Get Paid for Your Valuable Time When You Take Advantage of Time Clock Software, Rewards Programs, and More
Between paying off student loans, saving up to put a down payment on a house, attempting to live your best and most Instagrammable life, or any of the other financial goals you may be pursuing, modern life can be expensive. If your 9-to-5 job just isn’t getting you to your goals fast enough, we have good news! There are plenty of ways to monetize your time and bring in some extra spending money.
Your time is valuable. Here are our top 6 things to keep in mind when monetizing your time:
- Look for opportunities beyond the office — the modern workplace is changing
- Turn your passions into side hustles
- Monetize your stories and experiences
- Learning how to investing your money may result in your net worth increasing
- Maintaining your network is a must
- No opportunity is too small
Traditional office spaces are disappearing and being replaced with co-working spaces and advanced time clock software — to monetize your time, you have to be ready to adapt to these changes.
The Modern Workplace is Changing Quickly — Be Ready to Keep Up
What do you think of when you think of “going to work”? If you’re like most people, something along the lines of gray office walls, cubicles, and water coolers pops into your head. However, traditional workplaces are quickly becoming a thing of the past.
If you’re going to make the most out of your time, it’s important to understand the ways in which the modern workplace is changing. To start off, the number of freelancers and independent contractors is on the rise, which means we’re seeing more and more flexible workplace options like co-working spaces.
Even for workers who are still a part of a dedicated professional team, work conditions are getting more open. Advances in technologies like time clock software — which now feature cutting-edge time tracking tools like facial recognition and automatic overtime tracking — continue to revolutionize what it means to go to work in today’s society.
Turn Your Passions into Side Hustles into $$$
Along the same lines, seeking out freelancing opportunities makes it possible for you turn things you’re truly passionate about into extra cash. The extra money is a great way to keep you on track for reaching your financial goals, but it also incentivizes you to make time for things you really care about. Let’s face it — it can be difficult to find time for hobbies and passion projects when we’re worried about making ends meet. Consider turning your passions into side hustles killing two birds with one stone.
Your Experiences are Valuable, So Turn Them Into Cash
The unique experiences that make up your life are what make you, well… you. Nobody else experiences life quite the way you do, and that makes your perspective really valuable. Think back through your own experiences — are there stories that other people might benefit from hearing? If there are, consider turning them into articles, books, or speeches to make a little extra dough.
It can be difficult to get started with investing, but once you learn how to do it, investing pays off in a big way.
Learn How to Invest the Right Way and Reap the Benefits for Years to Come
There’s a reason parents and grandparents the world over always monopolize just a bit of dinner conversation to discuss their investments — investing is kind of a big deal. Instead of letting your money sit around doing nothing, making the right kinds of investments puts your money to work for you.
If you’re just getting started with investments, consider checking out a few of these options:
- Starting a business. You don’t have to quit your job and become a full-time entrepreneur. Even a small business — moving lawns, tutoring college students, etc. — can grow into a nice source of revenue for you.
- Annuities. If this sounds complex, don’t worry — it’s actually pretty simple. For an annuity, you provide a sum of money to an organization, and they pay you back in regular installments, plus interest.
- Land/Real Estate. Either of these ventures take a decent chunk of change to get off the ground, but having a monthly source of income from renting out your property is a huge payoff.
- CDs. These are low return options, but they’re also low risk. It’s a great option for safe investing.
- Credit Union Checking Accounts. Do you have $15,000 in your savings account? If you do, consider switching to a credit union. Many of them offer 2-3% interest on your checking account balance, which means your money can make you a decent amount of money just by sitting there.
Keeping in Touch with Your Network has more than Just Social Benefits
LinkedIn is an amazing social media platform. It allows you to connect with people, but it also outlines how your network fans out by suggesting people who can introduce you to people at companies you’re investigating, showing you how many connections you have in common with others, and more. Keeping in touch with your professional network is enormously important.
Sure, keeping in touch with your network means you’ve always got someone to grab coffee or a beer with after a long week at work. More importantly though, keeping in touch with your network means having strong professional relationships, which means if you ever find yourself in a position where you do need an introduction or a favor, you’re more likely to find someone willing to help.
If You Want to Make Money, You’ve Gotta Hustle
The people in your network often throw out small paid opportunities all the time. Maybe someone needs a logo designed. Maybe someone needs a PR piece written up. Even if these tasks aren’t your forte — or they seem too small or trivial to be worth it — consider giving it a go. You’ll expand your skills and build a reputation for yourself as a hard worker, which can earn you bigger opportunities in the long run.
To make the most out of your free time, it’s important to build your reputation and push yourself to try new projects continuously.
If you want to get the most out of monetizing your time, following these 6 tips is essential. What do you wish you had known when you made a push to monetize your free time? We’d love to hear from you!
