Achieving financial freedom means different things for different people, but there are a few common factors. Being debt-free is almost always included in the picture, and owning a home with no worries about bills or emergencies is usually another. For some people, financial freedom also means having control over how much money you make and not being tied to a 9-5 job, which usually requires generating your own income stream.
Advancing technology means there are more ways than ever to create your own schedule while making enough money to live comfortably and debt-free, as long as you are careful and purposeful about your planning. Check out this in depth financial freedom guide for more details on how to manage and maximize the money you have to achieve all your financial goals. Keep reading here to learn about all the exciting entrepreneurial opportunities that can help you get to where you want to be.
Living the (Realistic) Dream
Let’s start with a little reality check: It’s great to have big goals and dreams, and getting there is entirely possible. You need to know, however, that it will likely take a lot of time and hard work before you are truly financially comfortable. You will have to make sacrifices, and every choice you make for a while will have to be with your goals in mind.
Pinching Pennies
At first, it is going to feel like serious deprivation to not go out for drinks on Friday night or splurge on that new phone. But eventually, you will find free or less expensive ways to have fun, and you will start to feel more appreciative of the experiences you have rather than the stuff you buy. The closer you get to your goals, the easier it will become to keep moving in that direction.
Conserving Time
Time is going to be the other sacrifice you have to make (at least in the beginning). Though you can set your own schedule, you may be spending every waking hour working to set up your sources of cash flow. Fortunately, several of the following ideas are more passive income generation strategies once you get going. The key is getting up and running, and that part takes time.
In addition to the time you spend up front, there may be a bit of a waiting game before you start seeing the results rolling in. Don’t be discouraged if your affiliate marketing site takes 6 months or more to start generating real money.
1) Dropshipping
Dropshipping is an exciting new way to get into retail without ever having to open a store or keep inventory. You simply set up an online shop, build the SEO content and branding that brings customers in to your Shopify, and the dropshipper takes care of the rest. Depending on who you partner with, you can set your own prices and choose your own products. The best services even provide you with tools and resources to ensure success.
2) Affiliate Marketing
Affiliate marketing is another great source of income using retail or service partners to earn money based on your web building skills. With affiliate marketing, you build a website or blog (even better if you already have one that is well-established) and then offer affiliate advertising on your site. When visitors click on your partner’s link to be redirected from your site then buy something, you get commission.
You usually get paid a lot more through affiliates than you would through AdWords, and you choose your partners so there are no surprise ads for something you would never endorse on your blog. The key here, is building a great blog with good content that gets lots of traffic, then choosing strong, relevant affiliates to partner with.
3) Rental Properties
Rental properties are the classic passive income option, but they require significant investment up front and can come with a great deal of risk. Still, if you have the guts for it, you can build a real estate empire that will sustain you and your future generations.
The challenge of becoming financially independent is that you have to own a large number of properties to actually make much money, and making that money takes a long time. If you pay for a property in cash, then it will potentially take a few years before you make that money back in rents. If you take out a loan, then you will likely only bring in a couple hundred dollars a month per rental above and beyond expenses.
4) Be a Gig Worker
The gig economy has been getting a lot of scrutiny lately, but you can make enough money to live comfortably while setting your own schedule if you do it right. Set up accounts on Upwork and Fiverr to help people with digital assignments, or sign up with Instacart or Uber if you want to get out of the house while you make some money on your own time. Whichever platforms you decide to go with, there are always plenty of resources and tutorials to help you maximize the money you make from these sites.
