You CAN Earn More Money — Here's How

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If you could earn more money on a regular basis, how would that change your life? How would you use the extra cash?

Would you finally pay off your debt? Help out your friends who are struggling financially? Invest more so you'll have a wonderful retirement? Stop penny pinching because you don't have to worry about not having enough money?

Do you think it's possible? Well, it is! So follow these proven steps to start earning more money today.

Assess Your Availability

Before you can start making more money, you need to figure out the amount of time you can put towards this effort. Sure, you probably have a busy life. Even so, can you find moments during the week where you have free time, and devote that time to making more money? How many hours can you commit?

Evaluate Your Skills

After you've determined how much time you can devote, you need to figure out what you can do for your potential clients.

How do you determine that? Ask yourself these questions:

  • What can you do well?
  • What skills would you like to develop?
  • What do you love doing?

For example, do you have any of these skills:

  • Babysittingtutoring
  • Housekeeping
  • Tutoring
  • Pet sitting
  • Cooking
  • Playing an instrument
  • Writing
  • Sewing
  • Social media
  • Computer programming
  • Search engine optimization
  • IT support
  • Graphic design
  • Hair styling
  • Makeup
  • Personal training
  • Photography
  • Video

Now some of these are simple skills that you may already have. Others may require extra training. But here's the thing: None of those skills are out of reach.

Learn What Your Clients Want

After you determine what you can do for others, the next step is to find out if people want what you have to offer. So what do other people want enough to pay for?

The good news is that the same list above that shows skills you may already have are also the services people want done for them.

So if others would pay you for these skills, then where do you look for chances to serve them?

Find an Opportunity

One of the best places I know of to look for extra work is Craigslist. And if you want to find work as a side hustle, the "gigs" section is the best place to search. Once you find a job you think you can do well, the next step is to respond to the person who wrote the ad. Here, your goal is to communicate in a competent way so that your prospect will notice. That way, you're more likely to get a positive response.

Write a Reply That Gets You Noticed

Here's an easy way to write an effective email reply, which I learned from taking Ramit Sethi's Earn1K course.

Subject: John, I'd like to help you (what they want done).

With this sentence, you're saying that your purpose is to serve them.

Intro: Hi John, I read your ad on Craigslist, and I noticed that you're looking for someone to help you (what they want done).

With this sentence, you're telling them how you found out about the opportunity.

Pitch: I've been doing (what they want done) for (how long you've been doing it), and I'd like to help you do the same.

With this sentence, you're mentioning your qualifications and offering to help achieve the same results.

Result: That way, by working together, you will (a specific way you'll improve their life).

With this sentence, you want to get inside your customer's head. Ask, "What's in it for them?" What benefit will they get from working with you? Less stress? More peace of mind? More confidence? More sales? Look more attractive?

Test: We can discuss the details, of course. But first I wanted to see if this is something you're interested in.

With this sentence, you're setting yourself up for further dialogue if they're interested.

Close: If so, would it be okay to send you a few ideas about how I could help?

With this sentence, you're restating that your purpose is to serve the client.

If they respond to your email, you can move forward and discuss the possibility of working together.

Assess Other Options

Depending on your availability and skills, here are several more ways to make extra money:

Make a Plan

This is the last — and most important — part. Now that you've assessed your availability, skills, and opportunities, it's time to make a plan.

Write down the following:

  • What will you do to make more money? How will you help someone?
  • How much time will you devote on a weekly basis?
  • What are your income goals? How much extra do you want to make each week?

The benefit to writing this all down is that it may spur additional ideas for your money-making venture. And by having this on paper, you'll stay focused on your effort. Then you'll reap the rewards once you see the extra money coming in.

My Results

After reading all of this, I can understand if you're still skeptical. If you are, then let me share my experience with you.

I've personally used this method to reply to a post on Craigslist. As a result, I was hired to tutor a junior high student in math. So this method of earning money works!

Of course, before you start working for someone through Craigslist (or anywhere else), do your due diligence. But again, the point is that there's tons of opportunity out there for you to start earning more money. All you have to do is reach for it.

What skills will you use to start earning more money? Please share in the comments!

 

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