How to Make Money Easily (and Fast!)
Since I was a kid, I’ve always looked for extra ways to make money. At 13, I presented Dad with a plan to make money so I could buy a house if he would go guarantor/get the loan for me. He said no.
As an adult, I worked mostly from home and looked for ways to bring in extra cash, especially when I was going through a bitter divorce and custody battle.
I’ve tried so many things, with varying degrees of success. Here are my top 5 from recent times.
This post contains affiliate links. Read my full disclosure here.
1. Buy Things To Resell
Clothing, cars, websites, camping gear, books, Tupperware, basically if I could make a profit, I flipped it. Most items were bought or acquired and sold fairly quickly. I got started because of a challenge in 2017. In my first month, I made almost $3,000!
Top Tips for Buying Things to Resell
I get asked a lot about buying things to resell. I have a whole guide on how to do this Within 4 months of starting a challenge to make $20,000 in a year buying things to resell, I made over $10,000. So I include a lot of tips on how to do it. Below are a few.
Know what you are buying
My niche items were rockabilly clothing and camping gear mostly because I knew those items well. Early on, books were easy but that has become harder. By knowing what things are worth, which brands to look for and where they sell well makes it so much easier.
Check Items Throughly
When looking for items to flip you want to be sure they are in good condition or easy to fix. Check clothing for holes, tears, stains, missing buttons, problematic zips etc. Some are an easy fix such as a split seam, others are not.
Whatever you are buying, look over it thoroughly and decide whether the work it needs is worth your time and effort for the profit you’ll make.
Take Clear Photos
Humans are visual creatures so good photos make items sell easier. Take them in a well lit location, preferably in the morning or later afternoon instead of direct sunlight.
Ensure the images are clear, not blurry. Edit them a little but also be accurate about it.
List Accurately in the Right Locations
When listing your items for sale, think about where it is best to list then and be detailed in the listing about any flaws etc. Niche Facebook Groups worked best for niche items such as camera gear and rockabilly clothing for me. Other items did better on eBay.
Post Quickly With Tracking
Post as soon as payment is made, pack the items carefully and always use tracking. I won’t sell and post an item without tracking as not everyone is honest and if you don’t have proof you sent it, PayPal etc can take the money back.
2. Writing – Blogging and Freelance
As a teen, I said I would be a writer and was laughed at then strongly advised not to. So I pursued other things but in reality, writing has brought me the most joy, incredible experiences including overseas travel and once in a lifetime experiences.
Plus, it’s been a great source of income enabling me to leave an abusive marriage and provide for my kids.
Blogging isn’t as easy as people think. You need to spend time and money setting it up or buying one, creating a community, content etc. But once set up, my sites have provided consistent income.
Check out how to set up a blog and make money blogging for tips.
Freelance writing varied depending on how much I wanted to do and the type of work I was doing. Since there are standard rates and plenty of work in different genres if you have the right connections, it’s can be good. I love to write so this was easy for me.
Being an author is another writing option but usually works best with either freelance writing or blogging as well. You can self publish on Amazon or pitch to publishers.
I’ve been published with Wiley and self published. I made more self publishing and enjoyed the process more.
However, originally publishing my first book with Wiley gave me creditbility as a writer/author and opportunities I might not have had if I had only self-published.
Top Tips for Writing
To set up a blog and learn how to make money blogging check out this post. Or check out how to become a freelance writer if you are more interested in that. Both can be done at the same time and a blog is often a great way to showcase your portfolio and writing skills, get new clients and make money while still freelance writing.
Get Experience and Knowledge
Writing is a skill and not as easy as everyone assumes. Correct formatting, grammar and research are all part of it. Learning SEO and being able to write for the correct audience on the topic you’ve been hired to write for all take practice.
Consider doing a course such as Earn Money Writing (I highly recommend this one, Holly is fantastic with support and advice). Courses such as this help improve your skills but also teach you how to pitch for writing, where to pitch, what to charge and you can join the community.
In these communities, you aren’t in competition with each other, you are supporting one another and it is another great place to learn as well as pick up gigs.
Rejection, Ignoring and Slow Payments
Getting rejected isn’t uncommon especially if you haven’t taken the time to do some research and pitch to the right person. If you are simply sending out the same pitch to everyone, it won’t work. You will either get rejected or ignored.
Rejections happen for numerous reasons – the magazine or website might have similar content planned, they might have already allocated their budget or only be hiring from a specific group.
Don’t take it personally, don’t harrass the editor, take your piece and pitch elsewhere.
If you’re hired as a contract freelancer for ongoing work, be sure to work well with your clients. Get clear on what they want, have a solid brief and limit edits to save yourself time, money and stress.
If someone hasn’t responded, it is ok to follow up once but do not follow up constantly. They’ll block you and you will get a bad reputation.
With payments, realise some payments take months, others are paid upfront. You negotiate your terms and what you will accept. Personally, work is usually paid upfront unless it is over a certain amount, then it can be 50% now and 50% later. I have long, specific terms and conditions with a contract before starting or agreeing to any work. Always have a contract!
3. Renting out my Space – Airbnb, Spacer, Boarders
In Sydney, Canberra and Melbourne I had boarders, rented my home on Airbnb or rented out the garage. My garage in Sydney was rented to a single mum to run her business. In Canberra, my garage was used at one point for someone to store things, later I had boarders then also trialled Airbnb there.
My Melbourne experiences were all 3. The garage in my unit rented for $50 a week to someone storing a spare car they loved.
I rented the apartment out when we went away, which paid for whatever expenses I had related to going away. At one point, I had a young couple I know renting with me as well.
Check out how to make money with Airbnb as well as these 14 questions to ask before accepting a boarder. Be sure to check you can legally do this in your area.
4. Medical Trial ($4,050)
I put this under fast and easy because it was but it is not something I could do regularly. However, $4,050 was a nice chunk of change. It was paid in a couple of stages, not all at once but worth it.
I shared my experience and tips if you chose to do it here.
5. Flip Websites
In 2014, I started buying and selling websites for a decent profit. It wasn’t something I did a lot but when I did I made between 10 and 20 times what I paid for it. The Thrifty Issue was originally purchased with the intention of selling later but I loved the community here so kept it.
When buying a site, I looked for a low price with huge potential. If I could makeover a site, add affiliate links and get sponsored posts easily, I was interested.
I typically stuck to finance sites as I could get them easily through the communities I was involved in and resell them.
One place you can buy and sell is Flippa which I used a few times. The prices tend to be lower on ther so I bought but most of my sales were done directly through groups I am in with peole I know.
Other Ways To Make Money
Market research paid $100 per hour which was easy although you have no control over how many gigs you’ll get. Online surveys make many people $2,000 to $5,000 a year. The best Aussie online surveys are here.
When I was a teen I did babysitting. I’ve also wrapped gifts, mowed lawns, cleaned and done any odd job possibly but most of those things were not quick or easy! Babysitting can be but I was babysitting mostly special needs children.
Check out 43 ways for single mums to make money, How I’ve made money from home or remotely and how I made $33,277.57 on the side in 12 months for more ideas.
For more ways to make and save money follow us on social media:
TheThrifty Issue Facebook Page
The Thrifty Issue Facebook Group
