Doomscrolling is apart of our lives in such a big way. And while there are so many ways to cut down on it, one of my favorites is learning.
You go from a net negative in adding value to your life, to a net positive by taking in information that’ll improve your life.
And if you’ve been looking for some good ways to make extra money or find a new full-time job, then this is a great place to start. I’ve found some helpful reads on people who have turned side hustles into a job they love, and tips on ways to make money in your free time.
So check them out and see what you can start doing this month!
65 Genius Side Business Ideas You Can Start While Full Time
My favorite find from this article: Housesitting
You’ve probably heard about this side hustle before, but here’s why it’s actually awesome. If you sign up for a site like TrustedHousesitters, start taking care of people’s homes (in your area) here and there for a few months, you’ll have quite a few reviews and experience under your belt.
Then you can take it to the next level; start applying for people’s houses in different states or countries and start to travel full-time (no joke).
One couple started to do it and got so good at it that their flights were paid for when they went to housesitting gigs. Check out some good tips on how they were able to make housesitting work full-time here!
READ MORE FROM RYROBHow I Make an Extra $800 a Month Reselling Thrift Store Clothes on Ebay
Now I thought this was great. Her tip: start small and make a budget. Her budget was $75, and then she went to thrift stores in wealthier areas since they were more likely to give away more expensive brands. Now that’s some incredibly helpful information.
READ MORE FROM THE PENNY HOARDER26 Common Thrift Store Finds You Can Flip To Make Money
Vintage Video Games: Stalk the video game section of a thrift store and see if you can find a vintage video game that’s from an outdated video game system.
Then check it out online and see how much it’s going for (sometimes it can be worth quite a bit of money). This can be a great way to start a side hustle if you do your research and put the effort in.
READ MORE FROM BUZZFEEDHow to Work From Home Selling on Amazon FBA
Jessica Larrew first started as an Ebay seller, but then switched to Amazon when she found out she could make more money with less hassle. Her trick? She started doing retail arbitrage.
So instead of getting clothing from the thrift store, she would fill in the gaps of retail items people wanted but Amazon didn’t have, and sell them.
She finds these items from liquidation stores; places where items are on discount because manufacturers won’t sell them anymore (so think T.J. Maxx).
Side Note: I’ve since updated this article. And before you start, I think it’s important to read over what Amazon says about doing retail arbitrage. It’s still doable, but there are restrictions.
READ MORE FROM MAKING SENSE OF CENTSHow to Become a Virtual Assistant and Make $3,000+ a Month
A virtual assistant is basically a person who helps someone run their online business or blog. So if the work is overwhelming for someone, they might hire a person like you to help them out.
Now this author does state that there are plenty of different virtual assistant positions you can take (she gives a list of them). But her tip that I personally like is to take a class in one that you’re interested in.
So for instance; if you want to do photography/graphic design, take a class in Photoshop and then apply for a position. Then you can get hired, get paid, get experience, get more gigs, and possibly turn it into a full-time job.
READ MORE FROM FREEBIE FINDING MOMHow to Get Paid $12/Hour as a Search Engine Evaluator
Basically you find the errors in search results so that companies like Google can have a better search algorithm and understand exactly what the searcher is looking for. Her tip is to look for job offers on sites like Appen.
READ MORE FROM THE PENNY HOARDERHow One Crafty Mom Earns $70,000 a Month on Etsy
This mother started an Etsy store called Three Bird Nest, and her tip is to not focus on the product more than the service and how you’re going to market the product.
This is what differentiates you from so many other sellers on Etsy. She talks about how you have to put a lot of time and effort into your shop, or things will take a long time to take off.
You get what you put in.
READ MORE FROM THE PENNY HOARDER
Grace Moser is the author and founder of Chasing Foxes, where she writes articles to help women create a life they love in big and small ways. She's been a full-time traveler since 2016 and loves sharing her experiences and exploring the world with her husband, Silas. Her lifestyle and travel advice can also be seen on sites such as Business Insider, Glamour, Newsweek, Huffpost, & Apartment Therapy.
I just like the helpful information you provide in your articles
I am 24 about to have my 1st child, and will no longer be able to keep my job. what do you recommend ?
Blogging is a great way to stay at home with your children. It allows you to work whenever and scale your income. 🙂
This was so helpful! There is something for everyone’s talents!
Thanks Vanessa!
Thanks for sharing! It is so great that the Internet provides so many options to work from home!
You’re so welcome!
nice
Hello, I have been desperately searching for a legitimate way to make money remotely from home for close to a year now. Do you have suggestions on where to look. I want to be home more for my girls and set my own hours.
Thank you in advance
Hey Stacie!
I’d definitely try blogging. I have a ton of posts on it in my blogging section. It’s what allows me to work from anywhere. 🙂
OMG, this is the best site ever. I am a vintage nut, and I am doing my own vintage website selling vintage handbags and my own handmade jewelry. I started with GoDaddy for the website and I am still working out the bugs. but I am loving every minute of it so far. I am 61-year-old at this is my time. This site is really a blessing to anyone looking to start from scratch with some serious girl power help. Thank you so much to all the strong ladies that make this site work.
thank you for sharing!!!
Hi, Slias & Grace!
These tips are unique and perfect. Normally, another just mentioned about Adsense or something like that. Not as good as yours.
This article is worth-sharing.
Thanks for this publishing.
God bless you.
Many of you are on facebook buying stuff in the garage sell groups. When I was living in Orlando, Fl People did not have a place to git rid of their unwanted furniture and items no donation place picked up and because people move to Florida and move much of the stuff goes out to the curb. I started driving around sun eve and picked up before the trash man on monday morning. I sold the stuff on facebook groups, Offer up and craigslist. Then I also got into buying storage units from auctions. Storagetreasure.com list all units all over the United States. When I was on facebook I would see three or 4 people wanting one item and knowing only one person would get it I would look for that item and list and sell quickly. I made 300.00 on a “bad” week and 800.00 a week on a “good” week. I never really put 25 hours in at all! Hope that helps!
Thank you so much for this awesome story Michelle! This is so great to hear! 🙂
Hi, I really enjoyed this site. I’m in a point in my life where I need a change. I have a lot of great ideas, just don’t know how to apply them. I’ve thought about opening a maturity/baby store, coffee shop or writing a dating book (from a real person prospective) I’m interested in blogging and seeing where that could go. Would you have any other suggestions? I also enjoy cleaning/organizing, I’m not sure if that could be something too. The fear of failing and times does money lost trying new things that probably shouldn’t have been started to begin with is what’s really scary. Thanks again for this post, I will certainly keep this post!
Very nice inputs pl keep it up…
Hi, have found your site extremely useful as I plan to take some time out but i still want to occupy my time….thank you for sharing. 🙂
Thanks so much, Nicola. We’re so glad we could help out. 🙂
This is a very inspiring post. Thank you so much for posting it. I also have been thinking about blogging and Etsy for crocheting and crafting. I just feel like there are so many crocheting blogs and DIY blogs and shops out there that I wouldn’t be able to stand out. And for blogging my fear is what if I can’t put out quality content EVERY SINGLE TIME. I guess I have a lot of fears and maybe just need to do it!! Just don’t know where to start.
But I think I will definitely start taking the first steps.
Lynne, I applaud you for taking these first steps towards starting your own business. I know that it was for us as well. The more you do it, the better it will become. We were certainly not perfect when we first started out – and we’re not perfect now. Not every time you swing it is going to be a home run – but every time you hit a home run its going to be because you decided to swing.
It’s the first time that I am visiting your blog and this is so good. I came to this page through Facebook page of MakingSenseofCents.
It’s really a good read for me. As I am connected with thousands of work at home moms, I am going to share this on my social channels. Great job!!
I’m so glad I could help you out Mahesh! It’s great to hear that I could inspire you. 🙂
Great post!!! I’ve been curious to know what I could do with my nack for designing. I LOVE to craft and I mean I research about it ALL day. Could I open an online shop selling my work? (My first pieces are glass centerpieces) lol
Hey Felicia! You sound like a passionate and hard worker. I could definitely see you starting an online shop. 🙂
Thanks, this was helpful! I am looking to start a blog but I don’t know which direction will help me to start earning income. I have a background in early childhood education for fifteen years but I have a great passion for food and the culinary arts. Which do you think would b the better blog? Thanks again!
Hey Rachel! I would definitely explore the culinary part of blogging. Study the big food bloggers like Pinch of Yum and Half Baked Harvest. Get a good feel for how they do things and start to take notes on how you would present your blog.
I believe that your knowledge with children could actually come in handy later when you want to get more personal on your blog. 🙂
What a neat post, thanks for sharing! I’ve wanted to start a blog for a while, but I feel like I’m not creative or eloquent enough to do it. Or even to narrow down a nich for it. I love drawing comics and have 2 small kids. Do you think people would really want to read a blog about either? I have a Tumblr account but would I have to pay for a blog instead? Sorry for the barrage of questions, and thank you for encouraging others!
Hey Katie! I’m so glad I could help you out!
I’ll start off with the paying for the blog question. It’s super important if you want to make money with ads and put in affiliate links (so you get paid for your hard work!). Check out this post that’ll guide you step by step in starting one up with Bluehost (makes things so much easier haha).
If you love to make comics, then I’d definitely check out people like The Oatmeal or Sarah Scribbles (you can find them on Facebook). They’re both hilarious and know how to attract an audience. Start studying them and how to get a following with comics, I know you can do it!
I hope I was able to help you out, and if you have any other questions, feel free to ask away!
Happy holidays! 🙂
This was awesome information, I have been wanting to do this for a very long time but don’t know where to start. I will definitely keep this info.
Hey Tina! I’m glad you liked this post! If you want a place to start, then I’d definitely check out my posts on how I got started working from home. Here are just a couple!
How I Made $3,000 From Home Last Month
How Pinterest Became My Full-Time Job
Hi April what a purpose builder you are am happy I stumbled into this God bless you pls have been wanting to open a blog that repost/share anything that is useful that needs to get across world wide how do I go about it or where do I fit in thanks
Hey Vivian, you can follow my post that’ll guide you step by step in creating one and as for finding a blog niche, what are some of your interests? 🙂
Wow, I live in Guatemala I don’t think none of this ideas would work for me 🙁 besides I’m only good at writing.
Well there are plenty of virtual assistant jobs out there Deborah that could help you out! Check out my post on how to be a virtual assistant, it’ll show what it is, where to look, and how to land a position. Hope this helps you out! 🙂
If I wanted to start a blog, what blog hosting site would you recommend? Or would it be better to just buy my own domain?
I would definitely recommend Bluehost Marie! It’s a great hosting site with great service and great prices! 🙂
Also, feel free to check out my post on creating a blog with them! It’ll guide you step-by-step! 🙂
I want to retire next summer. I love to read. Can I find a stay at home position where I can read and still earn a decent wage? Do What would it take to land a proofreading position for several authors or companies? Surely there is a need for that out there. I’m way past being proficient in IT terminology or wanting to go back to school for medical coding. What would you suggest?
Hey Linda, check out this link. It’ll show you different place where you can apply for a proofreading job.
Hope this helps! 🙂
Absolutely love your page. I have wanted to start a blog for a few years now, but never have done it. Reading your posts definitely inspire me to really pursue it.
Thank you so much April, I’m so glad I could help you!
Also, when your blog is up and running, let me know, I’d love to see it. 🙂
Is there hope for me? I am 62 . Wife
Yes, there definitely is. What is it that you’re good at or like to do? 🙂
Yes, their is hope momma! Keep it pushin