Posts

ways-to-sell-photos-online

5 Simple Ways – How to Sell Photos Online

/1 Comment/in , , /by

Find five different ways on how to sell photos online. These are all very easy ways for anyone to sell their own photography. #makemoney #financialfreedom #photographyHow to sell photos online is a question I have been working on for almost a decade. I have tried almost a dozen different ways to sell photos. While some avenues have been more successful than others, I am excited to share with you the most successful ways to sell photos online.

As many of you already know from other posts, I love photography. While I am in a season of life that does not let me shoot new photographs right now, I still have a passion for photography. Even though I am not making new photographs, I actually still passively make money off of them.

Over the years, I have been fortunate to shoot photographs all over the U.S. and the world. It took a lot of honesty with myself, patience, and persistence to build my skills to produce good photographs. Many of my photos have been sold to people around the world using several different platforms of selling. To have someone purchase a photograph that you created from scratch is an extremely rewarding experience.

Enough about me, we are here to help you sell photos online.

1. Stock Photography

My guess is you have heard about stock photography, especially if you are a fellow blogger.

For me, this has been my most successful way on how to sell photos online.

Using Shutterstock or iStock Photo is probably the easiest way to earn extra money online selling your photos. All you have to do is head over to one of these sites, sign up, upload, get accepted, then sit and wait to get paid.

Want to get started? Andrew goes into how he got started with Shutterstock.

I have used stock photography to make truly passive income for the past ten years.

A Personal Story

About five years ago I was in St. Louis. While there we visited a high vantage point in the hotel we were staying at. It just happened that vantage point looked over the St. Louis Gateway Arch. I snapped a quick shot (this article’s featured image) through the glass window not thinking anything about it. Later on, I decided to add it to Shutterstock and iStock Photo.

To be honest, compared to the other photos I was uploading, I was not too excited about this photo.

To my surprise, this photo has been a best seller for me since that day. Between the two hosting services I have made well over $1,000 off of the photograph.

Why did this photo do so well? My theory is because it is from a different angle than your typical St. Louis Arch photograph. Go ahead and take a look at the top St Louis Arch photos on ShutterStock and compare them to mine above. Notice how it is completely different from the other top sellers. This is what you should do for your stock photography. Find a topic on one of the stock photography sites that is selling well. Then analyze the competition to figure out how you can do your photo better bringing fresh content to the topic.

2. Direct Sells

A few years back I was very active in marketing my photographs. I was blogging every day, creating conversations on Twitter, and gaining visitors like crazy. This is when I had a few people directly contact me to use my photos. One client was a hospital in Iowa looking for photos to use on their website. The second client was a marketing company out of Sweden looking to use my Portland Headlight photo for one of their clients.

Overall, I made over $75 off of these two deals. While not much, I was still very excited.

Lesson Learned: One thing I learned was to only work with clients who have a budget. The hospital did not so I gave them a one-year license for free as long as they gave me credit for my work on the site. I thought this would give me exposure. It did not.

Never give your work for free! It usually never works out.

I learned from this mistake when the Swedish deal came up. Here I made sure that I was going to get some money out of them. We came up with a deal for $75, they signed the license, then I sent them a digital copy of the image. It was essentially a direct stock photography deal.

3. Etsy

If you read my 8 Extremely Flexible Part-Time Jobs for Us Grown Ups article, you know I once started an Etsy shop a while back. I did not spend much time on my shop to get it going but did sell a couple of photographs there. I have heard that if you work fairly consistently on your own shop for about a year that it can become pretty lucrative.

As I said, I did not really work very hard on my shop so nothing huge ever materialized with Etsy. Out of the photographs I did sell, I made around $100.

Hopefully, in the near future, I can get back into my Etsy shop. I think this could be a really nice way to make some extra income.

Etsy allows you to sell your own crafts as a part-time gig.

4. Magazines

One time, I had the editor of a digital magazine contact me to take some photographs around the Denver area. They were doing a spotlight on the city and wanted me to take photos of local landmarks, things to do, and my favorite, food! I went around taking these photos, signed a contract with them, and then got paid a couple of hundred bucks. Later on, the article was published which was an incredible feeling!

To start your own freelance journey on how to sell your photos online, I recommend you to contact editors of any magazine around the country. This will let them know you exist and that you are hungry for some work. Do not get discouraged if they say no right away. If they turn you away, remember to follow up every couple of months or so.

Also, I am sure there are freelance websites around the internet to help you find new gigs. I do not have any personal experiences with these websites though. Oh! Article idea!

5. Consignment Shops

Alright, this idea is not about how to sell photos online but rather at a physical store. It is very similar to Etsy and Direct Sells so I wanted to include it for you. Here you can find locally-owned gift stores that sell items from local artists. Most of these stores sell items as a consignment shop would. They give your item space in the store for a certain amount of time. Once it sells then they take a cut of the income and you get the rest. Pretty sweet!

Personally, I was able to sell a couple of photographs this way. I made a modest $150 from the sales. Overall, this is a very time-consuming method compared to stock photography but you are not competing against as many photographers so the likelihood of you selling a photo is much greater. Plus you might have to sell 30 stock photos to make what you do by selling one photo in a consignment shop.

Here in Denver, there is a group of people that sell tons of photos at consignment shops around the city. As you can imagine, this takes time to build relationships with shop owners, get prints, deliver them, check in on inventory, and pick up checks. While easy work, it takes up time.

Wrapping it All Up

Here are five fantastic and very probable ways on how to sell photos online. Most of which I have done myself. Some of these methods take more time than others. Some are truly passive while others require you to reach out and find work. If you are ambitious it is possible to do all five of these methods to sell photos online.

I would recommend starting with only one at a time instead of trying to start with all five at the same time. Eventually, I think you can make photography a full-time business if you are consistent.

It takes time, patience, and persistence to sell your photos online. Do not give up if you have not sold anything in the first week. Keep pushing forward analyzing your work to make sure that it actually looks good compared to others. If not, learn how you can make your work better. Remember that failure is okay and if you learn from your mistakes you will come out ahead.

how-to-make-money-in-college

How to Make Money In College Without Dropping Classes

/1 Comment/in , /by

How to make money in college can be a challenge but is almost a necessity nowadays with how expensive things have become. Unless you don't mind coming out of college with $50,000 or more in student loan debt, you need to find ways to make money in college.How to make money in college can be a challenge but is almost a necessity nowadays with how expensive things have become. Unless you don’t mind coming out of college with $50,000 or more in student loan debt, you need to find ways to make money in college.

Trust me, you want to try to keep those student loans down as much as possible. Your future self will thank you greatly. I have seen friends come out with $60,000 plus in student loan debt who are still repaying those loans after almost ten years. It is pretty crazy!

To help you minimize your student loan debt we are going to show some awesome and flexible ways to make money in college.

1. Donate Plasma

This was my go-to on how to make money in College. Sadly, I tended to use this money for beer rather than responsibility but it could be a good way for someone to make $300 or more a month.

If you are not scared of needles, this is the way to make money in college for you. When you arrive you need to go through a brief check-up for your temperature and answer some questions. Once in the back, you get to lay on a comfy bed for the next 60-90 minutes. During this time you can read, watch a movie, work on school work, or even earn more money another way.

There are many plasma donation companies around the country. I donated through Biolife Plasma during my time in college.

2. Drive with Uber or Lyft

If you are able to bring a car with you to campus then you should check out driving for Uber or Lyft. These companies let you drive whenever you need to so this is a super flexible option for you.

How much do these drivers make? Well, that depends on your location and the time you are able to drive. In general, it is said that most earn anywhere from $10 to $30 an hour.

3. Get Rewarded for Your Good Grades

Some students are so busy they have zero time to earn cash outside of studying.

If this is you, do not be afraid to reach out to your dean to see if your school offers any rewards for good grades. Some universities will actually give students cash bonuses for maintaining good grades.

This also can be an opportunity to improve your scholarships for the upcoming terms. Do not be afraid to look for new scholarship opportunities as your progress through your academic career.

4. Research Studies

A lot of major universities will have a psychology department or some might even have a medical school. This might be an opportunity to be a guinea pig for a student that the psych graduate students are performing for their thesis or maybe for a medical research study.

I was able to participate in a psychology study during my time at Iowa State University. I earned $20 for 60-minutes worth of time. That is not a bad return!

5. Buy and Resell Textbooks

I did not resell textbooks to earn some income but at the end of the term, I would sell my used up books to recover some costs. Other people are a lot smarter than I am. Some students will find cheap textbooks on eBay then turn around and sell them for a profit on websites like BookScouter or Amazon.

Do some research with your University’s bookstore to see which books are required by classes most. Then go hunting for that book at a lower cost.

6. Tutor

Many universities offer tutoring services. If you are good at helping others and there is a subject you are good at, this might be your way on how to make money In college. Since you are working for the university they will work with your academic schedule.

In today’s world, there are some online tutoring options too, such as Wyzant. This is great if you are looking for more flexibility or your university has no openings.

7. Become a Virtual Employee

Virtual employment is something that has blown up in the last several years. This can be a great flexible opportunity for students to earn cash from their own dorm room. There are many virtual jobs you can try out.

  • Virtual Assistant: Being a virtual assistant you work with someone else such as a blogger to help them complete tasks and stay organized.
  • Transcriber: If you are quick on the keyboard this might be how you make money in college. Many firms in the medical or legal fields need transcribers to help with translating their notes. My sister did this for a doctor and she made a good amount of money.
  • Recruiter: A lot of job recruiting can be done virtually now. Here you will help connect with potential candidates, post jobs, screen resumes, and other preliminary tasks.

8. Amazon Flex

Speaking of virtual jobs, Amazon offers a couple of online opportunities as well.

Amazon Flex is Amazon’s package delivery service. Driver’s can earn a pretty good amount of money while delivering packages for Amazon Flex. Their website claims that most drivers earn $18-$25 an hour. That is much better than what we read about with Uber and Lyft.

9. Mechanical Turk

This is a new one to me but sounds like an awesome opportunity. “Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk) is a crowdsourcing marketplace that makes it easier for individuals and businesses to outsource their processes and jobs to a distributed workforce who can perform these tasks virtually.” (Amazon MTurk).

Some tasks include simple data validation and research, survey participation, content moderation, and more.

To be honest, this might be one I try out for myself.

10. Sell a Skillset

Are you good with computers? Are you crafty? Handy?

If so, you can sell your skill set. You can charge to fix computers (BTW, this is how Dell Computers got started). Or you can help a dormmate decorate their dorm room. Maybe a neighbor down the street needs some handiwork done. All of these items bring the opportunity to earn some money while in college.

You can also start selling skillsets on Upwork, Fiverr, or any other freelance website.

11. Help in the Local Community

There are always people that need help in the community that your university is a part of. Some tasks include help with moving, lawn care, painting, walking their dog, and so on. The list could go on and on.

Check out Craig’s List, TaskRabbit, or even Rover to find how you can make money in college while helping in the local community.

11. Foap

Foap is another one that is new to me. Like MTurk, I will also probably check this one out.

As a former professional photographer, I am very impressed by the quality of photographs phones take nowadays. With Foap, you can now sell those awesome photos you are taking on your cell phone.

Simply put, this is stock photography for mobile photography. Once you upload a high-quality photo for Foap, someone can buy a license for that photo for $10. Foap gets $5 and you take home $5. If your photo is downloaded 20 times, you just made $100.

Here are some stock photography tips for you.

12. Work in the Retail or Food Industry

I worked at JCPenny during my last couple of years of college. Working for a retail store or restaurant in a college town is pretty flexible. They know how to schedule for students and actually tend to overhire to account for students’ schedules.

I worked in the shoe department so I got paid hourly plus commission. Some weekends I would earn $200-$300 just off of that commission.

I will admit, working in retail or in the food industry is not that fun but they will probably earn you a consistent paycheck.

Conclusion

Well, that is it. Those are the only ways to make money in college!

Just kidding! Do none of these ways on how to make money in college sound good to you? Do not worry! Andrew and I have you covered. Over the years we have put together one of the largest lists on the internet with ideas on how to make money. I highly recommend you check it out!

The Metaverse: 11 Ways You Can Make Money in the Metaverse

/1 Comment/in , /by

One question I have had about the Metaverse is, "How can I make money in the Metaverse?" I am a big tech nerd so having another side hustle is something that is only getting started is something that interests me greatly. So, let's take a look at potential side hustles in the metaverse to see how we can make more money.One question I have had about the Metaverse is, “How can I make money in the Metaverse?” I am a big tech nerd so having another side hustle that revolves around technology really piques my interest. So, let’s take a look at potential side hustles in the metaverse to see how we can make more money.

1. NFT Art

The NFT art market is on fire right now! If you do a quick Google search for “NFT art” you will quickly find a news article about a piece of NFT art selling at a new record price. Recently, I saw that someone bought a Bored Ape NFT for about $50 a couple of years ago and they just sold it for $1.8 million!

The idea is to buy some NFT Art and put it in an art gallery within the metaverse. Obviously, your goal is to buy the art for cheap and sell it for a lot.

2. Voxels

What is the heck are voxels? I had no idea until I started writing this article. Yay for learning new things!

Voxels are actually pretty cool. They are the “materials” used to create other items within the metaverse. Think of them as a 3D pixel that can be combined with other voxels to make buildings, clothing, cars, and other metaverse items.

If you are familiar with the game Minecraft, you are very familiar with voxels.

There are stores that are selling voxels to others. This is a prime business model to make money in the metaverse.

The next two ways to make money in the metaverse are wild to me.

3. Construction

There are now metaverse construction companies! Say what?!?!

One company, Voxel Architects, is even making $300,000 per project to help others build buildings within the metaverse. I guess you could look at these construction firms as a new generation of website developers.

4. Real Estate

Real estate has been booming for the major virtual world metaverses such Dencentraland and Sandbox. Because of this, virtual real estate companies have been popping up. You can start helping people list their plots of land and make a nice commission off that sale.

5. Advertising

Just like in the real world, you can create advertisement platforms in the metaverse. People are building advertisement signage on their buildings and so on. Also, real work companies like Nike are building their own little corner of the metaverse to help with marketing for their items.

6. Parcel Rentals

Just like in the real world, people can rent out land or space in a building within the metaverse. Sometimes people will buy land but don’t know what to build so they will rent it out to other people.

I think this is a viable place to start for people who want to start their own store because virtual land is SUPER expensive!

7. Games

Gaming is a massive industry. There is no doubt that will be true in the metaverse. There are platforms being built that are MMORPGs with their own currency and land. Also, you can build games within existing metaverse platforms like Decentraland and Sandbox. People have built arcades with classic games or even casinos. I think building out these games will take a lot of technical knowledge compared to something like building clothes.

I suspect there will be a gaming boom once more virtual reality is introduced within the metaverse. I can imagine bowling alleys, laser tag arenas, and even ax throwing as major destinations.

8. Online KTV (Karaoke)

Apparently, karaoke is a big thing in the metaverse. There is no doubt doing karaoke with friends is a silly but absolute treat. Sadly, it is tough to get everyone together at once. With karaoke in the metaverse, everyone can get together no matter where they are.

So how are you going to make money in the metaverse with karaoke? Well, you can start your own karaoke bar or you can create music NFTs to sell to other karaoke bars. Also, you could start other types of places such as virtual trivia nights or speed dating.

I think there are a lot of opportunities beyond karaoke.

9. Virtual Clothing

Yep, you can buy virtual clothing for your avatars in these virtual worlds. People are making clothing for people to buy so they can customize their avatars. In fact, a cryptocurrency investing firm just bought over $2 million in land within Decentraland’s fashion district just so they can sell virtual clothing.

Someone will need to make the clothing for them to sell. Will that be you?

As we learned in our ‘What is the Metaverse‘ article, sadly, you can’t take your clothes with you from one metaverse to another. But! These clothing pieces are NFTs as well so you could turn around to resale your avatar’s clothes for more money.

10. Collectibles

Just like trading cards (these are in the metaverse now too) or beanie babies in the real world, there are also collectibles in the metaverse. Collectibles range from clothing to a sword to a car and even up to a yacht. These collectibles are all also NFTs so they are unique and cannot be replicated. People are constructing collectibles, out of voxels, that fit within their world to sell on the open market.

11. Data Science

As a data & analytics person, I can only imagine the data these metaverses are collecting on people. Just like in today’s internet, websites can see every click you make on a webpage. I am sure they are doing this same data collection along with where you visit most and so on.

It is easy to say that data science is being used for advertising. It is also used for market analysis. Store owners and landowners want to know more about the people visiting their little slice of digital space. Also, people will want to perform market analysis on others so they know the proper pricing of products or land.

Data Science teams can buy the data from metaverse platforms and put the data into easy-to-digest reports for their customers. This allows the customer to make data-driven business decisions to make more money on the metaverse.

Conclusion

I think there are a lot of really cool opportunities to make money on the metaverse. These are only some of the ways someone can make money in these virtual worlds. I’m sure we will see more unimaginable creative ways to make money on the metaverse in the next five to ten years.

Personally, I also find these ways to make money in the metaverse a little surreal. We are seeing new industries in the real world being founded for a virtual world. It is really cool to see!

Really the metaverse is like today’s internet but in a three-dimensional digital world instead of our current flat web pages. Metaverse architecture firms are just like web developers for today’s internet. A real estate firm is just a domain name provider like Go Daddy. And a virtual world like Decentraland is basically just a web hosting provider for your land plots and buildings like Bluehost is for your web page.

Making money in the metaverse not sounding like the right side hustle for you? Well, check out our Ways to Make Money page. Here we list out 70+ side hustle to help you earn more money.

what-is-the-metaverse

The Metaverse: What is the Metaverse?

/0 Comments/in , /by

What is the Metaverse? I think that is a question a lot of us asked recently when Facebook announced they were changing their name to Meta as they have decided to drop $10 Billion into developing their own platform for the metaverse. I was one of those people that found myself asking, "What is the Metaverse?"What is the Metaverse? I think that is a question a lot of us asked recently when Facebook announced they were changing their name to Meta as they have decided to drop $10 Billion into developing their own platform for the metaverse. I was one of those people that found myself asking, “What is the Metaverse?”

As I dove into answering that question, I realized there is not a simple answer compared to if you asked what the color of an orange is. My pursuit for an answer has turned into a massive rabbit hole that I don’t see an end to. Every turn I take there are four more tunnels to go down.

What is the Metaverse?

So what exactly is the metaverse? I have heard and seen several different definitions such as “the metaverse is like the real world but on the Internet” or “the metaverse is a place to interact with the virtual world.” Technically, these definitions are not wrong.

Ultimately, the metaverse is a grouping of virtual platforms brought together to create the metaverse. Like the internet, the metaverse cannot be created by one group. Many groups need to come together to create their own contribution to the metaverse. Think of it this way, did Google create the internet itself? No, millions of people contributed to creating the internet as we know. The metaverse will be the same way.

Here are the two best definitions I have found. The first is from NFT artist Jason on the Metaversable podcast.

“The metaverse is kind of like the real world except for it is on the internet and it is anything you want it to be and you can shape it at will provided you have the tools to do so.” – Jason known as 0xBanana 

The second is from Facebook (Meta).

“The ‘metaverse’ is a set of virtual spaces where you can create and explore with other people who aren’t in the same physical space as you.” – Facebook (Meta)

The metaverse is more than just games and social interactions, it is also a digital economy. It is a place people can buy, sell, and trade goods such as NFTs and virtual land. With the use of blockchain technology and cryptocurrency to support these digital economies, some have become really large such as Sandbox and Decentraland.

So What’s the Big Deal?

There are several technologies that help make up the metaverse such as virtual reality (think of a social game on the Oculus) or augmented reality (think of Pokemon Go). People can also interact with the metaverse in more simple ways as well such as just playing a game like Fortnite on your Xbox or Axie Infinity in your web browser.

The metaverse is considered to be the next generation of the internet, Web 3.0. What is Web 3.0? Good question, here is what I found,

“Web 3.0 represents the next iteration or phase of the evolution of the Web/internet and could potentially be as disruptive and represent as big a paradigm shift as Web 2.0. Web 3.0 is built upon the core concepts of decentralization, openness, and greater user utility.” (Investopedia).

While Web 3.0 is supposed to represent decentralization, openness, and greater user utility, I personally think greed will get in the way but who knows. I have a feeling that a lot of wealthy people that were able to get into the metaverse early are the ones that will control it.

Hopefully, I am wrong. Maybe my subconscious has Ready Player One locked in the back of my mind creating this pessimism.

Can You Transfer Your Items Between Platforms?

So far we have learned that the metaverse is made of up many different platforms and each can have its own digital economy. This introduces a whole new way to purchase digital items for your digital life. But what happens if you build this awesome life on one platform but want to go to a different platform? As of right now, you cannot go from your “house” in one platform to hang out with friends at a digital putt-putt course in another. The hope is that eventually, the metaverse will be a place where all of the platforms “talk” to each other allowing you to move throughout all of them.

While this sounds really cool, I am a little skeptical if this will really happen or not.

There are technical issues that make transferring items between different platforms extremely difficult. For example, if you want to transfer a hat from Decentraland (a platform with smooth rendering) to Sandbox (a platform with blocky rendering, think Minecraft) it would be a challenge for the receiving system to rerender the hat. How is that hat supposed to look in Sandbox compared to Decentraland? The creator of the hat NFT, yes that hat you bought is an NFT, would need to create renders for all of the platforms.

There are other issues such as formatting and so on that need to be figured out. It has been said that transferring an object from one platform to another is the most difficult challenge to overcome in the metaverse.

Examples of Platforms Within Metaverse

A list of examples of platforms within the metaverse could go on and on. For the purpose of this article, I plan on trying to narrow down a list that shows you what kind of platforms contribute to the metaverse is. This will hopefully help answer the purpose of this article, what is the metaverse.

Virtual Worlds

These worlds are like the real world but on the internet. Create your own avatar which becomes you. Within these virtual worlds, you can walk around, interact with others, shop as if you were in a store, buy/sell/trade items, build things, play games, and so on!

Games

Fortnite and Warcraft are probably the most commonly used examples of metaverse games. These are worlds you can submerge yourself in while interacting with other players. In some games, you can even earn crypto. So cool!

NFTs

NFTs are complex in themselves and warrant their own article. They make up the pieces of art, collectibles, virtual land, your avatar, and so on. You can purchase NFTs in a lot of places such as within a virtual world or on a traditional website such as Opensea.

Is the Metaverse Here to Stay?

I wish I had a crystal ball to tell you but this is an impossible question to answer. The metaverse is something to explore and keep an eye on. The metaverse really could be the future. Some major and respected investors are saying this will be a multi-trillion-dollar opportunity. Cathie Wood, one of those investors, thinks this will reach every sector of our economy “in ways that we cannot even imagine right now.” (Business Insider).

On the other hand the metaverse could disappear as quickly as beanie babies did in 1994.

Where to Get Started?

Embrace the rabbit hole! Because of how broad and abstract the metaverse is, it took me a while to finally start to understand what it is as a whole. There are so many parts to the metaverse that it is difficult to grasp an understanding quickly. Sure, I just put together an awesome summary of it but reading about the metaverse is different when you are actually exploring it.

I recommend jumping in and playing around. I signed up for Decentraland and a couple of other metaverses to get some hands-on experience.

As you explore, be safe though. This is a new world that A LOT of people are flocking towards including scammers. If the deal seems too good to be true, it probably is. Just the other day, a photographer I follow posted on Twitter that someone stole his photographs and was trying to sell them as NFTs on OpenSea. Wild!

Top 10 Tips For Renting Out a Room in Your House

/0 Comments/in , /by

I have rented out rooms in my house for over five years now. Since I began over five years ago I have taken in over $80,000 in rental income and tenants have paid me 100% of the time. I have also saved over $100,000 at 27 years old.  In this post, I am going to show you 10 tips for renting out a room in your house.I have rented out rooms in my house for over five years now.

Since I began over five years ago I have taken in over $80,000 in rental income and tenants have paid me 100% of the time. I have also saved over $100,000 at 27 years old. 

In this post, I am going to show you 10 tips for renting out a room in your house.

Tip 1: Confirm You Are Ready for a Roommate

Taking in a roommate is something you need to carefully consider. A few questions to ask yourself are:

1. Am I willing to give up some personal space?

Having a roommate means you won’t be able to walk around in your underwear all day (#workfromhomelife?). 

Joking aside, renting a room in your house means you will have to make some alterations to your life. I’ve made several changes in my life. Cooking at a different time, washing my dishes immediately after use, and not playing loud music are a few I have made. 

To me, these are small sacrifices made to have the financial benefit of the monthly rent.

2. Does my lifestyle allow for a roommate?

  • Do you jam out on your guitar at midnight? 
  • Do you have a rocking surround sound system for your TV? 
  • Do you despise being around others, especially people you don’t know well?

If you answered yes to any of these questions you may want to pass on renting a room.

I’ve seen time and time again new landlords who think they can rent a room and keep their same living habits with a roommate. This simply is not the case. Once you convert your home into a renting space, changes have to be made.

To be successful in renting out a room, you’ll have to make sacrifices. 

If you believe yourself to be a relatively quiet person, easy to get along with, and are good at communicating, renting rooms may be an option for you.

Tip 2: Make Sure Your House is Roommate Ready

There are several things you want to make sure are in place before renting a room. You’ll want to read up on your state’s landlord-tenant laws and the fair housing act to understand what is acceptable and what is not. There also may be local zoning ordinances that you want to make sure you are aware of.

Here are a few things that you should do when you rent a room regardless of the state you reside in.

  • Smoke and carbon monoxide detectors in their correct place.
  • Have a keyed lock on your master bedroom and their bedroom door to respect your tenant’s privacy.
  • The bedroom is freshly painted and any holes filled in.
  • Living space in the entire home free from clutter and personal items.

Once you have the house ready you can consider renting a room. I strongly recommend you do not rent a room until you and the house are 100% ready to take someone in. 

I have made the mistake of having someone move in too quickly because I was desperate to rent a room because I thought I “needed” the money.

Bad idea, big mistake. Don’t do that. 

Tip 3: Write a Clear & Specific Room Advertisement

After a few bad roommate situations, I was stuck and didn’t understand why it kept happening to me. 

After some reflection, I realized that the problem was not my roommates, it was me. 

This sobering fact made me realize the only way I was going to find my ideal roommate was by being specific and clear on what I wanted and what I did not want. 

My original advertisement was vague, only had my email address, and did not talk about the important aspects of the house, living situation, or my expectations.

There are 8 elements I added to the room ad that helped me find dozens of ideal roommates. The best one was with me for over 3 years, was quiet and paid rent like clockwork. These elements will help you charge higher rent and find exactly what you are looking for.

1. Date available

Something so obvious that most miss. Put the exact date you are ready for them to move in. Don’t put “in a couple of weeks.” Instead, write “ready for move-in on December 1st.” 

2. Proximity to local attractions

Is your house close to the university, grocery store, lake, or highway? Make sure to include any of these and the drive time. I even hopped in my car and timed how long it took to drive to the local college. 

This is good to put there because it saves your future roommate time and if you are too far away from their desired location it will save you a phone call. 

Be creative too. I list how close the bike trails and lake are to my house. Figure out why people would want to rent a room in your home’s location and list those nearby attractions. 

3. Room description

List the square footage of the room and the dimensions. This is common in the real estate world. It helps the roommate see if renting out a room in your house can fit all their belongings. 

List what else the room has. 

A private bathroom, ceiling fan, dual pane window, walk-in closet, and hardwood flooring are all examples. Again, better to be as specific as possible. 

4. Amenities

List exactly what they will have access to while renting from you. Washer and dryer, fridge space, high-speed internet, cooking access, covered parking, and others. Make sure they are clear that they are renting a single room and not the entire house or master bedroom. I also add the square footage of the house so they have an idea of how much space the entire property is.

5. Lease terms

I do my best to avoid short-term rentals when looking at potential tenants. The reason is that I spend a lot of time making sure the room is ready and screening tenants takes a lot of time also. If you are going to do a month-to-month or 6-month lease make sure they understand that will be part of the room rental agreement. I prefer the room rental to be month-to-month. We’ll touch more on that later. 

6. In search of

This is where you begin to be very, very specific on who you want to rent out a room in your house. 

Here are a few traits that I list in the ad: clean and tidy, responsible, peaceful, and open to communication.

You want to find a roommate who is serious about life. I’ve dealt with many people who think life is a joke. I have found that people who are working full time and are more serious about life are going to keep the spare room in good shape and pay rent on time. I love it when the rental income hits my account on the first of every month! This makes renting out a room all worthwhile when that transfer comes in.

7. Not looking for

Again, be very specific. If you are vague your roommate will not respect you or your house rules. 

I talk about how I go to bed at 9 pm and party animals are not conducive to this environment. Party guys usually don’t pay rent on time either. Lose-lose. If you have some specific interests like personal finance or the guitar or a certain TV show, make sure to list that too. You may find a kindred spirit. Whenever I’ve found someone who has similar interests as me, things have gone smoothly.

8. About the roommates

A brief introduction to me. I talk about my job and how I am the best landlord you’ll ever have. Humor here is good too. Real estate can be dry sometimes. Simply because you have your own house and are a landlord doesn’t mean you have to be stuck up. 

9. Phone number and call to action

Don’t list your email address. You’ll have foreign “royalty” who will offer to send you $400,000 via wire transfer, all they need is your bank account number and the address of your real estate. These scams are prevalent on every real estate website. 

Put your name and phone number and say “if you have not read this whole ad don’t call. Serious inquiries only.” That line alone has saved me countless hours of talking to unqualified people. 

Tip 4: Choose the Right Person By Asking the Right Questions

Ask dumb questions, get dumb answers. 

Elevating your questions will help you fend off potential tenants who are not your ideal roommates. 

You want all the questions to give you insight into if this potential tenant is going to be a good fit renting a room in your house. 

Here are the three most important questions you want to ask anyone interested in renting a room from you.

1. Do you have the first month’s rent and security deposit amount ready today?

If they have any excuse why they don’t have the money ready today, politely ask them to call back when they do. Some may see this as being too harsh yet it’s not. 

Having high standards attracts the right person who will rent a room from you. It doesn’t matter if they are waiting on their next paycheck for some extra cash from a bonus or any other $2 excuse. 

If they answer with a resounding “yes, I have the money ready now” then you can move on to the next question.

2. How long have you worked at your current job?

I only rent to people who have been at their job for at least 6 months. I’ve seen that if someone is unreliable at a job they cannot keep one. This means they may not pay on time no matter how much rent they are required to pay. 

Ideally, you want to find someone who has had the same job for at least one year.

3. What’s your normal daily schedule?

When someone is renting a room in your house you want to make sure you have similar sleep schedules. If you work a normal 9-5 do your best to only have a room rental with someone who shares your schedule. 

I once had a roommate who worked the night shift and would come in early in the morning and wake me up. Not fun at all. 

Tip 5: Call Their References

Trust is to be earned, not given freely. Simply because they give you a phone number to a manager for their job, make sure to call them and see if it’s one of their family members posing as the “manager.” Make sure to do a quick internet search and call their employer from the number listed online.

When it comes to room rentals, you’ll have a college student who thinks they can pull one over on you. 

Not today, Jack! 

But seriously, verify everything. When you have their pay stubs, call the company and verify their employment start date. This is when you have to put on your property manager hat and do some investigating. Renting out a room does take some work and this is it. 

You don’t want your desire to make extra income to cause you to take shortcuts because you’re desperate.

Tip 6: Never Negotiate The Price

I laugh out loud when someone wants to barter with me on the rent price. Whenever I listen to someone saying this over the phone I want to ask them “the rent price is not like a used car, it’s not changing.” 

Nonetheless, you may have someone who thinks they can get a “deal” on the room. I don’t lower my price, ever. The person who wants you to lower the price is most likely the same person who is going to want another concession. “Can I pay rent on the third instead of the first, it’s more convenient for me.” 

No, no no! 

Avoid having to go through the eviction process with a tenant like this. Don’t rent to them in the first place. Eviction laws are no joke!

Tip 7: Have a Written Rental Agreement

Landlords who have written rental agreements win. When renting a room you want to make sure you put everything in writing. This is also called a lease agreement. 

Even though you’re only renting your spare bedroom you still want to make sure you have a clear room rental agreement. Treat this as a rental property that you happen to live in.

I have never had to go to small claims court yet I’ve seen how if/when you have to go to court when you treat this renting out a room in your house “business” as a real estate investor you will be ready for that day.

In your rental agreement, you want to include several things. The security deposit, how/when to pay rent, any disclosures for the fair housing laws and what happens if they default (don’t pay) on their rent payments. 

You want to check any city zoning laws if you live in an urban area also. In some places, you must follow certain rules to rent a room in your house. 

Best to do plenty of research on zoning laws to make sure you comply. 

Also, if you have a homeowners association it’s best to read your bylaws and make sure you are allowed to have a tenant living in your home.

Tip 8: Sign A Roommate Agreement (House Rules)

The roommate is different from the lease agreement. In this agreement, you’ll go over the “house rules” and how to handle normal tenant issues. 

  • Do you want the house to have quiet hours from 10 pm to 6 am?
  • Are you allergic to pet hair and don’t want any pets in the house? 
  • Do you want to allow your roommates to bring overnight guests?
  • Do you want the laundry room and any living space only to be used during the day?

This is very personal and you’ll have to find out which rules you want in your own home. This is your primary residence, remember! 

Tip 9: Buy the Right Insurance

You’ll want to check with your insurance policy and even call your insurance provider to ensure you have coverage for a roommate. Don’t let this one slip through the cracks. 

Some policies allow renting a room to one person and some don’t allow renting out a room at all. 

Don’t assume because you have a security deposit that will cover anything they might do to the rental space. 

The last thing you want is something bad to happen and you have no coverage from your insurance policy. 

If your current policy doesn’t cover roommates, consider searching for an independent insurance agent in your city who can give you a quote from multiple insurance companies. 

You want to make sure as you generate extra income you will be covered in case of a loss. This is one of those rental expenses that you don’t want to skip.

Tip 10: Check-in Regularly

Simply because they rent a room in your house doesn’t mean you can’t be friendly. I always have this policy: be friendly, not friends. You want to make sure you’re cordial yet always keep healthy respect and distance. You don’t want to become best buds only to have them not pay rent on time because “we’re best friends. Let me off easy.” 

Final Thoughts

When considering renting out a room in your house you want to make sure you’re proactively prepared. I’ve seen many new landlords renting out a room for the first time become reactive because they were not prepared with a lease agreement or didn’t read up on their state’s landlord-tenant laws. 

Not knowing what regulations govern your area can land you in legal trouble. Remember to do plenty of research before you decide to rent a room in your house.

If you are unprepared, it makes for an uncomfortable environment for everyone involved. 

Whether you decide on renting out a room or multiple rooms in your house these tips will help you get on the right path. 

Happy Landlording!

Max at Max My Money

 

10 Things To Do If You Lost Your Job & Need Money Now

/10 Comments/in , /by

10 Things To Do If You Lost Your Job & Need Money Now

We all have the stress nightmare where your boss comes out of the blue and says “You’re fired”. That’s it and we spend the rest of the night in a panic. The problem is if it did actually ever happen, most of us don’t have a plan in case we do get fired.

Whether you’re thinking about losing your job due to stress, COVID-19, or any slew of reasons, it helps to have a plan. To lay out a blueprint, if this ever happened to me, here are 10 things to do if you lost your job and need money now.

Immediately Start

First, Take A Breath

It seems silly and not productive, but taking a breath is essential. People are let go or fired for a number of reasons and it’s not always a reflection of you or your work. Some things are just out of your control. Take an hour or take a day to let is sink it so it doesn’t consume you later.

1. Review Your Finances

Take a look at all the money you currently have. I personally use Mint to see all my bank accounts, credit card debt, and student loans all at once. You don’t need this, but make a list of every dollar in your possession. Look over your finances and get a feeling of how long you’ll last without a paycheck. It may not be pretty, but it’s something you absolutely need to know.

Know how much you need to spend each month, here is an example monthly breakdown:

  • Apartment & Utilities ($XX)
  • Food ($XX)
  • Car Insurance ($XX)
  • Cell Phone ($XX)
  • Internet ($XX)
  • Misc. ($XX)

PS. Also, consider health insurance as a cost. In most cases, your old employer would have provided this for you, but you need to talk to your HR to see how long this lasts. You may need to pick up supplemental health insurance until you get a new job.

Hopefully, you have some sort of Emergency Fund you can access if you lose your job. Your emergency fund will help cover rent/mortgage, food, and those expenses your paycheck normally covers. Most emergency funds should cover 4-6 months of expenses. If you don’t have an emergency fund, start saving up now but the following tips can still help.

I personally have an emergency fund I keep in a savings account, that will last me around 6-7 months. I know many people don’t have that. It took me 5 years to build. However it’s one of the best things I’ve ever done because it provides a mental safety net.

Let’s continue though as if you have $0 emergency funds.

Save All The Money You Can

2. Cancel Frivolous Monthly Subscriptions & Purchases

If you just lost your job, you shouldn’t be watching Netflix, Hulu, or listening to Spotify. If you have any kind of subscription services that cost money regularly, you should cancel these until you get a job again. It may feel like a nice break watching Netflix between job applications, but you need to save all the money you can until you’re working again. If you feel this is too hard to do, consider using your parent’s or friend’s account temporarily to save money.

Needless to say, don’t make any crazy purchases thinking you’ll get a job next week when “you really try”. Until you have a signed contract with a company, I’d suggest avoiding the mall and any kind of gift ideas. If you can, cancel any flights, trips, running races, etc. Plus always ask if you can get your money back. It may not always be possible, but every little bit helps!

For me personally, I would cancel my gym membership ($73/mo.), cancel my Spotify account ($10/mo.) since there is a free version, and I’d probably quit investing in my brokerage account ($200/mo.) until I have a steady paycheck.

10 Things To Do If You Lost Your Job and Need Money Now

3. Ask to Defer Payments

During hard economic times, many companies are willing to work with you because they prefer late payments to nothing at all. Student loan services are often willing to reconsolidate loans or defer payments. Banks are sometimes willing to defer a mortgage payment or at least help with options. It often just takes a call and asks.

For me personally, I would call my student loan companies and ask to defer my payments until I get another job. That would save me $537/mo.

Budget and Eat At Home A Lot

4. Budget and Eat At Home A Lot

One of the biggest ways people spend money is food and eating out. If you just lost your job, avoid going out to eat with friends (unless it’s a networking thing) or ordering in. It may not be sexy, but cold cut sandwiches, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and ramen got you through the dark years, it will again.

You know what you can cut to save money and you’ll see instant savings in your bank account. Remember one of the easiest ways of having more money, is not spending it!

One of the most popular tricks people use to limit spending is paying for food only with cash. The act of seeing the money physically leaving your wallet and the empty vacuum it creates, helps people be more selective with their purchases. I personally use credit cards because I enjoy the cash back, but I can’t argue with the success physical money has in limiting spending.

Start the Job Search

File For Unemployment

5. File For Unemployment

If you lost your job and actively seeking new work, you can file for unemployment. It varies state by state, but essentially you would file a claim with the Department for Labor and Employment and prove you’re actively looking for work every 2 weeks (depending on your state). Unemployment benefits will pay you a portion (likely small) of your previous salary. This is meant to help lessen the negative impact that unemployment has on the economy. It won’t be a glamorous option and you’ll meet some interesting people, but it will help.

Update Resume & Social Media-Profiles

6. Update Resume & Social Media Profiles

This is the time to update your resume with the latest accomplishments, promotions, volunteer efforts, jobs, references, etc. As you start the job search you want to make yourself look as good as possible. However, this isn’t limited to your resume. You should be updating your LinkedIn, Facebook, etc with the latest info so you’re casting a wider net for employers.

Don’t worry too much about how your resume looks, just that the information sounds grammatically correct and makes you look good! Many companies will force to you to copy all the exact same information into their often terrible online web forms. On the bright side, if your LinkedIn is up-to-date, you can always use their “one-click apply” to jobs posted on their site.

YouTube is also a great resource if you use it to better yourself now that you have free time. There are great exercise tutorials on YouTube, classes on coding (if you’re into high-paying jobs), and even brush up on software like Microsoft Excel. Use this opportunity to start a new job with a new skill set!

Tell Everyone You Know You’re Looking For A Great Job

7. Tell Everyone You Know You’re Looking For A Great Job

It may feel embarrassing for you to tell anyone that you’re jobless. It’s a very vulnerable situation where you feel like something is wrong with you. There isn’t! It’s a normal thing, and job searching is a $200 billion dollar industry. People are constantly moving and switching jobs, you are now just one of them.

In most cases, when you tell people that you’re looking for a job, they want to help! They’ll often share new job openings they’ve heard of, or perhaps make recommendations to people they know in your industry. The fact is your chances of finding a new job dramatically increase when more people are on your team, helping you get a job.

I personally will change my LinkedIn page to “Looking for an Awesome Opportunity” and email my friends and family that I’m actively looking. More often than not, they will understand (because we’ve all been there before) and they’ll want to help!

Some of the best job search tips I’ve ever heard: 

  • I recommend LinkedIn, Google Jobs, and Indeed for job postings. This is what most people use. I often avoid Craigslist.
  • Always use Glassdoor and read company reviews on how they treat their employees.
  • If you like a company, stalk their employees on LinkedIn to see if they went to the same schools you attended, clubs you’re in or charities you participate in. Ask them what it’s like there and ask for advice.
  • Have a salary in mind, knowing how much you need to cover all your expenses.

Make Money Fast When Your Jobless

8. Sell Your Old Stuff for Extra Money

If you just lost your job and looking for extra money, consider selling your extra stuff on Craigslist or eBay. All that extra stuff in your apartment/house like old bikes or snowboards could make a couple of hundred dollars with a new family. That’s a lot of extra ramen noodles! Plus it’s a rewarding feeling getting rid of some of the junk in your life.

Write Articles For Money

9. Write Articles For Money

I write all the time for a blog, but I discovered there are other places on the internet that pay you for writing! I’ve written a couple of articles on Seeking Alpha that pay $35 per article and $0.01 for every page view. It usually comes around $70/article in the long run.

With your new free time, this is probably one of the easiest ways to earn extra money while unemployed. You’ll have lots of extra time and most of the sites I listed pay between $50 – $100 per article.

For me personally, this is my plan. Spend my mornings looking for new jobs and my evenings writing articles. If I can write 1 article a night, at $50 per article. That’s an extra $1,500/month!

Side Gigs

10. Side Gigs

We regularly talk about creative ways to make money, but some of the quickest ways to make extra cash are side-gigs. These are tasks that you can do anytime on different established platforms:

  • Get paid for walking with StepBet (our 6-week StepBet Review and how much money we made)
  • Drive for Uber or Lyft (how much uber drivers make)
  • Deliver Uber Eats, Postmates or Door Dash (if you don’t like dealing with people)
  • Deliver Groceries with Instacart
  • Answer Online Surveys while you watch TV
  • Dog Sitting/Dog Walker (sites like Rover)
  • Babysitting (sites like Care)
  • Random tasks in your city ranging from moving furniture to assembling IKEA (sites like TaskRabbit)

Many of these could be done in your afternoons while you spending your mornings (often the most productive time of the day) job searching for new opportunities.

Conclusion

Losing your job is incredibly scary, but there are TONS of resources here and online to help you find a new job and supplement your income. Hopefully, this helps make losing your job a bit less scary and aids in setting up your own backup plan!

A full Stepbet Review to see how much you can earn by just walking.

StepBet Review: How I Tried StepBet for 6 Weeks & Won Money

/7 Comments/in /by

Andrew spent the last six weeks competing in a StepBet competition. In this StepBet Review he tells us everything about his experience from what he had to do to get started to the end when he won real money! #earnmoremoney #sidehustle #personalfinance #stepbetreview #sidehustleideas #passiveincome #earnmoremoney #financialfreedom I write this article after my girlfriend won money with the StepBet app by walking. She’s been using it the last couple of months, so naturally, we had to try it on Wallet Squirrel. Here is my personal experience over the last 6 weeks using StepBet for our StepBet Review.

For the record, I actually won money with the StepBet app, and the money was delivered the next day via PayPal. See how much below.

What is StepBet?

StepBet, owned by WayBetter, is both an Android and Apple app that pays users money for reaching their daily step goals through walking or running. The StepBet app achieves this by offering multiple mini-games or step challenges for users to choose from. At the start of each mini-game, all participants are required to put in their own money ($10-$100) along with a pool of people (I’ve seen up to 1,000 people) and each must reach their individual step goals every day for multiple weeks (average 6 weeks). If you fail to reach your goals, you lose your money. While if you reach your goals, you split the pool of money along with the other winners.

How Does It Work?

Once you download the highly reviewed StepBet App, it will automatically run through a couple of prompts.

StepBet Review Screenshot of Google Play. Reviews of the StepBet App.

Sync A Electronic Pedometer

You WILL need to sync with an actual electronic pedometer. These can be a wearable Fitbit, Apple Watch, Garmin Device, or your phone’s internal pedometer through Google Fit or S Health. It’s vital to play. For the StepBet Review, I chose to use my phone and since it’s a Samsung, I synced with my default “S Health” app.

StepBet Review - Pedometer Choices StepBet Review - Pedometer Permissions

Your Step Goals Are Chosen For You Automatically

StepBet will link to the device you’ve chosen and review your past step history to create new step goals for you. There is no easy or hard difficulty, your goals are automatically calculated from your device’s past data. If your electronic pedometer shows you normally walking 20,000 steps a day, your daily goals are going to be around 20,000 steps and vice versa if you’re new to walking. Each “daily goal” is specifically set for you as an individual so you’re not competing with anyone except yourself.

StepBet Review - Game Goals

StepBet Membership

I was initially encouraged to sign up for a “Members Only” mini-game but I decided to try a “normal” experience for this StepBet Review.

The StepBet Membership is a monthly $6.99 rate that allows you to play more games, different types of games, multiple games at a time, and has higher payouts since StepBet has reduced fees for these games.

My girlfriend purchases a monthly StepBet membership and enjoys it. So far it’s paid off as she’s been able to earn more money than it costs.

 

 

Join A Game

Each mini-game is hosted by real people also participating in the step challenge, so you can set up your own game with friends, open it to the public, or join someone else’s game. Since StepBet is an app based on a community pot payout, the larger the buy-in and more players involved create higher rewards if you win and other people fail.

StepBet has a number of mini-games to choose from, but you will notice quite a few “Members Only” games that StepBet will rank higher and shows noticeable favoritism. However, most mini-games were similar in terms of buy-in ($40 average) and length of weeks (6 weeks).

I Joined A Game For The StepBet Review

For the StepBet Review, I choose a mini-game called “Stepping into Spring w/ DSM”. I don’t know who this person is, but they had a nice description for the StepBet and shared their Instagram “Diary of A Shrinking Mommy“. I loved their story so I joined her StepBet!

StepBet Review - Game Description StepBet Review - Game Goals

Here was the bet

  • I needed to bet in $40 of my own money
  • There were 426 players total (player count grows until the week cut off)
  • The pot was $17,040 to be split by the winners (pot grows until the week cut off)
  • The game lasted 6-weeks in total.
  • My individual goals I must reach
    • Active Days – 7,237 Steps (4 days of the week)
    • Power Days – 9,537 Steps (2 days of the week)
    • Free Day – I get one free day a week in case I don’t hit my goal (Thank goodness)

After I selected “Join Game” I was asked for my $40 payment and how I would like to pay. They provided 3 easy payment options “PayPal”, “Venmo”, or “Credit or Debit Card”. I went with Venmo and authorized it.

StepBet Review - Choose Payment Method StepBet Review - Payment Options  

Stepbet Review – Week 1

Week 1 I learned was a warm-up week. I could walk and attempt all my step goals, but I would not be penalized if I didn’t reach them (Thank goodness, because I did not). It’s a warm-up period for you to acclimate using the app and getting into a routine.  This warm-up week was much appreciated!

This is what my StepBet Dashboard looked like in Week 1 of the StepBet Review:

StepBet Review - Warm-up-Week StepBet Review - Week 1 Stats  

Thoughts: 

I’m excited about the additional motivation to exercise, plus the potential to win money. However, I’m a little worried that I started this StepBet during the COVID19 pandemic.

I’m forced to walk in circles isolated in my tiny apartment to reach my goals. Hopefully, my neighbors aren’t making too many judgments through the window.

StepBet Review – Week 2

At the end of week 1, I noticed more people joined this mini-game (814 players) and the pot had grown exponentially to $32,560. It didn’t stop growing until the end of Week 1. At that point, everyone was locked in.

Active Goals and Power Goals took me a second to understand. It’s done automatically so you can hit your Active and Power days any time of the week. You’ll notice in the screenshots I’m all over the place.

  • Active Goals/Days are the average steps you must complete 4 times a week. These are your minimum goals. In my case, it was 7,237 steps in a day.
  • Power Goals/Days are your highest goals you must complete at least 2 times a week. In my case, it was 9,537 steps in a day.
  • Free Day – Basically life happens and sometimes you need 1 day of the week to slack off. I tried to meet my steps every day, but some weeks I forgot to get my steps in and this free day was a lifesaver.

This is what my StepBet Dashboard looked like in Week 2 of the StepBet Review:

StepBet Review - Week 2 Begin StepBet Review - Week 2 Whole

StepBet Review – Week 3 – Week 6

Honestly, it was a little tough to constantly remember to meet my step goals, especially since I usually left my pedometer/phone at my desk. I had to consciously remember to have it on me at all times for my steps to be counted towards StepBet. There were nights I had to walk in circles in my apartment because I simply forgot to have my phone on me during the day. I lost a lot of steps simply because my pedometer wasn’t on me.

StepBet Review - Running

If I did this again after the StepBet Review, I would get some wearable pedometer so every step I made during the day was recorded and counted towards StepBet. I know Adam has the Garmin Fenix 6, and loves it! I personally have been looking to get a cheaper version after this challenge, the Garmin Forerunner 235. If you’re an Apple fan, just get the Apple Watch since it will integrate with everything in your life. Yet for the cheapest pedometer that will work with StepBet, a regular Fitbit will be perfect!

I Did It! – Here’s How Much Money I Won 

I did it! I was so excited I took a screenshot to show all my friends. Many of them could care less, but for me, it was a big victory. It was a testament that I went above and beyond for fitness goals (and money). It was a good feeling!

StepBet Review - Winner StepBet Review - Weeks Steps

I was pleasantly surprised at how streamlined the winning process was through StepBet. It took only one day after the end of the mini-game for the app to finalize everyone’s data and send out the final results/winnings. Plus I was allowed to immediately request a payout and deposit my winnings into PayPal (PayPal Only).

StepBet Review - Winning Amount StepBet Review - PayPal Payout

I’ll admit I expected a bit more than $2.99 for my total winnings. Especially since I had been calculating the math every week of the StepBet Review as people dropped out. I could see 645 players of 813 original won, and the $32,520 pot was going to be split between all of us winners. I figured each person would get $50.41 or $10.41 in profit. I was wrong because I didn’t calculate fees for StepBet. However, I still won money!

Could You Cheat If You Wanted To?

I absolutely do not encourage cheating, as this was a great community of people bettering themselves through walking and I was just happy to be included. While I did not cheat, nor know anyone who has ever cheated. After my 6-week StepBet Review experiment ended, I did test a few ways people can fool their phone’s pedometer if they had ill intentions.

While these are effective for fooling your pedometer, they do require a bit of effort to pull off continuously day after day, week after week. I personally think StepBet should remove or identify users who use phones over wearable devices since phones seem to be easier to fool steps.

StepBet Review – Is StepBet Worth The Effort?

Yes! If you are used to doing lots of steps every day, I would easily recommend StepBet. It combines exercise and winning real money. You’re not competing against anyone except yourself, so as long as you’re vigilant in meeting your individual step goals, you’ll leave the app with money in your pocket. Plus, if you’re lucky, maybe a few walking friends.

Our winnings, along with all the money we make with these different money experiments are added to our Investment Portfolio. Join our email list below for new experiment ideas and see how we invest our winnings!

 

17 Summer Part-Time Jobs To Get You Extra Cash

/in /by

Need some extra money this summer? Here are some summer part-time jobs that can net you serious cash! Need some extra money this summer? Here are some summer part-time jobs that can net you serious cash!

Summer is a time for vacations and relaxation. For many people, it is also a time to earn extra money. Getting a part-time job in the summer is an opportunity to make some extra money during the summer.

A part-time summer job is a temporary job during the summer, typically in June, July, and August. Usually, students and teachers, who are off of school during those months, are the ones who work a part-time summer job to earn some extra money.

Summer part-time jobs are a great way to gain work experience and learn about the working world. In addition, if you are a student, working a part-time job in the summer can help you save up some money to give you extra cash to spend throughout the year and supplement your frugal student budget.

17 Summer Part-Time Jobs to Consider

1. Work in Retail as a Retail Sales Associate

A part-time retail job is a great way to make some extra money and work around your school schedule. You may have heard about part-time retail jobs from friends or seen them advertised in the newspaper. Some part-time retail jobs are even just seasonal and only last for a few months. However, the hours are usually flexible, and you can work as many hours as you want.

A part-time retail job is a great way to make some extra money and work around your school schedule. Some retail

2. Restaurant Worker

The summer months are a time of celebration and relaxation, but it also means hard work for many people. The summer season is a busy time for many restaurants, with people coming in to eat out daily.

Summer is a busy time for many restaurants, with people coming in to eat out daily. As a result, many restaurants will hire extra people for the summer months, and some restaurants will have more people working on the weekends.

Working in a restaurant during the summer is a great way to make some extra money. Some people work in the kitchen and some work as servers. They work hard, but they also get to spend time in the summer sun.

3. Camp Counselor

Many people in the United States spend their summers as camp counselors. Camp counselors are responsible for teaching children about nature, sports, and other activities. Counselors also have to be very patient and nurturing as they work with children.

There are part-time job opportunities in different day camps or summer learning programs and events. (You can also work in a sleepover summer camp, but that is not part-time!).

The summer is a time when many kids have the opportunity to camp. Camp counselors play a crucial role in the camp experience. They help the campers make friends and have fun. They also teach the kids new skills and help them grow as people.

Camp counselors are the backbone of the camp experience. Although it is a hard job with a lot of responsibility, it can be fun for the right person. Camp counselors get to experience camp and do all the fun things that campers do.

4. Bartender

A bartender’s summer job is a great way to earn money for the future. The job is a lot of fun, and you get to meet new people all the time. In addition, you get to serve drinks and talk to the customers.

The job is also a lot of hard work, and you have to be on your feet the whole time. You have to be a good listener and make sure that the customers are always happy. The job is a lot of fun, and it is a great way to earn

Bartending is a great summer job for anyone who wants to make some money and have a lot of fun. It’s an excellent job for people who enjoy talking to people and making drinks. It’s a great way to make some money, and the best part is that you can drink on the job!

5. Amusement Park

The amusement park is one of the most popular destinations for families with children. When you think of amusement parks, you may think of fun rides, cotton candy, and sunburns. But what about the people who work there?

Amusement park workers are responsible for keeping the rides safe and operational and ensuring that all visitors have a safe and enjoyable experience. They are also responsible for maintaining the park clean and orderly. Working at an amusement park can be a gratifying experience.

It’s a fun environment with a lot of energy and a lot of different people. In addition, it’s a great way to meet new people and make new friends. But, it can also be a very demanding job. There are long hours and a lot of physical work, and you must constantly deal with large groups of people and kids.

6. Lifeguard

The summer is quickly approaching, and many people are already looking for summer jobs. One popular summer job is as a lifeguard. Lifeguard jobs are a great way to make some extra cash and get a tan all at the same time. Trained and licensed lifeguards can find lifeguard jobs at public beaches, pools, and rec centers.

A lifeguard’s job is one of the most important jobs that one can have, and it is a job that is not always easy. It is a job that requires a lot of patience and a lot of time. It requires you to be on your feet for long periods. But, most importantly, while lifeguarding, you must be able and willing to give your total attention to the job. People’s lives are in your hands, and it is a job that you must take seriously.

7. Office Job

Offices aren’t exactly the fun in the sun jobs that usually are part of the summer part-time jobs list, but many offices hire part-time workers in the summer jobs to help with mundane tasks and to gain office experience. That can be an excellent opportunity to see what working in a specific industry look like.

In addition, some offices prefer to hire interns for unpaid positions, which may not be an option for everyone but can be a good advantage for someone looking to get into a specific industry or workplace eventually.

8. Teach a Summer Class

Summer is quickly approaching, and the kids are out of school. While most people are looking forward to the summer break, teachers look forward to the summer class. In addition, summer classes are a great way to make some extra money during the summer.

Summer is a great time to take a break from the daily grind. However, if you are looking to keep your skills fresh, teaching a summer class is a great way to do so. In addition, teaching a summer class is a great way to keep your skills fresh and make some extra money to help pay for your expenses.

9. Father or Mother’s Helper

Being a mother’s helper is an excellent job if you look for the flexible scheduling that summer part item jobs offer you. Since many parents have their children home more often in the summer months, many parents choose to hire someone to help them out with their children.

Getting a job as a mother’s helper is a great way to make extra cash while watching children but often doesn’t require you to have complete responsibility for someone else’s children. For example, you can help parents take kids to the pool or park or, in general, provide an extra pair of hands.

10. Babysitter

Many working parents find themselves without their usual childcare arrangements during the summer. They need a babysitter to fill in the gaps of their regular childcare. Working as a babysitter during those hours can be a great money-making opportunity. If you have a flexible schedule and can cover those gaps- you can be in high demand during those summer months.

Babysitting is very rewarding and can make you quite a bit of money and give you a lot of flexibility. If you are babysitting the right age kids, you can also have many downtimes to work on your schoolwork (summer courses, for example) or whatever else you want to do. It can be physically and emotionally demanding, but it has a lot of perks as well. There are many hours of flexibility and air conditioning!

11. Hospitality and Tourism

The hospitality and tourism industries are exploding this time of year. With lots of people on vacation and going out to enjoy themselves, hospitality and tourist attractions need all the help they can get. Many of these places look for temporary workers to cover shifts these months and supplement their regular workers.

That is particularly true in high-tourist destinations. If you have a specific tourist city that you would like to visit, check out the job listing at all their attractions and hospitality services and see if you can get a part-time summer job that will allow you also to enjoy the sights and have a vacation you wouldn’t have ordinary have.

12. Landscaping

Landscaping jobs are often available to those interested in a physical job outside, in the sun, and offer a sense of accomplishment.

Landscaping jobs are often available to those interested in a physical job outside, in the sun, and offer a sense of accomplishment. Landscaping jobs are often open to those interested in a physical job outside, in the sun, and offer a sense of accomplishment. In addition, landscaping is a great way to earn income while being outdoors. It can be a physically demanding job, but it is a great way to stay healthy and keep in shape.

13. Golf Caddy

Golf caddies are an integral part of the game of golf. They are responsible for carrying the golfer’s clubs and helping the golfer to find the hole. Golf courses see an influx of players in the summer months and need more caddies to help the golfers play. It is a physical job but can net you some excellent tips, is pretty low stress, and can have flexible hours, making it a great summer part-time job.

14. Swimming Instructor

If you’re looking for a job this summer, you might want to consider becoming a swim instructor. Swim instructors are in high demand in the summer because many people want to learn how to swim. In addition, there are many different levels of swim instruction to teach people of all ages and levels of ability.

You will need to be officially certified and licensed to teach swimming. However, if you can find kids to teach (either in your pool or theirs), this can be a very lucrative part-time job for the summer.

15. Pool Maintenance

Pool maintenance is a job that can be both enjoyable and challenging. There are many different aspects of pool maintenance that need to be done to keep the pool clean and safe for use. For example, a variety of chemicals need to be used to keep the pool clear, and there are also a variety of tools that need to be used to keep the pool clean.

Pool maintenance is a job that can be both enjoyable and challenging. You will need to know how to clean and maintain pools properly, and you may have to purchase some of your equipment to get started. However, you can work on your schedule and at your own pace and can make a nice amount of money in a short amount of time.

16. Tutoring

Summer is a time for kids to relax and have fun. However, not all kids have the opportunity to take a break from school. Some kids are still in school, while others need to catch up on work and learn during the summer months to keep up academically. That is where you come in; tutoring kids during the summer can be a great money-maker, especially for teachers who have the summer off. A good tutor whom kids like and who teaches well can charge a lot of money, and you can take as many or as few clients as you want.

Tutoring is also a job that you can do from the comfort of your own home. All you need is a computer, a reliable internet connection, and a few hours of spare time. You can make a decent hourly wage, and you can work as little or as much as you want.

17. Petsitter

Many people choose the summertime to go away on vacation. That means that lots of people are looking for pet sitters to watch their pets while they travel. Parents often hire a pet sitter to come to take care of their pets while they are gone. A pet sitter will feed their pet, walk them, clean up after them, and make sure they are safe. If you can have the pets board in your home, that is another great way to make a lot of money for a small amount of work in the summer (and you can do it while doing another job or taking some summer courses).

Working a Summer Part-Time Job

Summer is a great time to experience different job opportunities that you may not otherwise have a chance to take. Summer part-time jobs can be a perfect time to make money and build your resume with different experiences. Since many of these opportunities are outdoor jobs, you can get your sun-fix in and make some extra income, all while working part-time, giving you plenty of time to party, do some volunteer work, or just chill.

Getting a part-time summer job can be the right move for many high school students, college students, seasonal workers, or anyone who works in a position that gives the summer off. Using the summer to make some money, save for the future, and gain valuable employment experience – definitely a smart move!

This post originally appeared on Your Money Geek.

chinese-money-plant-and-money-tree

6 Chinese Money Plant Benefits, Care and It’s Epic History!

/in , , /by

Money plants are famous for the exciting myths around their benefits, but their recent popularity on social media has brought a new wave of interest for home offices. As personal finance enthusiasts, we can’t help but cover the benefits of money plants, different types of plants considered “Money Plants,” and their exciting history around wealth. Money plants are famous for the exciting myths around their benefits, but their recent popularity on social media has brought a new wave of interest for home offices. As personal finance enthusiasts, we can’t help but cover the benefits of money plants, different types of plants considered “Money Plants,” and their exciting history around wealth.

6 Chinese Money Plant Benefits

These are the most widely known Chinese Money Plant benefits on the internet. The benefits apply to both money trees and money plants (more on the differences later). We’re not here to say if they’re right or wrong, but simply enjoy the lore around these fun plants!

1. Brings Prosperity and Wealth – Money plants are most widely known to bring good luck and wealth to the homeowners that take care of the plant. The healthier the plant, the greater prosperity it will generate!

When you give a clipping of your money plant to friends, it’s believed that you are giving your friends wealth and prosperity. The clipping will grow with little effort and bring great joy to whoever receives your generous gift.

On the other hand, some lore suggests a power to growing a money plant from clippings stolen from another homeowner. In this case, the thief will gain wealth while the previous homeowner will lose their wealth. It’s like stealing someone’s luck, so some homeowners are protective around their money plants.

2. Reduces Marital Problems – Whether it’s the calming nature of plants or the unique properties of this plant, money plants are known to minimize marital problems.

The five-leave patterns of money trees relate to the five fundamentals of Feng Shui, so many people associate the properties of money trees with the properties of Feng Shui. In this case, money trees kept in the southeast direction of the home help maintain peace and a healthy environment for marriage. This positive environment reduces bad luck, thus providing good fortune and wealth for your marriage.

3. Creates A Positive Environment – This is similar to #2, but we wanted to stress that you don’t need to be married to enjoy the positive environment that money plants create. Plants brighten the atmosphere of any room. Studies have shown that biophilia or viewing nature can positively impact people’s health, so having an actual plant in your home can only help create a more positive environment. You’ll feel calmer, happier and those feelings will lead to a more positive life!

4. Health Benefits – There are many myths around the health benefits of money plants in reducing stress, providing an atmosphere, and bringing calm. Often referred to as biophilia, viewing nature has many health benefits. Many hospitals are filled with photos of nature because it helps feel good and improves recovery.

PLEASE KNOW we’re speaking to the calming effect these plants have. Some plants considered money plants are, in fact, poisonous if ingested. Often they won’t kill you but will cause vomiting and illness symptoms if ingested by dogs, cats, or tiny humans. Check each species of the plant before bringing it into your home.

5. Purifies The Air – In 1989, NASA was involved with a study that tested plants’ ability to filter the air onboard space stations. It was a small study and contained a controlled environment, but the study showed that plants clean the air! Further studies showed that plants could help remove harmful gases in the air, which helps improve health. These studies created a surge of house plants during the 1990s.

Later, reviewers argued you would need hundreds of plants in your house to achieve the same level of air quality that the small NASA study achieved. However, if we take the benefits of money plants to heart, any in your home could improve your health and wallet!

6. Helps Fight Radiation In Your Home – Many people often forget a small amount of electromagnetic radiation radiates from the gadgets in our homes. From wifi, phones, TVs, and more, we’re bombarded with signals regularly. In most cases, these signals are harmless and nothing like standing next to a nuclear reactor. However, some people claim to have electromagnetic hypersensitivity and express symptoms such as headaches and sleep disorders when surrounded by these EMF fields.

Luckily money plants and other anti-radiator house plants help absorb these electromagnetic fields with no harm to the actual plant. You’ll see some people place their money plants by their computer, wifi router, and TV. Their money plants help protect them from the EMF radiation they may be hypersensitive to. Cool right!

Money Plant History Around Wealth

History around the Money Plant has several iterations, as any myth does, but all these myths agree that it started initially from the Money Tree. A petite Asian tree that, when its stems were intertwined, the tree would continue to grow in this pattern on its own.

The unique braided stem of the money tree stirred massive popularity and speculated many myths around its mysterious nature. Some of these myths connected the tree’s five-leaf pattern and the five fundamental Feng Shui elements (wood, water, fire, earth and metal), which symbolized good luck and good fortune. While other wives’ tales speculated, its leaves resembling the shape of paper money could bring wealth to the home.

Types of Money Plants

Numerous plants represent wealth and prosperity as wive’s tales have spread over the years, and it’s easy to get confused. We find it simpler to focus on the Money Tree, whose leaves are said to represent paper money, and the Money Plant, whose circular leaves are believed to represent coins.

 

Pilea Peperomioides (Chinese Money Plant)

Pilea Peperomiodies is the botanical name of what many consider the Chinese Money Plant due to its circular leaves resembled the leaves of the Money Tree but in the shape of coins. Other names for this plant include the coin plant, the friendship plant, the pancake plant, and the UFO plant.

This plant is excellent for beginners as it’s easy to care for, usually only grows 12 inches tall, and maintains beautiful dark green leaves to decorate any home!

The Chinese money plant creates lots of little offshoots to collect and give to friends. However, getting your hands on one can be difficult as not many nurseries keep this plant in stock. We’ve found the Chinese Money Plant on Amazon as the best option to start with a single plant.

Chinese Money Plant Care

To help your Chinese money plant care, beginner houseplant owners need to keep their money plant in a bright room but away from any harsh rays piercing through windows. Usually, watering once a week will be perfect in well-drained soil. A rule of thumb is the 2” of topsoil should be dry between waterings. Also, consider periodically rotating your plant so it’ll grow symmetrically.

To help gauge the health of your plant, here are a couple of guidelines.

Money Plant Leaves Turning Yellow

If your money plant leaves turn yellow, it’s likely due to overwatering, or your pot isn’t draining well. Your money plant roots could be waterlogged and may rot in the damp soil. Simply let your soil dry out before you water again, or if the problem continues, you may need to replace the soil.

Money Plant Leaves Curling, Drooping and Wrinkling

When your money plant leaves are curling, droopy or wrinkling, it’s likely thirsty for water. Think of it like a sponge wringing itself out to get every last drop of water stored. This plant needs lots of light, but direct light may be harsh and drying it out. Give the poor fellow a deep watering.

Give Money Plant Cutting To Friends

These plants are perfect for giving to friends as they produce lots of little offshoots that can be easily separated to place in a new pot. Simply find an offshoot on the edge of the massing and get enough of the offshoot that includes some roots with a clean sharp knife. Place the offshoot in a pot at least 2” wide and care for it as usual. Give it as a perfect gift to friends and wish them a good fortune!

Pachira Aquatica (Money Tree)

The Pachira Aquatica is the botanical name for the Money Tree and one of the most popular indoor houseplant trees. As we stated in the history of the money plant, the Money Tree and its mysterious ability to braid its stems are what started the myths bringing owners good luck and good fortune.

Another reason leading to its popularity is its easy care. The money tree needs little water (once a week), will grow in most pots, growing up to eight feet tall.

An exceptional little tree for people to start their house plant collection, the money tree will bring a little wealth to your life. We’ve found several retailers selling them online and found the Money Tree on Amazon one of the best places to start your money tree journey.

Money Tree Care

The money tree is easy to care for as it requires little water (usually once a week) and loves bright light while avoiding direct sunlight. To help grow the money tree, add fertilizer no more than once a month.

To help gauge the health of your plant, here are a couple of guidelines.

Money Tree Leaves Turning Yellow

If your money tree leaves turn yellow and fall off, it’s usually a sign of overwatering or a problem with the light. Remember, the money tree only needs water once a week, so if the soil is always wet, the roots may be waterlogged and leading to root rot. Let the soil dry completely before watering again, and feel free to prune any overly yellow leaves on the tree.

Overwatering is usually the problem, but it may be over or under-lighting. Make sure the tree is placed in a bright area of the house while avoiding direct light.

Money Tree Shriveled Leaves or Trunk

If the money tree has leaves shriveling up or its trunk becoming wrinkly, soft, or shriveled, the problem may be underwatering. Think of it like a sponge where the tree is trying to wring itself out for any last water storage. Use this as an indicator to give it a deep watering.

4-side-hustle-ideas-for-a-little-extra-income

4 Side Hustle Ideas for a Little Extra Income

/in /by

Extra money is always a bonus, but it also shouldn’t come at the expense of your well-being. A second job can be a great earner, but you shouldn’t work yourself to the bone in order to have extra finances. Instead, thinking of great sideline jobs you can do at your own pace and during your own downtime can be a great (and fun) way of earning extra cash when you need it.  Extra money is always a bonus, but it also shouldn’t come at the expense of your well-being. A second job can be a great earner, but you shouldn’t work yourself to the bone in order to have extra finances. Instead, thinking of great sideline jobs you can do at your own pace and during your own downtime can be a great (and fun) way of earning extra cash when you need it. 

There’s always the potential for certain side hustles to turn into long-term, stable jobs as well, depending on your commitment and success. 

If you’re searching for that all-important side hustle inspiration, here are some ideas you might want to try. 

1. Furniture Upcycling

Not only is this a fun pastime for those wanting to keep their hands busy, but it’s also a potential money-maker if you’re particularly skilled. Furniture upcycling is not only a fantastic way to earn a little profit, but it’s also putting old goods to better use and reducing waste impact. 

You can seek out old or second-hand furniture and give it a new lease of life by updating it, or perhaps even completely transforming it if you have the skills. You can then aim to sell the new items for more than you paid for them (you may even be able to find some old furniture items for free!). 

2. Write a Book 

You may be thinking this is a little ambitious for a side-hustle, but you don’t have to have aspirations to be a bestselling author to make money from your writing work (though, of course, if you do want to become a bestselling author, writing on the side is a great place to start!). 

Writing a book for extra income can be done in many ways. You should mainly think about the areas you can make money from and which are in demand. Writing non-fiction books for areas you have expertise in, for example, is a good way to use your existing knowledge to potentially earn some money. You can find guides on how to write a book for non-fiction purposes, or if you feel as though you’re onto a winner for a fiction book, you can always try self-publishing with the potential to earn royalties! 

3. Selling Handmade Items

You may already have a beloved hobby that sees you making unique pieces; this could be anything, from artwork, acrylic work, making your own jewelry, knitting, and more! Anything you’re already skilled with and which you can make means the potential to sell and earn some cash. 

4. Write a Blog

Blogging is a great way to let your creative juices flow (with a little less pressure than writing a book!) and build on your writing skills. There’s potential to earn money with successful blogs if you build your online profile enough, and you can also look for guest post submission opportunities to build your expertise. 

Let’s Get Earning

Do any of these appeal to you? Just remember, you don’t need to have these skills from the off in order to make money or protect your financial future. You can work on building any of these skills and more in order to set yourself up for extra earning down the line.