Updated: 12 May 2022
An income stream is somewhere where you can make money. Some people use their job as an income stream and others learn of ways to make money without even working. This is the ultimate goal: To make money by allowing your money to grow, not from you trading your hustle and hours. Hustle and Hours runs out, but money never will. If you don't learn how to make money from money, then you will be working until the day you die.
My mindset is always: What if I get sick and can't work. What if I hate my job so much but have no exit plan because I have no money? What if my child becomes sick and I need to quit my job to take care of him/her? There are so many possibilities which would mean that I may not be able to attend my traditional 9-5. This is why I love building different streams of income which allow for flexibility.
1. My Part Time Job at a local Law Firm - NL Lawyers Barristers and Solicitors. I earn $25.00 per hour. After tax, Kiwi Saver, and Student Loan payments I receive $180 in my bank account each working week. I work every Friday, and do 1.5 hours during the week as well. I work in the Waitangi Tribunal Team, conveyancing team, and I work in other areas depending on where I am needed. This income stream aligns well with my career aspirations for the future where I'd like to become a lawyer.
2. Stock investment returns. I invest in shares with Sharesies, Hatch, and my Kiwi Saver fund. I have over $10k invested in the stock market. The stock market has an average return of 8% and has done since around the 1920s. The cool thing about the stock market is that it's never had a crash which it did not recover from. There are 2 ways in which you can make money through the stock market. These can be seen here. The money I earn from stocks gets reinvested in to the stock market to grow my portfolio. It does not enter my bank account but it could if I would want to.
3. Study Link. I receive $271 through student allowance and $35.08 through student loan. If you want to apply for your own loan or allowance then you can do so here. If you are studying full time but haven't applied for either of these, then make sure to do so.
4. Business Maori Millionaire earns money through affiliate marketing. When I post a link which says #ad then this means that I earn a commission when you guys click on the link. Please note that I'd only ever put a link here which I honestly believe in or value, such as Sharesies. (If you want $5 just for signing up to Sharesies, then click the link here.) I've earnt $400 since 2019 when I started blogging so it's in no way very lucrative for the amount of time I spend on it, but it definitely makes me happy being able to help other whanau Maori join my community of finance lovers.
5. Stuff Articles Each fortnight I answer a question on a panel. I answer different questions based on finance news currently like inflation, investing, etc. You can see my latest panel here. I make $60 per question asked and it takes me around 10 minutes to answer. This is a really easy way to make money. All you have to do to be able to do this is to email stuff with an opinion piece and they will see if you are eligible to write for them. After this there are some more technical things to occur but it's not that difficult.
These 5 income streams are in no way significant; but, it is my goal to grow these and to develop more streams of income, with bigger amounts, as time progresses and my portfolio grows.
Why do I want 7 income streams?
There are several financial experts who recommend that 7 income streams will enable you to be financially independent. 7 streams over a diverse range of income earning streams is a good amount because it means that if one industry fails, you can rely on another stream. If 3 fail, you have 4 remaining. It is unlikely to become bankrupt if you have a diverse range of income streams to fall back on.
This draws true to my whakaaro of building a safety net which will protect me if the time comes. What are your income streams? Do you have income goals? If so, let me know in the comments. I'd love to hear from you. Alternatively, follow me on Instagram or Facebook and share your income streams.