10 Easy Ways To Make Money

This was bound to become a topic of this blog sooner or later, as nearly everyone on the planet is searching for simple, fast ways to put a little extra cash in their pockets. And that's completely understandable. Who wouldn't want a few extra dollars a month? So, to meet that demand, here a ten easy ideas to start putting a bit more padding in your wallet, and a few extra zeroes in your bank account.

Photo by Sharon McCutcheon on Unsplash

1. Start a Blog - This idea for creating an extra source of income is relatively common, but can be very profitable nonetheless. There are several sites that offer you the opportunity to create a free website or blog, and there are also a good number of websites that allow you to act as a freelance writer for companies and businesses. Moreover, blogging allows you to work on your own schedule and in your free time. Location is flexible as well. The average blogger salary can vary greatly, but Glassdoor reports the average blogger earns anywhere between $2,000.00 and $79,000.00 per year, depending. Blogging, then, is highly recommended for enhancing your cash flow.
2. Invest - Investing is quite a bit riskier, especially if you choose to day trade stocks in your spare time, but the payoff can be well worth the risk if you play your cards correctly. For whatever reason, there's a very common misconception that you must have a certain amount of money to invest in the stock market. However, this is completely false, and you can invest on most platforms with very little money. Day traders and long-term investors have extremely variable salaries, and you may end up with less money than you start out with, so be careful if you choose to take this route.
3. Take Pictures - If you take pictures or spend a consistent amount of time behind a camera, you may consider looking into freelance photography or video production. Given that most clients can be booked via social media, text, or email, it's relatively easy to arrange times that are convenient to your schedule, and you have the flexibility to set your own rates and prices as well. Freelance photographers make roughly $690.00 per week, which can translate to upwards of $30,000.00 per year, just from taking pictures. This does not include the sale of stock photos or taking sponsored pictures for brands and/or social media. 
4. e-Commerce - The title may make this method of earning money seem extremely advanced and complicated, but in reality, e-Commerce, drop shipping, and flipping are all very simple ways to make money online. All you have to do is set up an online shop (Shopify will allow you to build and host one for $29.00 per month) and begin either creating or purchasing products to sell on it. Dropshippers and e-Commerce salespeople have a variable salary, although some have been known to make as much as $3,000,000.00 per year. 
5. Write An E-Book - If you have a story to tell, tell it! If you write a page per day, for a year, you'll have a 365 page book that you can self-publish on a site of your choice. The Amazon publisher program works wonders for this, and many Amazon-published books make thousands of dollars in collective revenue. A study reported that the median salary for an author is $55,000.00, although it's likely you'll earn less than this until you have multiple books on the market.
6. Rent Out A Room - If you have an extra piece of property lying around, or an unused bedroom in your house, consider renting it out. Even one room can generate you hundreds of dollars per month, with minimal effort or involvement on your part. If you have an entire building not in use, list it on AirBnB or another rental site, as it can generate hundreds, or even thousands of extra dollars per month. 
7. Do Freelance Work - Whether it's videography, programming, graphic design, or an option we've already listed, you can probably make money off of it doing freelance work with it. In fact, you can make money off of almost any of your talents, just by doing freelance work alone. 
8. Become an Influencer - This one is a little more challenging, unless you just happen to have somewhat of a social following. However, it is not impossible to build a social following, and then turn that into sponsorships and brand deals. in fact, it is possible to attract offers to collaborate with companies if you have as few as 10,000 followers. Influencers can earn hundreds of dollars, or score free merchandise, for every post featuring specific brands. Best part is, it's free to be an influencer. All you have to do is create an Instagram account, YouTube channel, or other similar platform, and begin creating and uploading content. 
9. Take a Second Job - While the addition of a second job may cause a lot of stress and/or workload, it is still a highly viable option to consider if you want or need consistent, stable streams of income. By picking up weekend shifts at a restaurant or store, or doing regular freelance work for a company, you can add a few thousand dollars to your annual income, at the expense of part of your weekends. 
10. Start a Podcast - Podcasts are generally a relatively reliable source of income, once they have some steam and a regular following. In general, a podcast will generate roughly $30.00 per 1000 listeners per episode, from advertisers, which means that a podcast with 5000 consistent listeners will earn about $150.00 per episode. One of the richest podcasters in the world, former comedian Joe Rogan, earns an estimated $30,000.00 per podcast episode, and he's been known to post as many as five episodes in one week.

Any and all of these are viable options for generating a second, third, or fourth stream of income, but don't feel like you have to do one of these. Be creative! If you want to make money by selling custom furniture, or walking dogs, go for it! The important thing is that you have fun with it, as this should be as much a hobby as it is an income stream.