Last Updated on August 4, 2021 by Yetty Akindele
The saying the “rich keep getting richer and the poor keep getting poorer”, while difficult to fathom by the poor is in essence very true and what obtains in reality.
The rich are masters in ways to make their money work for them. Those who build wealth, understand the principle behind Passive income.
On your way to financial freedom, there are fundamental principles of money generation that must be understood. This is of utmost importance so you can break free from the shackles of never having enough money to meet your needs.
Of these key principles are 2 types of income generation. First is Passive income, and the second type is Active income. This article will focus on Passive income as well as giving examples of 10 passive income ideas.
A quick look into the definition of both income types;
Passive Income
This is money earned with little or no effort. It is usually earned by way of investments. Passive income is that money that flows in regularly, for an indefinite period even in your sleep!
Could there be anything greater than making money round the clock?
This means of generating money is an art that has been mastered by the rich. It usually includes money earned from sources such as rental property, royalties, investments, and a host of other sources. Its endpoint is financial security as well as financial independence.
Active income
Putting in a considerable amount of effort into the service being rendered to generate money is active income. Income earned from wages, salaries, commissions, etc. are examples of active income.
This type of Income, which can sometimes be high paying as-is with a doctor, lawyer, or accountant is usually finite. The income is paid on a fixed scale and only for the hours for which work is done.
Having established the key differences between these 2 income types, let us get to the business of what this article is all about!
See below for 10 Passive income ideas you can use to create wealth for yourself, improve your cash flow. This is the type of wealth that affords you that lifestyle you dream of, perhaps a trip to Bahamas or Maldives for a well-deserved vacation.
Blogging
Start a blog or website. Carve out a niche (area of specialization) for yourself and create content that drives traffic to your page. Generate passive income from your website through the inclusion of ‘affiliate’ links. Affiliate marketing means you earn a commission from the sale of a product you feature in your blog post.
You get affiliate links in different ways such as visiting the product website to find out if they offer affiliate marketing. It is easier to join an affiliate network such as Clickbank, ShareASale, Commission junction, eBay affiliate marketing, LinkShare, or the most popular Amazon associates.
Display advertisements are also another means to monetize your blog. With display adverts, you earn money through pay per click (PPC). Google Adsense is one way to get pay per click adverts.
Real Estate
This is one investment opportunity that remains steady even in the face of different economic conditions. Real estate investment doesn’t require active involvement as a landlord or caretaker.
However, it is noteworthy to state that when it comes to real estate investing, due diligence is required in determining which form of real estate is best suited to your situation. This is true for all types of investment.
There are a couple of options to earn passively with real estate such as real estate investment trust (REIT), real estate Joint ventures (JV), real estate crowdfunding, mortgage investment funds just to name a few.
Dropshipping
Have you ever wondered about owning an online eCommerce store? Consider dropshipping. With the advent of the internet, so many online business opportunities have also come up.
Dropshipping simply defined is selling items via an online store. A third-party seller e.g. wholesaler then ships the items directly to the customer while you earn some profits from that sale.
This is a cool way of running a store since it bypasses the need to have a physical store or warehouse for the storage of inventory.
It is such an awesome way to earn passive income as it requires little or no effort from you, asides from creating the online store and having access to millions of dropshippers via different platforms.
Online courses
Are you exceptionally good in a particular subject area? Online courses are another option for generating passive income.
You only need to put in the majority of the effort when creating the course content and then you can sit back, relax while you earn income from the sale of your course(s).
Platforms like Thinkific are great for creating online courses.
YouTube Channel
Create YouTube videos that can be about different things such as your lifestyle, travel, news, entertainment, celebrity gossip just to name a few. You earn income from YouTube videos based on the number of following, number of views/traffic, adverts, etc.
You become a YouTube celebrity when you have a high number of followers. This makes you an influencer and could pave the way to other revenue streams.
This is a type of passive income that involves a one-time effort of making the video and earning income many times over the more people watch the videos. It is similar to the online course content means of passive income generation. The earning potential is infinite!
Social media Influencer
Promote everyday products you use on your social media platform by joining programs such as the Amazon influencer program.
You earn money from influencing the purchase of products by your followers on your social media platforms such as Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, etc.
Investing in Stocks/Mutual funds
While this is a high-risk investment, it is also a viable means of earning passive income if the investment is approached the right way. It should not be dabbled into by a novice as it is high risk. You can make use of the services of financial advisors or robo-advisors, should you decide to invest in the stock market.
One great way to get to be adequately informed about the stock market to read books on it. Many great experts in the stock market investing field have written good books on the subject. These books can serve as your first step towards understanding how to invest in the stock market.
Cashback Applications
The smartphone is one of my best devices in this age of technology. This is because it avails me access to different applications that are excellent financial tools. Among these financial tools are various cashback applications such as Rakuten and Checkout 51. Pair these with a cashback or rewards card and earn a high percentage of passive income.
High-Interest Savings Account
If you are not comfortable with high-risk investments such as stocks, why keep your money in a low-interest savings account? There are various options of high interest yielding savings account that pay you interest on your savings. Interests earned on these accounts are calculated daily and paid out at the end of the month. As an example, EQ bank offers a year-round 1.25% interest rate on their Savings Plus Account.
Rental Property
You can rent your property as a means of generating passive income. As an example, you can list a room in your house for rent via Vacation rentals by owner. You could even rent out your entire house should you be going on a vacation since you won’t be using the facility anyways. If you own a recreational vehicle (RV), you can list it for rent on platforms like Outdoorsy.
Car renting is also another means of generating income, various platforms exist for peer-to-peer car sharing such as Turo, Enterprise rent-a-car, Getaround, Hyrecar (providing cars to renters for use as Uber, Lyft, or delivery services such as skip the dishes and door dash)
Without a doubt, having multiple streams of income is the endpoint to achieving financial freedom and security. The more your sources of income, the higher your cash flow as well as your net worth.