If I had a dollar for every time I heard “you need to save Money if you want to get ahead”, I wouldn’t need that dollar.
What if you’re in the position where there’s no money left at the end of your Paycheck to save? What if you’re already stretched as far as you can possibly go with those weekly paychecks? How’re you supposed to save the ‘extra’, when there’s already not enough to pay all of your bills in the same month?
If you’re in this boat, I hear you, and I’ve been there.
I remember hearing those words, “you need to put something aside for a rainy day”, and thinking “every day IS a rainy day”! It’s difficult to hear that advice and not feel like a complete failure, thinking that you must be the only person who’s not able to save money.
But that’s just not true.
Research shows that 78% of us who’re working full time are Living Paycheck to paycheck. That means that more than half of the population who’re working full time, can’t afford to save money for the future, and that’s a sad fact.
Most financial experts recommend stashing at least a six-month cushion in an emergency fund to cover anything from a dental bill to a car repair — and more if you are the sole breadwinner in your family or in business for yourself. But if you’re already stretched to your limit, how’re you supposed to do that??
There are a couple of ways to find/make some spare cash to help you make enough money to putting something aside for the future. Some might take a little time to implement, but why not start now? If you start now, before you know it, you’ll have significant savings, without any real effort.
- Start a side gig
Starting some kind of money making thing outside of your regular job can start making you money fairly quickly if you just stick to it. If you’re the creative type, you could sell crafts, or baking something like that.
2. Start a blog
I know I know. Everyone says that starting a blog is a great way to make some side cash, and that’s true. You don’t have to generate tons of traffic in order to make some extra money blogging. I like blogging because the income is almost completely passive, meaning that I don’t have to go to extreme lengths to make money.
3. Get a part time job
Yeah…don’t say it. This is the least desirable way to make extra cash, but if you set a deadline for how long you’re going to have this additional job in order to put get your head above water, it won’t feel nearly as awful. Think about the financial relief that it’ll give you, and you’ll be much better able to handle it mentally. You can DO this!
Of the three ways to make money above, I’d honestly tell you that once it’s set up, blogging is the easiest, because it allows the blog to literally make money while you sleep.
4. Have a garage sale, or sell excess ‘stuff’ online
When I wanted to start my first business, I was cash poor, with nothing outside the money that paid my bills to use for a new venture. Do you know how I got that money? I sold stuff that I didn’t need on Ebay to get enough money to start my business.
Those are four great ways to make some extra cash, so that you can start saving, or actually pay all of your bills in the same month!
LIKE IT? PIN IT FOR LATER!
The post What to Do if You’re Living Paycheck to Paycheck? appeared first on The Budget Diva.
