That's right, I have the secret to making extra income so that you'll never have to work full time again! Do I sound like a bad advertisement on the sidebar of your Facebook page yet?
The truth is, to make money- you've got to put in the time. Working a full time job is an excellent way to secure financial freedom, but sometimes it just isn't enough to take care of all of our other expenses. Here are a few tips for how to make some money on the side, while still have time for your original full time job.
- Freelance projects. If you are a writer, designer, or have any skill that others may not, consider taking on freelance assignments for extra cash.
-Babysitting. We've all done it at one point in our lives. This is a great way to make some additional money! Babysitting hours are often at night, which means it won't interfere with your workday. Come up with rates and post ads on local bulliten boards or community websites to get yourself going.
-Dog Walking. This sounds like something a child might do, but if you live in a city, you'd be surprised how many people would be so thankful to have someone take their dog out for a jog a few times a week!
-Bartending/ Waitressing/ Retail. These second jobs are not glamorous, but the hours generally do work in conjunction with the typical 9-5 schedule.
-Sell things! This is not a consistent source of income by any means, but let's say you need money for a security deposit or for the holiday season. Look around your room and storage space and think about what you really need. List the things you don't need or use on craigslist and see what happens! Downsizing is an excellent way to earn some extra cash.
Any more ideas?
I'm a huge proponent of selling things! This is one I'm still using almost eight years after graduation. I frequent multiple consignment shops consistently, selling off my gently used, still-in-style clothing and shoes. I also sell electronics and household items I don't use anymore on eBay. Selling things is a great way to make money these days because people are out there looking for deals and they'll seriously buy your stuff! :)
ReplyDeleteGreat list!
Yes! Babysitting and selling things. Garage sales and blog shop are good ideas :)
ReplyDeletexo
Sands
Great topic to hit on.
ReplyDeleteIt's great to sell things, but eventually you run out of things to sell.
And if you're like me with a spartan bachelor lifestyle, you probably don't have too many belongings. That reminds me I should probably buy some glasses instead of using a giant water bottle I got at a safety meeting when I moved here to OK.
This is a great post because it hits on something I've been reading extensively about since starting the post-grad life. Now that I have a job, I'm able to start putting my finances in order. Military life is a double edged sword when it comes to pay. I have amazing benefits that turn my $33,000 salary into what is the equivalent of a $50,000 job in the private sector. My pay is a matter of public record, you can look at the military pay scale and figure out my earnings for the next 10 years calculating for the 1-3% pay raises that mitigate inflation and any public/private sector gaps.
The only thing I can do to increase my pay in any real substantive manner is to increase my income in some other way.
The easiest way to increase your income is to curb your spending on the superfluous. Even as a straight man immersed in the "bro" atmosphere of an AF flying squadron, I love clothes and fashion. I'm not going to stop buying things from Express anytime soon. Instead, I have cut back on things that I personally deem unimportant, like household decor or nice stemware. Prioritizing your spending is a great first step to increase your income. It's also important to differentiate between saving money by not spending $3 on Starbucks and rethinking what's important to you. The former won't solve anything over time as you deny yourself gratification and don't change larger spending patterns.
The next is to take something you enjoy and turn some sort of profit from it as you suggested with freelance projects. I'm investigating how to sell some of my photos as stock photography. It probably won't pay out anything at all, but as Erica Douglass notes on her business blog, "If you're making $1 online you're already ahead of 90% of people."
A sergeant in my current office was telling me today how he would make sometimes up to $600 playing gigs at local bars. He loves playing music and performing and still travels around to jam out with some guys for shows and is currently getting ready to put his music on iTunes. Not bad for doing something he would pay to do because he has such a passion for music.
Besides my photography foray, every day I also make sure to write down 1 idea for the day in a notebook. I've been thinking about using my skills and passion for education and turning it into a freelance consulting job to help HS seniors navigate the college application and financial aid process. Similarly, the help I have been giving to some unemployed classmates would run them quite a bit of money normally. To keep from repeating myself, I am planning on starting a blog aimed at helping recent college graduates not only gain employment, but to negotiate better salaries and achieve professional personal success.
Of course, you can always just play blackjack. :)