Answers to popular money questions asked on Google

Yep, you guessed it – how to make more money is a popular question...very popular.

Increasing your take home pay (either through a promotion or finding a new job) might be tough, so one way to generate more cash is through a second income or passive income. 

Many think of passive income as low-effort, but you usually have to invest some time and money. Some passive income options that can be sustainable include ad revenue-based income from a blog, YouTube channel or podcast, and creating and selling an online course or e-book. Other ways that we've seen include becoming a personal shopper, or trying out dropship. 

But if you have a bit of money to spare, investment can be a good option to generate passive income too. 

"Stable" tend to be subjective, but there are some ways to check your financial health. Aside from your debt-to-income ratio and net worth, there are other, more personal ways to see if you're financially secured. As a financially healthy person, you should:

• Spend less than you earn
• Have emergency cash, and hopefully have leftover cash after paying expenses and financing commitments.
• Able to pay your credit card bills in full and on time. 

You may also have plans for long-term savings or growth. Although many of us have made money mistakes, it is easier to move on from the past when our financial health is good. This means you should be focused on your financial future, and be able to keep track of your money without worrying about money all the time.

What are "good" debt and "bad" debt? Good debt can help you build your wealth or net worth. For example, a mortgage can be considered a good debt because you can build your net worth by purchasing your own home. Investing in yourself (like taking an education financing loan or financing) will also help you earn more in the future, so this can also be considered as a good debt. 

A bad debt is called as such because taking one will not really improve your finances. For example, you may use credit cards to earn rewards for consumable items like food, or clothes and vacations – good so far, yes? However, if you do not pay the balance in full, the outstanding debt would be considered as "bad".  Other bad debts can include high-interest loans, and even "good" debts that are not managed carefully. 

The key is to always consider if you can afford to take on the loan or product before saying "yes" to them. 

This can vary depending on where you are in life, but a general rule is to save at least 20% of your income. If you are not able to reach 20% yet, just start at an amount you can manage and slowly work your way up.

If you’re meeting your savings goals, have a full emergency fund and have extra cash to spare, you may be wondering if you should save more than 20%.

Although it’s good to have more savings, it may be better to invest instead. This is because interest rates for regular savings accounts may not be able to balance out the rate of inflation, and investing will help you preserve the value of your wealth.