I'm a financial gal at heart. When I'm in a rush for contract gigs, that is the skill set I explore first. There is always demand for great financial folk, in the good times and the bad.
Especially in the bad. In the bad, when everyone else is seeing a salary pull back, great financial folks have their salaries bid up. Why? Because companies are in financial trouble and you are expected to help stop the pain.
However, as a contract girl, I know that is only a short term financial windfall. Once the economy recovers, my charge out rate will settle back into more reasonable levels. I know my charge out rate from gig to gig will change.
Many full time employees don't realize how sensitive their jobs are to outside pressures. Passion Saving by Rob Bennett is one of the very rare books addressing this. He points out that the big job money is in specialization. Since the demand for specialization fluctuates, so does the salary companies are willing to grant.
In other words, we're each like a stock. Me, Inc, he calls the company. What the market is willing to pay (remember Warren Buffett's irrational Mr. Market?) goes up and down.
Yeah, I know, scary thought, isn't it? And like most stocks, your price can go to zero. That is what is happening with some autoworkers right now. Their car building skills aren't in demand at all. The salary other employers are willing to pay for those skills is zero.
What does that mean? Well, as you wouldn't put all your money on one stock, so shouldn't you put all your future earnings on one skill or one stream of income. That is where investing comes in. It provides that extra stream of income.