How Much Additional Income Is Enough To Make A Difference?

While doing some research and interviewing people to gather information for another project I'm working on I asked the same question to everyone I could find.

"How much additional monthly income would you need to make a noticeable improvement in your lifestyle?"

It's a vague question without a specific answer, designed to test the waters and solicit a response.  Everyone's situation is different so there can be no right answer.  How the question is interpreted by the respondent has a lot to do with their answer.  Some of the responses were expected: "A Million Dollars" came up a few times.  Other large amounts were proposed.  One woman insisted that $10k/month in additional income was needed to noticeably improve her lifestyle, even though she was supporting 2 kids with gubmint assistance.  It may be she did not understand the question.

Statistics are out there which can help shed light on everyone's situation:  fully 50% of Americans have less than $500 in their checking account.  While median household income is around $50k/year,  1/3 of the people working earn less than $25k/year.  That's less than $500/week which tells me half the people out there are living paycheck to paycheck.  I've done that, it sucked, but when one is in such a situation it is difficult to get out of the rut.  A flat tire is enough to throw you into crisis mode.  When you are trying to raise a family a broken down vehicle means the rent is going to be late.  These people are not on the bottom.  These are hard working, responsible adults who are in a perpetual tight spot.  It does not take much to sink them.  At the same time, it does not take much to give them a boost.

After listening to people complain about their woes I came to the conclusion that as little as $50/week in additional income would be enough to make a noticeable improvement in a whole lot of lives.  More is better.  $50 will do.  This is enough to pick up groceries, fill up the gas tank, get the electric bill paid on time instead of with next week's paycheck.  With 4 weeks in a month, I'm talking $200/month.  Enough to handle something going wrong without living off ramen noodles.

There are strategies which can help you come up with a few extra bucks.  Turn out the lights, keep the air conditioning off, grow a garden, give up Starbucks, drive slower, pack a lunch...becoming more frugal is surely part of the equation.  You can pick up a part time job.  Work hard, show the boss outstanding results, a raise or promotion is possible.  Look for a better job if that's what it takes.

Rather than look for a different job, some folks put together an income project on the side.  I know people who work the flea market scene, mow lawns, cut wood, raise chickens to sell eggs, rent apartments, and fix small engines.  Some folks buy and sell coins.  These side projects let you keep the stability of your day job, can often be started with tools and equipment already on hand, and in most cases don't require a big investment.  Specialized knowledge and persistence are the key factors to their success.

Coin collectors have specialized knowledge.  They are persistent in their hobby, some having been collectors for decades.  They do what they do because they find it enjoyable.  The move from collector to small scale dealer is subtle.  Getting started is a simple matter of putting your stuff up for sale and hoping for the best.  Buy it for a good price, sell it at a fair price for a tidy profit, repeat.  Keep at it, you'll get better at finding good stuff and consistently attracting fair offers. Coin Roll Hunting is a means of obtaining stock for face value.  That's a pretty good price.  I find specimens all the time with value estimates ranging from a few cents to several bucks.  I've sold some for a tidy profit. 



If it's so easy, why isn't everyone doing it? 
Have a look around.  There are tens of thousands of people that are.  All you have to do to get started is make that first attempt.  There are some tricks to the trade which I'll talk about over time.  If you have not sold coins before you'll need to learn about things like where and how to sell effectively, taking online payments, shipping charges, good packaging practices, and preserving integrity.  With persistence, it's possible to earn an extra couple hundred bucks a month-enough that it can start to make a noticeable difference in your lifestyle.  More is possible, but how far you run with the ball is up to you.