Residual Income Vs. Linear Income

If there was a way for you to bring home an extra $500 (net income) a month, what would you do with it? Would it help pay your mortgage/rent? Could it pay for a car note, a utility bill, children's daycare, education, or groceries for the month? How could $500 a month change your life? In today's economy alone, bankruptcies are higher; foreclosures are sky rocketing across the country. The Middle Class are struggling just like the lower income families. In North America alone income from jobs have been declining. Most people today are only a couple of paychecks away from being homeless.

When I mention $500, I'm not talking about getting another job, which will add more stress to your already hectic life. I'm suggesting that you investigate a way to earn residual income. Residual Income is when you do something one time and receive payment on a continuous basis. For most people this is a very foreign idea, it's not the "American Dream." It's not something that is taught to the average child growing up, so it's something very hard for people to comprehend. Do you realize that some of the richest people in the world are people that do something once and are continuously getting paid?

Here are a few examples:

JK Rowling, author wrote a series of books, you may have heard of - Harry Potter. Forbes has listed her as the second-richest female entertainer in the world and she's ranked the 48th most powerful celebrity of 2007. While she is still writing other books, if she chose to stop writing books today, her children's children will be cashing checks for years to come.

Bill Gates, software executive, American entrepreneur, philanthropist and Chairman of Microsoft; Bill alongside Paul Allen founded Microsoft and he is now one of the richest people in the world but if he chose to stop working today, he's still going to get a check in the mail for the rest of his life.

Oprah Winfrey, is an actress, magazine publisher, producer, talk show host is listed as the richest African American of the 20th century.

Beyonce Knowles is a songwriter, singer, actress, dancer, producer, video director, fashion designer, just to name a few. Beyonce is a fantastic artist and very hard working, while known for her singing, she has been writing songs since her pre teens. I can not stress enough to you the money that people are making hand over foot by doing something once and getting paid numerous times.

Tyler Perry, actor, writer, producer, director, this is a true rags to riches story. Tyler signed a $200 million dollar 100 episode deal with TBS, one of the first of its kind.

Do you see how residual income has changed their life and how it could change yours? Don't get me wrong, these are some extreme cases but not all of these people came from affluent homes. They worked hard to get to where they are because of diversification; they didn't follow the American Dream exclusively if at all. I was brought up believing the American Dream was, finish high school, go to college, get a job, get married, have kids and then die. The wealthy individuals I listed above did something different, they broaden their horizons and their knowledge and took the time to learn how to think like wealthy individuals and reinvent the wheel each and every time.

Earlier on, I asked you how $500 could change your life and, then I mentioned to you that it's not about getting another linear job. A linear job is directly proportional to the number of hours you work, you work 40 hours and you get paid for 40 hours. If you only work 20 hours, you only get paid for 20 hours. It's time to make a change; do something once and have it pay you on a continuous basis. Here are some ways for you to become a recipient of residual income without adding any more stress to your ever evolving life.

If you are a writer, take the time to build your resume with different websites like www.associatedcontent.com and www.xomba.com, and get paid on the amount of views you receive. Start a blog, and advertise on your blog with companies like AdSense. If you do have the desire and time to investigate, do the research and learn how to become an entrepreneur with network marketing companies like Warm Spirit, Mary Kay or Avon just to name a few. Residual income can open up doors for you to devote your precious time to other things.

Now ask yourself this question; "If you were given a choice to work hard and get paid once, or work hard once and get paid continuously possibly for the rest of your life, which would you choose?"