The size of the gig economy more than doubled between 2016 and 2022, thanks largely to an influx of workers who are looking to create part-time and secondary streams of income. The ongoing technological revolution has aided this evolution too, as it has never been easier to create accessible and relatively passive income streams.
In fact, an estimated 39% of the US workforce did some freelance work in 2022, with people looking to optimize their earning potential at a time when the cost of living crisis and rampant inflation continue to rage throughout the world.
But what exactly is a secondary income, and how can you successfully create one in the current climate? We’ll explore this in the article below.
What is a Secondary Income?
In simple terms, a secondary income is one that’s built and maintained alongside a primary, full-time job role.
Historically, people would pursue secondary incomes by taking on additional, part-time jobs at fewer social hours after working in their primary role between nine and five.
However, remote and hybrid models (along with the explosion of the digital economy) have created more flexibility for workers in 2024, who can now seek out a wider range of convenient and even passive income streams to supplement their main way of generating money.
OK, So What Are The Best Ways to Create a Secondary Income?
The question that remains, of course, is what are the best ways of generating a secondary income in the current climate? The truth is that there remain many options at present, especially in a digital age where a growing number of tasks can be completed remotely and online.
Ultimately, the key is to identify which income stream and method best works for you. Here are some of the options that you could consider in 2024!
- 1. Trading, Investing and Gambling: There’s a tremendous amount of crossover between trading, investing and gambling, and each of these pastimes can unlock additional income in 2024. We’ll start with what are generally passive streams of income, with a number of trading and investment vehicles available in the digital age. Arguably, forex trading offers the best liquidity and most impressive leverage, although the volatile nature of this space may be off-putting to more risk-averse individuals. When it comes to gambling, it’s better to prioritize sports betting and markets where you can leverage knowledge, insight and data analysis. You can register with 1win today to get started!
- 2. Selling Products Online or Dropshipping: Ever since the emergence of the e-commerce marketplace at the turn of the century, sites like Amazon and eBay have made it easier for you to sell your unwanted, discarded or handmade items online. However, technological advances have also made it possible for similar individuals to now engage in dropshipping, where they buy in-demand items at wholesale prices before selling these at their retail values to realize a profit. This is a low-cost and low-risk business model, which minimizes outlay and optimizes profits over time.
- 3. Launch a Business: We’ll end with one of the most common methods of generating a secondary income, which is to start a new business. This can be funded simply through bootstrapping and the money earned through a full-time job at first, while you can start small and scale your efforts organically over time. Over time, this may also evolve to become your primary source of income as the business grows successfully. Of course, starting a business is quite a broad piece of advice, so we’d recommend targeting tech-based ventures that also boast low overheads and reduced risk.