As the country’s economy is dependent on consumer spending, income has a big role to play in the overall scheme of things and having a side hustle then becomes a critical part of people’s capacity to keep up with the spending. Even as Tradingeconomics.com shares that the unemployment rate is at a low of 5.5% February of 2015, the income for some people are just not enough.
The way the economy works is that the more you are able to spend, the better the economy is. Yes there are export businesses and other income revenues for the country but the biggest mover and shaker of that scale is dependent on the purchasing ability of the people. The more consumers buy, the higher the economy markers get and that is why a lot of people choose to get a side hustle.
But the road to being a contributor to this machinery is paved with challenges. There are people who are trying to survive a layoff from work while some are having a hard time getting a job out of college. Not to mention that there are a good number of graduates cripples with their student loan payments that they cannot even start planning how to spend their non-existent salary.
There are also those that are still finding life a little hard on their wallets because they do not make enough in a month to cover all their needs. The emergence of having a side hustle has become an important source of income for a lot of consumers who are coming up short every time with their finances for the expenses.
There are some traditionally just gets a second job on top of their main work. This means that after a grueling day at the office, they head on out to wear another uniform for another job. There are also some people who decided to use their hobby or passion and transformed it into a cash generating venture like photography or even baking.
Tips when managing a part time job
There is no doubt that having a part time hustle helps with the bills but it is possible that people might overdo it and lose steam. It is easy to overwork yourself and end up cursing the things you are doing or worse, end up on a hospital bed due to over fatigue. Here are some of things you can do to help manage your side hustle.
- Multitask to save on time. Being able to accomplish more than one task at any given time is a talent that you need to develop over time. But you need to watch out for the ones that do not go together like talking on the phone while driving or catching a power nap while in an office meeting. What you can do is to send a few emails to potential clients on your baking gig while on lunch break. You can also also brush up and improve on your photography skills by watching tutorial videos while on your commute from work
- Get help if you need one. If you need a babysitter to attend to your side hustle then do so. You may think that you are just going out and trying to make extra money to pay the sitter. It may be for the first few instances but you need to understand that you are trying to develop your craft and networking at the same time. This increases the value of your work over time.
- Delegate work to your family. If you need to concentrate on your baking over the weekend, you can get help from your family members to help around the house so you can focus on your craft. It can be that one of your children will mow the lawn while the others will clean the house. You can even have one of your children as your baking assistant while you bake.
- Get enough sleep. Do not short change your main job and your side hustle by trying to think that you can go all day without sleep just to get things done. Sleepfoundation.org suggests that for teenagers to older adults, they need at least seven hours of sleep to help their body recuperate and rest. Thinking you can go on with just a few minutes of sleep everyday could either render you ineffective in your day job or you can lose steam with your part time job.
- Set a time to focus on your part time work. You need to set a specific schedule when you start looking into earning extra on the side especially if it involves your hobby. It could be an hour or two immediately after dinner to attend to your woodwork or setting aside a few minutes in the morning for your consultancy work.
- Know when to have time for yourself. Having a side hustle does not mean you lose time for yourself. Do not forget that sleeping is not enough and you actually need to set time to relax and enjoy either a quiet time or time with your family. It could be as simple as a long hot bath or even a quick drive to your favorite comfort food. You need time to relax and unwind to recharge yourself when you get back on the grind.
What to guard against with increase in income
As you bring in more funds to your budget, the spike in income can be tempting and it can be quite easy to mismanage the money. Here are some of the things that you might want to keep a close eye on trying to manage extra funds.
- Upgrading lifestyle. This is one quick route to financial problems because if you simultaneously increase your lifestyle with the increase in income because of your side hustle, you are just earning to spend and not save for your future. If you are spending more on unnecessary expenses rather than maxing out your 401(k) every month or saving to buy that camera lens for your photography gig, then your lifestyle has increased.
- Misusing discretionary expense. Investopedia.com explains that this is the amount that is left after you take away all your financial obligations. It is more for the wants in life like eating out rather than cooking at home or even paying for a signature coffee rather than brewing one at home. Your side hustle can bring in extra funds but you better keep an eye out on how you use your discretionary income.
- Celebrating too often. After you got paid for that photography gig that you worked on last week, you proceed to buy new shoes or clothes to reward yourself. You then gather all your friends for a drink and you foot the bill because you are happy you finally got paid for your part time gig. But after all these, you are then left with a few dollars under your name because you used the money to celebrate being paid.
- Missing out on future investments. You might be using the extra money in sustaining your vices rather than making sure you are able to increase your reserve funds or even your retirement fund. There are also other investment opportunities you are missing out because you are too busy wasting away the money.
Having a side hustle is a great way to increase your income and make sure you are able to manage your household budget. But you always need to be on the lookout for the possible signs that you are slowly losing steam and find ways to correct the situation. You need to mind as well how you use the funds you get from doing extra work.