I've taken a step back slightly on the sawmill idea, and here's why. One of the side projects I've been working towards has been a part-time adjunct with the local med school. I cross paths with them on a regular basis and I finally bit the bullet and went in and sat down with a couple of the people that oversee the prehospital medicine program. Suffice it to say, we had some great conversations and I came away giddy. Our goals, visions, and passions align quite well, and I was happy to accept an invitation to join their team.
Pursuant to that, I had to go back to get my AHA BLS Instructor. This was something I had attempted a few years ago through another training center, but we could never work the training out. This time around things are going quite swimmingly. Earning my BLS Instructor opens up another opportunity to teach and earn a side income.
Before coming into EMS, I was previous and FFL, and I ran a small firearm store. This led to me becoming a firearm and CWP instructor. I enjoyed the time spent teaching, but I let my instructor credentials lapse when I joined EMS. Since stepping away from the retail business, I have plotted reviving a training only business. My goal is to find someone to teach firearms and CWP, and I will teach medical. Well, with this BLS Instructor, I will be able to teach Heartsaver First Aid & CPR which is the public facing course (as opposed to a provider course). I still retain my Stop the Bleed Instructor credentials. So I'm looking at reviving my training side hustle by offering one-day courses that will cover Heartsaver First Aid & CPR, and Bleeding Control. This will require less upfront cost than the sawmill, and will take up the free time that I would have had to mill anyway. So the current game plan is thus: I will be putting the mill on the back burner while I develop this project.
Now, this is by no means the stopping point. It's a step in a direction. I have an entrepreneurial itch that must be scratched, and as mentioned before, I have several business ideas that I would like to see fulfilled. This first step can provide another income stream that can then be used to fund the next venture, and the next. It will also allow me to supplement my income as I've given consideration to taking on a full time instructor position. However, the full time position comes with a significant reduction in hours. My baseline now is an average of 56 hours per week. The instructor job is looking at 40 hours a week base. That's not an insignificant number. As much as I enjoy teaching the baby EMTs and Medics, that extra income is what allows me to fund my kids' education and even some of my own education. At the end of the day, being at the front end of a recession, with spiraling inflation and skyrocketing prices, I need all the help I can get.
This is by no means a hard no to the full time job. On the contrary, I'm wanting to develop these other opportunities in order to allow me the financial wiggle room to take that step. At the end of the day, however, my family will ultimately come first, and all else will come second to making sure they are taken care of, and that my children are prepared to enter the adult world well educated.
There are also the other opportunities I've previously mentioned still in the works. I have the medical podcast that I'm trying to organize, and I've recently found a partner that is interested in starting a financial podcast as well, and this made the equipment purchase more reasonable and feasible. Remember, I'm trying to fund these ventures with what money I can scrimp, save, and liquidate.
Hozzászólások