Why Earn Extra Money
Why earn extra money? It’s a little obvious to the person who’s in financial need. Whether they are suffering from bad spending habits or an act of nature. The answer to why you should earn extra money isn’t always as clear as it should be.
Did you know you will owe more in taxes if you earn more? To pay the taxes, you’ll need to earn more than you originally thought you needed. More about that later.
There are times when earning extra money makes sense and times earning more doesn’t make scents. And times there, earning extra money can be dangerous. Think tax liability.
Earning extra money is dangerous when you plan to live on it. Use your regular salary to live on and extra money to accelerate your debt-free journey and your short- and long-term savings.
In some situations, managing your money is better than earning more. And there are times when earning more would be the better choice. and there are times when you may need to do better money management and earn more money.
Earning extra money is not always frugal.
If you have a spending problem meaning you routinely overspend, you need to manage your money better. If your money problems result from a financial disaster like an unexpected medical bill, you may need to manage your money better and earn extra money.
When does it make sense to earn more money, and when does it make more sense to manage your money better? And when does it make sense to earn more and manage your money better?
Why Earning Extra Money Isn’t Always The Best Answer
I assume you will also work more hours if you earn extra money.
Taxes
If you need an extra $200 a month, how much do you need to earn?
The answer is not as easy as you may think. Depending on what tax bracket you are in now, you can bet on paying taxes on that amount. An additional hazard is an extra amount may push you
you into a higher tax bracket.
State Taxes
Depending on your state taxes, you may need to pay additional taxes on your additional income.
Losing Valuable Time With Family Hobbies And Life
Most people what to do more than work. Some have families, and others have hobbies and a life to live while working.
If you earn extra money, no doubt you’ll work more. The additional work hours can have a bad effect on relationships and hobbies.
How To Prevent Needing To Earn Extra Money
Spending Habits
It may seem obvious, but if your money problems result from a spending problem, you should consider changing how you spend money.
When I say spending problems, I mean you routinely overspend. You spend more than you earn, or at least you spend so much you can’t afford to save.
Not saving money routinely is a bad sign and recipe for financial disaster.
If your money problems result from spending, you must live on a budget. If you don’t have a budget, you need to make one.
If you have a budget, you may need to start using it. If your budget no longer works (a change in income or an increase in living due to medical bills, a new baby, or any other thing) fix your budget.
Rework Your Budget
The thing about budgets is they change. If your budget doesn’t reflect the necessary changes to make it work, make them. In some cases, it would be easier to start over, like when you haven’t used the budget for a long period of time or there have been many changes.
After You Have A Working Budget
Do you still need more money? Can you make it work without earning more money? I’m not saying don’t earn more money. I’m saying, try to make a budget that’s not dependent on more money. If you are successful at this, you may want to earn more money to accelerate paying off debt or to increase your savings.
The idea is to not put yourself in a position where you need extra money to pay the monthly bills. That’s a dangerous place to be.
If you earn extra money, use it to accelerate becoming debt free or save faster.
Use A Spending Journal
The use of a spending journal will help you stick to your budget.
A spending journal is a journal you update every time you spend money.
The idea is that you update your budget at the end of the day or the next morning, so you always know how much you have to spend in your specific category.
When Earning Extra Money Makes Scents
Earning extra money makes sense for the following reasons.
1 You don’t earn enough to pay your bills. If this is you, you may need to find a job that pays more so you don’t need to earn extra money.
2 You wish to accelerate your debt repayment or accelerate your short or long-term savings.
13 Ways To Earn More Money
Volunteer To Work Overtime Or More Hours
You already have a job. If your employer allows you to work overtime, this could be ideal because you may qualify for overtime. there’s nothing like a 50 % raise for your work.
If you don’t qualify for overtime, at least you know the job and don’t need to travel to another location to work.
Yard Work
Most people associate yard work with mowing grass and raking leaves and maybe a few other chores but there’s a lot more to yard work than you may think.
For a better idea of what yard work is, read my article Earn Extra Money Doing Yard Work.
Detailing cars
Cleaning cars meaning to wash wax and cleaning the interior, is only a small part of detailing cars. There are different levels, from a basic cleaning to top-notch look and smell like new.
For a better look at this industry read my article “Detailing Cars Earn Extra Money”.
Become A Copy Editor
Are you a good writer? Do you understand the punctuation rules and grammar usage?
In many cases, you can do this kind of work from anywhere in the world as long as you have an internet connection.
Read my article Become A Copy Editor.
Pet sitting
Are you an animal lover? Do you enjoy caring for pets? If you do this could become a great side hustle for you.
More and more people no longer wish to leave their pets in boarding kennels. While they’re on vacation, out of town working, visiting friends and family, or even in the hospital, they want to know their pet is taken care of.
Learn more about pet sitting and read my article Earn Extra Money Pet Sitting.
House Sitting
Are you a trustworthy person? Can people count on you to do what they ask of you? More and more people travel more frequently and for longer periods of time.
If you are house-sitting for someone, there can be many requirements for you: checking the mail, looking after the flower bed, and checking the security of the home, and pets.
House sitting can involve a lot. the more you are willing to do the more pay you will receive.
Read my article Earn Extra Money House Sitting.
Get a roommate
People don’t think about getting a roommate as a source of income but they should. If you find the right roommate, you could cut your cost of living, and I don’t mean by a little bit. Usually, the cost of a place to live is the biggest chunk of money to be spent.
My article “Earn Money Get A Roommate”. will explain how to find the right roommate that’s right for you.
Garbage Picking
At first, it may sound a little gross but hear me out.
There are some people that rummage through garbage to retrieve usable home gadgets. Some of them require just a little cleaning. Others require you to repair them.
After the item is in good working order, they either use them in their homes and avoid buying or sell them for a profit. Either way, it’s a good way to earn money.
For more information, read my article Garbage Picking Earn Extra Money.
Hauling Junk
I’m not talking about hauling trash (daily waste). I’m talking about hauling items for when people dispose of items like lamps, dishwashers, washers and dryers, clothes, and most other things.
The scavengers usually haul away your junk and dispose of it or sell it. You can make quite a bit of money hauling junk.
for more information about hauling junk, read my article “Earn Extra Money Hauling Junk”.
Running Errands For Seniors
The baby boomers are now turning into senior citizens. There are more and more senior citizens every day. Many can’t get out to run their errands or just don’t want to. Maybe it’s the ice and snow or the heat.
Running errands is becoming more and more popular for earning extra money.
For more information about how to start earning more money running errands for seniors, read my article “Earn Extra Money Running Errands For Seniors.”
Be A Consultant
Get paid for what you know. Almost everyone is an expert in one field or another. That’s where consultants come from.
Most people think of consultants as engineers, accountants, attorneys, and more.
But consultants come from all walks of life. There are people that specialize in remodeling rooms and houses. There are event planners. Landscaping is a specialty that’s become popular recently.
What’s your specialty, and how can you become a consultant? Read my article “How To Be A Consultant”.
Virtual Assistant
With the number of blogs and websites on the internet, there’s room for so many virtual assistants. But it doesn’t stop with blogs and websites. The need for people to pick up the slack for them in so many other areas is expanding all of the time: accountants, legal assistants para legal, and so many more professions.
Tutoring Online
Think about it. There’s so much learning going on the internet. When was the last time you consulted Youtube? There’s so much good information on Youtube and most of the Youtubers are paid for their efforts of making videos for you.
If you use Youtube to learn from the video, it was made by a tutor.
Then there are websites dedicated to teaching a specific curriculum to certain people, like English as a second language. Or math to children.
The list of subjects is endless.
Maybe Youtube is right for you, or maybe you should look into working online as a tutor for a specific curriculum.
Conclusion
Why earn extra money, it’s a good idea, but it’s important to not suffer from lifestyle inflation as a result of the extra money. Set the extra money aside to accelerate your journey to be debt free or to accelerate your savings.
Just because you have extra money, don’t go on a spending binge and don’t use it in your normal budget.
Like your income plan your extra money so it will do the best for you.