Gone are the days when the mom stays home to take care of the kids while the dad goes to work. I was fortunate when I was younger because my mom stayed at home. She on the other hand was totally unfortunate. When her and my dad divorced at 40, she had to start her life with nothing, never having worked and having no real skills.

Even if I did have a husband who could look after our family, I would insist on making my own money. Not just 1 source but multiple sources of income. Why?

For me my most important value is security so having money for speaks to my values and beliefs. I never want to end up like my mom with not enough money to look after myself.

It’s clear now more than ever that having more than 1 source of income is not a ‘nice to have’ but a necessity. With prices and inflation always on the rise fixed income is no longer the best solution if you have plans on growing your wealth or retiring rich.

Having multiple income streams does not mean you have to have 3 jobs and survive on 3 hours of sleep per night. The smart way to create income is through passive sources. Putting your savings in an interest-bearing bank account will yield interest. The longer the savings stay in the bank the longer you get the benefit of interest and compound interest.

You could start investing and save the money you do make in a tax-free savings account. You can save as much as R 36,000 a year for 5 years without paying tax on your savings.

You can rent out a room in your home or turn your outside toilet into a guest suite for rental.

You could look at starting a drop shipping online store. Building the online store, you can do mostly for free with the number of platforms available today. Drop shipping means never having to buy stock but rather selling the stock and then the suppliers post it directly to your customer for you. This whole process can be automated and all you need is a smart marketing plan and budget.

What are some of the ways that you could carve out some extra income for yourself? Have you thought about turning your passion into profit?

Financial literacy is the cornerstone of prosperity and security. It builds confidence and knowledge in the lives of individuals and the country. We cannot address the issues of financial inclusion and equitable and sustainable socio-economic development without addressing financial literacy.

At Money Savvy we have several online and face-to-face programmes to help you make more money and grow your wealth. Ask us how!

Kathryn Main