Top 15 Ways To Earn A Second Income In Singapore
Ah… earning a 2nd income… Some call it moonlighting. Some call it an “avocation”. Others call it the “second string to the bow”.
Singaporean are a practical lot. As a people, we have always held the “If can, just do” attitude when it comes to making money. At some points in our lives, we have all attempted to look for a side hustle that can earn us that extra dollar. .
We are also as skeptical as we are practical. We are not the kind who will easily fall for things that can be easily achieved. Unless you are talking about buying 4d (that is one big exception).
Many of you will say… “Wah so easy meh? Boy… you sure anot? Like that can make money…?”
Well… we explored these options for you so you don’t have to, Take a look at this list of top 15 ways you can make a 2nd income, made easier by technology.
1. Start A Blog
Even though everyone claims that the era of blogging is dead, blogging is still one of the tried and tested ways to make a side income.
With an increased amount of access to the internet, the demand for content is ever-increasing. Of course, with a glut of free content coming out on the internet every minute, it is important to note that most people will not receive their desired income in the starting periods of their blogging life.
However, by choosing a niche (a specific area of interest) and coming out with a constant stream of interesting content, you might find yourself attracting a large following.
With your improved readership, you will be able to earn money through advertisements (like Google Adsense) and sponsored posts. When you’ve successfully built a wealth of content, you will be able to receive a consistent stream of organic traffic and with it, some form of passive income. .
Furthermore, with the popularity of sites such as Medium, you will be able to share your articles to an already established audience to further boost your readership and engagement. As Medium pays based on the amount of time readers spent reading your story, you can be sure to earn money from this side hustle too as long as you put in consistent effort to write great stories.
2. Create and Sell Products Online
If you have started a blog, another way that you can earn a passive income is by selling your own products and merchandise.
From mugs to t-shirts to phone covers and even enamel pins, there is a huge host of online platforms that allow you to design and sell your own products without having to carry a huge inventory.
For those who are more artsy and good with your hands, you can also craft handmade objects that you can sell on platforms such as Etsy.
With a blog, you will be able to attract readers with your content before directing them (through links and blog posts) to your new products.
Even if you don’t have a blog, creating and selling products is still possible. You can use social media platforms such as Instagram to promote and share your products, allowing you to build that said following.
3. Creating Videos
With YouTube constantly growing and becoming the go-to platform for video sharing and watching, you can build a secondary income stream by creating and posting your own YouTube videos.
From informative tutorial videos to hilarious comedy sketches, the possibilities are endless. As long as you are able to choose an interesting topic and put out videos that are consistently good, you will be able to earn a substantial passive income from the ads shown during your videos.
4. Start a Podcast
If you prefer to not be on camera instead, having a podcast is another popular side hustle.
With the growing popularity of audio streaming services such as Spotify and Apple Music, podcasts are seeing substantial growth. All you need is a microphone (it doesn’t even have to be an expensive one) and possibly a friend or two to talk to, podcasts are easy to produce and can serve as a source of secondary income.
Before you consider that making videos and recording podcasts are too “out there” and unrealistic. Consider the fact that Ryan Serhant does his podcast while doing his daily walk around the neighbourhood, Russell Brunson does his podcast while driving to work everyday and Oprah does her podcast by reaching out to and giving interviews to people.
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5. Write an EBook
f neither appearing on camera nor recording your voice appeals to you, writing and publishing an ebook is another way that will allow you to earn money while sharing your personal beliefs.
With more and more avenues to self-publish books, writing and selling a book no longer requires paying large amounts of commission to literary agents and having to wait months for publishing houses to pick your book up.
As long as you are able to write a book that provides value to the readers and market it decently (spend some time promoting it on blogs and on social media), you will be able to earn passive income when readers buy and read your book.
Already have an on-going blog on a certain topic? Compile all your materials and curate them. Put them in order, run it through a growth hack tool that can turn all these materials into an Ebook, INSTANTLY.
6. Become an Influencer
For the social media savvy people out there who already have a following, why not consider being an influencer?
Whether it is on Instagram or Tik Tok or even through the older-fashioned blog, being an influencer will require an in-depth knowledge of your targeted demographics. Once you are able to understand who you are targeting, you will be able to promote products that excite them and gain you more followers (that in turn gains you more sponsors and a higher advertisement fee).
With Twitter and FaceBook being text-based, Tik Tok being video-based and Instagram being image-based, there is a social media platform for everyone and as long as you are willing to put in effort into your posts.
7. Affiliate Marketing
As online shopping gains popularity, affiliate marketing becomes a good method for you to make a steady stream of money. By using any of the previous 6 methods to gain a following, you can then partner with a brand (or shopping platform) and recommend their products or service to your followers in return for a commission.
As you will receive a cut of the profits as commission, affiliate marketing is a great way to help top up your secondary source of income and might even become your third source of passive income (aside from say, making videos or running a blog), bringing you even closer to your financial goals.
8. Dropshipping
Before we talk about this point, we understand if you have reservations about this method.
“Huh? Dropshipping? Isn’t that what all the YouTube advertisements for the expensive courses are for? You sure that this isn’t a scam to charge us expensive course fees?”
It’s like playing Mahjong. Technically, you can wing it. However, if you want to accelerate your learning, you have to pay the school fees.
The tips, tricks as well as the systemizing recommendation by these online gurus can be of good value to you.
The idea is to study what the market wants (aka what is selling well) and find a cheap and trustworthy manufacturer that can help ship it directly to the customer. This way, you will be running an online retail store without the need to carry all the inventory that regular stores have to own.
With no inventory needed, you will be able to save money by not having to rent warehouses, allowing you to sell at lower, more attractive prices while still netting a sizable income.
9. Selling Your Stuff in the Second Hand Market
We all have stuff at home that we don’t use anymore. Whether it is a bookshelf of books or a collection of limited edition soft toys, you can earn some money by selling your old and unwanted items on second hand markets such as Carousell.
However, it is important to note that unless you have an endless supply of unwanted stuff, this method is only good for earning a small amount of money that you can use to help kickstart another source of secondary income (use the proceeds to advertise your new e-book etc.)
10. Renting Your Stuff
For items that you use on rare occasions (say a power drill), you can opt to rent it out instead of selling it.
Instead of letting these items gather dust and develop problems due to the lack of usage, why not rent these items out for some money. From games that you don’t really play to larger electrical appliances, there is a growing market for rental especially as more and more people prefer to rent instead of buy and throw away.
11. Renting Your Space
Just like how you can rent your unused items, renting out your underutilised space is a great way for you to make some passive income. While you can opt to rent out an entire room all through the year, you can also use services like AirBnB to temporarily rent out spaces that you are not using.
It is important to note however that short term renting is not legal in Singapore. This means that you will have to adhere to the minimum renting periods of your property (6 months minimum for HDBs and 3 months minimum for private properties). You will also have to pay taxes and follow the regulations that govern property rentals.
12. License the Use of Your Photos
With the camera on our phones becoming increasingly powerful every year, one does not need a professional DSLR to sell photos. With stock photo websites such as ShutterStock, you will be able to post your photos and earn a passive income when your photo is used.
For photography enthusiasts, being able to share your huge portfolio of images is sure to help earn you a substantial revenue.
13. Engage in Peer-to-Peer Lending
While not very popular, P2P lending is a method that you can use to earn some money. As not everybody qualifies for a bank loan, some will turn to peer-to-peer lending platforms to borrow money. These range from individuals in need of money to small business and startups that require a loan.
As a lender, you will be able to earn a high interest rate of 4-10%. However, as this is a risky way to earn money, you will have to do your due diligence to ensure that you are lending to someone who is likely to pay you back on a trustworthy and reliable platform.
To ensure that your money is invested on a platform that follows the Singapore regulations, do look out for platforms that are regulated by MAS. While this does not guarantee that you will get your money back, you will be able to rest assured knowing that you will not be breaking any laws if you use these MAS regulated platforms.
14. Investing Your Money
One of the smartest ways to get rich is to let your money work for you.
Through investing in stocks, bonds and putting your money in high-yield policies, you can generate a good return on your money, allowing you to earn a passive income instead of simply putting your money in a low-interest bank account.
With a wide variety of financial products and policies, you will be able to earn a substantial passive income if you put your money in the correct places.
However, you will have to research and ensure that you are investing in places where you will enjoy returns.
The last thing that you would want to happen is for you to lose your hard earned money with a bad investment strategy.
15. Investment in Real Estate
As all good investors will tell you, a diversified investment strategy is the best way to ensure that your portfolio enjoys a consistent growth rate.
Instead of putting all your money into stocks and bonds, you can invest some money in properties as well.
Whether it is profit through capital appreciation or a consistent rental income, investing in real estate is a good way to generate high returns on your capital while ensuring that you have a reliable asset that can help you get through tough times.
Of course, just like with other investments, there is a huge host of varied strategies that you can employ when it comes to real estate investment. Instead of trying your luck and risking your capital, why not schedule a free call with us to find out which investment is suitable for you to earn money on.
The Final Word
Having a passive income is a great way to help you reach financial freedom. With an increasing cost of living, having multiple income streams ensures that you will be able to have a steady stream of money no matter the situation.
With a steady flow of passive income, you will also be able to increase your wealth and prepare yourself for early retirement. Whether you are in your early 20s or in your late 50s, it is never too late to begin planning for retirement.
Instead of waiting until it is too late, why not schedule a wealth planning session with us? Let us guide you into your retirement plans.
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