Even with two household members earning at the same time, keeping up with inflation has become more difficult the past few years. Finding the time or the resources for generating extra income was difficult a few years back since everything had to be done at a certain place and at a certain time which, more often than not, came into conflict with the real job.

Today, the internet has come into play providing all sorts of income opportunities. Most freelance jobs offered online can be done in the convenience of your own home at your own time. As long as you meet the employer’s standards, the prospect for other similar projects increases.

Be that as it may, a huge crisis looms in the horizon. We all feel it. We just don’t know when it is going to happen.

Going by this trend, we can very well imagine what the future holds for us. Two incomes certainly will not be enough. It would be best to start out on those extra income opportunities that are plentiful in the internet.

Financially secure people have always known and taken care of this early on in their lives. They realize that if one source dries up, one can always fall back on another, and, if all goes well, become even richer in the process. People with average incomes have always been in a dilemma regarding this. Loss of one income really affects them adversely and it would take years of hard work before any normalcy returns. Not to mention, the rippling effects of financial distress that could cause a lot of heartburn and unwanted emotional disturbances.

Having diverse sources of income or extra income gives you a backup to fall back upon. If one source vanishes, you should not feel the difference. One should have enough time to reorganize and regroup, that’s it, and you are back on the happiness highway, safe and sound. The importance of extra income and extra sources of incomes is not lost on anyone today, therefore the want and rush.

Let’s define income. Linear income is the extra income you earn on an hourly, daily, weekly or monthly basis. There is no more future commitment attached to it from your end or form the receiver’s end. The other type is residual income, which is extra income where you work hard once and reap the fruits of it all for many years in the future. The reward for the same effort paid over and over again.

In the normal course of a career, any individual earns a linear income through a job or a profession. You are earning only for the time you can spare on work on a daily basis. Some earn a higher linear income. Most smart people try to shift to residual incomes from their linear incomes through extra income routes to have a secure retirement and future. Starting with one residual extra income effort a year would be a good idea.