Tuesday, December 1, 2020

2021: Happy New Year, December side hustles and year end summary!

Happy New Year!  Goodbye 2020, hello 2021!  We had a quiet New Year's Eve As a new year begins, many of us think back on what went right and wrong about the past year.  There have been so many major events this year, including (in no particular order):  

The Australian brushfires, the death of Kobe Bryant, the impeachment of president Trump, the covid-19 pandemic, another oil crisis, major shut downs of the economy and small businesses, one of the fastest stock market crashes followed by one of the fasts bull market recoveries, travel bans, PPE (personal protective equipment) shortages, toilet paper shortages, cancelled holidays, distance learning school, Black Lives Matters protests, Joe Biden’s presidential election win, the fires in California, president Trump testing positive for covid-19, and finally the rollout of new covid-19 vaccines.

Our lives have been forever changed by the events of this past year.  Everyone has been affected by this pandemic, although not equally.  So many family gatherings and trips have been cancelled.  We have friends that have been unemployed since March.  My wife gets to work from home now.  All office meetings are done online through a web camera.  Some friends have contracted covid-19 and have family members that have had to be hospitalized.   Many of us want to completely forget 2020 and move on.  

Did you have a good December 2020? 

With the air quality clearing up around here, this has been the month of visiting playgrounds.  There are several playgrounds to explore around our neighborhood.  We bring masks for the kids and lots of hand sanitizers.  We also try to make outdoors time a regular part of our kids’ routine.  They love getting outside and exploring.

While inside, our kids have been painting and drawing.  

We celebrated Christmas at home this year, without any outside family members.  We haven’t seen any of our family since last Christmas due to covid-19 concerns.  We took our family to a Christmas lights drive thru event, complete with animated lights and holiday music.  The kids had a blast!  

This month our little girl turned 3 years old!  We are so proud of her and it’s been quite a fun journey having her in our lives.  As typical during the pandemic, we had a little celebration at home and FaceTimed with our family.

One of my highlights this year was getting my first shot of the Pfizer covid-19 vaccine.  I’m looking forward to getting my second shot on January 11th.  I will definitely feel much more comfortable visiting family after I am vaccinated.

Here’s our monthly summary of side income that we have generated in the previous month of December.

Cash Back 
On 12.1, my wife received a $20 statement credit on her AMEX Platinum credit card.  This was for $20 back on wireless phone purchases after spending $20+.  We made a pre-payment to our wireless bill at the end of November, and she got the credit on this date.
On 12.1, my wife received a $14.99 statement credit on her AMEX Platinum credit card.  This was an AMEX offer for up to $20 back on streaming services per month.  We enjoyed a free month of HBO Max.
On 12.2, my wife received a $1.99 statement credit on her AMEX Platinum credit card.  This was an AMEX offer for up to $20 back on streaming services per month.  We enjoyed a free month of Hulu.
On 12.5, my wife received another $20 statement credit on her AMEX Platinum credit card.  This was for $20 back on wireless phone purchases after spending $20+ in the month of December.
On 12.22, I received a $9.43 statement credit on my Citibank ThankYou credit card.  Citibank offered me 5% on online purchases for the month of December.
On 12.31, I received a $1.47 statement credit on my Chase Freedom Unlimited credit card from Chase Offers.  This was for 10% back at purchases made at McDonalds.

Rental Income
On 12.5, we received a net profit of $700 from our rental property.  The increase in monthly cash flow is due to our recent rental property mortgage refinance.

Miscellaneous Income
On 12.5, I received a $3 Amazon gift card from MyPoints.

Survey Income
On 12.7, I received a $20 check from M3 Global Research for completing a medical survey.  
On 12.9, I received a $50 direct deposit from GLG Survey for completing a medical survey.
On 12.11, I received a $30 check from M3 Global Research for completing a medical survey.  
On 12.11, I received a $20 check from E-Rewards Medical for completing a medical survey.  
On 12.19, I received a $220 check from M3 Global Research for completing a live panel discussion.  

Work Income
On 12.14 I received a direct deposit of $494.85 for picking up extra hours of work with my employer.  They needed extra coverage and the extra income is appreciated.
On 12.18, I received a $1,000 check for consultation income that I do on the side.
On 12.31, I received a direct deposit of $247.50 for picking up extra hours of work with my employer

Sales Income
On 12.4, we received a check for $1,074 from Midwest Refineries.  We sold them 0.675 oz of old gold jewelry, and received 95% market value ($1,767/oz) of gold.  Midwest Refineries is the easiest way to get rid of old and unwanted gold, silver and platinum jewelry - even Mr. Money Mustache recommends them!  
On 12.4, I received a net profit of $15.63 from eBay for selling an old Nokia phone. 

Monthly Totals:
We earned $67.88 from cash back income
We earned $740 from rental income
We earned $3 from miscellaneous income
We earned $340 for completing online surveys
I earned $1,742.35 from extra employment income 
We earned $1,089.63 from selling used items online 

All of this totals $3,982.86 from our side hustles for the month of December!  

Side hustle totals:
This is now the 7th year that we have been tracking our side hustle income.  Here are the numbers:

In 2020, we earned $25,563.67
In 2019, we earned $14,181.54
In 2018, we earned $14,802.47
In 2017, we earned $15,307.76
In 2016, we earned $24,195.44
In 2015, we earned $19,178.54
In 2014, we earned $28,633.42

This side hustle income adds to our quality of life and increases the amount that we are able to save and invest towards our financial freedom.  This year, our investments surpassed 600K as we continue to get closer to financial freedom.  

This past year I met my goal of focusing more on reading for pleasure.  I have been reading an average of 1 book every 2 months.  We have read our kids tons of books, every single day.  We check out all these books from the local library for free! 

For 2021, I want to continue maintaining my habits on reading and fitness.  Ever since I read Atomic Habits by James Clear, I have been working on creating and staying consistent with better habits.  One current habit I am proud of is that I have exercised every single day since April 1st, 2020.  I have not missed a single day.  Doing pushups, weight lifting, chin ups and pull ups are just a normal part of my everyday routine – like flossing and brushing my teeth.  At this point in my fitness habit, it’s easier to keep the trend going than to stop and start again.  I wrote my review of Atomic Habits here.  

As we begin our journey into 2021 I hope we all take a moment to reflect on where we’ve been and plan out where we want to go.  I am looking forward to seeing what 2021 has in store for us. 

Side hustles November 2020

The great thing about doing side hustles to generate extra income is that you can hustle on your own terms.  The more hard work, time, and creative effort you put in, the more extra money you can make.  You can hustle as little or as much as you want, whenever you want.  It’s your extra money, and you can choose how you want to spend it.  Instead of focusing on what ideas don’t apply to you, try focusing on different side hustle ideas that you can implement to work for your situation. 

Once a month (usually on the 1st), I like to post a short summary of our personal and financial situation for the previous month.  While I don’t often post articles, I am committed to documenting all of my side hustle income.  Here I’ll share some of what’s been going on with our lives and our side hustles.  

Welcome to December! Did you have a good November?  With coronavirus cases on the rise, it’s been a quiet month for us.  We are staying away from amusement parks, public dining and large gatherings during this time.  We did not have a big Thanksgiving dinner gathering this year, opting to stay home by ourselves instead.  While some might think that we are being overly cautious, we have been most thankful for our health this year.

We continue to try to come up with fun activities at home such as painting, reading, building Legos and drawing.  With the air quality clearing up, we try to go on outdoor walks regularly.  

Our son's latest artwork!
Here’s our monthly summary of side income that we have generated in the previous month of November.

Cash Back 
On 11.19, I received a $150 statement credit on my Chase Sapphire Reserve credit card.  Chase has been offering some users a retention offer bonus just for calling in.  It was worth a shot to get $150 cash after a 5 minute phone call!  Other users have reported getting up to $250 in statement credits.

Rental Income
On 11.5, we received a net profit of $550 from our rental property. 

Survey Income
On 11.3, I received a $10 check from M3 Global Research for completing a medical survey.  
On 11.16, I received a $70 check from My Impact Network for completing a medical survey.
On 11.19, my wife received a $5 Amazon gift card from WGU Labs for completing an online survey.
On 11.23, I received a $45 Amazon gift card from MNOW for completing a medical survey.
On 11.24, I received a $20 check from My Impact Network for completing a medical survey.
On 11.24, I received a $25 check from M3 Global Research for completing a medical survey.
On 11.26, I received a $50 direct deposit from GLG Survey for completing a medical survey.
On 11.30, I received a $25 check from E-Rewards Medical for completing a medical survey.

Work Income
On 11.30 I received a direct deposit of $247.50 for picking up some extra hours of work with my employer.  

Blog Income
On 11.28, I received a direct deposit of $13.46 from Amazon Associates from website income.  Thank you for your support!

Sales Income
On 11.1, my wife sold an old vacuum cleaner for $50 cash on Nextdoor.  
On 11.1, my wife sold an old purse for $30 cash on Nextdoor.
On 11.20, I sold a Staples coupon on Slickdeals for $1 Amazon gift card.
On 11.25, I sold an old iPhone 5s for $25 on MacRumors forums.

Monthly Totals:
I earned $150 from cash back income
We earned $550 from rental income
We earned $225 for completing online surveys
I earned $247.50 from extra employment income 
We earned $13.46 from website income
We earned $106 from selling used items online 

All of this totals $1,316.96 from our side hustles for the month of November!  It’s hard to believe that we are now in the last month of the year 2020.  Stay safe out there and keep investing towards your financial freedom!

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