When I think of stretching my paycheck, it basically means I’ve got to find a way of doing more with less. And getting the most out of each paycheck (because simply finding a higher paying job isn’t as easy as it sounds) forces us to get creative with how we allocate money and make very conscientious choices about our spending.
This creative thinking will go a long ways in stretching your paycheck because you’re not approaching every situation with the same solution, “I need more money.” Yes, we could all use some more money, but that doesn’t mean that we couldn’t find some alternatives in the meantime to get by until then.
The long-term benefit of learning how to stretch your paycheck is that you’ll continue on with his way of thinking. When we do finally get that higher paying job or bonus check or whatever, we’ll be able to make that stretch too and be able to achieve even more, even faster.
Even though I was doing all that I could do to stretch my paycheck as much as possible, I all to often found it’s limitations. Which is fine, in fact, I think that’s a great thing because I never went to bed wondering what else I could do better. That’s when I started getting into various side-hustles in an attempt to generate some extra cash that I could put towards my loans.
How do I make an extra $1,000 a month?
Now that’s the entrepreneurial spirit! Creating various revenue streams using your skill sets is a great idea. Maybe you’re crafty type, or can make mobile apps, or have a lot to say and hope someone will listen. Here are some ideas of things you could easily pursue part-time and make some money in the process:
- Write a book. If you’re a great writer, become a self-published author and sell your stories in eBook format. There are a lot of resources online that can help guide you through this process. Just start writing!
- Create an app. There is a great marketable skill that could earn you some serious money. There are some helpful freelancing sites where you can list your services so people can contact you.
- Start a static blog. Blogs can generate a lot of traffic when they have relevant, helpful, content people want to read. Once you have the traffic, you can start placing ads around your blog content to earn some money.
- Write articles online. Ghost writing in fact. People need content for their brands and websites, but don’t have the time or man power to get all the content written that they need. So, they hire ghost writers to help them write out their content.
- Create a YouTube channel. The more people watching your videos the more money you can earn from advertising that appears on or around the video. Just remember to enable the ads.
- Take beautiful photos. If you’ve got an eye for the world around you, look into selling your images through the many stock photography sites. The more you have for sell, the more you could potentially make.
- Draw and design graphics. This is another freelance service that could make some extra money.
- Make a t-shirt design. Sell it online through your own online store, or through places like Amazon and Etsy.
