We are moving into hard times and must all find ways to make extra cash. However, we need to be very intentional with how we spend our time.
The term “side hustle” can mean many things when it comes to making money outside of your regular job. I want to explore which type of side hustle gives you the best long-term benefits.
What is the gig economy? I define the gig economy as leveraging your work under someone else’s platform.
The American Dream is Passive Income
There are many types of gigs that you can join, such as Uber, DoorDash, Upwork, Fiverr, Turo, Airbnb, Sniffspot, and Neighbor.com.
Some of these gigs are more passive than others, so you have a lot of choices. Hopefully, you can find the right fit for your time and income needs.
What is entrepreneurship? Becoming an entrepreneur takes the side hustle to a new level. You operate outside of an established platform—you are on your own.
- Becoming an Entrepreneur #1: Reading the Right Books
- Becoming an Entrepreneur #2: Dropping the 9-5 Mindset
- Becoming an Entrepreneur #3: Solving Other People’s Problems
- Becoming an Entrepreneur #4: Training vs. Education
- Becoming an Entrepreneur #5: Building an Audience
- Becoming an Entrepreneur #6: Creating Your Sales Funnel
- Becoming an Entrepreneur #7: Generating Leads
Entrepreneurship takes a lot of mental work before you begin the physical portion. Society trains most people to become employees rather than entrepreneurs.
Individual Preferred Shares vs. Preferred Funds
Entrepreneurs should always seek to “add value” to others before they earn a paycheck. If you can add value, you will always make money. Value follows money.
Entrepreneurship vs. the Gig Economy. How do you decide whether to join the gig economy or start a business?
- Which Type of Home Business Should You Start 1: Introduction
- Which Type of Home Business Should You Start 2: Outside
- Which Type of Home Business Should You Start 3: Online
- Which Type of Home Business Should You Start 4: Content
- Which Type of Home Business Should You Start 5: Consulting
Let’s start with some questions to exercise your critical thinking. Why are you starting a side hustle?
Most people will answer “to make money.” However, how badly do you need money? Do you need to earn $500 by the end of the month?
Down-Sized? Time to Start an Online Business
Or are you looking to build a passive income stream to leverage throughout retirement? Your timeline is the key factor to finding (or creating) the perfect side hustle.
Timelines explained. Starting a business is not about opening a physical retail store or creating an online presence—it’s about building an audience.
Without an audience, your business will perish. The audience and customers are already present when you join the gig economy.
Get Past the Middle Class
All you have to do is start building your reputation by doing quality work and selling quality products.
Your business will take much more time to reach a steady stream of customers. I have been writing for three years, and I am just now starting to see consistent traffic to my website.
There are no shortcuts. Don’t be fooled by online voices; there are no shortcuts in the gig economy or business.
The only way to reach critical mass is to put long hours into your gig or business. As you start your journey, you’ll see many people praying on the desperate.
Life as an Income Investor
This can be people selling email lists, fake reviews, or social media followers. Unfortunately, these are all short-term solutions to a long-term adventure.
Think hard before you begin your side hustle. Remember when you entered the workforce? You probably started at the bottom, correct?
I began my work life as a recruit (E-1) in Marine Corps boot camp in 1999. I finished as a Master Gunnery Sergeant (E-9) in 2023.
Climbing your own ladder. Starting a side hustle is like joining the military or attending college. You are at the beginning of something special, but there is still lots of work ahead.
What is Your Creative Ability?
Now, you must ask yourself the most crucial question—whose ladder you want to climb? You will spend countless hours on your side hustle, so you’ll need to think of the payoff at the finish.
If you build yourself on a platform like Upwork, you can earn a nice income over time. However, what if Upwork goes out of business?
Instead, what if you start a consulting business leveraging your expertise from your prior career? Your journey may start much slower than Upwork, but you’ll have a stronger long-term position.
Homeschooling + Online Business: A Stay-At-Home Parent’s Dream
That’s the trade-off between making money and creating a much brighter future through business. If you start a custom business, you can make money far into retirement.
I decided to create an online business through my writing. I could have written articles and publications for Upwork or as a ghostwriter.
However, I want to build something that generates royalties for myself until the end. It may take my website ten years to produce a large amount of income, but it’s worth the wait.
Leverage both for short-term and long-term success. You can rent a room or move in with your family if you need money now.
High-Yield Bond Reinvestment in Action
However, always think of your long-term plan. Starting a business around your hobby or skill set gives you the best possible future—it just takes time (3-5 years).
I have seen many people start side hustles, like driving for Uber, and depend on this income. This puts you in the worst possible position because now you need additional sources of income to pay bills.
Conclusion. If you choose to work in the gig economy, ensure you get as much money into dividend-paying stocks as possible.
Wiping the Debt of Christmas Past
The key to working less is building passive income; dividends can be the key to your long-term financial future.
Ultimately, it will be a combination of gig work, businesses, dividends, royalties, and rents that allow you to retire on your terms.
I call this combination a Happy Cash Flow Retirement (HCFR). The essential part of your HCFR is your time. Ensure you keep your time as your highest priority, and you’ll make great decisions. Good Luck!
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Disclosure: I am not a financial advisor or money manager, and any knowledge is given as guidance and not direct actionable investment advice. I am an Amazon Affiliate. 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. All Right Reserved Military Family Investing
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