @ Debt Roundup recently posted…American Express Personal Savings Review – Good, Bad, & Ugly
I used to make gemstone jewelry on the side, but then my side-hustle grew into an obsession and I wasn’t taking care of my main web development business. I had to stop. I’m thinking about starting up again, but keeping it more low-key. I have so many gemstones I really need to use them or sell them, but when I pull them out to sell, I just want to start making pieces!
And of course, there is the photography. But I feel like that is going to go from my side-hustle to my main source of income… and I’m ok with that.
Yazmin recently posted…My First Creative Workshop: Flash Photography!
That sounds cool – especially if you enjoy doing it so much. That’s the perfect sort of side hustle!
Hm.. my side hustles have basically been selling my brain (consulting for websites, web design that sort of thing).
I don’t like businesses with inventory. It’s a lot of work to move it and ebaying is very arduous and tedious if you want to do it right.
if only I could sell my photos!
save. spend. splurge. recently posted…How much money does it take to become a top-tier fashion blogger? How much money do fashion bloggers make?
You should totally check out some of the stock photo websites. Or Foap is an app that lets you list your photos for $5. But personally, I think selling your brain is the best kind of side hustle.
I signed up to do surveys a little while ago with Global Test Market. I’m not really expecting too much out of it though, it seems like it could be awhile before I would be able to get money. They usually only take a few minutes so it’s not a big deal.
I’ve made a bit of money on ebay and yard sales.
I look forward to hearing about your side hustles. I have some stuff I want to sell on ebay. I created the account, just haven’t listed anything yet. Hopefully soon. I generally subscribe to the spend less camp, but you are right – it only takes you so far. Good luck and I will be following along!
Kay @ Green Money Stream recently posted…7 Frugal Kitchen Tips You Can Use Right Now
Thanks! You should totally check back next Monday. I’m just finishing up a post all about eBay for that day. I’ve actually done pretty well there.
I tried to sell Arbonne for a while. It was a total fail. I loved the products, but felt weird trying to get money out of the people I knew. I’d cut them deals where I made almost nothing. Not because they asked it of me, but because I felt weird making money off of them. DebtFreeTejana sells it and makes a decent amount of money for her efforts, though.
femmefrugality recently posted…Financially Savvy Saturdays: Twenty-Fourth Edition
Huh. I’ve never even heard of Arbonne. It looks a lot like Avon. And I can totally see that – I’d be horrible at selling stuff, especially if it wasn’t something I was sure people really needed.
I’m a huge “earn more” person. I am always trying to increase my income, and have been very successful in online income. I am not much of a stuff seller, but with my blogs and online work I bring in a decent chunk of change.
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That’s awesome. I’m definitely hoping to learn those skills too.
My BF and I used to choreograph dances for special events (weddings, cotillions, etc.) as a side hustle.
Lisa E. @ Lisa Vs. The Loans recently posted…Links Lisa Likes – A Week Off
That is incredible!! I’ve never actually heard of anything like that. Want to write a guest post about it?
I do Leapforce at Home (referral link: https://www.leapforceathome.com/qrp/public/jobs/list?uref=195bda36a5c5a2df16251c3f2b7985b3 ) and I absolutely love it. You can do it at home in your jammies. No start-up capital, no inventory, no special skills required.
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