It’s whispered about on blogs, referenced to endlessly on forums, and longed after by many a daydreamer stuck in the daily grind doldrums of their local cubicle. It’s a goal that has eluded many, and crushed the hopes of those sucked in by scams claiming to know the way, the path to obtain it.
I speak of course about passive income.
I don’t know too many people that wouldn’t love the opportunity to make money for nothing, to seemingly create income out of thin air. It would work while they sleep, like a seemingly unstoppable money tree that would bear dollar bills as it’s fruit, and all you’d have to do is reach out and grab it.
Back to reality.
Much like the Holy Grail, passive income is an ideal, a dream. The truth is that there are no true sources of passive income, only money that requires the least amount of effort to obtain, but there is always effort required.
Don’t believe me? Think of something that makes money and let’s you do nothing. The most common answer to this is investment income, or even a savings account. The problem here is that investments must be tailored to fit the needs of the individual they are providing for. You have to do the work, make sure your portfolio is balanced and produces enough money for you to live on. You need to be vigilant or your money could vanish unexpectedly if not managed properly. Even savings accounts create money out of nothing and don’t need to be managed, unless you consider the threat of inflation. If the rate of return isn’t high enough, you are losing money.
What hope, then, does an average Joe have of ever reaching the Holy Grail? The answer of course is simple: Work Smarter, Not Harder. If it sounds like a cliche, that’s because it is, but that doesn’t make it any less true. In order for you to achieve a level of passive income that will sustain you and your family for any amount of time, you need to focus on sources of income that takes the least amount of time to cultivate.
I can’t stand when people pick out blogging as a source of passive income. Obviously the way they see it, people just throw up a site, write a post or 2, and gold falls from the sky. Many bloggers write day in and day out for no reward at all. Most that do make money certainly do make their livelyhood from it. Those that do make serous money blogging tend to work as hard as anyone you’ll find out in the “true” workforce.
Focus your energy on ways to create money in ways that are both fun and don’t require huge amounts of time or stress. Investment income is a great place to start, but branch out, look to other opportunities. It’s unlikely you’ll find the one true answer in a blog or in a book, so get out there and create your own livelyhood on your terms.
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