How to Get the Salary You Want Through Multiple Streams of Revenue
By: Michelle Tirpak
Tags: Money, Side Hustle, How To, Gig Economy, Salary

As a young 22 year old who was freshly graduated from college with a degree and debt, I knew that I would be starting from the absolute bottom to get to the salary that I wanted and that it would take time… and a lot of it. The way that I have made this happen much quicker is through multiple streams of revenue.

When you first graduate college and have a big expensive degree with your name on it, you first feel that your opportunities are endless. Then, you quickly realize that the degree doesn’t means anything unless you can show your worth. Showing your worth when you first graduate from college is quite challenging, sure you have taken classes and maybe done internships or gotten good grades, but so have so many other students out in the job world. So how do you get to the point where you are earning 70–80k a year as a young 20 year old who is fresh out of college ? The answer for me has been multiple streams of income.

Though I am now in my late 20s and have worked my way up the corporate ladder a bit to earn a job that actually pays me an average salary — roughly 45k a year — I have learned that I can still get the income I want though having different revenue sources, while I am still in the process of working myself up the corporate ladder. I have found a lot of great side hustles both passive and active which have made this possible, in addition to working a full time nine to five job.

The first and main way to make extra money is side hustles or gig work. The ones that I have taken place in are primarily event related — I work for a concert production company on the side and have done a lot of live event work such as: doing door for different venues, being a production manager, working VIP for larger events, and working as a production assistant for film festivals and other events going on in my area. The best way that I recommend getting involved in this type of gig work is reaching out to your local venue or production company. Club venues always need people to work door, bartend, do security, etc. and most of these jobs pay on a per show basis. Plus being around live events is fun and almost a hobby of sorts so it makes it so that you are being social while also making money. This type of gig work is great for someone who wants extra revenue, but also enjoys and appreciates the arts and live events.

In addition to this, a great side hustle that I have found online is through Amazon Turk. For those who are not familiar — Amazon Turk is a platform where you can complete micro hits or small jobs such as transcribing, answering surveys, or doing experiments where you will get paid a small amount of money per task. The pay can range anywhere from one cent to $100.00. Amazon Turk is a great side hustle that I have picked up on and off over a period of over 5 years or so. If you are consistent with it you can make an extra small paycheck — usually I can pull anywhere from $20–30 a week if I really stick with it, which adds up overtime. This is definitely not a get rich quick side hustle but its easy to do from home when you are bored and makes you a bit of extra money which is always helpful.

Another great side hustle that I have found to increase your revenue stream is through food delivery. The one that I have personally done is DoorDash though I have heard great things about Uber Eats as well. DoorDash is incredibly easy to get accepted to and if you live in a popular area with lots of restaurants, you can likely deliver a lot of orders in a small period of time without going very far. I do DoorDash periodically, however I am super picky on what orders that I take to make sure that they are worth my time. If you are strategic with the orders that you take you can take 2–3 orders an hour and make anywhere from $20–40 an hour depending on the pay of the orders. DoorDash is also 100% flexible as you choose when you want to work and when you don’t, which is nice for someone who wants to make extra money on their own terms but doesn’t want to stick with the consistency of having a set schedule.

Another way to make decent side money is to look for a seasonal job. There are so many companies that hire seasonally whether it be around the holidays or some just for a 90 day period where you can get an extra paycheck for a few months without committing to a long term thing. Seasonal jobs can pay decent and lead to an extra few hundred dollars a week which is nice especially around the holidays.

Focus groups and surveys are another great and fun way to make extra income on the side. I am always scouring the internet for such opportunities and usually sign up for these companies emails so that I can apply for opportunities that I might be eligible for. Almost every city has some sort of focus group website — an example — I am from Cleveland so Focus Groups of Cleveland is a really popular one here. Not only are focus groups decent paying, you can make anywhere from $75–200 for an hour or two of your time, but they are also fun and can lead to some great discussions with interesting people.

If you have rental property or are looking to buy a house one of the best ways to make passive money is by renting out a room in your house to a roommate. I bought a house a few years ago by myself and have two roommates who pay me rent which helps to make the mortgage much more affordable. If you purchase a duplex there is also the opportunity to take on tenants which can pay a significant portion of your mortgage, and in which you are living in separate quarters. There is also always the opportunity to utilize Vrbo or AirBnb and rent out your room or house on a nightly basis which can result in a significant boost in income — especially if you have an extra room or area in your space which you are not currently utilizing. The rental money that I make each month pays a significant portion of my mortgage and helps me to afford my home, but also helps me to build equity which is helpful for the future.

As you can see there are many ways to make money on the side, some active and some passive. I think the best way to do this is by finding something that interests you and finding a way to turn it into a side hustle. If you love books you can probably get a part time job at a bookstore; if you love pets you can probably get some sort of part time side hustle walking dogs, grooming dogs, or working with a trainer; if you love concerts like I do there is always the opportunity to work live events in some form. The opportunities to make money on the side really are endless but it is always more rewarding to do it when it is something that you also enjoy.