Many people assume that in order to generate a source of passive income, they must come up with a brilliant invention or start a new business. However, if you already have a side business—even if it simply consists of the occasional freelance gig—there are steps you can take to significantly reduce the amount of effort you devote to it. By stepping back and taking stock of which tasks you can outsource and which you can eliminate, you’ll be able to quickly convert your current side business into a reliable passive income source.
To do so, consider these tips:
Hire Online Assistants.
Thanks to the Internet, it’s easier than ever to outsource menial tasks to virtual assistants. You no longer have to run a major corporation to take advantage of this convenience. Companies like Brickwork India offer support to everyone from elite Fortune 500 businesses to independent freelancers making some extra money on the side.
For example, if you supplement your main income by freelance writing jobs, you probably have to conduct research, send e-mails, gather sources, format content, find images, etc., in addition to writing articles. Although necessary, these tasks distract you from the actual work of writing.
Fortunately, you can outsource these chores to an online assistant at a very reasonable price. Paying someone else to handle these less-demanding tasks will enable you to devote more attention to attracting high-paying clients. Or, if you’d prefer, you can simply use that extra free time to relax, spend time with your family, or pursue a hobby.
However, you probably won’t be able to completely remove yourself from the equation by hiring an online assistant. Most freelance businesses do require some degree of involvement on your part. That said, delegating minor duties to outside parties will have a dramatic impact on the amount of time and effort you must contribute to maintain and grow your business.
Apply the 80/20 Rule.
Derived from the Pareto Principle, the 80/20 rule states that, in any given pursuit, approximately 20% of your effort leads to 80% of your results. In other words, if you have a freelance side business, about 80% of your revenues come from about 20% of your clients.
For at least a week, monitor how much time you spend working for each client, and how much money you make as a result. Review your findings at the end of the week. It’s highly likely that your results will confirm the 80/20 rule.
It’s much easier to eliminate work that doesn’t generate substantial revenue once you’ve performed your 80/20 analysis. Again, you can either use this knowledge to generate more personal free time or to focus your efforts on finding other high-paying clients.
Leverage Technology.
Tracking your productivity is essential when trying to restructure a business so that it provides a stream of passive income. Luckily, technology makes it easy to do so. You can take advantage of services like RescueTime, an app that monitors users’ digital behavior and generates reports to show them when and where they are wasting time. Additionally, you can find a number of productivity-enhancing tools already on your smartphone, from calendar apps for scheduling deadlines to messaging services for staying in touch with clients.
Because technology improves at such a rapid pace, many people fail to step back and fully assess how they can use their digital tools to become more productive. Try to set aside one afternoon a month to determine which tools you can leverage to achieve your goals more efficiently.
Share Your Knowledge.
If you already have a freelance or side business, you obviously know something about how to start building one. Therefore, people would most likely be interested in learning from you. Use this to your advantage.
For example, you might write and publish an eBook on the topic. If you already have a website, you can sell the eBook directly from there. Otherwise, it doesn’t take long to start a new website. Although you will have to do some work upfront to write, publish, and market the book, once you’ve completed these early tasks, you’ll be able to sit back and collect money from your sales. If writing isn’t your forte, consider making instructional videos and hosting them on a YouTube page with ads. You could also sell them directly to customers.
Generating a passive income stream doesn’t necessarily require you to think up a brilliant idea. Often, people who wish to earn a passive income can convert their freelance gigs into a reliable source of low-effort revenue. By keeping these points in mind, you may be able to do the same.