Someone will say that happiness is not in money. And perhaps he will be right. But with them it’s somehow calmer and more pleasant, agree. Perhaps, in addition to the main income, you need additional income to allow yourself to spend more, give gifts to yourself and loved ones. But there are situations in life when money is needed for basic things - food, medicine, utility bills. We will talk about how to get additional income in this article.
Beware of scammers
Unclean people know about how they want to get an extra penny by spending a minimum of effort. And so they carefully set traps, playing on human greed. Therefore, be vigilant, especially when you are promised fabulous earnings or even “modest additional earnings of $ 50 per day” with a minimum of effort. This includes both courses from supposedly successful entrepreneurs on the Internet who sell them for real pennies (think about why they need it if they already earn “millions without labor”), and offers to collect pens at home.
Types of Extra Income
There are many of them, but we will try to derive some classification.
- Offline earnings. This is the classic way option for all age categories. Residents of large cities will find it easier to find a job, but with due diligence and in a small village, you will not be left without work.
- Online earnings, or additional income on the Internet. The global web presents great opportunities for improving the financial situation, but you need to approach them with extreme caution, because fraud in this area is flourishing.
We work offline
If you are looking for a way to receive income in addition to scholarships and pensions, then you have the following options:
- Distribution of leaflets. Such work is needed regularly, does not require any skills and is paid most often every day.
- Babysitting service. If you get along well with children, then you will not be left without work. Especially if you have experience in a kindergarten or school. But you can look after not only babies or the elderly. In a major city you will find owners who will happily charge you dog walking for a moderate fee. Of course, you should get along well with animals and be sure that you can cope with the wards pets.
- Mystery shopper. This is the type of employment that large companies or marketing agencies provide. It consists in the fact that you come to the store under the guise of a buyer, communicate with sellers about a product, but in fact evaluate the real quality of customer service. As a result of the work, you submit a written report, sometimes you need to attach a recording of a conversation with a consultant (a mobile phone or player will help you easily cope with this task). If the company finds your information useful and informative, then you will be invited to subsequent checks.
Make things work
You probably don’t think that many of the items that you possess are additional sources of income. For example, you have a welding machine or other tool that you needed during construction, large-scale repair work, and now it lies and gathers dust. Why not rent it out?
If you have a garage or a parking place that belongs to you, but there is no car, then you should think about finding a person who has nowhere to put your transport, and conclude a mutually beneficial agreement. Well, of course, this includes the delivery of free housing. Moreover, such extra income is almost passive, especially if you find reliable regular customers.
Sell skills
Do you know computers? It may seem strange, but for many, the words “installing Windows” still sound intimidating. Why not help them and get extra income? If you are good at electrics or plumbing, bicycles or even pruning trees, your customers are already waiting for you. That which is simple for you may seem to some to be an insoluble task. Benefit people, and they will thank you financially.
Online earnings
Stable additional income at home is not a dream, but a reality together with the World Wide Web. It is difficult for a person with standard employment from 8 to 17 hours to find an offline part-time job, but if you have a computer, you can work at least during the lunch break, at least in the evenings or at night.
The most reliable and stable online earnings is freelance - remote work. At special exchanges, you can take on a variety of tasks: writing articles, drawing logos, working on making or filling sites, creating videos, retouching photos, and much more. Also there, entrepreneurs and top managers are looking for a personal assistant who would carry out their assignments or coordinate the implementation of routine tasks.
Freelance also has its pitfalls. It is clear that you need to have valuable skills. There is also strong competition, for example, there are far fewer specialists in fixing bugs in Java codes than there are those who want to write articles on a common topic or post ads on the Internet, which makes a huge difference in the prices for a project.
Also, do not count on freelance as a one-time part-time job. On exchanges, the rating of the performer is of great importance, few people assign tasks to beginners. Therefore, in the first stages you will have to fulfill the lowest paid orders, and only then, when you have feedback, you will be entrusted with more serious projects. Then you will have a stable job, extra income and a good reputation. The growth opportunities are very impressive - right up to the transition to freelance as the main activity.
Security measures
Avoid working off-exchange and without prepayment. Otherwise, you risk not getting the money you earned. It is considered normal practice when the customer provides a small low-paid test task before choosing a specialist for ongoing cooperation. But if you are offered to do part of the work for free, this is a reason to beware. There is a fairly common fraud scheme: an order is placed, for example, for a large amount of text for translation and you are asked to translate part of it to assess your competence. And so does everyone who wants to receive an order. As a result, the customer receives the finished work without having chosen anyone as the contractor.
Of course, freelance exchanges take a percentage of your earnings, but they protect your interests: you know for sure that the customer is able to pay for the work, and in case of disputes, arbitration determines which side is true.
spring-cleaning
No, we do not offer you to clean someone for money (although this is also a very real way to get additional income). Carefully go through your cabinets and mezzanines and find things that you do not need, but they can be sold. It can be not only articles of clothing, but also old equipment, indoor plants, books and even Soviet toys and postcards.
Take high-quality photos and post them on the Internet on message boards, thematic groups on social networks. These are not only large “flea markets”, “markets”, but also narrower interest groups. For example, if you want to sell a bicycle helmet, take a look at the cycling community. As a rule, there is a “Sell” section there.
See similar offers to determine the right price. Think about how much you are willing to reduce the price if the buyer will bargain.
Serious approach
Surprisingly, but even selling their belongings, you can fall into the clutches of scammers, and instead of getting extra income, lose your hard-earned money. Calls from supposedly potential buyers that offer to make an advance payment to your bank card and simultaneously elicit all the information about it, up to the PIN code, have become popular. No matter how absurd it may sound, many are happy to take a thing without hesitation and tell strangers all the data needed to manage the account. Therefore, when you are not interested in a thing, its size, condition, and immediately want to pay and quickly - most likely, these are deceivers.
Beware of frivolous shoppers. Many people avoid prepayments and ask for cash on delivery. This is quite reasonable, but if the buyer does not pick up the parcel, it will be returned to you, and you will pay the cost of return shipping. Therefore, try to find out the mood of the buyer: if he is not sure that he is taking the thing, then refrain from such a transaction.
Profitable work
Favorite hobbies and earning extra income can become synonymous if you know how to photograph well. View your photos, select the best and start selling them on photo stocks. Please note that in the photo, where the person’s face is clearly visible, you need the permission of the model, so for a start, restrict yourself to inanimate objects, animals, etc.
Consider market needs. Beautiful photos of food are very popular, in summer - fruits and vegetables, harvesting, in winter - seasonal decorations and snowy landscapes. High-quality pictures of architectural attractions are also in demand by the owners of tourism sites.
In addition, on some photo stocks they sell not only photographs, but also vector drawings, so if you can draw, then use this talent to get additional income at home. The same rules apply as for the pictures, but the elements for website design are also very popular: buttons, icons, callouts, discount, sale, etc. badges.
Sell training
For example, if you draw well, then you have two ways to get additional income: to draw drawings for schoolchildren or students yourself or to give private lessons. English, music, other school subjects are the most popular areas, but even the ability to beautifully knit or fold origami can also be sold as educational services. Tutoring can be included in both offline and online employment. After all, you can teach students at home, or you can use the Skype program to give Russian lessons to an American student.
If you have a business that you love and understand well, try to systematize your knowledge so that it is as useful as possible for a neophyte, imagine it in the form of a book or video course - that is, an information product, and promote it on the Internet. Perhaps this will begin your full career as a trainer and expert.
However, keep an eye on the quality of the material. A simple reprint of materials already on the network is doomed to failure. Give people a really healthy product.
Skillful hands
Another way to earn extra money is to sell handicrafts. Knitting, embroidered dolls, jewelry - handmade was always highly valued. If you have familiar sellers, you can attach your products to a real storefront, if not, then you have a way to a flea market. In addition, create your own communities on social networks to promote the results of creativity and advertise on online boards. Also think about working to order - this is somewhat more complicated than translating a free fantasy flight into reality, but you know for sure that you will have a buyer.
But do not forget that only truly truly beautiful, original and soulful things can turn into additional sources of income. Often, even impeccably executed, complex needlework masterpieces without their zest gather dust in anticipation of a new owner, while simple, but non-trivial, works take a few days to complete.
Explore the overseas market. There are large foreign sites where hand-made products are sold, and prices are much higher than domestic ones. But you will have to deal with the rules of international shipping and receiving payment.