My oldest son, Matthew, called me a loser the other day. He is 16 years old. He’s fine, he didn’t call me a “loser” specifically, but he was talking to a nurse in the ER about how he planned to go into politics when he grew up. He wants to be president, he said.
“Hey,” I said after the nurse had left, “I was going to be president when I grew up.”
I was really going to be president. He had every intention of going into politics when I was between 14 and 18 years old. My intention was to complete college, maybe go to law school, and then run for office, with the White House in sight. Long story short, I went to college in DC and essentially found that I enjoyed writing about politics and being an activist more than I wanted to run for office, and as I pointed out to my son, who was searching with a lot of pity – I still have time to run for office if I so choose. At 34 years old, I’m not even eligible to run for president…although time is ticking faster now than ever before.
“I know, mom,” he said. “But I’m actually going to do it.” The way she said it hurt a little. She said it with such disdain, as if she had thrown away my dream. Did she see Me simply as a wife and mother, with no other accomplishments to my credit? She thought that somehow I failed because my dreams at 14 or 15 years old were not the dreams that I achieved?
He did.
That made me sad. She didn’t say it to be mean, she knew it, she just said it as a fact. He had chosen a life that he saw as “normal”, but if he really looked at it, he would see that my life has been just the opposite.
My path down the “road less traveled” has forced me to think creatively about income from time to time, well, most of the time. After getting a taste of life in the suburbs as a two-income family, each with a steady “regular” job, I quickly learned that a regular job isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. In addition to the additional burdens on your time and income, stable jobs are not so stable anymore. Even though I put my newspaper down six months before it folded, it folded. And I would have been fired. My husband, a computer guru and expert in his field, has seen jobs come and go as the “Internet bubble” shrinks and expands. He has worked for small businesses and large corporations succumbing to some form of merger, consolidation, or downsizing pressure.
Tired of living paycheck to paycheck, we searched for a simpler lifestyle, and we found it on my childhood farm in Vermont. Vermont is abundant in beauty, solitude and tranquility. What is not abundant is job opportunities. To make up for the tough times when my writing hasn’t paid very well, or my husband’s consultancy is going through a slump, I’ve learned that there are many ways one can make money right away. And some of these things can turn into businesses if you like them enough. Each of the ones I suggest can be done with minimal cash outlay, because if you need cash, you usually can’t invest in a business opportunity…they can also be done with kids in tow. I’m a housewife and I’m happy to be, but I’m also smart and creative and I don’t think one has to replace the other. You can do something nice and stay home with your kids (which is also nice). Plus, I’ve done at least a week of shopping with each of these suggestions at some point in my life…and some of them were my income for that year.
1. Used books. Do you have a large collection of books? Even a small collection? People are always looking for books. And used bookstores, eBay, and your local classifieds newspaper are a great way to earn some money and clean out a shelf or two, too. I know several farm families who support their cash needs by selling their used books. I wouldn’t invest in a store, but if you have a large collection of books, particularly in a specific area or two, you shouldn’t have a problem getting started on eBay or with a regular website. If you don’t have your own books to sell right now, you can usually get great books at yard sales, local thrift stores, or libraries (your scraps, don’t go with them). A lot of times, people are willing to practically give away books, if only you would get them out of their house.
2. Additional vegetables or fruits from the garden? Why not set up a roadside stall or buy a stall at a local farmers market? You do not have to be an official farmer to sell your vegetables. If you have tomatoes growing out of your ears, but don’t have the cash for canning supplies, set up a “store.” You’ll be surprised how many people will stop by and be appreciative of your local efforts.
3. Bake bread or other pastries. Are you a good cook? You don’t have to be, yet. But with a little effort and an urge to bake, you could keep your city in cookies, brownies, whoopie pies, and homemade breads. I made this when I had my last $5 a month left! I had a ton of flour, but very little else. I baked all kinds of breads (cinnamon, sandwich, herb round loaves) and asked at the local farmers market if I could sell what I baked. I sold everything before the market closed that day, earning enough to put gas in my car, buy food for the week, and more flour and other ingredients so I could come back the following weekend. I supported myself and my three children for quite some time with my bakery business, which I enjoyed immensely.
4. Type. You can write? I don’t mean fast. You don’t have to type 100 words per minute to earn a few bucks writing. You just have to be willing to spend time writing when someone else isn’t. I had no idea how to type when I put an ad in the paper saying I’d be willing to write resumes, term papers, business proposals and whatever. But I met another girl who charged $2 a page. I charged $1.50 per page and while I’m sure my hourly rate was terrible, I made a lot of extra money, writing…and was able to stay home with my new baby and listen to NPR at the same time!
5. Tutoring. Were you brilliant at algebra as a child? Well, he wasn’t, but he was the local grammarian. He was a whiz at English grammar, spelling, and history and made $10 an hour helping local high school and college students study for their SATs, edit papers, you name it. This is a great way to feel useful and earn money at the same time! And again, all you need is a brochure and your phone number. Offer tutoring at your local public library or local YMCA.
6. Give lessons. Play the piano? Do you know how to use a spinning wheel, knit or decorate a cake? Secure a location (a church basement, community center room, or library are all great places to start) and put up some ads and flyers around town. You’d be surprised how happy some people will be to pay $25 or $30 to learn what you know! You can take one class or a series of classes. Be sure to research how much others are charging for similar classes in your area, don’t underestimate yourself, but unless you have a lot of teaching experience, don’t overcharge, especially on your first round.
7. Write and publish a brochure. This could easily supplement your class or lessons, or work well on its own. While most people are in favor of getting initial information from the web, myself included, writing a brochure on your subject area of expertise and then marketing it in the appropriate publications could earn you, not millions, but a nice steady income. Remember, in this type of writing, being more specific is better. Don’t write a “how to fix your car” brochure. Write the authoritative guide to “fix 1970 Volvo Pickup”. Or whatever. An alternative, or extension to publishing the brochure, is to write your brochure and then publish it as a .PDF, which interested people can download from your website. Of course, they would have to pay $5 or whatever you think your brochure is worth, in order to download it. Offering these types of services is much easier than I initially thought. PayPal is a great source for these types of transactions.
8. Run bums for people. This is so simple that I was surprised I hadn’t thought of it years before, particularly when I was in high school and had bought my first car. This service would be wonderful no matter where you live: rural, urban, or suburban. Put up flyers, place ads in the local paper. Run all kinds of errands: pick up dry cleaning, buy groceries, pick up prescriptions, drop off movies, take a dog to the groomer. You’d be surprised at the kinds of things people would pay you to do. I was once paid to take two children to school every morning! This is also the kind of service you could offer to a local nursing home or senior center. Seniors may need someone to ride for them, or they may want to join them on the trip. Obviously, you’ll have to do a fee schedule: if you’re just picking up a prescription, you can charge $5 or $10, but a full grocery list will be a bit more. Work out an “hourly” rate (how much it’s worth to you to run the errand, taking into account time spent, gas, etc.) and make sure you can combine errands. And have your cell phone handy (if you have one, I didn’t and it worked fine).
9. Walking dogs, taking care of pets, taking care of houses, taking care of children. Do all four, or just one or two. These are pretty self explanatory, but there is always a market for them. Now, I’m not saying open a daycare at home. If you’re not sure what you want to do as a career, then don’t do it. But how many of us babysat as teenagers just for extra money? You can do that too. Put your name down and babysit for a night or a day or two. Housesitting can be almost like a paid vacation and my kids loved the jobs I took on as a pet sitter: cleaning cages, feeding dogs and cats, it was like having pets without having pets!
10. Do something. Before polar fleece home accessories were available at Wal-Mart, I made a decent living sewing baby blankets, booties, pillows, and other items from polar fleece fabric. Right now, if I had to, I’d knit a bunch of wristbands (fingerless gloves) and take them to my local craft fair, gift shop, or consignment shop. Are you good at doing something? Maybe you make the best tartar sauce in the world. Or you make beautiful baby hats. Golden wooden spoons. Whatever it is, I guarantee that if you do it right and offer it at a fair price, someone will like it and buy it. Be creative. I started with baby blankets because I made some for my first two babies and my friends started asking me to make one for them. The wristbands happened the same way and even though I don’t sell them now, I make them as Christmas gifts and save on shopping!
There you have it: 10 things you could start doing right now to make money. Would Matthew be proud that he did all these things to make money, instead, as he would say, to achieve my original dream of being president? Probably not. But he is 16 years old and very little of his parents impresses him at the moment! But you know what? I am proud of myself. I’m proud to have used my creative skills to make money when I needed it, or when I wanted a little more, or when I just wanted to try something new. Matt may be dismissive, but he’s never been hungry, and considering some of the tough times we’ve been through, that’s something else to be proud of. I also didn’t have to work for someone else if I didn’t choose, which not many people can say these days.
But am I president? Well, no… not yet, anyway.
