Lessons

The four ways money arrives

What it is

Money reaches you in one of four shapes. You sell your time to one employer. You sell your time to several buyers. You sell a finished job at a price you set. Or you sell a thing — something another person could hand over for you.

Why it matters

Three of the four stop at the hours in a week. Everybody gets the same hours. The fourth one does not stop there. So the shape you are in sets your ceiling. It also changes the arithmetic on the next few screens.

The method

Do not pick the shape you want. Pick the one that matches where last year's money came from. Most people are in two. A job, and something on the side.

Example

Salma teaches at a school. She also takes evening tuition. That is two shapes. Time sold to one employer, and a job sold at her own price. Count both separately. Then add them.