Everyone has at least one skill that they could make money with. What is yours? Well, to help you figure out what skill you can make money with, here are a variety for you to pick from.
1. Freelance writing
If you like to write and would like to make money in your pajamas, then freelance writing could be a great fit. My friend Holly makes over $100,000 per year from freelance writing. She even has a course to help other people make money as a freelancer called Earn More Writing.
2. Take online surveys
Taking surveys in your spare time can be a great way to earn some extra dough. While are tons of online survey opportunities, two of the most reputable are Survey Junkie and Opinion Outpost. With these companies, you can start making money as soon as today.
3. Design your own t-shirts
CafePress will publish t-shirt designs that you create, and then give you a percentage of the profits when your design is purchased by a customer. Check out some of the cool designs here for some inspiration.
4. Get cash back on items you buy every day
Did you know that you can get cash back for items that you already intend on buying? Ebates will pay you cash when you do your shopping through their sites. The trick is, only buy products you'd normally buy anyway and not just buy things cause they're on sale.
5. Teach exercise classes
Are you interested in getting paid to stay in shape? If you are interested in classes like yoga, Zumba, Crossfit, Kettlebell or any other type of exercise, consider offering your services at the local gym or through a community education class. It doesn't take long to get certified to teach in these areas.
6. Affiliate marketing
Affiliate marketing is where you get paid for referring people to products or services. Companies such as Amazon pay decent money when visitors to your website click on your links and when they purchase products, you get paid. If you want to increase your affiliate income, my friend Michelle makes over $50,000/month and she created a course called Making Sense of Affiliate Marketing that you may want to check out. If you don't have a website, you can get started here for as low as $3.95 per month with Bluehost. To make it even easier, check out my post on how to start a blog in less than 10 minutes.
7. Mend/press clothing
If you have the ability to mend, alter or press clothing, consider offering your skills as a tailor. Tailor work and small-scale pressing (ironing) can easily be done out of your home, and is a much needed service for busy people. In today's work, skills such as mending and alterations simply aren't taught. This means that if you have a knack for sewing, you also have a valuable, money-making skill on your hands (pun intended 🙂 ). If you have no skills in this area, but your interested, check out The Sewing Bible for Clothes Alterations: A Step-by-step practical guide on how to alter clothes.
8. Peer to Peer Lending
Nowadays it is easy to help out others who need money and get a return on the money at the same time. Lending Club is a great platform where 99.9% of investors have seen positive returns and may be a good place to start.
9. Write, publish and sell an e-book
Looking for a great way to earn some passive income. Write and publish an e-book on Amazon or even self-publish on your own by creating a downloadable PDF. Start by choosing a topic you're familiar with. This can be an educational resource, a how-to guide, and/or writing fictional stories. The Internet is full of great articles on how to write and publish an e-book for very little up-front cost. Make sure to educate yourself on the ins and outs of this lucrative industry.
10. Offer tutoring services
Tutoring services are needed for children and adults alike. Children need help with reading, English and math. Adults sometimes need help learning the English language, learning to use computers or possibly learning to read. If you like working in the community and helping others, consider tutoring to supplement your income.
11. Flip merchandise
Are you skilled at recognizing a good deal when you see one? Then consider buying merchandise to resell on eBay or other sites like Amazon. Garage sales and thrift stores are full of obscure items that people don't know are valuable and are selling for much less than what they're worth. Take advantage of these great deals and use them to make some money by reselling the items online.
12. Start a handyman business
If you're do-it-yourself-er, consider using your skills to help others that need handyman work done. Many people gladly pay good money for someone to take care of their smaller home repairs and maintenance tasks. You can even create a profile on Amazon Services to help you get customers in your local area.
13. Work as a driver
Companies such as Uber will pay you to drive people around in your spare time. Rates of pay depend on how many miles traveled, the type of vehicle you drive and so forth.
14. Become a photographer
If you own a decent camera and like photography, consider offering your photography skills for weddings, families, high school graduations and proms. A good picture is worth a thousand words, and worth a lot of money as well. A growing photography niche is pet portraits, so if you like photography and animals, know that pet owners are paying a premium for you to take a picture of Fido.
15. Babysit or Be a Nanny
Do you like being around kids? Consider offering babysitting/nanny services. Many families are offering good pay for quality care for their children. This can be a great money-maker for college students too as families seek nannies to watch their children during summer break from school and nights during the week. Check out Care. com where you can list your babysitting services for free.
16. Become a caricature artist or face painting artist
Corporate and sporting events often seek the services of a good caricature or face painting artist. If you have skills in either of these areas, seek out jobs at local corporate events or contact your local sports stadium to inquire about job needs in this area. Also check out places like farmers markets, fairs, and other local events.
17. Sing at weddings or other events
Weddings, parades, political and cultural events often seek out local singing talent to entertain guests at their events. If you can sing, seek out these events and work to spread the word about your great talents as you form a lucrative money-making business with your singing talents.
18. Offer your car maintenance or mechanic services
Mechanic services can be unbearably expensive. If you have a gift for car maintenance or repair, consider starting a car maintenance repair business that goes to the customer's home garage. Without the overhead of having your own car repair garage, your profit will be higher and the customer will appreciate the good service.
19. Perform as a musician
Weddings, summer festivals and other events will pay for good musical skills. Street musicians where allowed can also make some decent cash if they provide entertaining tunes for passers-by.
20. Become a videographer/video editor
Birthday parties, anniversary parties and wedding receptions are all great venues for you to show off your video producing/editing skills. If you have a great video camera or a knack for putting pictures together into videos, advertise your services to party planners and families everywhere. A great video can make the difference between a good party and a great party.
21. Teach Music lessons
Do you play a musical instrument? Teach your skill to others wanting to learn how to play the instrument you specialize in. You can market your services by putting up a flyer at a local community college or even a nearby coffee shop.
22. Sell Crafts
If you like to make things with your hands, then this might be up your alley. There is a website called Etsy that is a great place to sell those handmade crafts you're so good at making.
23. Teach nutrition classes
If you're educated in eating well, consider teaching nutrition classes, either at your local community education center or at a retirement home or school.
24. Fix computers and/or repair electronics
Are you gifted in the area of tech repair? Offer your services to friends, family and local community members, helping them get their computers or electronic devices repaired.
25. Offer graphic design services
Those skilled in graphic design should consider offering their services to local small businesses. Smaller businesses often can't afford to pay a big graphic design company to create attractive ads or websites, and are happy to use a smaller, local designer who can do the job well. Check out 99 Designs for opportunities to get paid for graphic design work this week.
