Success in life is a product of passive recurring income.
Let that soak in for a minute. I'm not the kind of guy who usually dishes out advice, but whenever someone asks me what I have done to get to where I am today, I always tell them: passive recurring income.
Every month my 6 rental properties bring in $4,136. Sure, I have obligations such as mortgages, insurance and taxes that I pay out of that, but I use much of what's left to do with as I please (right now "as I please" has been "paying off debt", but still...).
Passive recurring income is the type of income that arrives with minimal effort and on a regular cycle. It includes rent, dividends, interest and any other inflow that is on auto-pilot. I think it is Ben Franklin who called compound interest the "eighth wonder of the world". Passive recurring income is a close cousin to compound interest.
If you always live below your means, meaning you spend less than you earn on a consistent basis, you will have money you can put to work. Deploy that money towards investments that earn you passive recurring income. It becomes a snowball of more money, until eventually you reach financial independence, which is the point in your life when you no longer have to worry about making ends meet.
Tuesday, August 31
Monday, August 30
A Week in the Life of a Mystery Shopper
August 22nd - August 28th...
Last week started out great... after Sunday, anyway. Monday-Thursday I made decent money and didn't have to do too many shops since many of them came with bonuses. For example, I did two easy gas station shops and made $50 plus $12 in reimbursements.
Unfortunately, Friday and Saturday were really slow. Being the end of the month, I usually pick up a handful of shops with decent bonuses. On Friday I only completed two shops, but that was fine. My partner is off on Friday's so we went to the state park and went hiking, then to the Botanical Gardens. It was a fun day. Saturday, on the other hand, I only completed one shop. This did give me the chance to catch up on things. I went to the house I am selling and cut the grass and tended to the flowers. I also repaired a plumbing issue one of my tenants was having. It's always fulfilling to repair something myself and avoid calling a repairman.
I earned $472 in fees and $222 in reimbursements. This week should be okay, but not stellar. I have several gas stations already lined up and a couple other mystery shops.
Last week started out great... after Sunday, anyway. Monday-Thursday I made decent money and didn't have to do too many shops since many of them came with bonuses. For example, I did two easy gas station shops and made $50 plus $12 in reimbursements.
Unfortunately, Friday and Saturday were really slow. Being the end of the month, I usually pick up a handful of shops with decent bonuses. On Friday I only completed two shops, but that was fine. My partner is off on Friday's so we went to the state park and went hiking, then to the Botanical Gardens. It was a fun day. Saturday, on the other hand, I only completed one shop. This did give me the chance to catch up on things. I went to the house I am selling and cut the grass and tended to the flowers. I also repaired a plumbing issue one of my tenants was having. It's always fulfilling to repair something myself and avoid calling a repairman.
I earned $472 in fees and $222 in reimbursements. This week should be okay, but not stellar. I have several gas stations already lined up and a couple other mystery shops.
Thursday, August 26
A Week in the Life of a Mystery Shopper
August 15th - August 21st...
I didn't make as much last week. Instead, I hung out in Vegas for a few days attending a mystery shopping conference. It was enjoyable. I met some interesting shoppers and representatives of companies. The most tangible benefit is that I learned about a few companies I didn't know about and will hopefully get some new work from these.
I earned $239 in fees and $86 in reimbursements. As this week is half over (I know...late post), I already know I will earn more, but not as much as I'd like to. One company I normally do a lot of work for has been slow to offer acceptable rates for their jobs this month.
I didn't make as much last week. Instead, I hung out in Vegas for a few days attending a mystery shopping conference. It was enjoyable. I met some interesting shoppers and representatives of companies. The most tangible benefit is that I learned about a few companies I didn't know about and will hopefully get some new work from these.
I earned $239 in fees and $86 in reimbursements. As this week is half over (I know...late post), I already know I will earn more, but not as much as I'd like to. One company I normally do a lot of work for has been slow to offer acceptable rates for their jobs this month.
Wednesday, August 25
Cutting the Electric Bill - August Bill
In August I was an electricity glutton. In June I set a goal of reducing my electric usage by 20% over the next 6 months. I just received my August bill, and it's ugly.
My August 2010 usage was almost twice the amount from August 2009. This is the second consecutive month where I failed to reduce my usage. It isn't that I did not try. My thermostat is set to 80 and is turned off completely when no one is home.
For my August power bill, I used 582 kWh of electricity, and my bill was $77.55. In August, 2009 I used 314 kWh ($51.82). What happened? Last August was my last full month at the corporate sales job, and I know I did some traveling that month. My gut tells me the weather was cooler as well.
Here's the September goal: In 2009 I used 290 kWh, so to "make the month" I need to reduce usage to 232 kWh, or just under 8 kWh per day... that's a challenge!
My August 2010 usage was almost twice the amount from August 2009. This is the second consecutive month where I failed to reduce my usage. It isn't that I did not try. My thermostat is set to 80 and is turned off completely when no one is home.
For my August power bill, I used 582 kWh of electricity, and my bill was $77.55. In August, 2009 I used 314 kWh ($51.82). What happened? Last August was my last full month at the corporate sales job, and I know I did some traveling that month. My gut tells me the weather was cooler as well.
Here's the September goal: In 2009 I used 290 kWh, so to "make the month" I need to reduce usage to 232 kWh, or just under 8 kWh per day... that's a challenge!
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