Note: This article was written before the current COVID-19 Pandemic and was not written specifically to address it. A digital second income stream is important in any circumstances and the current health situation perhaps cement and accelerates the need to create one.
The Importance Of Second Income Streams
No job is safe whether you are the CEO of a large corporation or if you are just a janitor in your local school. Job security is a thing of the past and if you are not prepared, then it will spell trouble for you.
Due to the nature of the economy and also market volatility, a company can downsize anytime and most companies practice the system of LIFO (Last in first out) which translates simply that if you join the company later, you will be the first one to go. But that is not always true because sometimes the company downsizes certain departments that they deem overlaps one another and they will consolidate into one department. When that happens, someone has to go.
Everyone, including you, is very vulnerable to such an environment.
As such, if you don’t have another stream of income, you are looking at some serious financial problems if you are suddenly laid off or ask to take a pay cut. However, despite this potentially disastrous scenario, many people are still not bothered to actively do something about it because they always think that it will never happen to them.
But if you are one of those that truly care about your future, your family and the things that are important to you, you will want to actively seek out another income stream that will give you some form of financial security if the inevitable happens. If everything goes fine with your job, then this second income stream will go nicely towards your monthly spending as well as contributing towards a comfortable retirement nest egg.
Nevertheless, whatever the reasons may be, having an additional 4 or 5 figure per month income is always a welcoming thing to anyone.
There are many schools of thought when it comes to adding a second stream of income. There are also many who advocate having multiple streams of income which is not a bad thing in itself, but it is also a setback for many people because they can’t even get one additional stream of income off the ground, let alone multiple streams.
So, when you are just starting out, it is always advisable to focus on just one additional stream. When you have successfully set up one that consistently brings you a steady flow of income, then you can look into other streams but not before that If you try to start too many things at one time, I can almost assure you that you will never get one off the ground.
Let’s Examine The Many Benefits of An Additional Stream of Income
· Make more money
The most obvious is, of course, bringing in more money for you every month. Your short- and long-term financial goals can be met with greater efficiency and speed letting you and your family live more comfortably as well as building towards a comfortable retirement egg.
- Cushion against sudden job loss
As mentioned above, having a second income stream can cushion some of the financial problems that are associated when you find yourself out of a job.
· Retire Earlier
If you are one of the many people that intend to retire earlier, having a second income stream can greatly accelerate that goal.
· Reaching your first million
This is not a far fetch statement but there are many millionaires that have actually achieved that not through their paychecks but through their multiple income streams.
Different Types Of Income Streams
There are many types of income streams that you can start on. Some are passive and some require you to actively participate in them. But there are 6 things that I look for when it comes to a good second income stream
- It does not require a high initial investment
- It allows you to do everything online
- It allows you to do things at your pace
- It is easy to learn
- It requires less of your attention when it becomes more stable and consistent
- It allows you to dispose of it at least 20 times the monthly returns that you are getting from that income stream
You may be wondering if such an income stream exists, but I can assure you it does, and many people are actively doing it and enjoying the benefits. The income stream that I am talking about is blogging.
When you think or hear about blogging, you may be thinking of someone who blogs about their daily lives, their cats, their neighbors, their travels, etc. In earlier days, blogging was just a hobby for most people. But blogging has come a long way since then and now many people are blogging to make big bucks.
Bloggers make money by creating an authority blog on a chosen niche that will enable them to earn affiliate commissions from the products they review and recommend in their blog. Visitors to their blogs trust and listen to them because they are deemed to be an authority and expert in their niche.
For example, you start an authority blog to talk about roses… Your blog will contain everything that readers need to know about roses, from growing them, pruning them, fertilizers to use and other related information on roses. Your readers will come to your website for information about roses and your website will recommend to them things like tools to use, types of fertilizers, gloves and other gardening tools and eBooks so that you can earn a commission when they purchase these products through your website. That is how you make money with blogging. No mystery about it.
So, let’s now see if this income stream satisfies the above 6 criteria I mentioned above.
- It does not require a high initial investment
Blogging is one of the few ventures that you can start with just a few bucks. All you need is less than $50 for a domain name and a hosting account and you are good to go.
- It allows you to do everything online
Blogging is done online. All you need is an active internet connection and a computer, and you are good to go. Even if you don’t have these things, you can always use an internet cafe to start things up. I have friends and students that started out this way and now they are successful bloggers making 5 figures a month.
- It allows you to do things at your pace
Blogging is not a race. You can work at your own pace and timing and still be successful at the end of the day.
- It is easy to learn
Blogging is one of the easiest things to learn even for someone who has not done it before. The learning curve is very gentle, and you can master it in a very short period of time through proper training and information
- It requires less of your attention when it becomes more stable and consistent
When your blog gains traction and starts to make money consistently, this is where you can let it run passively and still make money without constant active intervention on your part.
- It allows you to dispose of it at least 20 times the monthly returns that you are getting from that income stream
You can sell your blog to many interested buyers at 20,30 or even 50 times the value of your monthly earnings and as such it is a great future asset.
So now, you know the value of blogging, you will want to know how you can successfully build one. There are many ways you can do that. Among them, you can always go online to YouTube and look for videos and tutorials on this subject. Or you can seek out forums and online social platforms such as Facebook and participate in group chats and try to learn something there for free. Alternately, you can always buy those $7, $17 or even $27 eBooks on this subject.
But can you trust this information? Are they telling you the right things? Are they showing you the right methods? For a start, 10 so-called gurus will tell you 10 different and they tell you that you must do a million and one things before you can be successful. Most of the information on these platforms is rehashed and outdated materials and many are outright deceivings.
Bits and pieces of information from YouTube and Facebook don’t help either because you don’t know how to piece them together and act on it. From my experience, you will never get anything off the ground if you go with this route.
So how can you ensure that what you learn is really updated and effective? You will need a step by step system that shows you what you must do to build a successful blog. Over the shoulder video training is another way to ensure a hands-on learning experience.
You will need training that have no room for guessing or random work and should be easy enough for you to follow and learn it quickly. This training must be well structured, systematic and effective to ensure that you will be able to achieve success in building a money-making blog.
Blogging as a second stream of income is one of the best-underrated income avenues that many people are either unaware of or have overlooked. I hope you can see the value of this and can seriously consider this great income stream that can make you passive income form years to come. I also encourage you to read up on “How To Make Money Through Blogging” HERE.
There is currently 2 proven and updated training course that I conduct.
1) Blogging Mastery 2.0 – If you are starting new and would like to blog based on your experience, your passion, your expertise, this is the training program for you. It details the steps that you need to take to build and grow a successful blog into a 6-figures per year income. Click here to learn more.
2) Authority Blogging 2.0 – If you want to dive straight into blogging by identifying the profitable niches before starting a blog this is for you. The training reverse engineers the process of identifying these niches and attack them head-on. This training is more technical. Click here to learn more.
Both these programs will lead you towards the same goal of building and growing a 6- figures per year income stream
To Your Success,
David Cheng
SKYPE: davidcheng918