August 29th, 2008 — Book Review
If you have ever wanted to get into investing, but you weren’t sure where to start, there are thousands of books out there that will get you started. But they are not all created equal. From sky high hope crushers to real world advice, you’ll have plenty of topics to go over. The Single Best Investment by Lowell Miller proclaims to help you decide which investment is the most important one, but can it live up to the title? Let’s find out!
While the book is very well written, we didn’t find that it covered anything really new. Which is not a problem in and of itself, unless you are expecting the book to contain earth shattering information that will make you a millionaire overnight. Basically, the premise is that your best investment is in stocks that are highly rated and have big payouts. You don’t really need to be an economics major to figure that one out, but there is a lot of merit to the actual discussion about these investments.
Dividends are a terrific means of creating multiple streams of income and who doesn’t like having extra money coming in? If you’ve got the money and the ability to find these stocks, then they are a solid way of making more money. There is still a good amount of risk involved, but by taking the time to research the stock carefully, you can limit this. No investment is fool-proof, but you can make a lot of money with these stocks.
He does provide some great advice on how to determine the overall quality of stock and what you need to look for if you are interested in this type of investment. Again, pretty basic stuff but useful to some. We did like the chapter on knowing when to sell and found that this was probably the best section in the book, especially for those new to investing.
Overall, we found that the book contained some pretty good advice. It is best suited towards those that are just getting started in the investment world, or for those that already have money and need to learn how to make more quickly. It won’t do much good for those that are still trying to save money, but in this case, leveraging may be the best answer.
We recommend this book to those that need to learn about how stocks work and the market in general. Pros won’t find much to learn here, since much of the information is basic and already well covered or known. That doesn’t make it a bad book, just one that needs a specific kind of reader. It’s not the worst book ever written on investments, but it’s not the best either. It holds that good middle ground where it’s just enough to make you want to read it and some readers will take away a good amount of information and advice they can put to use. For that, we give it a recommend.
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August 6th, 2008 — Diversification, Financial Security, Income Streams, Investing, Long Term, Money, Personal Finance, Standard of Living, passive income, retirement
One of the hottest concepts right now is the premise of creating multiple streams of income. While everyone wouldn’t mind making a little extra cash, there are even more benefits that can be reaped from having more than one source of income. Let’s go over just a few of them.
1. Help save for retirement.
The average person needs to have more than $500k put aside for their retirement in order to live in comfort and without worries. Unless you have a job that pays incredibly well, this is going to be a pretty daunting task. You cannot rely on social security payments to secure your future. Whether you’re 25 or 55, it is never too early or to late to put aside money for your retirement. Unless the thought of working until you drop dead appeals to you, you’re going to have to find ways to supplement your current income.
Multiple income streams can be incredibly beneficial not only for retirement planning, but later in life. Smart investments will continue to reap rewards for many years to come and you’ll have that nice supplemental income that will make your life easier far past the retirement age. A good concept to try to is put all of your multiple income streams into a high interest account to make even more money for your future.
2. Layoffs and downsizings happen every day.
No matter how secure you think your job is, there are still chances that you could get laid off. There are very few guaranteed jobs in this world that provide lifelong security. If you are relying solely on the income for your job to pay your bills and make ends meet, you are literally one paycheck away from financial ruin.
It’s a stark reality that all of us face. However, if you have multiple streams of income coming in, you won’t have to worry so much. You’ll have a cushion that will tide you over if you do get laid off or lose your job. In some cases, lucrative streams may even replace the need for your job entirely.
3. Accidents happen.
Even if you have insurance – what would happen if you were injured today and no longer able to work. Could you pay your bills? This happens to thousands of people every year and they risk losing their homes, bankruptcy proceedings and worse. By having that extra cushion with several different streams of income, you are reducing your reliance and making sure that no matter what happens, you’ll be ready to face it.
If you don’t have health insurance, it’s even more vital to have steady streams of income coming in each month. You may be the picture of health right now, but what if you get hit by a bus on the way to work tomorrow? Unless you have thousands of dollars in savings, the answer isn’t pretty. Even if you do have a savings account do you really want to use it for that? What will happen when it runs out? The best kind of insurance you can have is a steady stream of extra income.
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July 14th, 2008 — Diversification, Financial Security, Goal, Income Streams, Personal Finance, retirement
Most of us think about retirement and panic. It can be tough trying to figure out how we’re going to survive and plan for our futures when we’re just trying to make ends meet right now. If you’re strapped for cash at the end of every month, chances are you are not saving anything for retirement or for that rainy day. Although many of us have 401k’s, we cannot rely on these for our sole source of retirement money.
It’s easy to think that your 401k will always be safe, but this is not always the case. Companies go under, investments go bad. Never rely on this, or your Social Security benefit as the sole source of your future income. The key to planning and financing your future is creating multiple streams of income right now.
80% of Americans are living paycheck to paycheck right now. That means that millions of us are facing homelessness if we lose our jobs. This is a startling figure and it really drives home how important it is to have more than one stream of income coming in every month. If you are relying on your paycheck right now and it barely meets your needs, think about what would happen if that paycheck disappeared? How would you pay your bills?
Setting up multiple streams of income can be a bit daunting, especially if you have no capital right now to invest. There are many different ways that you can create multiple streams of income, even if you don’t have much money. First, let’s look at creating active streams of income, then we’ll move onto passive. Active income is something that pays you money for work that you do. This can mean getting a second job for a few hours every week, or channeling your talents into extra work.
For example, if you’re handy at fixing cars, consider setting up your own little shop in your garage. Only take on as much work as you have time for, and you’ll be bringing in extra money every month. If you’re good at something, and most of you are, there is a way to leverage that into more income.
Now, let’s look at passive income, or income that comes in requiring no extra work on your part. This is the best kind of income and it’s important to have at least one passive stream. Passive income includes returns from investments, or dividends that come in. If you don’t have any money right now, consider getting a small loan to invest in a proven stock or to put into a high interest bearing account. This is called leveraging debt and it is a concept used by millionaires across the world.
You can also get passive income from rental properties or from buying homes and selling them at a higher cost. Talk with a financial planner about your passive income options and take that step towards achieving your financial freedom. You don’t have to rely on one paycheck!
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July 10th, 2008 — Income Streams, Money, P2P Lending, Personal Finance, passive income
In the past, creating multiple streams of income required a lot of footwork and there were few passive stream opportunities available. However, thanks to the Internet, it has never been easier to create multiple streams of income online and many are passive! Let’s go into a few ideas that you can use to start your own income streams right now.
1. Blogging –
This is far from passive, but if you’ve got something to say, you can make money at it. It has never been easier to create a solid stream of income that can bring in a few hundred dollars a month or even more. Programs like Google AdSense can easily bring in that much and you never have to lift a finger (other than writing and networking like a madman). While there will be some expense involved, especially for marketing your new blog, it is minimal and much less than you would pay for other opportunities.
And why stop at one blog? If you’ve got a lot of interests, you’re just full of untapped potential. Start a blog for each one and take the time to build up your audience. You can easily turn than few hundred dollars into a few thousand dollars a month. For some people, that may be more than they make at their full time jobs.
Your opportunities don’t stop with advertising. You can join affiliate programs, set up your own products or keep branching out. The sky really is the limit when it comes to this type of income stream; however, passive it is not.
2. Peer to Peer Lending –
This is an interesting and potentially great way to make money online. Depending on your particular lending strategy it can even be fairly passive. There are numerous peer to peer lending sites that are seeking lenders and investors. You don’t need to be a bank – all you need is some cash and the stomach to take a little risk. Be sure to follow my tips at Making extra money with peer-to-peer lending.
3. Informational Products -
If you’ve got an idea or expertise in an area that is popular, write an ebook and start selling it online. You’ll never really have to do much work after it’s written and marketing costs are usually quite low. Your book will just keep bringing in money month after month. What is more – you’ll be building up an audience for future books to make even more money.
If you don’t want to write your own, there are numerous pre-written ebooks on every subject under the sun. You can purchase the resale rights and start making money right away. This is perfect if you want a nice little stream of passive supplemental income. Just remember to keep offering new books so that your market doesn’t stagnate.
4. Bonus Tip -
Combine tips 1 and 3… By adding an eBook to your blog you can potentially super charge your readership growth. Here are 2 examples of blogs trying to do just that… SF Boater with the free eBook Fishing in California, and Handyman Fix Home Repair with the free eBook The DIY Handbook.
These are just four ideas that can start bringing in income right now. There are countless others that are just as easy to implement. If you want to start making more money, the web is the first place to start.
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June 23rd, 2008 — Diversification, Financial Security, Income Streams, Money, P2P Lending, Personal Finance
Most of us would like the chance to spend more time with our families, work a lot less and still bring in a sizeable income. If you’re only going to rely on your current income, the chances of that happening are pretty small, unless you’ve got an incredible job. However, there are ways that you can achieve this dream and they’re a lot easier than you might think. You’re about to learn how to work smarter and less and still make more money than you are right now.
The key to working less is having more than one stream of income coming into your pocket every month. This is a sound principle for many different reasons. First, you’re reducing your risks by not having to rely on your main source of income to pay your bills and keep living well. You can spread that risk around and if you do lose your job, you’ll have the resources on hand to keep paying your bills until you can find a new one.
Another benefit of having multiple streams of income is that you can eventually phase out your full time job, if you’re making the right investments, and start working part time. The old adage that two part time jobs make one full time job is certainly true here. By creating another stream of steady income that you can rely on, you can eventually scale back your current hours until you’re working only part time. If you’ve got some really great streams of income coming in, you may even be able to quit that full time job and focus on these streams instead.
Ok, so we understand how multiple streams of income can make your life easier, but how do you get started? You’ll need to take a small amount of risk here if you want to get to the point of being able to spend less time at work, but it is well worth it. It is best to try to reduce these risks when you’re first getting started so that you don’t jeopardize your finances, but with smart choices, it’s easy to pick a great income stream.
Some of the most common forms of creating multiple streams of income are actually the most simple. Let’s say that you have a knack for fixing cars. During the day, you’re a buttoned down corporate worker, but on the weekends, you’re a car fixing fool. Start taking on outside work during those weekends and boom – you’ve got your first income stream coming in. As word of mouth travels, you’ll get more business and it will most likely pay better than your current job.
Other streams of income include investing in P2P lending, other business opportunities, or even stocks and bonds that have a steady rate of return. The main goal of using multiple income streams to work less is to stop treading water at your job and start doing what you love while you’re getting paid for it. With the right amount of dedication, you should be able to go part time or even quit your old job.
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