Happy Friday, Frugal Friends! š¤øāāļø
Weāve been talking a lot about simplicity the last few weeks, so Iāll cut straight to the chase.
I am the queen of side hustles, and one too many side hustles combined with too many road trips this month has me feeling TIRED.
Iāve been on this financial journey for quite some time, and Iām finally feeling like Iām getting the basics a bit more under controlāIām budgeting, Iām realigning my spending with my values, Iām investingā¦ but thereās still something missing from the equation.Ā
I have never learned to simplify my income.Ā
I grew up in a low-income family then spent over a decade as an underemployed and underpaid student, so I think I really leaned into the idea that more work, work, work would eventually pay off.
But Iām starting to realize thatās just not always the case (I wonāt get on my soapbox about exploitation of labor and pay inequality, but yāall know Iām thinking it).
Iām never gonna give up all my side hustles because I do love the thrill of it all, but I am trying to be more intentional about maximizing and simplifying my income.
But how?
What To Consider When Simplifying Our Income? š
Repeat after meā¦
Simplifying my income does NOT mean making less.
When it comes to earning, we need to make the distinction again between simple and minimal.Ā
We think that wherever possible itās great to increase your take-home pay and long-term wealth, as long as youāre are not hurting yourself (i.e., burning yourself out long-term, over-extending) and you are not hurting others (i.e., taking advantage of others as a means toward wealth building).
To manage our income well, and even increase our net worth, we can consider these four things:
ā¾ļø Longevity. How long could I reasonably do this? What are the mental, relational, or physical demands of the job? What are the burnout rates for this field?
ā³ Investment of time. What is the true time requirement? Does it leave room for my other values and priorities?
š° Compensation.Ā From payment to benefits, is there reasonable monetary value placed on the role and my skill set?
šÆĀ Satisfaction. Does this job/role/career/environment provide an outlet for my specific skills? Better yet, does it intersect with some of the things that bring me joy?
As we consider each of these, letās also revisit the 80/20 rule.
Ideally we want 20% of our efforts to reap 80% of our return.Ā
So if we keep jumping into side hustles that end up being 80% of our effort for 20% of our return, itās not simple and itās not sustainable.Ā
Of course, I recognize itās a privilege to be able to select a job that really aligns with all our priorities and values.
Many of us end up in jobs out of necessity, but where possible, these factors can be helpful when evaluating our job situations.
Our job situations can be evaluated quarterly, bi-annually, or annually, depending on the field we’re in, our current season, and what we want out of life.Ā
A couple questions can guide this evaluation:
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Is my income, how I earn money, as simplified as it could be or as I want it to be?
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Are there ways I can simplify how Iām earning money?
Iām still figuring out the answers to these questions myself.
Iād love to hear some inspiring stories. š
If youāve made any realizations about simplifying your income, feel free to share by replying to this email!
On Tuesday, Jen and Jill shared some great tips for Frugal Zero-Waste Living (Ep 398). I canāt get enough about this topic so Iām happy to hear this rerun!
Today, Jen and Jill speak liquid gold about all this prioritization stuff in their episode How to Spend When Your Values & Income Don’t Align (Ep 399).
Tune in wherever you get podcasts and let us know what you thought of the episode over on our latest Instagram post!
ā Ā Listen: to The Inequality Podcast (I know I said I wasnāt getting on my soapbox, butā¦)
ā Ā Watch: American Idol. I havenāt watched in years but found myself binging some of this seasonās episodesā¦ and these sweet contestants are just too cute to miss this year!
ā Ā Do: Reevaluate your cell phone plan. You might be able to score major savings with Mint Mobile. New customers get 3 months of unlimited premium wireless for $15/mo! **
ā Ā Meal Plan: Chicken Sausage and Spinach Ravioli. This Pampered Chef recipe only uses a handful of ingredients and can be diversified depending on taste and ingredients on hand (e.g., I used asparagus instead of spinach)!
Catch ya later,
Misti
āļøāļø P.S. Want to share all this goodness with your friends AND earn cool Frugal Friends merch?
**Means this is a sponsored or affiliate section. We may earn a small fee or commission when you choose to try one of our sponsor or affiliate partners. But opinions are still 1000% our own.