How to Turn 12 Streams of Income Into a Torrent of Money

One day when I was about 7 years old, my mother and I were at a store and I saw a toy that I "had" to have. I asked my mom to buy it for me. She said: « Dominic, we can't afford to buy that, money doesn't grow on trees you know. » My mother was a widow with two children and was not rich. We had enough to get by, but anything more was usually out of reach.

I daydreamed about how much fun I could have if I had such a tree. I saw myself picking a few twenty dollar bills from that tree, with a big smile on my face thinking of all the cool stuff I was going to buy with it. About twenty years later, I am amazed that such a tree actually does exist: the multiplis streamae incomum.

Plant a tree, reap the rewards

What first caught my attention in multiple streams of income is the possibility of having many different automated or semi-automated income generating systems. It seemed like a great way to make a living. The internet brought this possibility to anyone who has a little bit of knowledge about the way the web works.

There are many advantages to this approach:

1. Security
   If you lose one of your "jobs", you can count on your other ones to keep you going. Something catastrophic would have to happen for you to lose all your sources of income.
2. Low cost
   Many streams of income can be set up at little or no cost. All you really have to spend is a bit of your time, more initially, then less and less afterwards to keep your system oiled up and running. You might want to pay for advertising, but then again, there are many great ways to advertise for free.
3. Frees up a lot of your time
   Once you have put an initial investment in time (and sometimes a small investment of money), you can let your system, your automated machines, do most of the work for you and start piling your money. While it's true that many will seem to generate only small amounts of money at a time, they will all add up to a substantial amount fairly quickly. Once your machines are set up and running, you'll have more time to do the things you really want to do and best of all, since most of your money will be coming from automated sources, you will earn money even while you sleep or when you are on vacation!

I love the idea of passive income; income that does not require your direct involvement. You'll want to put your streams on auto-pilot as much as possible.

Be ready to fail many times

Brian Tracy said that «The best way to have good ideas, is to have lots of ideas.» The same thing applies to your streams of income. Set up a few streams, keep those that bring you money, and toss those that don't. It's as simple as that. By knowing from the start that some of your streams will not work, you won't be as disappointed and it will be easier for you to keep your focus and your drive. Don't be scared of failure. Fail a lot! Try as many different ideas as you can, especially if there is no up-front cost to you. This way you will have the best chance of succeeding.

Stay focused

Try not to do everything at once. Start small. Focus on one stream until is has a life of its own, then move on to another idea. Don't try to make it perfect from the start either. It always seems to be easier to improve something that has already been set up, once you have seen it running for a while.

A dozen ideas to use as streams of income

1. Investing
   If you have a job which brings a bit more than what you need for necessities, put aside 3 bucks every day and put it into a savings account. At the end of one year you'll have $1095 plus interests. With the help of compound interests, you can even stop putting money into your account after a while and it will keep making money for you over time. You will be making interests on interests.

   You can also make other kinds of investments that may bring you more return on your investment. Be aware though, that the higher the possibility for return, the higher the risks. More secure, less return. You may be interested in bonds, stocks, realty, buying a business, etc.

2. Affiliate Programs
   The great thing about affiliate programs is that you can sell products without needing to keep an inventory, do invoicing... All you do is promote your referral link, and get paid a certain amount on every purchase made through that link.

   A good source of affiliate programs can be found through Clickbank or Commission Junction. You can also do a web search for "affiliate program" and you will find many, many opportunities, in many different niche markets.

3. Online Auctions
   If you have your own product, or maybe you have items in your house which you no longer use but that may still be of value to other people, online auctions can be a great tool. Ebay is probably the most widely used online auction site, but there are others you may want to consider.

   Some people have made quite a bit of money by starting their own "Ebay business". They buy good stuff that they find in garage sales or "offline" auctions, or they buy in bulk and sell at a profit. You can even set up an easy-to-use online store on Ebay or Yahoo. I suggest getting the book "Starting an Ebay Business For Dummies" by Marsha Collier if you are interesting of going in that direction.

4. Sell your own product
   You may want to write an eBook and sell it on your website, on Ebay, or on eBook libraries. If you manufacture or craft your own products, a website is definitely the way to go. You might also use a pre-made online store on Ebay, Yahoo!Shops or one of the many others.
5. Paid surveys
   Most survey sites pay you 2-3 bucks for a completed survey, but some pay up to $50 or even $100 for a single survey that may take you 30-60 minutes to complete.

   Since most survey sites will only send you a few surveys per month, registering to as many survey sites as you can will increase your likelihood of you taking enough surveys to be worth your time, and money.

6. Paid to complete offers, to surf the net
   There are some sites like Treasure Trooper, Snap Dollars, Cash Crate, Instant Profitz that pay you to complete offers. You fill in a registration form, a trial membership, download an eBook, request a free sample and you get paid a few cents to a few dollars for every completed offer.

   Some sites have more offers than others, and similar offers are often seen on different GPT (get paid to) sites. Most of them will also pay you when you refer people to them which is probably why young people with lots of friends tend to like these kinds of sites.

7. Multi-Level Marketing (MLM)
   If you like selling, MLM might be for you. Most MLM companies offer you to sell a product and/or a business opportunity. You sell someone a product or range of products(like natural products, vacation packages, web site hosting, etc.), and show them how they can make money the same way you are making yours. Usually you will get paid a share of everything those under you sell.

   If you are active to promote "your" business, this might be a profitable endeavor for you to look into.

8. Start a business
   Have an idea for a product or service to sell? Start your own business! It can be a brick and mortar business, but you might want to take advantage of the internet and put your business online.
9. Sell advertising on your web site
   If you have a popular web site, selling advertising on your site can bring in some hefty dough. The Adsense PPC (Pay-per-click) network is well-known and widely used. It is also very easy to implement on your site. Yahoo! Publisher Network(YPN) offers a similar system.
10. Accept donations on your site
    Your visitors get some great information, tips or free tools on your site... why not give them opportunity to experience giving as well! :) Setting up a PayPal donate button is an easy thing to do and can be implemented quickly.
11. Sell your old stuff by having a yard sale
    Just like online auctions, yard sales can be useful to rid yourself of stuff you no longer need or want. It might not be a stream that will last very long, but it's a great way to clean up your home!
12. Freebies/giveaways
    Ok, not really a "stream" of income, more like a "possible sudden pile" of income, but who doesn't like free stuff?

Those were just a few simple ideas to get you started.

Having multiple streams of income will keep money pouring into your bank account whether you are at your desk, asleep or on vacation. No longer will you have to work at a dead-end job that you hate, working on someone else's goals rather than your own. You will have more time to spend with your family and live your life the way you want to.

The most important thing to remember from this article is: get started right away! The sooner you set up an automated system, the faster you will start making money. To the best of your success.