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12 Ways to Make Money Without Having a Traditional Job

August 19th, 2019

Have you had enough of being a teacher, farmer, architect, accountant, lawyer, insurance agent, police officer, social worker or sales assistant? Do you screw your face up in disgust when you think about taking on a ‘traditional job’? 

Fortunately, there are plenty of ways you can earn an honest and viable living without having a 9 to 5!

Making money without a ‘traditional’ job

The traditional definition of a career is ‘an occupation undertaken for a significant period of a person’s life and with opportunities for progress’. The traditional definition of a job is a career that equates work with labour in exchange for money. This equation can present itself in a number of different ways, allowing you to break away from 9 to 5 work or age-old working practices and find new ways to make money. For example, you could:

Rent out a room

If you have the space and you don’t have the finances to plunge into investing in real estate, renting out a room can be a great way to score some extra cash with very little effort. You can advertise for a permanent flatmate, open up your granny flat, or rent out a room with Airbnb. Renting out a room can score you a great little income if you live in a desirable location.

(If you’re renting, you’ll usually need the owners written permission to rent on platforms like Airbnb – make sure you check your agreement and do your homework!)

Start a blog and become an affiliate

If you’ve got something to talk about that you think others might want to hear, start a blog and become an affiliate. Write blog posts and insert personalised links to various products and services. These links can be tracked so that you get a small fee every time someone purchases the item or service through your link. Writing one great blog post can get you an income for years to come. 

Create a product

Creating a product that people want is a fantastic way to earn money outside the typical 9 to 5 setting. You can create a digital product to save on production costs. Once created, your focus will then be to advertise your product well.  

Shop

Shopping might sound like a way to spend money rather than make money, but there are services out there that will provide you with a financial incentive to shop. Become a mystery shopper and provide actual feedback in exchange for cash or keep your receipts, scan them, and get points that convert to money. 

Rent out your stuff

Haven’t been skiing for a while but have a garage stuffed with skis, snowboard equipment, clothing and accessories? Do you have a bike, a sumo suit, a stand-up paddleboard, or tools? Hiring out what you aren’t using can be a great way to earn money and reduce clutter. 

Sell stuff online

That bridesmaid dress you wore three years ago? The kid’s clothes that they long grew out of? The cupboard of unwanted Christmas and birthday presents? The books you said you would read but have never got round to? Selling these items is a great way to easily earn cash for things that are currently serving no purpose other than taking up space. Alternatively, you could scour your local charity shops for items you see value in and then resell them online for more. 

Online surveys 

An increasingly popular pastime for those struggling with their budget is to fill out online surveys in exchange for a fee. You’ll be asked a series of questions in which you can answer honestly – and that’s it! Bear in mind that surveys are usually a decent length and many require you to supply demographic details that align with a particular target market. 

Test websites

User testing is a real thing and a great way to earn money. Test the functionality and user-friendliness of a website, application, prototype or concept and you could be rewarded for your time. Check out sites like Testmate for more information. 

Become a virtual assistant (VA)

Tons of people need assistance in their everyday lives, and becoming a virtual assistant lets you assist them in your own time and from the comfort of your home. Expect to do administrative work such as email responses, data entry, the examination of facts and organisation of information and travel. 

Being realistic about your ‘non-working’ goals

Once you start exploring the huge number of ways to make money outside of a ‘traditional’ job, you’d be forgiven for thinking you can ‘get rich quick’ with very little effort. As appealing as these earning opportunities sound, however, remember that there’s no such thing as easy money. 

Everything listed above and many more options are viable ways to earn money, but don’t expect the money to come easy. Earning money takes work and commitment and to make lots of it, you have to be willing to put in the hard yards. 

Need money quick, though? Talk to Nimble about our same day loans for up to $5,000. 

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