Passive-income strategies were enormous back in 2023. Canadians may have seen inflation drop year over year, and the market was doing well. However, that didn’t help if you didn’t have cash on hand to spend either on items or investing.
But just because 2023 is behind us doesn’t mean Canadians shouldn’t still consider passive-income streams — especially if they want to create even more in 2024. And when partnered with a dividend stock, you could be raking in thousands in cash flow.
Passive income, not side hustles
First off, one thing I’ve made clear in past articles is that passive income and a side hustle are two very different things. A side hustle is a part-time job at its core. You have to keep up with it, putting out products or performing tasks or whatever the case may be.
However, passive income is something that takes far less time. In fact, beyond the setup process, you can put it out and forget about it. Instead, you’ll simply see cash flow your way month after month. In that way, it’s much like investing. You do your original research, make your investments, and leave it alone!
But I’ve gone over so many passive-income streams in the past. However, there has been one point worth noting in 2024 that makes an entirely new stream possible.
Artificial intelligence
Now, to be clear, artificial intelligence (AI) has its strengths but also its weaknesses. For what I’m going to discuss, you’ll still need that personal touch.
That passive-income stream is possible now, and that’s through creating online courses. AI can help you through the process, with your personal touch needed simply to add information and give it that personal touch.
Simply pick something you’re good at or even interested in! AI can help you brainstorm ideas, analyze trends, and search data to suggest topics that are in high demand. It can then help you refund the course concept. Furthermore, it can help with content creation, creating a curriculum outline, and brainstorming ideas for lesson plans, outlines, and even quizzes!
Then, if your course involves video lectures, it can create storyboards and even scripts. Furthermore, it can also help edit and provide feedback once you’ve created draft content. Some platforms you can use are Heights Platform or iSpring Page to get started.
Then, invest!
Once you’ve got a course up and running, you can start bringing in cash! And what’s more, beyond some additions, if you feel like it, you can keep it up and running for life! On the low end, you could bring in between $100 and $500 per month. As it gains popularity, it could be as much as $5,000 or more!
Let’s say you make around $1,000 per month. You then use that cash to invest in a dividend stock, one that provides solid monthly dividends. One I would consider is Granite REIT (TSX:GRT.UN). This company provides a solid growth strategy investing in industrial properties, while still offering a 4.45% dividend yield. Altogether, here is what that $12,000 at the end of the year could bring in.
| COMPANY | RECENT PRICE | NUMBER OF SHARES | DIVIDEND | TOTAL PAYOUT | FREQUENCY | PORTFOLIO TOTAL |
| GRT.UN – now | $73 | 164 | $3.30 | $541.20 | monthly | $12,000 |
| GRT.UN – highs | $86.50 | 164 | $3.30 | $541.20 | monthly | $14,186 |
You’ve now created $12,000 in passive income from a new income stream plus $2,186 in returns. Then, you add on $541.20 in dividends! That’s total passive income of $14,727.20 in 2024, coming out at $1,227.27 each month.
