Are More Income Streams Better for Your Business? | #208

Never rely on one source of income. Build multiple income streams. Seven is apparently ideal, preferably with several making money while you sleep.

It sounds sensible. Diversification is a legitimate way of reducing risk, after all. But somewhere along the way, the internet business world seems to have translated diversifying risk into multiplying things to sell.

In this episode of Messy Business, I look at whether having more income streams genuinely makes us financially safer, or simply gives us more things to market, administer, maintain, and think about.

Because seven products sold to the same audience through the same platform aren't necessarily seven independent income streams. And a business with lots of revenue sources, high overheads, and enormous complexity may be considerably less resilient than one with a couple of boring contracts, low costs, decent savings, and a strong professional reputation.  

I also explore the idea that our working lives don't necessarily need to fit into one beautifully designed business model. Consultancy, teaching, projects, writing, investments, reselling, part-time work, or any other combination can coexist perfectly happily if together they create an economically viable life. 

Perhaps the more useful question isn't how can I create another income stream? It's what financial risk am I actually trying to reduce?

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