How to Live Without a Job (We’re Serious)

The tradition of working eight hours a day at a 9-to-5 job has recently given way to remote work. More people are staying home and working from a home office. In many ways, this arrangement gives workers the freedom they need to balance daily life and the work they’re required to complete. Some have even found a way to live without a job. 

If you’re wondering if it’s possible to live without a job, you’re not alone. In fact, it’s something we’ve all probably thought about at one point in our lives. After all, who wants to get up every weekday and drive to work? There are plenty of other activities we could be doing to enrich our lives instead. If it weren’t for pesky bills and wanting to move up in life, we all might be jobless. 

This article is aimed to help you understand how you can live without a job. It might not look like something you pictured when you read the phrase “live without a job,” but the silver lining is that there are options to choose from. We’re not saying it’s easy to live without a job either. Hard work and dedication are necessary, but with the right tools and mindset, anything is possible. 

Are you ready to see how you can live without a job? Let’s get started! 

Can You Live Without a Job

Living without a job is a matter of approach. It’s about understanding what you need to make ends meet and be comfortable while tackling the issue of fulfilling those needs without a traditional full-time job. That may sound like a steep order, but many have succeeded in this regard in the past. 

Some argue that living without a job is easier now than it was in the past. Remote work and gig economy jobs gain acceptance each day as employers realize the benefits of letting their teams work in their own environments. Zoom and Google Meet video chats make up the difference. Working remotely may not jive with every industry out there, but it’s certainly paved the way for new ways of making a living. 

The answer to the question, “Can you live without a job?” is a complicated one. Most entrepreneurs answer it with passive income ideas that help them make money on autopilot. Sure, there are tons of passive income apps you can invest time into to live rent-free, but a few odd jobs here and there aren’t going to cut it. You need a plan of action and time to put it to work. 

10 Ways to Live Without a Job

Aside from work-from-home jobs, here are a few ways you can live without a job and still pay your bills each month. 

1. Baby and Pet Sitting

For easy jobs that pay well, look no further than babysitting and pet sitting. These under-the-table jobs pay more than you might think, especially if you’ve got training or experience. For example, you might be able to earn more per hour babysitting if you’re trained in CPR. The best part is, if you find a few loyal clients for either babysitting or pet sitting, or both, you can earn a steady income that could help you avoid the daily grind. 

You can find babysitting jobs on Care.com and pet-sitting jobs on Rover. You may also want to consider posting flyers in your neighborhood or advertising your services in the park. 

2. Blog on the Road 

Not having to worry about a job and getting paid to travel around sounds like a dream come true for most folks. Blogging on the road can help you make money by sharing your experiences through photos, videos, and written descriptions. If you’re not sure how to start a blog, we’ve got plenty of tips for new bloggers to help you start making money blogging. You may even be able to incorporate affiliate links for products and services to further improve your financial standing without having to commit to an eight-hour shift. 

3. Create and Sell Digital Products

Artists and creators will jump for joy at the many opportunities out there to earn an income simply from creating digital products. These include all kinds of experiences, from short stories and poems to photographs and musical pieces. Graphic designers have more potential than ever to influence the world around them and earn an income by doing so. 

Many popular side hustles for men include creating T-shirts and hats with unique sayings and drawings. Women can make money from home doing the same thing, perhaps with a crafty slant to what products they offer for sale. There are plenty of stupid simple ways to make money without having to sacrifice quality. It all depends on how you channel that creativity and where it takes you. 

Writers can sell their works on Amazon Kindle Direct or self-publish as well. Shutterstock is a great place to sell photographs. Canva is a unique tool many graphic designers rely on to manifest their works. However you create, there’s a platform out there for you.  

4. Freelance

If the sound of being your own boss makes you happy, consider freelancing for part-time side income. The biggest issue many have with freelancing is that it’s not guaranteed work. At the same time, not much is guaranteed anymore, especially when it comes to working.  

Freelancing takes on many forms, depending on what you want to do. You might freelance as a lawyer looking for clients you want to represent. You may also freelance by taking photographs or drone footage. Others freelance through their writing and journalism. That flexibility allows many people the freedom they need to let their creativity thrive. 

In addition to working your own hours and transitioning from project to project as you please, many freelancers now have access to banks that work with them. Some of the best business bank accounts for LLCs have freelancers in mind. If you want to live without a job and love what you do, see if freelancing is in your future. 

5. Fund a High-Yield Savings Account

Compared to running your own freelancing business, opening a high-yield savings account doesn’t sound like a whole lot of fun. That said, these types of savings accounts can help you earn more for your savings without having to risk it all on the stock market. Most banks offer at least a 2-3% APY, while some may offer up to 5%. 

6. Invest in Rental Property 

Does becoming a landlord sound like fun? If you need money to pay rent tomorrow and you want to get ahead for next month (and those following), it’s worth it to look into renting your property out. This could be in the form of renting a space of your home out to a tenant or purchasing and renting out a property separate from your living space. 

The best thing about becoming a landlord is that there are tons of apps out there to help you make the most of your investment. We compiled a list of tips for those renting their house for the first time because there are a lot of mistakes you can avoid with just a few hours of research. The same is true if you want to buy a vacation rental property.  

7. Pull From a Pension Fund 

Many of the ways to live without a job include opening a new business, but this one is a bit different. Instead, pulling from a pension fund requires you to work a government job and then obtain a pension you can draw from when you’re older. While you might not be able to live without a job now if you choose this path, you could potentially be set for the future. 

Pension funds can help set up a steady income you can depend on. At the same time, it does require years of work at the same company to earn. In contrast to retirement for self-employed individuals, pension funds can help ease the transition from working to being retired. 

8. Rent on Airbnb

Earning money from renting out your house or apartment is easy with Airbnb. In fact, many people choose Airbnb instead of renting, especially if they go on vacation and want to avoid hotel fees. Even if you need help with rent, Airbnb can save you.  

Airbnb is one of the best money-making apps you can download to live without a job. If you own a few rental properties, you may even be able to live off the rent without having to work at all. Most Airbnb rentals are short-term, though you can extend terms for tenants you enjoy working with. Plus, you can hire a property management service or even a cleaning service to turn the house over between tenants.

9. Rent Your Ride with Turo  

Renting extends to your ride as well with Turo. This app allows you to make $1,000 fast if you own the right car for the area you live in. You’d be surprised to see what people pay for an all-wheel drive vehicle in certain parts of the country or even a supercar on the coasts. 

The best part is that Turo vets the renters before they reserve your ride. They also hold renters accountable for any damage to the vehicle so you can rest assured your car will be taken care of. If you’ve got a vehicle you don’t use a lot and want to earn some cash to offset costs, check out Turo. 

10. Take on the Stock Market

Living without a job is possible if you make it big in the stock market. With the right choices, you can easily live off capital gains and dividends to avoid having to work eight hours a day. Earning a living from the stock market is easiest if you have a lump sum to invest, and the higher it is, the better. If you invest it right, you can maintain a lifestyle on a respectable income without having to work. 

To help conquer the stock market, we put together a guide on the best stock research apps. You can also find resources on the best stocks for beginners with little money and stock broker promotions you may be able to take advantage of. And if you’re looking for free stocks, look no further than Robinhood’s free stock promotion. 

FAQs

Is it possible to live without a job? 

Yes, it is possible to live without a job. In some cases, this means living without a traditional eight-hour job that requires you to be loyal to a specific company. The most successful entrepreneurs have found a way to work only a few hours at a time and still earn enough to live off of the rest of the time. 

What’s the best way to live without a job? 

The best way to live without a job is an approach that allows you to express yourself and enjoy life without having to stress about how you’ll pay your bills. Living without a job is difficult and can take some time to establish, but once you’ve got the ball rolling, it’s easy enough to maintain and grow. 

How much money do you need to live without a job? 

The amount of money you need to live without a job varies from one person to the next. In most cases, it takes sitting down and replacing what you would earn at a traditional job with enough side hustle and passive income. This isn’t always easy if you live in a place where the cost of living is high, but it is doable.

How much does it cost to start your own business?

Starting your own business doesn’t have to cost anything. In many cases, you’ll spend a few hundred dollars at least getting supplies and registering your new company. At the same time, you don’t have to go out and get a business loan to start your own business. 

Can You Live Without a Job

Living without a job doesn’t always translate to a life of luxury spent tanning on the beach. At the same time, we now live in an age where we can make our own paths to earn the means necessary to live without a job. Passive income and remote work pave the way for earning a living on your own terms. All that remains is to see where life without a job leads you.