Turn your pastime or your passion into a paycheck
Do you spend most mornings exercising? Take a basic trainer's course and start training friends and family at your local gym or at home, where you can charge hourly. Not only are you keeping fit, but earning extra money while you're at it. Andrea's friend Erin, a preschool teacher struggling on a low salary, turned her passion for fitness into extra earnings by becoming a personal trainer. In a year, she was able to increase her income by 20 per cent and stay healthy and fit.
Of course, you don't need to be a fitness trainer, but chances are you already participate in some pastimes that could make you money. In your notebook, make a list of at least five activities that you really enjoy doing, like shopping, knitting, walking your dog, or even drinking wine. Now spend some time brainstorming about ways you could make money doing any of these activities.
If you like shopping, for example, you could earn extra money working as a secret shopper on the weekends. Or you could take a part-time job at your favorite store — many retail stores hire extra employees to help out during the busy holiday season between Thanksgiving and New Year's. Not only will you earn more money but you'll get employee discounts on items you'd probably buy anyway (and save money on holiday gifts).
Like knitting? Why not knit sweaters, scarves, or gloves and sell them to friends or give them as gifts on birthdays to save money. If you enjoy walking your dog, ask around to see if your neighbors need their dogs walked. You can make extra money walking theirs as well. Enjoy wine? Look for part-time work at your local wine store, or sign up for wine-tasting classes and see if the instructor needs an assistant at future classes. Many wine shops offer tastings and classes and might be able to use an extra pair of hands in exchange for free wine or a little money. That's exactly what Andrea did. One of her former colleagues started a business that offered wine tastings at company events. Andrea offered to help out. It was a great opportunity for her to make extra cash, sample some wine, and meet new people.
If you enjoy playing basketball or soccer, consider coaching. If you are already taking classes in yoga or Pilates or dancing, consider training to become an instructor yourself. Or see if there are jobs available at the studio on the weekends or evenings — manning the front desk or helping to set up equipment, for example — in exchange for free classes. With a little effort and ingenuity, it's possible to turn almost any pastime into a paycheck.
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Read more:
• 7 ways your home can make money for you
• Quiz: Is money coming between you and your honey?
• 10 ways to save money on gas
Excerpted from The Smart Cookies' Guide to Making More Dough, copyright 2008 by The Smart Cookies with Jennifer Barrett. Used by permission of Random House Canada.
All Rights Reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced except with permission in writing from the publisher.
