Hi everyone, I'm really hoping you can all teach me something important or forward some helpful advice for my situation. I am an insurance adjuster (one of several jobs I have experience in) that was deployed for claims work during Hurricane Irma in 2017 for a few months. We are all contract 1099 labor with regards to our agency's responsibilities. Which essentially means we must pay for our work expenses during the duration of our deployments. In my case, I needed to borrow around $18,000 to handle my lodging, travel, certifications, food, tools, licensing, job expenses and other fees for the 3 month deployment. We were paid a few thousand dollars each, my team of adjusters and I, but have not been paid as of work finishing in December 2017. I was unfortunately already in some debt on credit cards and a credit consolidation loan at the time. What ended up unfolding later down the road, unfortunately, is my Mom passed away in late May. This was extremely terrible news (our Dad is also gone). I am also a trader and had a really awful year in 2016 where I had massive losses, basically all of my life savings ($150,000). The timing of my Mom's death couldn't have been worse... I ended up spending several extra thousand dollars to handle funeral costs and other unexpected costs, unfortunately there were no assets from my Mom and we have nothing.
Fast forward to today, I still have not been paid. I have about $100 currently to my name. My agency owes me around $45,000. I have contacted an attorney and supplied him with my Employment Contract, but there is always a chance my agency is not collectible. The owner of my agency has defrauded myself and my entire team of, conservatively speaking, around $1.75 million in payroll. So others in my team have also had their lives destroyed by this unbelievable fraud.
I have decided to enter a debt relief program, instead of declaring bankruptcy. I have a few side jobs I am working on (trading futures for a prop firm for small $, and selling CBD oil products) and I am an expat living in Mexico in a great location. Otherwise, I have finally reached the absolute bottom of the barrel in my financial life, and it's extraordinarily depressing. I'm very angry at how this year has turned out, as the biggest financial blow ever dealt in my life has hit, along with my Mom dying. It's a 1-2 punch that most people would be obliterated by.
So, I'm asking for tips from you guys. Do you know of any great ways to earn decent money online? I would like to earn $3,000-$4,000 per month and I think this is a doable amount. I am originally a film and television editor with almost 30 years experience in the industry. I also have a lot of experience with advertising/marketing and writing. I am also experienced with sales and have worked many sales jobs over the last few decades.
Being 43, it seems like the world will end at this point, but I am realizing I might be missing out on a good opportunity to get involved in some profitable new ventures and get a fresh start. Once you have been totally and completely destroyed in life, the only good thought that persists all the depression and negativity is that you literally are needing to start from scratch, with decades of experience and knowledge. So hope still has not died, and I'm gradually evolving into more productive concepts to kick-start a recovery in life.
Thanks for reading and thanks for all of your advice!