Earning a Passive Income While at Work Part-1

You don’t have to quit your job to start earning money online. In fact, I wouldn’t recommend it. You can start out slow, and keep the securities and comfort of your job at the same time. If making money online isn’t for you (and it’s not for everyone!) then you can easily stop and go back to your normal routine with little or no loss and regret. Sweet.

J.D and his blog Get Rich Slowly, which I read religiously, share many of the same philosophies as I do. If you do your research, make smart decisions, and be patient – you will ultimately be much wealthier in life. This is how I started making money online, all while I was still working 9 to 5.

Where To Find the Extra Time

You wake up early, go to work on time, and come home late. How the heck are you supposed to find time to earn an extra income using the internet? If you’re single, maybe you can spare a couple hours each night to work on a project. If you’re married and/or have children, finding even a glimpse of free time can be near impossible.

Here are 5 helpful tips I learned that will help you find some extra time:

  1. Notice Your Free Time. Even though you have long days, you do have some free time that you can use to your advantage. If you add up your morning drive, your morning break, your lunch break, your afternoon break, your drive home, time at the gym, and some of the free time you have at home (after the kids are asleep?), you might find an extra 2 to 4 hours in there.
  2. Compound your Activities. We often don’t realize how we can prudently use our time. On your drives to and from work, do you listen to the radio? Probably. How about mp3s while on the treadmill? Maybe. So why not listen to a podcast and learn something instead? No – not the ESPN Fantasy Football Update (okay, maybe just once a week), but helpful and inspiring podcasts that teach you about online business stuff. There are a lot out there! My favorite is Jay and Sterling’s Internet Business Mastery. You can find more by searching “business podcast” in itunes.
  3. Stop Watching So Much Television. A great article on J.D.’s “Get Rich Slowly” blog explains how if you stopped watching television, you’d free an extra 750 hours a year! Imagine what you could do in 750 hours. Now, I’m not saying you should quit watching T.V. for good, but you have to admit, you probably watch a lot of television. I did. I tried really hard to cut down and I stuck with just my few favorite shows (Jon and Kate plus 8, I have to admit). I used my extra time to read, learn, and do.
  4. DON’T Combine Your Day Job With Your Aspiring Passive Income Business. If the rules at your 9 to 5 job include: don’t use the internet for anything non-business related, know that your business does not count as a business related item. If you can use your breaks to surf the net at your leisure, go ahead and use that time to do some research or read some articles – but don’t use any supplies or print anything related to your “other” job. “Big Brother” is watching and you will get caught. It could cost you your job, or a least a lot of explanation and time. Just be smart and use your common sense.
  5. DO Combine Your Day Job With Your Aspiring Passive Income Business. Wait – what? Let me explain. What I mean here is to think about how your business can relate to your 9 to 5 job. Think about the things you do at work. Is there something that could be improved? Is there something you wish you had that would make things easier for you and your co-workers? What kinds of things will you have to do at your job in the future?

Are you not sure about what I mean in Tip # 5? Part Two of this post, which explains exactly how I used what I was doing at work to start my online passive income machine, will come next.

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Jim October 20, 2008 at 9:10 am

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Hi Pat,

Nice looking blog. I’m looking forward to reading what you have to say.

L-Jay October 20, 2008 at 4:22 pm

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Your writing style is very personal, simple and informative – but best of all it is soothing…lol – I don’t feel like I have to be ‘quick-quick-quick’ or I’ll miss out. I think your honest and realistic approach will be the draw card to this new blog.

I’m happy to subscribe ;)

Pat October 20, 2008 at 9:00 pm

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@ Jim

Thanks! I hope I can provide you all with some helpful and inspiring information.

@ L-Jay

Thank you for the wonderful comment. I’m not a writer, so you have no idea how happy I am to hear somebody say that. Hope to hear from you again soon!

Lindsay October 20, 2008 at 9:38 pm

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The nice thing about *not* quitting your day job is you don’t put yourself into a position of “I have to make money from this or I’m screwed.” When you *have* to focus on making money, you tend to go for the quickest route that will get you there, and it’s rarely about creating value and actually helping people (the only sure way to build a business that will be successful in the long run).

That said, I was in a situation where I was in debt and couldn’t work, so I had to figure out how to make a living online as quickly as I could. My first sites weren’t so hot, and I’m just glad that I’m in a position now to shift my energies toward creating real value for people.

The only bad thing about doing it on the side is that if you don’t hate your job, then it can be hard to work up the “constructive discontent” necessary to succeed with a side business.

I guess it’s all about figuring out what works for you!

Andy @ Retire at 40 November 6, 2008 at 1:18 am

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I moved house back in April and whilst I never watch TV much before I moved, I haven’t watched it at all afterwards. I know this because the aerial doesn’t actually reach the TV which is on the other side of the room.

It’s one of the best things I’ve ever done – not plugging the aerial in!

Andy @ Retire at 40´s last blog post..‘Living it Down Small’ instead of ‘Living it Up Large’

passivefamilyincome November 11, 2008 at 12:50 pm

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Thanks for the tips! I think we share a lot of the same goals and aspirations. I eventually want to get to financial freedom where I can leave my 9 to 5 or 6 to 6 as it has become lately. I understand that it will not happen overnight.

passivefamilyincome´s last blog post..PFI Weekly Updates – November 11 (2008)

Azad Shaikh December 16, 2009 at 8:49 pm

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Hey thanks for sharing “Get Rich Slowly”. It is a nice blog too. Will read some post there.
There are lots of blog with passive keywords. Hard time with google hah!

Doyle Tremmel April 16, 2010 at 4:14 pm

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I recommend that you take a look these sites.

http://watchmoviesonpc.com/watch-tv-on-your-computer
http://justin.tv

Do you dudes know of any other places?

Frank Bonson April 30, 2010 at 8:55 am

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Have enjoyed your site very much and benefited from the information. Thank You….

Dustin Stevens-Baier August 24, 2010 at 10:16 pm

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All real great points on starting a passive income stream at work. Hopefully, they will become useful for me as I follow in your footsteps.

Benny December 15, 2010 at 7:06 am

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I found your blog through Yaro’s blog and I feel like I was meant to find your blog. Your writing is so easy to understand. I’m starting from your first post and going to read every single one to catch up.

Jojo Mathews @Around Social January 2, 2011 at 9:53 am

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Great points Pat, I used to watch a lot of TV shows before reading this post, now I have left that and got benefited , so came back there to just thank you… :)

Arvin Ignacio October 16, 2011 at 4:41 pm

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Making time is exactly what I said as a comment on your first blog! It is true that I can listen to podcasts while doing chores or going to work. Thanks for the awesome advise. I do not own an Ipod but I do want to listen to Podcasts. Still looking for way to convert them to MP3.

I’ll be reading Part 2 shortly.

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