So, I'm properly back in the groove of the daily grind of the corporate world.
Re-establishing a form of daily discipline that's relevant to this world has been tough. I've been so used to working when I want, waking when I want. So going back into a full-time role has reflected trade-offs we all make in life.
My work plus commute hours are reasonably long (well, a lot longer than when I was working for myself...). There's also less flexibility for me to do my own stuff while at work.
But it's all about the bigger picture. I can't be distracted from my long-term goal: financial freedom based on multiple streams of income.
Because of my new-found distractions, I've got to be sensible with how I manage my side hustles. I've had to get approval from the compliance department in my company in order to continue with them so I have to make sure I don't raise any red flags.
The truth is, the hoops I've had to jump through and the layers of bureaucracy I've cut through has taught me a lot. Simply put, it has shown me that the corporate world isn't for me long term anymore and that I really have to work harder on my online efforts!
It's not about earning money, per se. It's about building a business with structures and processes that allow me to step away from the daily grind. It's about building a lifestyle for myself and my family that allows us to live a life that gives us options. Because that's all this is about. Options
It's a dream. It may not happen in the manner I intend. It's something to shoot for.
In terms of June's income:
Resume Writing: $139. This was a big income element for me. But for now at least it's going to have to slip into the background. My world has changed and I can't commit as much time. I have told the company that I did a lot of work for that I would still do the occasional bit of work but at the moment I'm not quite ready for it.
Article Writing: $42. I only wrote one article during the month. Admittedly, this was a very short piece so it was never going to be paying very well. But there's more to come on this front...
Dividend: $170. It's going to be tough to build my dividend income at the moment because I'm limited by what I can buy in terms of shares. Working for a bank can be awkward like that. Regulations and all that. Still, dividend income remains a key part of my strategy so I'm still going to pursue this route.
Coaching: $0. This is the new addition to my monthly breakdowns. I never used to record them here. But given as this now counts as one of my many side hustles, it's time to start monitoring and measuring. That said, I didn't actually do any coaching over the month. I have one long-term client that still wants to meet and one guy that has gone quiet. That's the crux of my coaching practice at the moment and I'm not planning on expanding much beyond three or four clients at any one time.
eBooks: $2. Another quiet month. I keep saying that I'll do some marketing. When I have time, I'll be pushing harder with my three books (Cryptocurrency Job Hunting for Non-Techies) to add to (The Simple Guide to a Winning LinkedIn Profile and Craft a Winning Resume).
Amazon Merch: $0. The dream of being able to retire on passive income from selling t-shirts hasn't quite happened as yet...I haven't invested that much time in it all to be fair. But I know if I do commit to the venture, there's money to be made. It's about making the time.
Total: $353
All in all, it wasn't so bad all things considered. This is me starting from scratch again so it could take time. But if I can make over $500/month consistently by early next year (or even closer to $1,000 if it's possible) I know I'll be on a good path. There are a few decent income opportunities for me in coming weeks:
Re-establishing a form of daily discipline that's relevant to this world has been tough. I've been so used to working when I want, waking when I want. So going back into a full-time role has reflected trade-offs we all make in life.
My work plus commute hours are reasonably long (well, a lot longer than when I was working for myself...). There's also less flexibility for me to do my own stuff while at work.
But it's all about the bigger picture. I can't be distracted from my long-term goal: financial freedom based on multiple streams of income.
Because of my new-found distractions, I've got to be sensible with how I manage my side hustles. I've had to get approval from the compliance department in my company in order to continue with them so I have to make sure I don't raise any red flags.
The truth is, the hoops I've had to jump through and the layers of bureaucracy I've cut through has taught me a lot. Simply put, it has shown me that the corporate world isn't for me long term anymore and that I really have to work harder on my online efforts!
It's not about earning money, per se. It's about building a business with structures and processes that allow me to step away from the daily grind. It's about building a lifestyle for myself and my family that allows us to live a life that gives us options. Because that's all this is about. Options
It's a dream. It may not happen in the manner I intend. It's something to shoot for.
In terms of June's income:
Resume Writing: $139. This was a big income element for me. But for now at least it's going to have to slip into the background. My world has changed and I can't commit as much time. I have told the company that I did a lot of work for that I would still do the occasional bit of work but at the moment I'm not quite ready for it.
Article Writing: $42. I only wrote one article during the month. Admittedly, this was a very short piece so it was never going to be paying very well. But there's more to come on this front...
Dividend: $170. It's going to be tough to build my dividend income at the moment because I'm limited by what I can buy in terms of shares. Working for a bank can be awkward like that. Regulations and all that. Still, dividend income remains a key part of my strategy so I'm still going to pursue this route.
Coaching: $0. This is the new addition to my monthly breakdowns. I never used to record them here. But given as this now counts as one of my many side hustles, it's time to start monitoring and measuring. That said, I didn't actually do any coaching over the month. I have one long-term client that still wants to meet and one guy that has gone quiet. That's the crux of my coaching practice at the moment and I'm not planning on expanding much beyond three or four clients at any one time.
eBooks: $2. Another quiet month. I keep saying that I'll do some marketing. When I have time, I'll be pushing harder with my three books (Cryptocurrency Job Hunting for Non-Techies) to add to (The Simple Guide to a Winning LinkedIn Profile and Craft a Winning Resume).
Amazon Merch: $0. The dream of being able to retire on passive income from selling t-shirts hasn't quite happened as yet...I haven't invested that much time in it all to be fair. But I know if I do commit to the venture, there's money to be made. It's about making the time.
Total: $353
All in all, it wasn't so bad all things considered. This is me starting from scratch again so it could take time. But if I can make over $500/month consistently by early next year (or even closer to $1,000 if it's possible) I know I'll be on a good path. There are a few decent income opportunities for me in coming weeks:
- Resume writing project for a university. I did work for a local university about a year ago, writing resume profiles for MBA students. They asked me to put in a proposal for this year's cohort. In hindsight, I think I might have priced myself out. That's ok if that is the case. Last time it took many more hours than I thought it would and my time is more precious now than it was a year ago.
- Career site writing. I've been asked whether I can up my writing quota from the occasional one or two a month to two or three a week for the next fortnight. It's pretty easy writing this stuff so I'm taking on the task.
- Coaching client. I met a prospect a couple of days ago. I sent him a proposal and I'll just have to see whether he wants to follow through.
- Websites. It's way too early to say this is a decent income opportunity but I'm finally going to try to monetize a couple of domain names that I bought a while back. This will be a slow burner but it's all part of the process.
I have no idea how this journey is going to play out. I may love work so much that I simply decide to give up on all these hustles...Nah, that's never going to happen. One read of Nick Loper's Buy Buttons book has shown me that.
It may not be as spectacular a journey as some blogs you find online, with spectacular numbers and fantastic opportunities in surrounding passive income and financial independence. No, mine's different.
It's sometimes slow. It's sometimes boring. It's sometimes unfocused. That's fine. Most importantly, it's real. Watch this space.
