Remaining Financially Stable While Pursuing Your Dream

Posted by in Career Advice


Aren’t we all envious of those people who are not only able to figure what their dream career is, but have the guts to actually pursue it? If all people were able to do the same, the world would be a happier place. But it’s not always easy being a dreamer. Because while these people may be pursuing their passion, it’s often hard to do it without compromising a reasonable income. If you find yourself in this predicament, here are some tips to help you stay afloat financially while taking strides to pursue your dream … Find a Part-Time or Temp Gig One of the easiest ways to bring in some extra cash while pursuing your dream career is taking on part-time or temporary work. With a part-time job, you work fewer hours, which leaves you with more time to take on your own projects. And with a temp gig, while you may have to work full-time, you can accept or reject jobs at your leisure based on pay and the length of the project, which offers a different type of flexibility. Another job that some consider when needing flexible income is substitute teaching. Much like temping, you get to decide when you work. And the money isn’t bad. For most districts, you can make anywhere from $75 to $120 a day. The only catch is that you usually need the equivalent of two years of college under your belt to qualify. Try Working from Home In the age where the Internet rules supreme – and companies are trying to cut back on their overhead – it is easier than ever to find a legitimate work-from-home job. So for many who are trying to pursue an income-lacking passion, working from home in customer service, data entry, or even freelance writing gives them the opportunity to bring in income and allows for great flexibility. If this is a route you’re thinking of taking, it’s a good idea to make sure that the company you’re looking to work for is legitimate. Check online scam reports, ask tons of questions about the business’ reputation, and don’t be shy about asking for professional references. The more effort you make to find out the legitimacy of the company, the more likely you are to actually receive an income from home – and that’s kind of the point, right? Take On a Lesser Version of Your Dream Job There is nothing wrong with starting from the bottom to make your way to the top – the same goes for pursuing your dream. For instance, if your passion is wildlife photography, but you’re having a hard time selling your pictures to major magazines, you may want to take a more standard photography job that will give you practice, credibility, and a little income. You can still try to sell your photos on the side until you get your big break, but at least you won’t be starving while you wait. Pursuing your dream can bring with it many challenges. But by bringing in additional income, you can alleviate stress, which often helps to improve creativity. Anything you can do to help foster what truly makes you happy in life is a great reward within itself.
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  • Melissa Kennedy
    Melissa Kennedy
    Wow! Such a great discussion.@Diane - It's a hard decision. Perhaps you could get a job working at a law office so that you can find out if law school is really what you want. Maybe they will have a program that will help you pay for your education as well.@Gwendolyn - Don't pay for a work at home opportunity. If a job is for real, you won't have to pay. @Rita - It's a tough situation. Keep looking and market yourself as someone who is still enthusiastic and passionate about the industry.
  • Daisy
    Daisy
    Superior thinking demonstrated above. Thanks!
  • Diane B.
    Diane B.
    Great article on pursuing your dream job.  I want to take the plunge but technically I am retired and in the drop program here at work.  My dream job is to become a successful attorney.  Going to law school requires me not to work full time so I am trying to decide what I am going to do.  My income is the only means of support.
  • joyce e.
    joyce e.
    You hit home with the senior retired, pile of resumes, taking Photography, 25% social security and a small retirement lifetime pension. Yes,I am looking for work at home,part time 20 hours,at $12.00 an hour while i go to school for a year& a half. I have a laptop computer,no other equipment. School cost around $9,000,& camera equipment,& developing, chemicals, light,cameras,etc...What data entry jobs do you have?A.M.
  • surabhi
    surabhi
    Nice information. We are looking for part time online jobs without investment
  • roxanne
    roxanne
    In your article "pursuing your Dream" you encourage people to take jobs that are temp OR gig type jobs. I have been doing that for awhile now as I have been unemployed for awhile. How do you account for that time & work within your resume when it has nothing to do with your main objective and career you want? Do you omit it?
  • tama daniel agediga
    tama daniel agediga
    great comment. people need to know they can make money legitimatly. and still keep their dreams alive great job.
  • BARUN MITRA
    BARUN MITRA
    it seems ok but the crunch is if you are late into your career with resposibilites the high from dream job cannot be sustained with meagre income.I tried teaching but my income got scaled down to 1/3 but my expenses remained same... result i blew my savings.
  • Edia StanfordBruce
    Edia StanfordBruce
    It is hard for people 50+ to find work part time or full time. Temporary services these days is harder to find. What we need is practical ways to break through the obvious torpor of being one drop in an ocean of applicants. Any way you look at it, staying afloat financially gets to be as much or more of a job than finding a job. It wears one out. What percentage of energy should be spent on either task?
  • Gwendolyn Scott
    Gwendolyn Scott
    Thank you.  This article hit on some very good points. I would love to work from home I have checked into several work from home job sites, but they all want money up front and I am a little uneasy about that. How do find a work from home position that does not require up front money.
  • Nicolle
    Nicolle
    This article was a much needed one.  I am recently unemployed, and have been working from home using some of the online companies that hire 'independent contractors' to do their work instead of paying an entire department or having to deal with operating costs of a call center.  Take a look at my website (portfolio page) for a few examples of actual LEGIT companies that I've been using & send me an email (contact me page of the website) if you'd like any more information on what else is out there!!  I've been making it so far & now I'm running my own home-based business doing it!
  • sheryl douglas
    sheryl douglas
    I agree with the comment about the home jobs and where to find them and which ones are legitite. I also could use some suggestions on where to find these jobs, and who is legite and who is not and how do you research to find out the info. I am a college student and need a job to be able to continue going to school. Plus I am over 50 and having a really hard time, as everyone else, finding a job, any job, let alone my dream job.Any help would be greately appricated.
  • Nancy O'Keefe
    Nancy O'Keefe
    I've tired and tired to locate a job and am considering a work at home position but with the nightmare stories you hear it's scary. Please, if you would please give suggestions on good and honest companies. My luck I'll pick the bad apple. So any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.Sincerely,Nancy O'Keefe
  • Babiker
    Babiker
    yes I do agree with you if we don't give on our way to obtain the dream career we will approach it deadsure, only we need to creat or follow new approaches concerning earning a living through part-time jobs which is a lot as you mentioned above in the article.
  • Carol
    Carol
    I totally agree with these tips. They have definately worked for me. Thanks for sharing.
  • Jon K. Evans
    Jon K. Evans
    I actually had my Dream Job in working for Underwriters Laboratories-then lost it in a restructuring.  Since I am a Technical Writer by training, I have been pursuing those jobs.  The UL job was the only one I had related to TW, and TW has changed so much that I no longer have the background for TW.  That's the dilemma I face.
  • Lawrence Weiss
    Lawrence Weiss
    Great "staying afloat" ideas!
  • Rita Jones
    Rita Jones
    I went to college for 2 years for Paralegal Studies and cannot find a job because I do not have experience.  When I tried to get on the Registry, I was told I did not have any experience.  How can you get the experience if no one will hire you?
  • Becky Donaldson
    Becky Donaldson
    This is a great article. I am pursuing my dream and you are absolutely on the mark in regards to compromising income but a dream realized is well worth the cost of sacrifice. These are some good suggestions. This article was great. Thanks Heather.

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