Music Mondays - 9 to 5
Working 9 to 5
This is the theme song to the 1980 classic movie about three working women trying to get ahead in life who accidently end up in a kidnapping scenario with their pigheaded, egotistical boss. If you haven’t seen the movie, I highly recommend it. Despite the fact that it was written over 30 years ago, many of the messages about working women and the promise of female bosses still hold true today.This week I am talking about making money, and I think this song is a great inspiration for breaking out of a mold to reach the next level in your money-making capabilities; because if you want the honest truth, if you want to make money, you have to accept that 9 to 5 is not the schedule that is going to get you there.As Ms. Parton sings so beautifully:
“Workin’ 9 to 5, what a way to make a livin’
Barely gettin’ by, it’s all takin’ and no givin’
They just use your mind and they never give you credit
It’s enough to drive you crazy if you let it”
If You Want to Make More - Work More
I hear clients, friends and family complain all the time about not making enough money in their job, and feeling frustrated because they are not earning enough to get ahead in life. If you feel this way, you are not alone; however, if you feel this way, I would ask you what you are doing about it. For my clients who have cut expenses everywhere they can and saving as much as they can and are still not getting by, I encourage them to work harder.Believe it or not, most jobs may not pay all of the bills or take you financially to the place that you would like to be, but that doesn’t mean that you have to stop working when one job’s whistle sounds. If there is still time in the day, make room for another job. Personal finance bloggers and others would call this a “side hustle.” A side hustle is a great way to earn extra money to meet your financial goals of either paying down debt, investing or saving more.
“9 to 5, yeah they got you where they want you
There’s a better life, and you dream about it, don’t you?
It’s a rich man’s game no matter what they call it
And you spend your life puttin’ money in his wallet”
There is a better life out there and you can accomplish more, you just have to open your mind to the possibly of working outside of your primary job. Your primary job is all about putting money in someone else’s wallet, but your side hustle is all about putting money in your wallet.
My Client's Break from 9 to 5
I have a client who really wanted to travel to Paris with her mother. She was doing a great job saving; however, it wasn’t happening quick enough to cover the trip she wanted to take. I spent a few hours having to share with her the unfortunate reality that her one job was not going to make this dream come true. Much to her dismay, I told her she needed to take on a side hustle if she really wanted to make the trip a reality, and despite the fact that she is a professional woman with a solid 9 to 5 job, she took on a weekend side hustle working at Target.I know that she didn’t feel good applying for that job, especially given her education, training and day job; however, the trip was important enough for her to check her pride and weekend flexibility out the door. Each day she donned the red Target store shirt, she remembered her dream trip with her mother, and I am happy to say that she recently made that dream a reality.She made the dream a reality without impacting her emergency fund, taking on credit card debt or throwing her long term goals off-track, and she was able to do this because of the side hustle. My client made her dream a reality because she refused to just stick to 9 to 5 to earn money and achieve her financial goals.If you are not making your financial goals, maybe you need to stop thinking in terms of 9 to 5 and start thinking of other ways to make money in addition to your day job. On Wednesday, I will share 15 ways to make money in 2015, but I guarantee you that one piece of advice that will NOT be on that list is sticking to a traditional 9 to 5 schedule.