Over the past several months, this website has discussed several strategies that can be used to pay off student loans. The blog has included ways to earn financial aid when attending college and graduate school, and the website has also discussed tactics that can be used to save money so that more cash can be devoted to student loans. However, in order to take your student debt repayment to the next level, you should also try to make extra money through side-hustles so that more cash can be dedicated to paying down student debt.
I personally made around $120,000 through side-hustles over the course of about 38 months of my late 20s. At my peak, I was earning extra cash through five distinct income streams that were separate from the wages I earned through my primary job. Since my regular salary was already paying for all of my living expenses, any extra money I earned was devoted entirely to my student loans. I calculate that earning extra cash through side-hustles allowed me to pay off my student loans years earlier, since I was able to pay down student loans faster than I would have if I simply cut expenses to devote more cash to my debt.
The fact that I earned so much money on the side distinguishes my student debt narrative from many others who have paid off their student loans early. There are a multitude of stories on the internet of people who paid off their student loans while living with their parents. There are other accounts of individuals who refinanced their debt at very favorable rates and were able to pay off student loans early as a result. However, not many people burdened with student loans have a side-hustle, let alone several completely separate income streams. This aspect of my student debt narrative might be the most compelling part of my story for many readers, and over the past few months, I have communicated with numerous people who want to know how they too can earn extra cash to pay off student loans.
It is worth mentioning that earning extra cash is perhaps not as effective as saving money when trying to pay down debt. Although the prospect of increasing one’s income might seem appealing, the reality is that any extra earnings will be taxed at a rate that is likely higher than wages from your primary job due to the self-employment tax. As such, you can make a much bigger impact on your bottom line by saving money and using any saved cash to pay down debt.
However, earning extra money through side-hustles does have some unique benefits. For one, some people do not want to make financial sacrifices in order to pay down student loans. Earning extra cash through side-hustles empowers people to pay down student loans without cutting out many of the things that people enjoy in their lives.
Also, earning extra money through side-hustles give someone much financial flexibility. Life can be unpredictable at times, and people cannot always depend on income from their primary job. It is not uncommon for individuals to get laid off from their jobs during difficult times (as happened to me during my student debt repayment journey) and other individuals might need to take time off from their job due to a disability, to care for a family member, or for other reasons.
However, if you are earning income from side-hustles, you have a safety net should any difficulty in life come your way. I made over $40,000 from side-hustles during some years of my student debt repayment journey, and I knew that if any challenges arose in my life, I could comfortably live off of my side-hustles alone. All told, working side-hustles will not only empower you to pay off student loans faster, but will also allow you to handle problems that might come your way.
The next series of articles on this website will discuss how anyone can earn money through side-hustles to pay down student loans. The blog will first discuss some primary side-hustles that people can work in order to devote larger stretches of time to earning extra money. Next, the website will discuss some smaller side-hustles that anyone can work when they have smaller amounts of time to earn extra cash. I’ll also discuss some of the tax implications of working side-hustles, and provide some information about how much money the “tax man” might take from cash one earns on the side. The website will also include advice on finding time to work side hustles and how to cope with stress that might arise from working part-time jobs.
Working one or more side-hustles is not easy. In order to earn money through side-hustles, one needs to use time that could otherwise be spent on relaxation and other meaningful experiences. Indeed, I would literally have to work 100-hour weeks at times during my student debt repayment journey in order to fulfill the duties of my primary job while earning money on the side.
However, as long as you keep moderation in mind, side-hustles are an amazing way to earn extra cash to pay off student loans. Of course, working part-time jobs requires much sacrifice, but the benefit of being free from student loans should be more than worth the effort.