Letโs be honest โ weโre all told that frugality is a virtue, but who really knows how to live on a budget? Itโs hard, and even when we do go a month without pushing the limits of our credit cards, it feels like weโre missing out on some luxury we wanted. But, there is one man who lives on a tight budget and is perfectly happy with it.
Andy Hough is a blogger who writes about his unique financial journey.
Although Andy went to law school, he is not currently working as a lawyer. That means he has a lot of student debt to pay off. Even now, into his 5os, Andy Hough still has a student debt of 6 figures.
Andy is not alone. Law school is an expensive endeavor for pretty much anyone. According to EducationData.org, the average amount of law school student debt is $160,000, and 74.1% of law students graduate in debt. Law school debt is not joke, so these students have to work hard to pay all this money back. Andy offers one solution, for former law students or anyone else looking to make some money.
How does he make his money?
Andy has a number of side hustles to keep him going. And a lot of them seem pretty fun! For while, he was working as a movie extra, even landing a role in a movie with Reese Witherspoon. Other times, he does temp work. In his most recent blog post, he was working as a document reviewer. He has done this type of work on and off over the years, and he says he likes it!
Other times, he has some really unconventional ways of making money. Andy has blogged about participating in focus groups, clinical trials, and mystery shopping. One of his favorite ways to make some passive income is to sell items on Ebay.
How does this lifestyle impact his life?
Apparently in some really good ways. Because many of Andyโs jobs are seasonal, he has a lot of free time in the off-season. Working and living in this way has given him the ability to travel a lot. Recently, he spent two and a half months in Thailand!
Even when he jobs arenโt seasonal, many of them still have flexible hours. He can earn enough money to live and still has plenty of time to do the things he wants.
He shares his income and expenses to inspire other people to turn their passions into professions.
In addition to earning some riches for himself, Andy is generous enough to share his tips with all of us. He also wants to show that living on a budget doesnโt have to feel super restrictive. For example, in the month of March, Andy made $6323, and his expenses were $1166. Heโs managed to make a really satisfying life for himself, all outside the confines of a typical job.
Know your market.
Andy says that before anyone tries to follow in his footsteps, they need to do some research. He encourages people to know the market they are working before they start. This way, you can adapt your work to best suit the needs of the people in the community you are aiming for, and then better market towards them.
Make a business plan.
This seems like an obvious piece of advice, but really, it is so important. Andy breaks it down for all of us by writing exactly what a business plan needs. He says you must know:
- โpricing of your product or service
- how and where youโll sell
- milestones you want to achieve and when
- strategies for marketing and promotion
- initial funding and ongoing investment
- benchmarks youโll use to determine whether your business is viable
- an exit and expansion strategy that recognizes when itโs time to close the business or change up to a different business structure as the venture grows.โ
Once you have this business plan figured out, all thatโs really left is to get out there and dazzle people with your brilliant ideas! Having fun will set you up for success and happiness, no matter where life takes you.
To learn more about Andyโs life and his tips, check out his blog.
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