Multiple Paydays Per Month
When I was young my parents told me that money didn’t grow on trees. They were saying the income they had was limited. I suspect my dad was paid biweekly, but I don’t know that for certain. I think it is possible to be paid at least half of the days of every month if you are willing to work at creating an investment orchard.
It is certainly true that money doesn’t grow on a tree. Wouldn’t it be great if you could always go out and find something to eat on a tree in your location? Someday, according to the Apostle John’s Revelation, that will be the case. Until then, most of us need to have some way to purchase the food we eat.
Revelation 22:1-3 “Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him.” (ESV)
Our Sources of Income
Cindie and I have Social Security deposits of $3,714 that appear on the second and third Wednesdays of the month. That covers two of the days of the month. One day each month we receive income in the form of cash back for our Fidelity Rewards VISA card. $1,136.17 has been deposited over last 12 months, so that is about $95 per month on average. In addition, some of our accounts at Fidelity participate in the loaned security program. In my traditional IRA that adds another $28 for April.
However, the real paydays are far more frequent. Those paydays happen on dividend pay dates and any time I do an options trade that results in income. Some of that income is tax-free, because it is in our ROTH accounts.
April 2026 Dividend Paydays
Although the month isn’t over yet, there have been thirteen income days from dividends. The total MTD dividends are $12,199. The fifteenth of the month is generally a good one, as some of the stocks that pay a monthly dividend pay on that day of the month. If you remember that April has eight weekend days, then there are only 22 “workdays” in the month, excluding any holidays or vacation days. Therefore, dividend income appeared on more than half of April’s working days.
April 2026 Options Paydays
Again, although the month isn’t over yet, there have been thirteen income days from options trades. Most of those have been covered call options, but I have also done some cash covered put options. The total MTD options premiums are $6,267. Again, because April has eight weekend days, then there are only 22 “workdays” in the month. Therefore, option income appeared on more than half of April’s working days. Note that this required a bit of work, but nowhere near even eight hours for the entire month.
April 2026 Investment Paydays
If you combine the dividend and options income you will see that we were paid 18 of the 22 workdays. Total income was $18,467. If you divide that number by 22, you will see that the daily average income was $839.41. If I had worked eight hours each of those days, my hourly income would be $104.93. I can guarantee that I never earned that much per hour during my working years.
Total 2026 YTD Income from Options/Dividends
The total cash received YTD is $94,444. That is $23,611 per month.
Conclusion
If you depend on Social Security in retirement, be prepared to have one deposit to your checking account that you will have to use carefully during the month. If you have investments, and you have been careful to include income-producing stocks and funds, then you will have more paydays. If you are willing to trade options contracts, your only limitations are related to the stocks and ETFs you own and your willingness to spend a few minutes during some days to enter a few trades. In my experience it is easy to earn $150 or more per trade.
Bear in mind that you cannot trade options on mutual fund shares. Therefore, I generally avoid mutual funds as a way to have reliable extra income.
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