As we approach the end of the year, I’ve been looking at my income streams and it’s hard to believe that at one point in my life I had $39 in my bank account and that’s all the money I had in the world. I remember having a credit card bill due with a minimum payment of $40 and all I could send was $10 because if I sent anymore I’d have no money for food for the rest of the week. I also recall the credit card company calling me and asking me why I only sent $10 and I told them I had no money. They threatened to cut me off but fortunately, they didn’t. Decades later, those same banks now give me hundreds of thousands in credit lines.
How I Made Money 30 Years Ago
A minimum wage job earning $4.25/hr and lucky to work 40 hours a week.
How I Make Money Now
While I was unemployed at the end of May this year. I started back work and am earning ~ $200k/yr.
That alone is a nice income stream but since I’m close to retirement, I have to have other sources of income.
Here’s my income stream playbook:
Rental Properties – Goal is to bring in $42,000 in rental income each year. Hope to achieve late next year.
Dividends – About $40,000 per year in dividend income. SCHD is one of my favorite ETFs for dividends although I am now exploring others and own stocks that pay dividends too.
Bond Income (Tax Free) – $5,000 per year, goal is to double by end of next year although changing interest rates may alter that plan.
Covered Call Income – $24,000 per year ($2000 per month) on average although some months are better or worse than others.
T-Bills, Notes, & Bonds – I’ve had quite a few bonds and CDs get called this year due to interest rates changes so I’m not up to speed where my current income stream is on this but I’d say it’s at least $6000 per year.
Capital Appreciation – I have a variety of things here including Net Credit Collars, ETFs, digital currencies and stocks.
Unemployment – This is a one off event but I managed to capture almost $15k in unemployment benefits.
It’s safe to say that my non-wage income streams will exceed $125k per year after I retire and while that’s somewhat impressive, that amount will be dwarfed by my spouse’s income post retirement. But that’s a story for another post some day.
Social Security?
What about social security or other government programs that provide income or benefits?
I am far away from social security and with reports that it will go bankrupt or benefits will be cut by 2032, I’m not counting it in my income stream plan. If I do get anything, it’ll just be extra income that I likely give to charity or my own kids. I wish we had an option to “opt out” of receiving the money and instead directing it to cover our kids FICA obligations or elsewhere but for now it’ll be delayed as long as possible.
Don’t Give Up
As you get older you forget how hard it was to struggle back when you were young so I like to think back to those days sometimes especially around toward the end of the year. What reminds me of those days in black and white are the annual social security notices that show how much money you earned and contributed during those time periods.
What will get you out of poverty or struggling are a few simple things:
- Have a plan
- Work toward that plan every day
- Never give up
I can’t offer details because everyone has a different journey, issues, needs and circumstances that are currently impeding them but it’s safe to say that unless you have a plan and work towards it, nothing will change for you.
Share The Wealth
Do you have plan for your future? Let me know in the comments below.