6 Ways To Earn an Income a.k.a Make Money
Since categorizing myself as a work-at-home mom/wife/homemaker, empowering women in their quest toward becoming grass-roots entrepreneurs is something I am sincerely passionate about.
Women all over the world are beginning to leave the industrial workforce in order to rediscover the joys of keeping the home. We are in the early stages of witnessing homes returning to their rightful places as units of production. With that said, I strongly believe stay-at-home moms will continue to play a vital role as financial contributor to the family by:
- working hard to saving money.
- looking for creative ways to earn money from home.
- rearing children that are emotionally filled to the brim and therefore content with less.
There are so many different avenues for women to generate income without having to neglect their highest priorities of being a wife and mother. Listed below are just a few sustainable ideas. Most of these I have personally found to be profitable in the past, or I am currently seeking out as possible ventures for the coming year.
6 Ideas For Generating Income From Home
1. Grow and sell fruits, vegetables, and herbs. Not only will growing your own groceries save on super-market purchases, but it has the potential to generate a bit of income during the growing season. Selling at local farmer's markets and to your spouse's co-workers can easily cover the costs of growing the produce and put a few extra dollars in your pocket.
2. Raise your own chickens and sell the eggs. 12-15 backyard hens could give you a couple dozen extra eggs each week, over what your family can consume. Free-range eggs are selling for $4-$5 dollars a dozen in my neck of the woods, this could potentially add $60-$100 per month to our budget. Obviously, the more hens you have the more money you make; and, if you are lucky enough to have a large grassy area, your cost of feed will be dramatically reduced.
3. Start plants from seed. This growing season it is my goal to start plants from seed and sell the transplants to neighbors, co-workers, and at my local farmer's market. Growing and selling organic, heirloom plants can bring in $2-$3 per plant, effortlessly covering the cost of a packet of seeds. Depending on the market in your area this can generate a lot of money come spring.
4. Begin making and selling herbal remedies. Start now planning your medicinal herb garden. Keep it small and manageable, growing those herbs that you are interested in. Learn to make tinctures, salves, and syrups. In mid-summer start asking family and friends if they will consider hosting herbal remedies parties for you (think cookware parties and jewelry parties) and start your own herbal remedy party business. See my inspiration for this here...
5. Blog. If you are passionate about something and have a lot to say about it, you should consider blogging. The Internet is massive and there is a niche out there perfect for you! Sure...there is a risk in blogging, isn't there in everything? I can tell you this, blogging has been one of the easiest, most difficult things I've ever done (Wait, did she just say easiest, most difficult? Okay, just making sure!) I have only been blogging for 3 months, so I am by no means qualified to give you advice; but here are a few people that I really respect who have a lot to say on the topic:
- How To Make Money Blogging by Crystal Payne of MoneySavingMom.com
- How To Start A Blog by Amy Lynn Andrews of BloggingWithAmy.com
- A-List Blogging Bootcamps by Leo Babauta and Mary Jaksch
6. Sell your stuff. Declutter, down-size, reorganize, whatever you call it, just get rid of the excess. Here are a few tips for profiting off of your stuff:
- Have a garage sale and make it great!
- Sell your books
- Sell your clothes to the consignment store and get an in-store credit so the next time you need clothes they'll be free. I love Kid-To-Kid. See if there's one in your area.
- Sell your crafty creations on Etsy!
- Collect and cash in your loose change.
- And who can forget Craigslist.org or ebay.com
One last word of caution. During desperate times we can become hasty in our decisions. There are a lot of evil people trying to make a buck on offering stupid work from home opportunities. Unfortunately, I've learned that there aren't many sustainable get-rich-quick options out there. Don't fall victim to their scams!
YOU have what it takes to be successful! Look no further than yourself.
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See this post and a host of others like it here: Simple Lives Thursday, Your Green Resource, Show Off Your Stuff
posted by Andrea @ 1:21 PM
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