Over the last 20 years, I believed that if I continued to get promoted everything would be okay, financially. And to some extent, that is the case. My family and I can live a nice, middle-class life on my military salary. However, to become truly financially independent, we have to do more. What is financial independence? That is in the eye of the beholder. To me, it means that my family will never worry about money, ever. Family is my household, our parents, and our grandkids. This does not mean that we own a BMW in every parking space, but it does mean everyone is well taken care of. But if our jobs will not be enough to make us financially independent, what else can we do?
We need to generate more income. Before we generate more income, it is important to assess every expenditure we make per month. Cut down on bills and frivolous spending. There is no reason in making more money if we are wasting money on other parts of the budget. How is extra income generated? First, our mindsets have to change. We need to understand that everything we do is a money transaction. Our minds need to understand that in most transactions there is a buyer and a seller. We need to be able to leverage our assets to make additional streams of income. What are these assets? Our knowledge, work ethic, youth, abilities, problem-solving skills, real estate, time, etc. There is nothing that cannot be leveraged. The more that we understand that everything is a product, the more we can figure out how to package and sell this product.
My wife and I currently have 5 different revenue streams. They are; Marine Corps salary, my wife’s salary, my job as a military instructor/contractor, house rental income, and room rental income. These different streams of income allow us to save and invest $3000-$4000 a month. They also allow our family to travel to Turkey every couple of years (which is very expensive). As it stands now, my wife and I are doing very well. I still have 9 years left in the Corps and my wife is currently making good money working from home. My contractor gig pays well and doesn’t require too much time and our real estate is making a killing. We could easily rest on our laurels. However, I have gotten to the point that I do not need as much free time as I used to. Binge watching Netflix and playing tons of videogames does not have the same effect as it used to. I like to spend my time brainstorming on how to generate more income.
Ever since I learned the 3 types of income (earned, business, and investment), my mind has been set ablaze. I am constantly thinking on how to generate income. I have applied to become an online English tutor. It pays okay, however, I like that I can work from home and at the times of my choosing. Our home has a ton of bamboo, usually a bad thing. However, I looked up bamboo online, and there is a market for it. We can even create a bamboo farm, filled of different types of bamboo that we can sell to construction companies. We have 3 acres of land in Florida. A portion of our property would make a great outdoor campsite. It can easily be converted into a paid campsite, to make some extra cash. My wife makes Russian cakes, we believe we can monetize that as well. The list is too long to write out. We continue to create ideas. Some may never come into fruition but others will. It is always exciting to see what lays around the corner.
Why do we need so much money? If we are living frugally, saving and investing, and living under our means, why do we need to keep generating more income? When is it enough? Good questions. First, generating income becomes a hobby or past time. It is addictive to become creative and see the fruits of your labor. You aren’t doing it just for the money. It is just great to see an idea come to fruition. Also, when you have kids, things become a little different. As they grow up, they can use the ideas you created to generate income for themselves. All of your ideas come full circle. Now your children will be able to reap the benefits of your successes and learn from your failures. Finally, the more money we make, the more money we can invest. When we invest, our money buys assets. These assets pay us money in the form of capital appreciation (prices going up), dividend income, and interest payments. When our investments hit a certain level, then we will have truly passive income. We can be sitting on the beach as money is being deposited into our accounts. That’s the American dream. The most important concept to remember is this: your whole investment portfolio can be passed on to future generations. All the hard work can be gifted to the next generation, so maybe their plight can a little more streamlined.
As you begin your journey to financial independence, you will meet many naysayers. They will say that all you care about is money. That you have changed. Remember who you are and why you are doing this. This will help you provide for your family and ensure no one is left behind. The most important asset that you can give someone is “choices”. Money creates opportunities. By working hard on our jobs, generating additional income, living under our means, and investing everything; we will create opportunities for everyone.
Disclosure: I am not a financial advisor or money manager, and any knowledge is given as guidance and not direct actionable investment advice. Please research any investment vehicles that are being considered. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it. I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.
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