There is growing anger and frustration towards the gig economy.
Some argue that firms are taking advantage of the people and others bemoan that they cannot make a living from gigs.
There are some truth to the resentments but there is a huge misunderstanding about the gig economy.
The point of gig economy is not to make you wealthy or give you a decent life.
The whole point of the demand economy is to provide the opportunity and the flexibility for an individual to make money.
Nobody forced anyone to drive for Uber. Uber never holds drivers against their wills. Fiverr does not force freelancers to work. They merely provide the opportunity to make extra money. If the driver or freelancer is unhappy or does not want to work then they can do so.
Gig economy never intended to be a mean to provide a decent living. It only provided an opportunity to make more money. Now some people may say that many companies take too much commission. Well, then look for other demand economy companies. There is growing competition in the demand economy firms. Indeed, there is so much intense competition that even Uber and Lyft are barely profitable.
So what can we do about the growing resentment about the gig economy. Well, first realize that Uber, Lyft, or any gig is unlikely to provide you a comfortable living. Once you realize this truth then you can think of other ways to make extra income.
Here are some suggestions.
- Grow your own food. You can easily grow many produce at home including tomato, lettuce, and herbs. Growing your own food will save you money and time. Plus, it is more likely to be more nutritious.
- Sell stuff online. There is so much stuff in most households. Well, see what you can salvage and sell. Go to garage/ yard sales or get donations and resell them. Facebook has a marketplace now you can go beyond Craigslist.
- Collect old coins. There are a lot of old things that are valuable. Study about rare coins. Start collecting coins and then see what other valuables you can collect and sell. Of course, it will take time to become an expert but just categorizing old coins by years is not that difficult. May be there is a hidden treasure in those coins.
- Sell junk. There are places that will pay for your recycling item. Start collecting junk. You don’t have to be a hauler. Just pick up what you can and then go and sell to a recycler.
- Start investing. Of course, it is hard to invest when you are barely making it. But you have to start. Let money work for you. I suggest using roboadvisors such as Betterment or Wealthfront. They don’t guarantee fantastic returns but they will limit your downside. The power of compounding will save the day.
These suggestions can help an individual for some time but eventually he will have to either find a job or a skill that will provide sufficiently. Of course, this is not easy but it is much better to look for the job or the skill that you need with some extra income rather no income.
Pureum's Perspective 