The other day I brought up the interesting discussion about if a second source of income is worth your time and effort. Today I wanted to bring up my thoughts on a very similar argument: should you optimize your spending or try to earn more money? For the sake of not getting repetitive I will give you my answer and tell you why I feel this way.
I would rather optimize spending than work a second job. Why?
You can always spend less but you can’t always work more
There are only so many hours in a week and so many hours you can work before you completely burnout mentally and physically. I do not think you will fix your financial problems by always working more hours. I know it could be argued that more money means more fun but when will you have time for fun if you’re working all of the time? Obviously there are times where your base income is not enough but working more is a short sighted solution. Think long term on how could increase your income/earning potential from your base job instead of trying to make up for your low income with multiple jobs.
More free time to spend on things you truly enjoy
If less work means you could spend more time with family and friends or doing activities that make life fun for you (sports, gym, shooting pool, etc.) then how could you go wrong? I love earning more income and increasing my net worth but you are only going to be young once, so it’s important to learn how to save money and still enjoy life.
It is a reality check showing you what you really need in life
When I started cutting my fixed expenses and cutting back on unnecessary purchases I realized that there was so much stuff I spent money on that I really did not need. Purchases like monthly magazines or new pieces of clothing every week could easily be avoided. You will have to compromise a little but at the end of the day you will have more time for yourself.
More time for school and for educating yourself
By working all of the time you will never learn any new skills because you will be too busy working your various jobs all the time. Even if you are not getting a formal education you could always learn a lot by taking a few sides courses or just picking up a helpful book.
Now it’s time for all of you to share your thoughts on whether you would work more (either a second job or more hours) or focus on optimizing your spending to save money?
Hum, my thinking is almost exactly the opposite. There’s a certain nonzero amount of money that each of us need to survive, which limits the amount of extra money we can derive by relying only on spending cuts. On the other side, working a second job can theoretically allow you to earn as much money as you are currently bringing in, if not more (again, at least in theory).
Don’t get me wrong, cutting expenses are important; it’s usually quicker and easier to cut your spending than to earn more money, and as you mention, there are limits on how much we are willing and able to work to make money. If I needed more money, I would look to both (although, I currently having a bit of trouble getting another FIRST job).
People always talk about reducing spending or increasing income as if it was some kind of battle where one wins over the other one. Or at least that one is somehow superior to the other one.
This is silly.
Reducing spending and increasing income both take effort and produce money in exchange for that effort.
Therefore, the question to ask is “how much effort is it to do X and how much money do I bank because of it?”
Do the mental computations based on your life situations and start knocking out the easiest things with the largest payoffs.
If you can make $50 by watching a cat for a weekend that sounds like a good deal. If you can save $50 by turning off your air conditioning and getting a big box fan that also sounds like a good deal. Saving $2-3 a month by constantly unplugging your “vampire appliances” sounds like a rip off. Spending hours writing for Associated Content for ~$3-4 an article is also a rip off.
See where I’m going with this?
I know what you mean about writing for associated content. They are a ripoff and you can’t make money with them because if they do not like what you write you don’t get paid. It’s thier way or the highway. If you want to make a lot of money just find something that is very exciting and motivating to you and do it and you will attract a lot of wealth. Passive and residual income is very easy to develop these days if as well, but can take some time to create. If you like writing you can do this very effortlessly on the internet. If you do not like writing, just ask yourself what brings you joy and happiness and excitement and then be that version of yourself in whatever work environment you want and then you will find yourself debt free in no time. Most people just do what they do not want and suffer. Just do what you WANT and do not be afraid to go after what you want. Life really is all about WHAT YOU WANT.