How to Achieve Financial Independence

Our society envies financial independence, yet we aren’t getting anywhere closer to achieving it by following in the footsteps of our parents or siblings. Society tells us to put ourselves in thousands of dollars of debt just to receive a degree that gets us into an entry-level, 9-5 job, working the same 40 hours a week and rarely seeing an increase in pay. We are all guilty of getting stuck in this vicious, draining cycle. 

Is it possible to break this cycle? 

Of course, it is. Financial freedom isn’t completely unheard of. It’s just a little harder to achieve now more so than in previous generations. Like most Millennials and Gen Y’ers have learned, the solution is to pick up additional “side hustles”. Our cost of living only continues to increase, but minimum wage remains constant, so there is no way to achieve your goals of becoming financially independent and breaking the paycheck-to-paycheck cycle unless you find a way to make cash on the side and learn to minimize other expenses when possible.

I gathered together my top 3 tips on how you can achieve the financial independence that you’ve been striving for. The following tips are your answer to achieving stability and living the life you have always dreamt of. Take them or leave them, but when you have money flowing into your bank account before even getting out of your bed in the morning, you’ll be thanking me. 

Here is how…

Cancel unwanted subscriptions and other unnecessary recurring expenses.

Do you really need to have those subscriptions to Netflix, Amazon, AND Hulu? Well, don’t answer that because regardless, the answer is no. No one needs any of those subscriptions to survive, and in fact, you’re better off without them. 

First, identify how much money you are dumping into these meaningless memberships, that often go unused, and cancel them immediately. You will be amazed at how much money this will save you and you’ll also be able to free up some extra money in your budget for more important things, like investing it into your new methods of income. Why pay for useless services that just drain our bank account and eat up your money, when you can be investing in things that pay your money right back to you? That’s just nonsense.

Start having multiple methods of income.

This is one of the most obvious ways to make sure that you are financially stable and can achieve financial independence. Gone are the days of worrying about getting laid off and losing your only source of financial income, there is plenty of work to go around! It’s incredibly common to come across several other business professionals that have more than one method of income and although we aren’t in a recession and many people are gaining jobs instead of losing them, having a backup plan is never a bad idea. 

There are so many options available for making additional spending money when you’re not at your 9-5. Investing it into stocks and high-yielding savings accounts are some of the obvious ones. But there are also many other options that people don’t often think about, like the following:

Drop-Shipping

If you haven’t heard of Shopify yet, you may be living under a rock. However, for those of you that don’t know, Shopify is an online platform that allows you to source products and manufacturers all through their online website, slap your designs on them, generate a website to sell them on and post your listings, and it handles the rest for you. No warehouse or physical store required. If you’re looking to start making money on the side but don’t want to have to invest a large sum of money into starting one, this is a great option for you. 

Amazon FBA and Amazon Automation

Amazon has some outstanding income opportunities, but many people aren’t taking advantage of them. This is a newer method of making money that has become popular in the last year or so. Much like Shopify, Amazon allows you to create a retail brand and sell products, without the heavy investments, start-up costs, having to hire a web developer, or having to figure outsourcing, logistics, warehousing, etc. It’s a very affordable option for opening a new business of your own. There is also a way to automate your Amazon FBA through split testing software that also increases your conversion rates and profits. The options are endless and Amazon makes it easy for you to open your own business and start making extra cash on the spot.

Freelance Work

What are you passionate about? What are your hobbies? Believe it or not, there are plenty of platforms where you can get paid for a lot of hobbies. Hop on Fiverr or Upwork, check out the options available and services that others have to offer and see if those are things that you’re also passionate about and good at. Then, make an account and get to selling your services! Freelance work also doesn’t have to be strictly online, you could do the same thing face-to-face by networking with people in your area and offering your expertise, whether that be in photography, videography, web development, etc. 

Additional Revenue Streams

Other options that are readily available for making additional spending money: ATM investing, investing in rental properties or renting out a room in your current space, peer-to-peer money lending, re-selling products online or at markets, affiliate marketing, or becoming a social media influencer. 

Open your own business.

Aside from opening online stores that don’t involve face-to-face sales or networking, there is the option of opening our own physical business. Opening your own business does require extra start-up costs and physical involvement, but the rewards are endless. 

I only recommend this option to those that are willing to put in the long hours, blood, sweat, and tears (okay maybe not tears- men don’t cry). Opening your own business (and a successful one, at that), requires the kind of commitment and strength that only a very select few are capable of. If you know that you’re willing to put in the work and have a business concept that will catch on, then I would say to go for it! Becoming a business owner is one of the best decisions I have made in my life. But if you’re going to do it, you have to do it right. Don’t focus on creating a business just to sell a product or service. People don’t like to be sold and can sniff out a sales pitch from a mile away. Instead, consider what you can offer the world. How can you make the world a better place or solve a common issue that society often runs into?

Sit down and brainstorm what your interests are and what you can offer the world. You have to have a strong understanding of your strengths and weaknesses to have any idea of where to start. And once you do, then determine what’s missing in the market, what we call “negative space”, which can be a challenging concept for most. Our brains are naturally programmed to see what is there, not to identify what isn’t there. However, some of the best businesses and the ones that have exceptional brand awareness and longevity did exactly this. They found the negative space and came up with a solution on how to fill it. Consider Amazon for example, none of us assumed that we needed to shop online for a majority of our groceries, clothes, and/or home goods until Amazon came around, but now it’s nearly impossible to imagine life without it. 

Focus on these three things and you’ll be steps ahead of your peers and even closer to achieving financial independence. If you happen to try any of these suggestions out or have already tried any of them, let me know by leaving a comment below. I want to hear your feedback on how they worked for you!