Income sources other than ‘normal jobs’

[Gilberto de Piento]

Back in college I got very good at buying and selling things locally...

That's cool, I did something similar though the amount of money I was working with was smaller and I was not so deliberate about it as it sounds like you were. What did the script do, if you don't mind saying?

[Jin+Guice]

I spent about a year working odd jobs after I moved to New Orleans. My primary job was grocery shopping and cooking dinner for a family. In exchange I lived on their couch and got free food. Since I had no living expenses I could basically do any job at any time. My only real skill at the time was studio sound engineering, which is basically to say that I was unskilled in anything employable. I got a lot of weird jobs by just letting everyone know that I was constantly available* for work and then showing up on time. I got a job with a live production company (that I still work for) after meeting a guy in a bar who occasionally worked for them. Another dude paid me to organize and kind of clean his mom's mansion (they also had a maid) because going through all of their stuff was too painful/ boring for them. I did a weird textbook editing job for someone who became one of my best friends (best job I ever had).

In a weird way, thinking of the idea to make money is putting the cart before the horse. It's much easier to ask around and see what people need done and try to provide that. Not that it can't be done the other way around, I scheme and dream too. It's not like these plans never pay off, but they are always harder money than shit I just pick up. If you approach freelance labor with an open mind, a positive attitude and the desire to learn, you'll land gigs you never even knew existed. You are less attached to ideas you didn't think up so "failure" is less painful.

*But not always available. The key is actually maintaining the ability to say "no" when you want to and quickly eliminating things you don't want to do.

[elkend]

What did the script do, if you don't mind saying?

Looked through the queue of ads to be posted and find keywords so I could find them 10-15 minute before they were posted. Would text me a title, price, and link to the ones with certain words under certain prices. Pretty nifty, classifieds were mainly done with something like craigslist (but not craiglist) that was local so there weren't tools really developed at the time...but not a big enough population to justify a website to make ad-revenue.

[sky]

My latest attempt at creating a side income source is not going too well. I designed and sewed mountain bike "growler baskets" which attach to the fork and allow one to strap in a bag or water bottle.

https://imgur.com/a/UdjI1xE

My marketing campaign for my trial run was to post pictures on various reddit subs and on reddit geartrade. Unfortunately I got a lot of responses which told me the idea would not work and was dangerous. In fact it works well and I am very happy I have it on my bike. Now I have two on my bike and four that I can sell but I don't know how else to market them to the bikepacking and bike touring crowd. I was hoping to get $50 each and I thought most people would see this as a good and useful product which is needed and not easily available. Instead, I got a few internet experts who don't understand the product and are convinced it will spin around into the wheel and cause an accident.

[SavingWithBabies]

@sky Have you sold any in person yet? Could always carry a spare or two and some business cards with website address? Admittedly, slower method but maybe...

[sky]

This is a niche item, only mountain bikers and bikepackers would be interested. I can't really hang out with that crowd, I am old and out of shape. I will find other ways to market them online. They are still advertised on reddit geartrade.

[JWJones]

My wife is the queen of 'not normal jobs.'

She's teaches belly dancing two nights a week (alas, not currently, because covid-19).

We also have a side business (I have the conventional day job), making and selling bar soap. We've gotten to the point where we have several retail accounts, including several Ace Hardware stores in our region of Oregon, and the greater Seattle area. Also have an online store, which has experienced a noticeable upswing in sales since covid-19:

https://wildcraftherbarium.com

[ScrewTheAverage]

It may not be for everyone but we've been house sitting and traveling for the last 3 1/2 years (four continents, 26 countries, ~80 cities, and 63 house sits) and while we aren't paid, the savings of not having to pay for lodging, utilities, etc, allow us to significantly increase our savings rate.

Last year we spent less than $300 in lodging costs (for two people), and that includes 'living' in places like Alexandria, Philadelphia, NYC, Chicago, and Atlanta.

On the surface this approach seems like it would completely against ERE and FI/RE with travel/relocation costs but if you're wise about it (house sitting, travel hacking, etc.) it can really help to reduce lodging and transportation while making travel a reality. For reference, our budget in 2018 was $7.5K, and in 2019 it was $7K (both years are for two people and all-in).

[theanimal]

Impressive. How do you find the house sitting gigs? How do you travel between locations?

[ScrewTheAverage]

Thank you for the encouragement @theanimal, it's been quite the adventure indeed!

Check out our response/contribution to the house sitting post found here: viewtopic.php?f=14&t=10849&p=218711#p218711

In case it doesn't answer all your questions fell free to ask!

[sky]

@BMF1102

I have taken the growler baskets on one overnight, to test them out with a lot of weight. No problems. Now I am setting them up with a 2 liter bottle of water on one side and an 8 liter dry bag with food and cook kit on the other, which is how I actually plan to use them. When the weather cools down a bit I will go on another tour.

I think my baskets are better than other fork mounted cages, they are much more heavy duty.

[BMF1102]

I'm guessing you seen my post in the Covid19 thread eh? Not sure how did that but deleted from there and forgot to copy to post here

I do like the idea of what you have going on. I have been shopping, debating and brain storming because I need something for my forks. I believe you're located near South Haven no? I live in Battle Creek I am planning to take the Kal-Haven trail to the shore sometime soon. Perhaps we could meet somewhere and I can check them out?

[sky]

PM sent...

[Kriegsspiel]

This is kinda skirting the line between 'a job' and 'other than normal jobs' but you can work in Antarctica during the summer season with room and board included. PAE has the contract, and they hire all kinds of jobs and trades: electrician, carpenter, vehicle mechanics & drivers, aircraft loaders, etc. The season is Oct-Feb. Seems like it works well with a nomadic lifestyle, since you can spend the other 6 months travelling and maintain no fixed residence.

[ertyu]

I am exactly the sort of wacko who would love this. Do they have openings for a general office Gobglogabgalab with no actual life skills?

[ChrisAtTTL]

I like the idea of self-funding hobbies.

As an example, if you (and your kids, perhaps!) are LEGO fans, there are a lot of sites out there that let you resell the old sets.

That's simple enough to understand: selling a used toy when you're done with it.

But, taking it more towards income sources: there's also BrickLink which lets you open up a little hobby store of your own. On it, you can list an inventory of individual pieces and sell all those parts piece-by-piece on your BrickLink store. It's a great tool to use to teach kids about running a "business" and can easily help fund a LEGO hobby with a bit of income from sales if you can keep up with it.

[ScrewTheAverage]

@ChrisAtTTL That's a great way to teach entrepreneurship, value/take care of what you buy since you ultimately plan on selling it, and not have a bunch of unused things around the house! We're always amazed to see how many 'last year's' or 'broken' things people keep around instead of selling them and funding an upgrade/replacement.

[EricaR]

I have several part-time ways to make some additional income.. I make gift boxes and greeting cards on demand, sells beauty products, teach primary students and I have opened a online shop to sell jewelry item..These aren't fixed income ways..But helpful to manage some expenses..

[Hristo Botev]

[*] retrieve golf balls from course ponds

Getting caught up in this thread, and this one made me laugh. In middle school/high school, we'd (allegedly) jump the fences of various golf courses w/in walking/biking distance of our homes, in the middle of the night, decked out in wetsuits and scuba gear, gather up all the balls in the course ponds, and then sell them to the pro shop (to use as range balls or as to sell as used) the next day without saying where we'd gotten them. We learned later that the golf courses would have just let us on to the courses if we'd asked to perform this function; we didn't have to trespass.

[davtheram12]

I suppose it can be considered a 'normal' job if done regularly but I occasionally work for my friend's Brazilian BBQ catering company. He'll hire me on any time he needs an extra hand. I typically help with loading, unloading, setting up, breaking down, some light food prep work, and cooking. The money is always a nice bonus ($140-180 for 6-8 hours of work) but what I love most is how much he feeds me! Not only do I eat during my lunch break but he always sends me home with extra leftovers.

As others have mentioned before, being friendly and open to something out of the ordinary allows people to hire you on. My previous line of work had nothing to do with food but I was willing and open to something different. I now I have an inconsistent but fun source of income