Make Money Doing What You Love

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This post is dedicated to those not fully satisfied with their full time jobs.  If you dread going to work everyday, take a hard read at this post and you will walk away feeling a bit better.

When I started this blog, I wanted to write for people who are happy and successful at their jobs but simply want more out of life.

Not long after, I realized that I also need to write for those that DO NOT like what they do to introduce some alternative options they can pursue either full time or on the side.  When you make money doing what you love through a healthy side gig, it often gives you something to look forward to and helps you carry through a rough and tough day on the job.

So with that in mind, this is yet another list of side gigs to consider either as full time or part time gigs.  The common theme in these is that they are all tied to a hobby or passion that is commonly shared by many and therefore there is a demand for these out there.

Hope you find something you like, and can turn it into a profitable activity while doing what you love.

Freelancing – This term pretty much includes anything and everything.  You can make an argument that all side gigs fall into the freelance bucket.  Freelancing in the way I use it however specifically refers to providing services (usually ones related to what you do for a living) on the side to your private clients.  In freelancing, client acquisition usually comes from your network, soliciting on forums, blogs and classifieds such as Craigslist, client referrals and word of mouth.

Customized Personal Services – These are services you can provide to save someone else the time from doing them.  Grocery shopping, bill paying, booking tickets, preparing tax returns and reservations are all examples of services people want and need.

Personal Interactive Services – This is similar to personal services in the sense that it is still service that you are providing.  But unlike providing it remotely on your own, this involves you right alongside with your client.  Good examples are shopping or fashion consultants, life coaches, business coaches, etc.

Lawn and Garden Care – If you find working outside on the lawn therapeutic like many do, consider helping homeowners who do not have the time to do it themselves but would still like a nice curb appeal to their home.  If you want bigger fish to fry, consider larger greenhouses, farms, estates and golf courses.  Horticulture is a vast field and possibilities are endless, especially if you really know what you are doing.

Pet Care – From pet sitting to pet training to taking them for regular vet visits, pet care is like lawn and garden in that the possibilities are endless.  If you want to aim for the skies, you can look into upscale offerings such as pet spas, hotels and the likes.  The last  I heard upscale pet services is a $30 BILLION industry in the USA!

Interior Decorator – You better be good with art, style and have a decent taste to succeed at this.  There must be a million people who call themselves “interior decorators” when they are really just another version of your mom trying to experiment with your stuff (except they expect to get paid). Gee.

If you know what you are doing however, you can not only decorate homes, but also offices as workplaces evolve and require a new look and feel due to emerging trends (color, furniture and lighting mix).  Here is a brief list of some serious business you can get into if you know how to arrange and rearrange:  Industrial workplace design, furniture coordination, computer and human interaction, occupational safety, cloud computing environments, call center ops, etc. Heard of the term “ergonomic”?  Yeah – lots of money indeed.

Sports, Recreation and Outdoors – Become a trainer at the gym, teach a fitness class, karate your way away to retirement, or any of the 23,879 other options.  This is a great way to blend work and play and truly “live the dream”.  There are opportunities for you if you enjoy the outdoors (kayaking/rafting/mountain biking) or whether you’d like to stay indoors (karate, yoga, personal training, coaching, refereeing).

I recently heard that Feng Shui consulting can bring in between $200-$1,000 per two hour consultation.  Many corporations are increasingly considering large scale Feng Shui consulting projects because it brings greater satisfaction and productivity to their workers. Whatever floats the boat I guess . . .

Event Planners – From personal secretaries (live or virtual), to party and wedding planners, this profession covers the entire gamut.  It is important however to specialize in a particular event such as weddings of office parties.  The more narrow or “niche” you go, the more you can command for your specialized skill set.

Elderly Care Services – This can mean physically providing care to elders, but it doesn’t have to be.  There is a mass populous of aging baby boomers (and growing) and there is a need for specialized services to fit their needs.  Whether entertainment, education or lifestyle based, there is a specific need for goods and services that appeal to this demographic.  For example, there are computer training companies that serve only the 50 plus.  Their training programs are customized to fit the needs of the boomers.

Cooking Services – Whether it is teaching a mass group in your own home, or going to people’s home to give private classes, this trend is on the rise and wanted by many.  There is also a need for these services when large parties and gatherings are hosted in a home setting.  Couple this with knowledge in health and nutrition and you can be billing large.

Business Writing and Other Services – This is huge and usually thrown into the “Freelance” category.  But because this niche is so lucrative, I decided to call it out separately.  There is a ton of demand for sound business writing, whether it is writing business plans, contracts, leases, marketing plans, strategic plans, proposals, grant applications, you name it.

Many business opportunities are lost because clients do not know how to communicate their message on paper the “right way”.  You can easily make $100 per hour in this gig, and can diversify to cover business writing for all kinds of tasks and purposes.  The “Other Services” part includes legal, tax, business formation consulting, advice and compliance matters.

Already busy with a full time job? No worries.  If you have been contemplating what to do for a second income stream, these ideas will help get the creative juices flowing.  They are timely, trendy and the need is commonly shared by many.  You just need to find your audience now and start selling to them.

The ideas above are not going to generate passive and residual income for you, but they are fun activities that you can earn money from and they don’t take much time to implement.  If you’d like something more automated that can generate income on a passive basis, read my blog post about An Internet Based Passive Business Model. That said, even some of the gigs in this list can be scaled into a larger business.

This list was meant for everyone, whether you are looking for a full time gig to do or start a part time side business to make money doing what you love.  Hopefully you found something along the lines of your personal interests.  If so, go ahead and start that part time business that you always dreamt off.

Sunil
Starting

2 Responses to “Make Money Doing What You Love”

1. Aloysa says:

   October 23, 2010 at 9:30 am

   I love my day time job. I am really lucky to be doing what I like and enjoy it. In fact, nowadays I am really happy to have a job! But of course I have a dream. One day I can see myself doing what I really want to do – writing and be able to support my family just by writing (blogging would be the best). Great post!

   Reply
2. Sunil says:

   October 23, 2010 at 9:59 am

   Aloysa,

   There are many who share the same goal. Of all the ways I make money, the online platform is my favorite. I will be discussing making money online through niche content websites and blogs more down the road. I hope to share my own experiences and what has worked best over the years.

   Stay tuned and Welcome to the Extra Money Blog!

   Reply