Recently, a client told me that she is worried her husband will lose his job. Although her business is profitable, they depend on both incomes and couldn’t get by on her current income alone.

As we talked about what actions she could take to prepare for this possibility, she mentioned a few things she believes she could easily do to dramatically increase her income if her husband is laid off. This caused me to ask, “Why aren’t you doing those things now?” She didn’t have an answer at first, and finally said, “Well, I guess because I don’t have to do them. We make enough money right now.”

It is easy to get comfortable with where you are, and not make improvements until an outside force pushes us into it. That doesn’t mean that you have to do anything and everything to chase the almighty dollar, but if there are things you can do to make yourself and your family more financially secure, shouldn’t you at least consider doing them? Maybe some of them aren’t right or will overwhelm you, but even if there are just a few things you can do that will increase your income without messing up your life, shouldn’t you do them?

Pay special attention to things you can do that will generate recurring income. If there is something you can do once and get paid again and again, why not start there? Examples might include publishing a book or ebook, setting up a membership site, or licensing something you created.

Don’t wait for a crisis to strike before you step up and start doing the things you should be doing now.