For the week ending 10/15/21, I worked two (2) shifts for a total of 17.51 hours, and earned $618.84, resulting in an extra student loan payment of $400.00.

I KNOW! This was the most lucrative gig week ever thanks to a shift that paid $30.00/hour and a $150.00 cash tip from the same event (which I am reporting for tax purposes). The event was super relaxed, in a gorgeous location, and the rate was so high because it was a really last minute shift (I agreed to work at 11:00AM and had to be onsite by 12:00PM). That is often where the money in gig work is and you have to balance holding out for last minute gigs at a higher rate of pay against the certainty of working, as those gigs may not materialize and/or someone else may snag the shift before you can. My luck that day was entirely accidental and I had not planned on working that day at all but a friend I met through an earlier gig text me to say, “Girl, they have shifts at over $25.00/hour, be tired later!” Sometimes, it literally pays to have hardworking and motivated friends.

You can read more about how I am landing gigs in Gig Tales: The Apps or how I determine how much money goes towards my student loans in Gig Tales: The Math. Although, at this point, how much I set aside for taxes, gas, and car wear-and-tear is a bit arbitrary. I have now started balancing how much I set aside against recent expenditures (e.g. $705.00 on brand new tires) and the fact that a lot of my gig income expenditures are tax deductible. For the most part, I am withholding (setting aside in savings) between 20-30% of the income I receive from gigs.