What Is Your Safety Net?

"If your salary is your only source of Income you're one step away from poverty" - Warren Buffet

For as long as I can remember I have always been a multi skilled person, I have had many interests from wanting to opening my own cocktail bar on a tropical island (still something I will do once financially independent) to opening my own gym. I have had several jobs over the years and have found myself bouncing around from pillar to post un settled and we all know why... I can't work for someone. Im currently in a situation where I am working for a large corporation however I know what I need to do, a sort of get in and get out and invest what is saved so the next six months are a grit a bear it attitude as the reward will put me in a place where I know I will be in a financial position to better my chances and also comfortably be my own boss 24/7.

Yes I went off a little there but it all adds up to what I want to tell you. I have gone from a waiter, barista, barman, removal guy, customer service advisor, stonemason, personal trainer, photographer, care assistant, crew worker & design surveyor. I have worked since I was 15 ignorant to how money worked and uneducated on how to spend it, its not until I was 24/25 I began to realise what sort of circle I was in of repeating myself and on the conveyor belt of the rat race. However what I'm grateful for is all of the above skillsets are jobs which I now class as a safety net. Each job is a skilled trade and have been for me jobs which I've returned back to in order to keep me afloat instead of dipping into my savings when things go tits up, which for everyone they do however do you have your safety net?

A prime example of this is the current situation which the world has faced in the past year. People have lost jobs and have been so caught up in that job that they have not given themselves time to learn another skill or have something to fall back on. For me personal training is something I keep as my safety net and currently started a digital content business as a way of keeping my creativeness alive but also help independent small business' shine online. I lost my job during COVID and put my hand to giving back as a care assistant a job I will talk more about in another post but hands down has to be the job out of them all that really switched something on in my head. You have to be willing to put your hand to anything or else you will be in worse position 3-6 months down the line when the money starts to run out and your plan for the future gets further and further away.

The one thing I have loved amongst all of this chaos in the past year is seeing people really look into what they want to do in life. I have seen numerous people come out of their shell and end up in a better position than where they were this time last year. This progress amongst my friends and even people I don't really know still makes me smile, seeing people achieve what they are good at even if they didn't realise that was their calling all along has to be up there with the reasoning behind why social media is so good.

So do yourself a favour learn something, get better at an old skill or start something new. Really take time (but not too much) to consider what your safety net could be or how you can better improve your chances of having a constant cash flow even when times are hard. I'm not preaching here like I've made thousands, I'm simply saying that it will keep you comfortable and stress free and all the energy you would be wasting on worrying about this could be energy transferred into output of creating something new and something you.

Tierneys Top Tip- Passive income is and always will be your step closer to financial comfort & financial independence, you never know what doors may open if you simply put your mind to something you never knew you could do.

Thanks

T.