The
vast majority of American wage and salary workers
today fall into the middle class. That means an
annual income of somewhere between $30,000 and $50,000-before
deductions for social security, federal and state
(and sometimes city) income tax, Medicare, health
insurance (if you're lucky enough to be offered
it), and a 401K plan. If you live in places like California
the going could be even tougher. The federal minimum
wage is still stuck at an amazingly low $7.25 per hour,
providing half a million minimum-wage workers with
barely $15,000 a year.
One Way Out
Given these figures, it is not difficult to see
why one in 17 Americans, or about 7.5 million, work
two or more jobs. It's called making ends meet or "moonlighting."
Sounds romantic, doesn't it?
Minimum-wage earners
moonlight just so they can pay the rent and put
food on the table. Middle-income workers cite different
reasons, such as
-
to attain a higher standard
of living
-
to pay off debt
-
to save for a home
-
to save for the future-their
children's education, their own retirement
Some moonlighters'
extra jobs are part-time, but others work two full-time
jobs, or three part-time jobs or some other combination.
Obviously, it can be pretty stressful. Moonlighters
don't see their families much, because they average
75 hours a week at work. It's an especially sad
situation for single parents.
More
Disturbing Statistics
According to a July, 2010, CNN Money.com article,
"Most of California's 240,000 state employees could
see their salaries temporarily cut to the federal minimum
wage because government officials can't reach agreement on
a new fiscal-year budget for the financially troubled state."
And the New York Times reported that while the median hourly
wage for American workers has declined 2% since 2003, while prices have increased
4%. Prescription drug costs alone have soared out
of control: Americans pay the highest prices in
the world. Although corporate profits keep climbing,
their employees' shares of those profits-in the
form of increased wages-is declining.
Meanwhile, the
median income in California is $58,000
according to the US Census Bureau while the median
price of a home in the California is
$500,000, more than twice the national average shutting
out the possibility of homeownership for thousands
of hardworking people. That leaves rentals, and
they too are going up in price. Added to the woes
of the middle class is the tendency to rely more
and more on credit, driving many into depths of
debt that seem inescapable.
If you're a average-income
worker still hoping to move up in your company,
you may want to keep in mind that in the past ten
years, there have been 9.7 million job cuts. You
know all about it-downsizing, outsourcing, not replacing
people who leave and expecting the ones left to
pick up the slack. Most of the time, you'll have
no clue that a layoff is about to happen. There's
always unemployment-but in most states it replaces
only about half of your lost income, and to make
matters worse, you'll have to pay income tax on
it come April 15th.
A Better Way
Spending
75 hours a week watching the minutes creep by on
a clock at work isn't appealing to anyone. But what
if you could work in the comfort of your own home?
Picture this: You have dinner with your family,
and then, while everyone is watching TV or doing
their homework, you're close by on your laptop-making
the extra money you need. You can even take your
job with you when you travel.
While this may sound
"too good to be true," the Internet has
made it possible for millions of people to make ends meet
and beat the economy at its own game.
You may need to put in as little as five hours a
week to replace the income you'd make from a grueling
35 hours of moonlighting time at some dead-end second
job. And you can put those hours in when and where
you want to and deduct many of your expenses on
your income tax return. You may become so successful
at your "second" job that you'll be able
to ditch the first one and work at home full time.
Before you even think
about taking a second job away from home, consider
the advantages of being your own boss...of being
able to go to bed at a reasonable hour...of not
having to deal with yet another boss and set of
corporate rules.
Do it for yourself.
A home-based business
could change your life. It costs nothing to explore
the possibility. Just fill in the form below to
request an interview.
Sincerely.
Leonard Martin
(307) 459-4668
lmartin@HomeBasedBusinessMatrix.info
