This story is part of CNBC Make It's Millennial Money series, which details how people around the world earn, spend and save their money.

When Max Gallo left his full-time job at an insurance company in 2019, he didn't have another source of steady income lined up.

While Gallo says his salary was "very nice," the 28-year-old wasn't happy. He wanted a career that fulfilled him and the ability to spend his time doing things that excited him.

Soon after leaving his job, Gallo took an acting class in New York City — which wasn't too far from his home in New Jersey — and fell in love with the craft. He decided he wanted to be an actor and moved to the Big Apple to chase his dreams.

"I wanted to take my shot," he says. "I wanted to try to follow my dreams because I knew that if I tried later in life, I don't know if I would have as much momentum as I do now."

Five years later, he's had a decent amount of success booking small parts and work on TV shows. But financially speaking, he hasn't hit it big yet. 

In 2023, Gallo brought in just $16,499 between his acting gigs, a side job at an exotic car dealership in New Jersey, unemployment benefits and a grant from the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists.

He expected to make more, but as a member of SAG-AFTRA, he was on strike for the bulk of the year. He's been mostly living off the savings he stashed away while working at the insurance company and living at home with his parents, but that account balance is dwindling. As of January, he has about $10,000 left in savings, down from around $33,000 when he quit working full-time.

"I know I don't have a huge safety net, but it does feel good that I at least have something there," Gallo says. "I know that at any time I could go around the corner to Starbucks and get a job that's going to [cover] my expenses because they're relatively low."

But he won't take just any job. Working at the insurance company helped Gallo realize that he wanted both a better work-life balance and to do work that truly brought him joy.

"I want to get paid for things that I would already do for free," he says. "I managed to find that doing what I love as an actor and also working with exotic cars."

So far this year, he's earned $2,032 from acting gigs, received another grant from SAG for $1,450 and gotten a tax refund of $2,800, which have helped cover his bills. Gallo isn't sure how much he'll end up making in 2024 — it all depends on the roles he's able to book.

You may wonder how Gallo manages to get by on such a small income in one of the most expensive cities in the world. The truth is, he's not too stressed about it yet.

"I would definitely feel more comfortable if I...didn't have to dip into savings, but it feels OK," he says. "I can mitigate and figure something out when I need to, but now I'm still on the pursuit of my dreams, and I'm going to be doing that for a little bit longer."

Getting through the Covid-19 pandemic

Gallo lived with his parents in New Jersey during the year he worked in insurance, allowing him to save up around $33,000. At the time, he didn't have a goal in mind for the savings, but knew he wanted to give himself a financial cushion.

"Having that safety net has helped me a lot, and it's gotten me to where I am now," he says.

Gallo booked his first acting gig in 2019 and moved to Brooklyn where his older brother had a spare room he could rent. However, the Covid-19 pandemic forced Gallo press pause on city-living, and he went back to New Jersey to live with his parents in March 2020.

While he was home, Gallo — who also has a passion for cars — would take his almost-classic BMW out for drives to get out of the house. Along the way, he met a man who planned to open an exotic car dealership. Gallo asked him to give him a call when that came to fruition.

A few months later, the man reached out and asked Gallo to help with this new venture. Gallo was able to use his knowledge and excitement about cars to promote the dealership on social media and help determine what cars would need maintenance-wise when they came to the dealership. He made around $20 an hour and enjoyed the flexibility to work on his own schedule.

Eventually, Gallo moved back to New York in 2022, which made it difficult to continue working with the car dealership, but he still helps out from time to time when he wants to make extra cash.

'There is no plan B'

Gallo was involved in music and theater in school growing up, but it wasn't until he took the acting class as an adult that he realized how fun and therapeutic acting was for him — and that it was a career he wanted to pursue.

"A lot of us played in an imaginary way when we're kids, and that's what [acting] kind of feels like as an adult," he says. "I think sometimes we lose touch…with that part of our minds. It felt really cool and I wanted to do more of that."

He's inspired by some of Hollywood's biggest legends, including Sylvester Stallone, whose origin story has similar themes to Gallo's. Stallone, who was unknown and pretty much broke at the time, famously turned down $300,000 so he could make "Rocky" the way he envisioned it — with himself playing the title role.

Despite his own precarious financial situation, Gallo isn't backing down either.

"There is no Plan B. I will succeed as an actor," he says. "I don't know to what length I will succeed — I don't know if I'll have my own movie or my own TV show — but I will become an actor, there's no option."

What Gallo spends in a month

It's not easy to live on such a low income, and Gallo is currently trying to find a job to provide a steady paycheck in between acting gigs. But he finds creative ways to save and hasn't had to make any major lifestyle changes, despite earning less in 2023 than he has in past years.

Gallo is able to keep a gym membership through a low-income membership program, and he saves on many of his Citi Bike rides by paying for a membership that eliminates certain fees on each ride. When he wants to see movies, he takes advantage of free SAG screenings or goes to theaters that have $5 Tuesday specials.

"I live below my means, I don't go out and buy new things very often," he says. "I thrift my clothes. I'll try to buy used [items] on Facebook Marketplace, like furniture for this apartment." 

He's able to live in a decently-sized apartment in Brooklyn on his tight budget by sharing costs with a roommate. Gallo also negotiated the rent before he moved in to secure a price he was comfortable with.

Here's how Gallo spent his money in January 2024:

• Housing and utilities: $1,094 for his portion of the rent and utilities
• Food: $680 on groceries and dining out
• Subscriptions and memberships: $468 on his gym, Netflix, LinkedIn, Spotify, Hulu and Adobe
• Discretionary: $258 on studio space, race registration fees and a movie ticket
• Transportation: $216 on car maintenance, gas, Citi Bikes, Lyft and subway rides
• Insurance: $80 for car and renters insurance

Gallo owns two cars, a Honda Civic he keeps in the city and a BMW Roadster he bought just before he left his insurance job that he keeps at his parents' home in New Jersey.

He could potentially make and save some money by selling the BMW, but he'd rather get a part-time job than put the car on the market. "I would like to keep that forever and have it be a part of my collection in the future," he says.

Gallo didn't buy it as an investment, but its value has increased and he believes he could sell it for at least an $8,000 profit, based on current estimates.

His car insurance is also fairly cheap because he's on his parents' plan and reimburses them for the cost. His only other insurance cost is renters insurance for his apartment, since he receives free health insurance through the state.

Gallo admits it's difficult to find things to do in the city that are fun and low-cost. He focuses on making sure the things he pays for are things he really enjoys, such as a comedy show or pop-up event. "I try to do things that are the best bang for my buck," he says.

One way he saves: "I try to stay away from drinking…that's the easiest way for me to just dump a lot of money and throw that away."

So far, he's been able to stay afloat without going into debt. He uses credit cards to earn rewards, but pays them off in full each month. He will need to cut his expenses or start bringing in more income soon — as of January, his savings account balance was down to around $10,000.

Gallo's biggest goal is to acquire an agent this year, which will help him land more roles and, hopefully, steadier paychecks.

"I feel hopeful that something great might be around the corner," he says. "I think a lot of actors feel that way, so I don't want to be delusional. I know that I do need to find something that's sustainable and can [financially] support me more."

Happier than ever

Though it's not always easy living on such a tight budget, "for artists, it's not as much of a choice as you think it is," Gallo says.

"We don't really feel whole. We don't really feel good unless we're expressing ourselves, and that's really hard to do, especially when you're not being paid for it."

Despite the security working a regular full-time job provided him, Gallo doesn't regret the decision to leave it in the pursuit of something that truly fulfills him.

"I am happier now than when I was working for the insurance company," he says. "The looming stressor of making sure that I have a sustainable living is definitely real, but I would much rather take that over the stress of sitting down and doing something that I don't like every single day."

Unfortunately, he got into acting at a tough time and has lost nearly two years of potential work due to the pandemic and the strike. But he hasn't let those setbacks get in the way, and he's committed to making his dreams come true. 

"It's a marathon, not a sprint," he says. "There may be a time when I need to put my dreams on hold…but as of right now, I'm going to give myself probably about two more years to really go full force in this." 

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