Have you ever wondered what life would be like if only you earned more than your current salary?
Would you lead a more extravagant life? Or at least, a more secure life?
Life can turn frightening quickly if you don’t make enough money to cover your debt, or even your basic bills. You may live forever waiting for your next paycheck, only to have the money slide between your fingers and disappear quickly.
No matter your education, experience, interest, or location, you can always turn your financial situation around.
It isn’t always easy, but these 10 tips will help you if you don’t make enough money.
1) Slash Your Bills
Are you saving money at the grocery store by meal planning?
Are you paying for cable when you could cut it out or find a cheaper alternative?
Budgeting is always important, but it’s especially necessary if you are cutting it close financially. You’ve got to cut back every cent you can.
If you are looking to slash your bills and lower your budget, check out our free budgeting template. It takes less than 10 minutes to input your spending, and it can help you get back on track financially.
2) Call Your Lenders
If you aren’t making enough money to pay your debt, the worst thing you can do is to ignore the problem. When lenders aren’t receiving payments from you, it can lead to serious consequences, such as legal and financial conflicts.
You can turn your financial situation around and you will be able to pay them back the money you owe. But it may not happen immediately. If you are missing payments, the best thing to do is to call your lending company. Tell them what is going on and when they can expect a payment. You can even try to negotiate with them to see if they can lower your payments or your interest rate.
3) Sell Whatever You Can
One of the quickest ways to make a few dollars is to sell items you already own. Even though I live in a small apartment, I am constantly finding things I no longer use and can sell for good money. Furniture and electronics can sell for a large sum of money, but don’t underestimate the income you can receive from selling clothing, accessories, and household items.
By selling items, you can earn a large sum of money relatively quickly. Use this money to get you on track with your bills for the time being.
4) Build a Mini-Emergency Fund
If you only earn enough just to get by on your bills every month, you will need to prioritize an emergency fund.
There will always be an unexpected bill or emergency expense that arises. If your regular income is barely covering your bills, then you are putting yourself at a major risk by not having an emergency fund.
You can start a mini-emergency fund by setting aside every extra penny you come across in the next couple of months. If you are able to, you can quickly build an emergency fund by using the money from the items you sold from your home.
5) Have a No-Spend Month
Until you start earning more money, it’s vital to keep your expenses low until you work on increasing your income.
A no-spend month is one way to do just that. During a no-spend month, you do not spend money on anything that isn’t imperative to sustain life on the daily. This means cutting out expenses such as eating out, hobbies, socialization expenses, expensive products, and more.
6) Start a Side Hustle
We know, we know. We talk about side hustles all the time. But the truth is, side hustles are the easiest way to increase your income and your career opportunities.
Your side hustle can be just about anything. We always advocate that blogging and freelance writing are some of the best side hustles, but you can earn extra money doing anything on the side that you enjoy.
You’d be surprised at how easy it can be to earn an extra $500 a month or more by taking on a side hustle.
7) Consider Debt to Income
What’s your debt to income ratio? That is, the amount of debt you owe divided by your income. If you are paying a significant amount of your income towards debt everything month, you may find it difficult to ever get ahead.
While with the power of side income, you can really bolster your progress with paying back debt. But until you start making additional cash, you may want to look at what options you have to consolidate your debt.
8) Up Your 9-5 Income
Feel like you’re never going to get a raise? What you earn at work is important because you’re essentially getting paid by what your employer thinks your time is worth.
Most employers aren’t just handing out raises, especially if it is not annual review time. But you can prove your worth to your employer by taking on additional projects, volunteering when they need assistance, and making note of all that you have accomplished in the current year.
9) Get Everyone On Board
Without support in efforts to better your finances, you are significantly lowering your chance of success.
Get your family and friends on board with your decision to better your finances. Explain to them how you are planning to spend less, or earn more, and how both may make you a little less available.
10) Commit
Lastly, commitment is the number one characteristic you need in order to achieve success. Turning your financial situation is definitely not impossible, but it does take quite a bit of effort and sacrifice.
Once you fully commit to betting your finances, you’ll be able to move forward much more quickly.
Related:
Have you ever felt like you were cutting it close financially? How did you handle that? What tips do you have for anyone who doesn’t make enough money?
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Fortunately my current jobs pays well, but I still have side-hustles. For me it’s more about the extra money, it’s about the challenge.
Agreed! The money from side hustles is a definite bonus but there are so many other benefits!
Important advice, some of which is easily forgotten. Many people feel too scared to ask for a raise but it can really help and often the worst that can be said is no. Side hustles are a nice way to extract a little bit more income from your time and it is something I like to do to provide a little bit extra income
You are so right. Many people think asking for a raise translates into their employer automatically thinking they don’t care about their job or appreciate what they have. You can negotiate a raise politely and tactfully so the worst answer is no.
Absolutely agree, if you want to save more for a determinated goal, like a holiday or a expensive bag, sell items that you don’t use, accept extra work (dog sitting, waitress as side hustle) and put extra income into your fund for goal…if you go to cafe every day, don’t cancel it but plan it 1 or 2 times per week…little cuddles help to stay focused:D
Little treats are worth it here and there, but you’re right in that they add up quickly!
People underestimate how much they can make when they sell things, People will buy anything. All you have to do is list it.