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When you analyze things down to basics, there are only 3 ways to earn money:

1. Offer a product (you create something and sell it, or buy things wholesale and sell them)

2. Offer a service (you give your time and skill in exchange for a wage paid hourly or paid by completed task, or for a commission)

3. Invest, gamble or lend money (capital), hoping that it will be repaid with interest.

Every legitimate way to make money will fall into one of these categories, and when you are looking for a new way to make some extra cash it is very useful to start out by thinking how you want to do it. Do you want the security of a job? Do you want to be a freelancer, selling your time to anyone who wants to hire you, with less security but more freedom? Do you have ideas of things that you could manufacture and sell? Do you want to be your own boss and run your own business?

 

If you want the freedom of making money for yourself, it is helpful to be clear in your mind whether your business is going to involve selling product or providing a service. While it is true that many businesses do both, they will usually have one or the other as their main focus.

If you are clear about exactly what you are providing on the frontline, it will help you to maintain your focus on doing the thing that makes most money for you. You can then add sidelines that are well designed to complement your main business, without being distracted into other unrelated opportunities.

For example, a hair stylist is mainly providing a service (cutting hair), but he may also sell hair care products as a sideline. The sideline produces extra income without taking up much of his time: he simply has to display a few advertisements and recommend something to his customers while they have their purses open to pay for the haircut.

A carpet store on the other hand mainly sells product. However, they may offer a carpet fitting service as a sideline, or take a commission from a carpet fitting company that they recommend.

The quickest and easiest way to earn extra money is usually to add a sideline to what you already do. Don’t waste time reinventing the wheel. Do you have a business? What else do your customers want when they have bought your main product or service? Or do you have a job? What can you do that relates to your current job that would make more money for you?

You may have to be careful here because you can probably think of some sidelines that would not please your boss! Don’t use company time, premises or equipment to carry on your own business.

One example is doing overtime. Another is to do something in your lunch break. Another is to use the skills that you use at work for some freelancing, if this is permitted in your employment contract. For example if you are a car mechanic, a hairdresser, a journalist or a web designer, you can very easily use your skills on weekends to make some extra money.

You can also find ways to make money from things that you are now doing just for pleasure or because they are part of your routine. If you stay home with kids, could you be minding someone else’s kid too? If you love video games, could you sell them? Or could you write a manual for your favorite game? Or set up a website based around it and make money from commissions and advertising?

All of these could be great ways to make money that would be very easy for a person with a genuine interest. Just remember to start with one main focus that is something that you really want to do, and choose your complementary sidelines carefully to add to your ways to earn money.

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