Personal finances can be an arduous endeavor for anyone, but when your income fluctuates the difficulties are compounded. Experts advise using effective budgeting strategies, prioritizing retirement savings accounts and creating a safety net as ways to cope.
Start with essentials, like food, utilities and housing; then add in additional essentials, such as debt payments and insurance coverage.
Budgeting
An effective budget can help individuals manage the uneven nature of income and achieve financial goals more easily. Common budget strategies include tracking expenses, creating a cash cushion, paying down debt faster and diversifying income sources.
As gig workers are independent contractors, they must pay self-employment taxes and possibly make estimated tax payments periodically. Maintaining organized records, consulting a tax professional and using software are helpful ways of meeting tax obligations.
Experts advise setting aside at least some of each paycheck towards savings, even if it’s only $50. Automatic deposits or digital tools like Mint can help build savings habits and eliminating non-essential spending can make a substantial impact. Switching from contract phone plans to monthly prepaid plans can save money on service charges while limiting unnecessary purchases can free up funds for essential expenses like food and utilities. Lastly, individuals should also consider insurance coverage options like health care, disability and liability policies as additional financial protection options.
Retirement Planning
Since gig workers lack employer-provided benefits, it’s up to them to plan their own retirement strategy – this means tracking expenses, filing taxes and saving regularly.
Budgeting apps and investment platforms that provide real-time insights into earnings and spending are great tools to help gig workers keep a handle on their finances, as they enable them to better invest their income – as well as identify which expenses qualify as tax deductible expenses.
Zero-based budgeting, in which every dollar goes toward essential expenses, savings or debt repayment, is another approach to budgeting that is adaptable to fluctuating income levels and particularly useful for people with irregular earnings. Furthermore, gig workers can take advantage of group health plans through professional organizations or unions; short-term insurance policies could bridge any gaps in coverage as well as individual retirement accounts (IRAs) or Simplified Employee Pension Plans (SEP IRAs) providing tax-advantaged savings opportunities.
Taxes
The flexibility and freedom offered by gig work may seem attractive, yet it can present unique challenges to workers. Unlike traditional employees whose taxes are automatically withheld from pay checks each quarter, gig workers must save up money themselves to cover tax bills each quarter; failure to do so could cause serious stress and burnout as income levels fall below threshold levels.
Additionally, gig workers typically aren’t eligible for benefits like health insurance or retirement accounts, and miss out on the stability and sense of community that come from working full time jobs with long-term relationships with both coworkers and clients.
Gig workers can choose from an array of gig work assignments, including food and ride delivery, personal shopping, tutoring and writing. But for gig work to be truly fulfilling for them they must first find something they enjoy doing while offering a lucrative financial return – this will allow them to avoid burnout and find reliable sources of income.
Savings
As gig workers juggle multiple jobs, they should carefully consider their unique financial goals and needs. These may include retirement planning (especially without employer-provided plans), investment strategies, savings habits and health care costs as well as any additional issues they might encounter.
Gig economy workers may face difficulties creating sustainable passive income streams. While personal finance blogs might provide examples of influencers making money without lifting a finger, that’s an exception rather than the rule.
As local experts advise gig workers in order to meet their financial goals, experts advise them to adopt healthy saving habits and create a robust cash flow management plan. This includes using budgeting apps or the envelope system or zero-based budgeting to track expenses; prioritizing spending; and creating contingency plans in case there are leaner months. Furthermore, diversifying income streams could offer opportunities to save for long-term goals like education funding or entrepreneurial endeavors3.3
