Medium: Inspiration is the name of the game

It's been a while since I posted my Medium pieces. So as we end out the year, it's time to revisit some of the writing. And the theme is: Inspiration

Here are three recent ones:

One about trying to inspire my godson.

https://medium.com/illumination/inspirational-words-for-a-struggling-teenager-747fcee39a90

One that talks about the highs and very lows I experienced during the pandemic.

https://medium.com/illumination/i-miss-the-pandemic-c4234229201e

And then there are words of inspiration from the late great Charlie Munger.

https://medium.com/illumination/the-life-times-and-brilliance-of-the-late-charlie-munger-0d903369ec70

Quality Writing on Medium: Devouring the Brilliance of Others

Greetings!

I thought this time around I'd share a few articles from Medium that I found inspirational for different reasons.

One came from a woman that hadn't been on the platform that long but was clearly doing something right:

Celebrating One Year and $16,000 on Medium: How I Did It, What I Learned, and What’s Next

One came from a runner that puts the Boston Marathon into perspective:

I Won the 1968 Boston Marathon. And Ran Many More. After the Bombs, Everything Changed

And one was about life in general:

How to Stop Giving a Fuck

There's a ton of great stuff on Medium, and it's always worth investing time in reading about others' experiences and their insights. 

If you'd like to write on Medium, one of the best ways to build a following is to become a member. This gives you unlimited access to high-quality writers and tips on how to monetize. 

 You can join through this membership link: 

• Medium Membership

The same link also lets you unlock thousands of excellent articles. Click here for more details.

Also, take a look at this Etsy shop for career/ money/personal development inspiration:

https://www.etsy.com/hk-en/shop/Work4Cash

Medium articles - Recession, Salvation and Gender Inequality

Here's another round of Medium articles to get your teeth into.

Firstly, I'll start with a Scott Galloway piece. If you don't know his stuff, I would heartily recommend digging into it. In this piece, he talks about recession talk and how it can become self-fulfilling:

Bottom's Up

Next, here's a piece on taking responsibility for what's in front of us. Not everyone does. A lot of us are in denial:

Nobody's Coming to Save You

Finally, here's an important piece on the gender imbalance in the workforce - but this time it relates to side hustles and freelancing:

How to Narrow the Gender Pay Gap in Side Hustles and Freelancing

Enjoy!

And if you're new to Medium, you can unlock thousands of excellent stories for only $5/month. 

Click here.

Income Report: August - and a Time to Pause

As mentioned over the last few months, I've had a bit of an existential crisis with my side hustles. No focus, no motivation and...ultimately no progress.

And when I look back to my entries over the last several months (and we're talking way back into 2019), there really wasn't much of shift in the needle. 

Sure, I've taken on a bit more writing. And, yes, my stock dividend approach has been supportive. But I'm really spinning wheels and not really on any path right now.

So I've decided to pause these entries. I don't know for how long. It could be a month. It could be a year. It could be longer. Maybe I'll come back with quarterly updates.

I can't kid myself any longer that my side ventures and passive income will get me anywhere close to achieving financial freedom. It's not happening. I just need to take a step away and quietly work on myself and the income streams before coming back. 

It's time to declutter things I do for the sake of doing (e.g. these posts) and put my energy into areas that add value. At the moment, this blog isn't adding much value for me - it's simply a reminder of how slow my progress is. I also need to focus on my Financial Jobs Hunt site.

So, for now, it's one last round-up of how things went:

Resume Writing: $0. If I can make the time, this one has legs going into a major global recession. I just haven't made the time.

Additional Writing: $230.  My regular writing gig is ticking over. That's the one constant.

Stock Dividends: $205. This is the other pillar in my numbers. Consistent enough.

Interest: $15. I'm guessing it's something like that but I need to work smarter here as well.

Ebooks: $0. Nope. There's a load of value in these books. 100%. They are based on work I've actually done as a practitioner. But marketing isn't my strong point. And I need to do more. (Beginner's Guide to Online Side Hustles, Cryptocurrency Job Hunting for Non-Techies, The Simple Guide to a Winning LinkedIn Profile, and Craft a Winning Resume).

Coaching: $0. No sessions.

Other: $0. Nothing to add.

Total: $450. It's nice to have this. But if I'm being honest I haven't pushed on. So this is a time for reflection and re-evaluation. Hopefully, I'll be able to come back firing on all cylinders. Hopefully. I have to act intentionally. Building income online is the way forward.

Income Report: October

Most of my focus has been to work on my new site (financejobshunt.com). It's still early days but I like the way it's starting to shape up. I just need to get focused on SEO as traffic is currently minimal. But I've signed up for a course on Udemy and that should raise the bar on all things backlinks and the like).

Beyond that, I've focused a lot on my investment portfolio and how I can better build passive income streams. Dividends are the obvious one but I've also looking to be more efficient with my money management - i.e. stop leaking money and start putting more savings into higher interest-bearing accounts.

It was an expensive month overall but I still feel on top of my progress, slow as it tends to be.

In the meantime, this has been my month.

Resume Writing: $134. I rationed myself to a bit of work. If I'm able to make more time for myself, I may start to do a bit more. It's important to keep my hand in

Additional Writing: $0.  Nope. This has completely dried up. It's fine for now.

Stock Dividends: $520.  This was a decent month for me. As previously mentioned, this is a time-honored investment strategy that works. Dividends aren't paid out every month but it's nice when they are. I then reinvest.

Interest: $30. It ticks along but is never going to move the dial.

Ebooks: $3. Still quiet. But still a portfolio (Beginner's Guide to Online Side Hustles, Cryptocurrency Job Hunting for Non-Techies, The Simple Guide to a Winning LinkedIn Profile and Craft a Winning Resume).

Coaching: $0. No sessions.

Other: $0. Nothing

Total: $689. Ths dividends made the month. I haven't yet kicked on, as this is pretty much a normal month for extra pocket money. But I'm fully aware that this is a slow and steady game.