Ever since I was a kid I’ve found it hard to commit myself to the idea of growing up and ‘being’ one thing. First I was the president’s personal assistant, then a painter, then an IT Technician, a graphic designer, a clothing buyer, a composer, a producer, and the list goes on. My incessant dabbling in stuff I was passionate about has in turn opened up multiple potential streams and already running, streams of income (passive income, active income or a combination of both).
Active Income: When others pay you for doing what you love (e.g. service or product)
Passive Income: Is when you pay others to make the money for you (e.g. investing)
Now, some people might be thinking, isn’t that instability? Surprisingly not! It’s actually the opposite! If you value your financial security and want to pursue financial freedom in your life then creating and having multiple streams of income and ‘diversifying’ is not a luxury, it is a necessity. We all know how volatile the world markets are, therefore, security and some form of comfort is dependent on you having a cushion to fall back on when there’s a ‘shaking.’
In his article 7.1. Steps To Create Multiple Streams Of Income, Hal Elrod, entrepreneur and award winning writer, lists the following pointers as important – I’ve added some feedback from my personal experience in applying these:
- Establishing Financial Security: This is your foundation! Don’t be silly. Anyone with a brain knows that this has to happen FIRST! It’s not the sexiest of all steps but it is the most imperative. A primary solid source of income to cover all expenses.
- Clarifying One’s Unique Value: The sooner you do this the better! Really, God made each of us with just the right packaging to differentiate us from everyone else in the world – HOW AWESOME IS THAT? It’s a bonus because packaging differentiates value! You are valuable and your Creator made you with the capacity to BE, DO, and SEE. If you increase your knowledge by doing each of these you will increase the value of what others pay you (to teach or apply on their behalf) at the same time (Proverbs 10:14, “Wise men lay up knowledge; but the mouth of the foolish is near to destruction”)
- Identifying One’s Market: This can sometimes be a very time consuming experience. But it is vital if you want to be able to direct your marketing efforts effectively.
- Building Community Around Oneself: I moved to a new city in January and I came from a place where I had basically built up a huge network of fellow artists, service providers, product providers and more. Moving meant starting from the bottom with the community vibes. I asked Jesus for direction when meeting people and excepting jobs. I am eight months in and it’s been such a great journey so far!
- Asking Your Community About Their Desires: This is field research, as much as there is creative freedom there has to be a balance between doing what you want and doing what the people want. Their demand funds your market offering!
- Creating The Solution:
“Everything has been thought of before, but the problem is for us to think of it again” – Goethe
“Discovery consists of seeing what everyone else has seen and thinking what no one else has thought” – Anon
- Launching The Solution: Plan that launch carefully. First impressions do count you know?!
7-POINT-1. Finding A Mentor: This is someone who’s already achieved. You can then model their behaviour and make it your own. It’s as easy as reaching out to someone in humility and asking for help – I mean, Proverbs 13:20 says that walking with wise men makes you wise, so it would be wise to DO IT! It could also mean researching on the Internet, reading books or going to workshops! Proverbs 15:22 says (NLT), “Plans go wrong for a lack of advice; many advisors bring success.”
Before you’ve done all of this and after you’ve done all of this commit all of your plans to the Lord (Proverbs 16:3). Life is unpredictable, anything can happen at any time. So, even with all of this hustling hard we could still fall flat. ‘Committing your way’ means ultimately putting your trust in the Jesus! Once you’ve done this, he has promised that he will establish (set up on a firm or permanent basis) all of your plans!