Advice On Earning Extra Money

by pzero24

posted on 09/03/2009

Everyone, especially in these desperate times, is trying to make that extra buck to live comfortably. Unfortunately, some of us do not know how to go about this. There are actually many ways to this, such as selling goods, providing your services, or other ways. I plan on showing you the different methods you can use at your disposal.

Sell your unwanted goods

Many of us, including me, are pack rats. You do not want to throw something out because you think you will need to use it sometime in your life and will have to get another one. While this is true, there are certain limits you should have to avoid overloading yourself with unused items. My grandmother gave me this advice: "If you haven't used something in 6 months, you do not need it." While there are some things, such as tools and baking goods, that you might not use in 6 months that are keepable, the rest can go. Separate all the sellable and trashable stuff, bring the trash out for disposal, and inventory the other stuff. You can either hold a yard sale or sell it online. It is proven that you will make more money online. Look online for a good selling price for every item on your list and then either auction it on eBay or sell it locally on Craigslist. I would recommend Craigslist, because although people might try to haggle the price down, eBay might make you lose a lot of money if not that many people are interested in the item you have to sell. I would use eBay only if Craigslist does not provide any buyers for you.

Offer your services

There are many ways to offer your services to the community for some extra money. You can start by asking your family if there is anything they need done around their house for some extra money. If that does not work, ask the people you know. If you know any landscapers or roofers or manual labor jobs such as that, ask them if you can help them for a little profit. It might help if you actually need the money for something, but if the person knows you they might be willing to help you. Then they get their job done faster and can get more jobs done which equals more money for both you and your new employer. You could also start up your own manual labor business. Just make sure your household is not relying on the business in case it does not kick off. Ask the people around you if they would hire you. Your business might even grow to a self-supporting, multi-employee business.

Look around for money making services

There are some places online and around your community that may offer you to do quick tasks to make a couple dollars. On the web there is a site called www.mturk.com that offers you different tasks to make different amounts of money. Some tasks might take only five minutes and give you $1.00 while other tasks might take an hour and give you $5.00. While this might sound like pocket change, it adds up if you just do a couple of tasks a day in your free time. It was money you never had, so why not? In your community, look for temp agencies. They will line you up with a temporary job, lasting around a month or so, to make a little extra money. It is also used for unemployed people looking to keep their homes and such. Get lined up with a temporary job and for all you know it might be just the career you enjoy.

If worse comes to worst

There are federal grants and government programs you can apply for that will give you a little extra cash. While these programs are targetted mainly toward the low-income families, there are some programs that are for different races, homosexuals, and other categories that you can apply for. Look online at www.grants.gov or a local grant organization and see if you can't be awarded some extra cash in your pocket.

Be careful on spending

All of these tips I am talking about will not be of much use if you do not know how to control your spending. Try putting some money away in a bank CD that you can not touch for a year or keep it somewhere hard to access so that you will be less likely to spend it. When going shopping, look for the best deals and do NOT buy on impulse. These easy steps might give you that extra cash you need.

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