Anyone who spends enough time reading about passive income success stories realizes something interesting: there doesn’t appear to be any specific age requirement for earning extra money on the side.
Granted, various passive income streams may be better suited to some stages of life than others. That said, passive income strategies are so valuable because they’re so accessible. The following points illustrate why people of any age group can and should focus on setting up reliable income streams that don’t require significant ongoing effort to maintain.
Children
It’s easy to understand why it would be valuable for a young child to start earning a passive income sooner rather than later. Quite simply, the earlier you start making money, the more opportunities you’ll have to save. While children may need some help from adults to start earning money on the side, they can still do so in several ways.
For example, many young people are passionate about arts and crafts. It’s not uncommon for them to be extremely talented in these areas as well. Because their lifestyles may not be as busy as those of adults, they have more time to dedicate to their hobbies. Thus, they have more time to improve.
A crafty young person who creates, for example, custom ornaments for holiday decorations, could earn extra money from them by selling their creations via a platform like Etsy. Again, while this is obviously work, it will feel easy if that particular young person already enjoys creating such items.
There are other benefits. Artists derive satisfaction from sharing their creations with others. Additionally, selling items prevents them from taking up space in one’s own house so they can continue to practice their hobbies.
This approach can yield dramatic results. Some teens earn six figures a year selling their creations on Etsy shops. While such earnings are not common, they demonstrate the potential for people of any age to make money online.
Adults
Adults benefit from passive income for obvious reasons as well. After all, as young people transition into adult life, they have additional financial responsibilities. Earning extra money on the side helps individuals pay the bills, save for retirement, and set aside money for potential future purchases.
Grown-ups are also typically better-equipped than children and teens to make money via more technical passive income streams. They may have a greater understanding of the stock market, and can thus use their knowledge to make smart investments.
Not only that, adults have more life experience. This means they are also generally more likely to have knowledge that others may find valuable. Channels through which one’s expertise can be shared include blogs, eBooks, podcasts, and YouTube channels. These can all can be monetized.
Grown-ups also tend to have greater access to the funds that may be sometimes necessary for establishing a source of extra money. For instance, let’s say you intend to write a book on a topic you know quite a bit about. You would still need a professional quality cover in order to attract readers.
Designing an appropriate cover may involve hiring a freelance graphic designer. Additionally, ensuring the book gets enough attention during launch might involve spending some money on a marketing campaign. Spending some money up front can ensure a greater, more consistent flow of cash down the road. Adults are simply more likely than children to have the money needed for this these steps.
Retirees
People who’ve reached retirement age may arguably be the most qualified to earn money via passive income streams. They once again have a significant amount of free time because they are no longer engaged in full-time work. Not only that, they have the life experience necessary to take advantage of a wide range of passive income strategies.
Creating passive income streams also gives retirees the chance to focus their energies on projects they may find enjoyable. Although retiring is something many look forward to, it can also be somewhat boring if a person is used to spending their days being productive.
That doesn’t need to be the case. Retirees can still use their creative energies. They’ll simply devote those energies to creating sources of extra income. This is also valuable for those who would like to supplement their retirement earnings. Instead of getting a part-time job, they can explore their passions—and make money doing so.
That’s why you’re never too young or too old to learn about passive income. Just about everyone has some opportunity to earn easy money. They simply need to decide how they wish to go about doing so. This blog will continue to provide ideas.