Danger of a single income

By Gbenga Adebambo |   09 November 2019   |   1:07 am  


“There is no security in a job, even a high paying one. Be smart and don’t rely on just one source of income”- Ray Higdon. One of the wisest millionaires in the world, Warren Buffet, said: “Never depend on a single income.” Building multiple streams of income is no longer a luxury; it has become a necessity. The first step to building your financial strength is building your revenue strength.

If the high rates of unemployment and mounting job losses have taught us anything, it is that nobody’s job is safe. Unfortunately for most people, their only source of income is from their job, which can be a risky way to live. You must become so financially secure that you forget that it is payday. You have residual bills, why not have residual incomes?

Our conventional career path has led many on a journey of financial frustration and insecurity. It goes thus: You pick a job, advance in that job, draw a higher and higher salary and eventually retire, preferably with a pension plan. Millions of people follow that path today, relying on a single source of income, but in today’s economy, that approach is inherently flawed. If you follow it strictly, it could set you up for hard financial times, longer stretches of work before retirement and in some cases, total financial failure.

There is enough statistics to show that families that live totally on a single source of income are at the greatest risk of poverty. Your salary shouldn’t be your only source of income. Complementing your main salary is one of the most sustainable ways of buoying up your financial baseline. Someone once said that JOB is the acronym for Just Over Broke. A school of thought believes so strongly that having only one stream of income would continually keep us broke.

In my bid to provide a biblical backup for the idea of having a multiple stream of income, I discovered a verse that is worth deep meditation. King Solomon in Ecclesiastes 11:2 (NIV version), captured the idea of multiple streams of income succinctly by saying: “Invest in seven ventures, yes, in eight; you do not know what disaster may come upon the land.” The average millionaire has seven sources of income.

The tools to create multiple streams of income are all around us in the 21st Century. We have more access to information, people and opportunities than ever before. Unfortunately, people use all these as a form of distraction instead of disruption. You have the capacity, time, gifting and talent to create multiple streams of income. The more income streams you can create, the more secure your financial house would be and the more wealth you would create.

You know the saying, “never put all your eggs in one basket?” Putting all of your eggs in one basket by being dependent on one stream of income is risky. It is so crucial to the continuation of cash flow that you have another income stream that you can rely on if one fails.

The richest people are people with multiple streams of income. Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos, Richard Branson, Elon Musk, Aliko Dangote and Mark Zuckerberg started with one stream source, but have grown their businesses to meet varying needs over the years.

The biggest factor preventing many people from adding extra streams of income to their life is the misconception that to earn an extra line of income, you need to devote an extra full-time job’s worth of time and energy to a different profession. That is simply not true. You can earn streams of income while working on your present job. You just need to be more digital, flexible, strategic and dynamic.

The various options available to increasing your streams of income are as follows:
Making Money Online
Many people are turning to YouTube, blogs, social media and websites to create an income. Start a YouTube channel, create a blog or website. You can help small businesses with their digital presence and social media marketing. You can become an online affiliate marketer.

Blogging seems to be very popular, and for good reason, as many bloggers are making passive income from their content. You can open a blog on a subject that you know too well, such as fashion blogs, lifestyle blogs, etc. Everyone is an expert at something. Why not create a blog around your passion?

Putting Your Gift, Passion And Talent To Use
Using your gifts, talents, passion and special abilities to help others solve problems can be a good way of earning extra income. Myles Munroe said: “Wealth does not come from your job; it comes from your personal gifting.”Real wealth is discovering your gifts and talents and making the world a better place through them.

Monetising Your Hobby
Become a hobbypreneur! There is so much joy in getting paid for what you love doing. There is tremendous joy in earning income from doing something that you might happily do for free.Making money from your hobby is not just only sustainable; it brings you deep satisfaction and excitation.

Freelancing
If you can do certain tasks for other people and get paid, then why not? Websites, such as Upwork, Fiverr or Elance allow you to promote yourself for jobs that other people want completed. If you are creative or have special skill or talent, set your own rates and get yourself hired. Whilst this is not a passive income source, you can earn a decent income to get cash flow running, and by this you would be able to fund other income opportunities to create more passive wealth.

Becoming A Referral Source
Every small business needs referral sources to maintain sales. Don’t overlook referral programmes at work either. If your company offers a referral bonus for either new employees or new customers, then take advantage of that plan. It is easy money with virtually no work.

Becoming An Intermediary
Branson once said: “If somebody offers you an amazing opportunity, but you are not sure you can do it, say yes, then learn how to do it later.” One other easy way of earning a side income from your salary is being an intermediary.You can basically broker deals between people. If you can help facilitate a deal, then you can take a cut from the proceeds.

You can take commission for brokering a deal. Connecting people to others who can help them solve their problems can become a great way of earning commission.

Writing An e-Book
Writing an e-book that contains content related to your niche can be a very successful way of producing another stream that generates income passively. Anyone can create an e-book, upload it to Amazon and sell it.

Building An App
Apps (Applications) can be an incredibly lucrative income source. Almost everyone has a smart-phone. Why not take advantage of this and build an app that helps people solve a problem and make their lives easier. Think about how many people today have smartphones. Apps make people’s lives easier. Whether it is an app that helps people put together nice pictures for their blog or an app that keeps track of tasks, there are helpful apps out there for everyone.

INVESTING IN STOCK
Many people are reluctant to enter the stock market because they are afraid of losing the money they invest. With adequate experience, exposure, research and consultation, you can actually make wise decisions in the stock market. It pays to invest in blue-chip stocks (i.e., big companies with a long history of success) for the long-term, so long as you don’t panic sell when prices start falling.

Investing In Real Estate
The four chief ways to invest in real estate are becoming landlords of rental properties; real estate trading; real estate investment groups and real estate investment trusts.

In the book, ‘Rich Habits, Poor Habits: Discover why the rich keep getting richer and how you can join their ranks,” co-authored by Michael Yardney and Tom Corley, which I would recommend for anyone seeking financial freedom, Yardney explains how he helped hundreds of ordinary individuals become self-made millionaires by creating multiple streams of income. One of the habits of the rich is creating multiple streams of income.

Having multiple streams of income would help you live above the financial vagaries, vicissitudes and uncertainties that have bewildered a single-sourced income. Because of the financial risks involved with relying on a job for all of your incoming cash, it is critical to consider having at least one additional source of income.

Having multiple sources of income also gives you more flexibility for the future and helps you break the cycle of living from paycheck to paycheck. If you desire to protect your family from the unknown, having multiple streams of income is non-negotiable.
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