(Well, I’m back from travels to Dallas and Portland looking for work, grading final projects for students, and a few other things. The blog beckons me for updating with increasingly plangent tones.)
I woke up this morning and remembered something that a good friend, Paul Peck, said to me decades ago. “Nobody never got rich but what they weren’t doing something on the side.” We talked about it. It could be one of several things, all of which are equally true:
- Busy people are always more likely to get rich. Doing something on the side is a sign of that.
- The side job generates extra income that provides that bit of grease and financial latitude you need to start building a huge nest egg.
- The side activity may not generate money because it’s all volunteerism (such as being a Big Brother/Big Sister or building houses for Habitat for Humanity), but it gives you extra skills/contacts/oomph that you can use in your day job.
- You’re putting your time to better use than just watching TV.
…and several other possible interpretations that also tend to be true.
Whatever the path to riches, I think it’s true: you’re more likely to get rich if you’re someone who does something on the side. Whether it’s the extra cash or the visible manifestation of extra energy or just that you have ADD and can’t sit still so you’re doing something, it’s a pretty safe bet that you stand a better chance of getting rich–and probably having a lot more fun, regardless–when you’re doing something on the side.