Monday, April 28, 2008

Multiple Streams of Income

Multiple Streams of Income
By Mark Victor Hansen

Most people rely on their job for all of their financial income. Big mistake. There will always be the chance of layoffs or bankruptcy. Management can change, and companies can downsize. The stress of the unknown can be unbearable.

You don’t have to live like this. You can create an inflow of money so you never have to worry about losing your job. It doesn’t even take a job change. It just takes shifting your thinking and opening your eyes! You don’t have to rely on that one job for all of your financial wants and needs. You can create a new way of living through multiple streams of income.

Multiple streams of income is not about getting more than one job. That would only wear you out and lower your quality of life. Multiple streams of income is all about partnering with others and making money through their efforts.

Suppose you are a lake. You have one stream of income, so you don’t have much to fill you up financially. Your water line is looking low since you have to rely on that one stream to replenish you every few weeks. But if you have multiple streams coming in all the time, your banks would be overflowing. If one stream is just trickling, the others will pick up the slack. There will never be a lack of income.

Multiple streams of income are easy to find. In fact, they’re all around you. Just pay attention to your daily life and who and what comes into it.

Take one of my income streams, for example. Years ago, my friend Jack Canfield and I were talking about creating a book filled with inspirational stories to touch the hearts of people. We collected the stories, put the book together, and came up with a great title, Chicken Soup for the Soul. The rest is mega-bestseller history. But these books are not my only source of income. I want you to create multiple income sources.

There are so many possibilities to create wealth. Take out a notebook and list possible streams of income you can create for yourself.

Do you have friends or colleagues who offer services? Would they offer finder’s fees to you for bringing them potential clients? Can you conceptualize new ways to make already existing products or services better? Do you want to create a consulting business that allows you to work from home and set your own hours?

Remember, life is too short to work hard for something you don’t want.

Excellence in Action: Make a list of possible streams of income.

Article courtesy of Leadership Excellence.



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