consultation

Yes, You Can Start Making Money With AI. Here’s How.

Still feeling overwhelmed when it comes to AI? That’s understandable: this world is new for everyone. But, on the upside, new worlds mean new opportunities, and there is a plethora of options that you can take advantage of at this point in time. Even with my limited knowledge, I’ve already made money with AI, less than two months into learning about these tools. As soon as I saw my first sale, I knew I needed to write this post and share this information with you all. Here’s a quick guide to start making money quickly with AI:

  • Decide what you want to create. At this early part of the AI revolution, there are many resources and countless options for anyone that’s interested in creating with AI. Future Tools has a list of all of the AI-powered platforms that offer you options for creating new or upgraded income streams. For me, it was more interesting to work with images, which is why I dove into learning how to do AI-generated art. However, it’s possible to create videos, music, website copy, and so much more using AI. If you need a simple list of AI business ideas that have already been tested, check out this Side Hustle Nation’s blog post, where Matt Wolfe (one of my favorite AI gurus) discusses the business options available using AI.
  • Watch YouTube videos to teach you the skills needed to get your business running. My favorite YouTubers that are discussing AI right now are Matt Wolfe, The AI Advantage, Goda Go, and Maximize. Learning about prompt engineering, large language models and natural language processing, and stable diffusion are great starting points, and, fortunately, you don’t have to be an expert at any of these in order to earn money with these tools. Carve out a bit of time each day to learn something about this new, exciting world, and allow these YouTube teachers to help you.
  • Start experimenting with what you learn. Work with what you know and see what gives you the best results (pro tip: get very comfortable with ChatGPT: you can use it to create a business strategy that can improve the likelihood of success). Launch and have fun!

If you’ve had a chance to start using AI tools, please let me know. I’d love to hear what you’ve learned so far!

The First Step To Earning More Money

It’s the first month of the year. You have a money goal (hopefully an attainable one), you have your steps outlined, and you’re ready to launch. You’re aiming for one thing: more money to fund your dreams. After all, it takes money to make [some of] our dreams come true.

There’s a crucial first step that you need to take in order to earn more money. Most people immediately look for a second job, start applying to new positions, or pick up additional hours at their current job. Others will start having yard sales, falling into MLMs, taking paid surveys, or running to the local plasma center to generate some extra cash.

If you thought that the first step to earning more money is to work more, then you’ve probably spent a lot of time spinning your wheels and making little progress. Yes, you can absolutely earn more money by working more or working harder, but that is rarely a sustainable solution. Your energy and time are finite, and using more of both can leave you depleted.

I propose a gentler – but still effective – way to start on the path to higher earnings. It’s an oft-mentioned step, but I don’t think anyone emphasizes it as the best step to take before taking additional action.

Start your money making journey with two things: a skills audit and a values assessment. Most of the missteps that happen with side hustles, second jobs, and increased work hours involve leaning upon weaker or nonexistent skills, or, even worse, in scenarios where there are value mismatches. Knowing your skills and your values will ensure that you won’t pursue money-making opportunities that leave you frustrated, exhausted, or unfulfilled.

Is making more money supposed to be a fulfilling experience? Yes, absolutely! If you are having a miserable or even a lackluster time, then it’s not the right money-making option for you! There are so many ways to make money that are fun, fulfilling and enjoyable: you DO NOT have to suffer through miserable jobs just to make extra cash.

So, before you start the job hunt, or sign up for extra shifts, write down all of your skills, and determine which ones you most enjoy using. Then, get clear on your values, write them down, and only accept jobs or opportunities that resonate with both of these lists. If you’re tired of suffering to make money, or if you need help with getting a clear understanding of your skills and values, check out this page for support.

Have you ever done a skills audit or values assessment? Let me know about your experience in the comments below!

Making Your Labor Count – 3 Ways To Make The Most of Work

In the United States, yesterday was Labor Day. This day observes those American works that advocated for labor law improvements that established guidelines for ethical, reasonable work and that opened the way for safer work environments, fair(er) pay and better work schedules. While the state of US labor still has much room for improvement, this holiday recognizes the workers that paved the way for better work for all.

As I reflect on Labor Day, I think of how those early advocates would be both delighted and dismayed by the current state of work here in the US. I also thought about individuals within the workforce, and how they can position themselves to make the most of their careers and the experiences afforded to them by virtue of their professions. Here are three ways that we (because I’m still an employee, too!) can make the most of our time as employees:

  • Explore and take advantage of employee benefits. Free or lowered price training, various insurances, shopping discounts, access to restricted spaces and exclusive events: find out all of the benefits available to you from your employer. Then take advantage of every program, benefit, and perk that you can. If these perks can be enjoyed on the clock, even better!
  • Network like crazy while you’re there. Wherever you work, remember that you are less than six degrees from people that can assist you with your goals. So meet as many people as you can, and add these individuals to your network. The thought that a person should only go to work and refuse to develop networks within their sphere of influence is antiquated and limiting. Many people that hold this perspective will also complain about job stagnancy and air their frustrations over how better networkers get certain promotions and advantages within the workplace. Your dream role may be just one crucial contact away from where you are right now. Learn to network so that you can tap into all of the opportunities just beyond your reach.
  • Do a skills audit so you can quantify what you learned and make moves based on your skill set. Examine the skills you’ve gained on the job, and determine which ones would qualify you for a better position (spoiler alert: ALL skills have the potential to qualify you for something better). If you struggle with identifying and enhancing your skills, you can get a skills audit done by me. I offer this audit so that, instead of feeling overwhelmed or disempowered, you can devise a plan of action that moves you confidently toward the career of your dreams! As employees, most of us are more talented, skilled, and desirable than we know. The skills we have are often downplayed by us (as an attempt to display humility) or others (part of getting us to accept less than we deserve). If you aren’t sure what your gifts are, or what you bring to the job market, contact me: I can help you pinpoint your talents and tell you how to leverage them to your advantage.

Those are my top tips for getting the most out of your current job. What are some of your tips? I’d love to hear about them in the comments below!

Take Advantage of the Summer Slowdown – Major Money Tips

Hello friends! We are roughly 6 weeks post June 15th, the most recent major IRS deadline for a large group of taxpayers. This time of year is generally among the slowest for tax professionals, and the perfect time for taking a well-earned vacation. Likewise, many business owners that have non-seasonal businesses may experience a slump in activity, as well.

Aside from going somewhere lovely for a vacay, there are a few other ways to take advantage of the summer slowdown. When enjoying this downtime, it’s easy to forget that there are things that can be done now, in order to make the remainder of the year a bit easier on you. If you’re lucky, taking action now may create some additional pockets of downtime even during the busier seasons! Here are some things both tax practitioners as well as taxpayers can do during this quiet period:

  • Start compiling the documents needed to complete the next scheduled quarterly estimated tax payment (for people that do not pay taxes through wages – the next quarterly due date is September 15, 2022)
  • Contact any clients that have filed extensions, and provide a quick checklist of documents to have before completing their returns. If they need to request missing documents, this is a perfect time to do so. If you’re not a practitioner, then reviewing IRS’s records for your most recent tax year is also a good idea: as a taxpayer, it’s helpful to know what figures and income statements IRS has, so that you can ensure that you have all of the documents reported under your tax ID number.
  • Conduct a review of 2022 business activities up to this point, and identify 1-3 areas for improvement. Come up with one small, concrete step that can be taken today, to move toward that improvement.
  • Reach out to clients to express appreciation for continued support (this applies to tax practitioners as well as individuals that have goods- or service-based businesses).
  • Start and finish reading one book related to your area of expertise. Select another book or two to read during the last 4 months of the year.
  • Digitize any paper records that have been missed, and save these documents in secure ways.
  • Find one thing to outsource either for the summer or the upcoming fall and winter seasons. Set up a payment arrangement to cover the outsourced service until the end of the year.
  • Set your remainder of the year goals (September to December goals). Get a head-start on some of those goals now.
  • Review your paper calendars (or digital calendars) for the past three months. Complete anything that was inadvertently missed.
  • Create a business vision board (I’ll be upgrading mine and sharing it in a future post).
  • Write out your business vision for 2023, and use the remainder of the summer, as well as the upcoming seasons, to arrange your affairs for a smooth transition into your vision.
  • Check on the completion status for required continuing professional education courses (CPE). Schedule and take those necessary CPEs while you have free time.
  • Review your current memberships and affiliations to see if you’re taking advantage of all of the benefits of being a member. If not, start using those perks today. If the organizations you’ve joined aren’t providing enough benefit, reconsider whether you should remain a member (cancel memberships if appropriate).

I am already scheduling most of these activities for myself, because these are tasks that I have been neglecting for a while now, and I know my life and business will improve drastically once I work on these. If you’re doing any of the things listed above, let me know about it in the comments below! I’d love to hear about your plans.