Part Time Business And Side Incomes

Often we just want to make more money, but we do not necessarily want to devote all of our waking hours into running a business. Extreme measures of wealth will not come overnight in part time or sidelined businesses, but a good venture can at least make some extra cash to help make ends meet.

Why would you consider a side business? Perhaps you like your job and you don't make enough money to cover your expenses. Maybe you are planning on going on a holiday or making a special family reuninon possible. It could be that you are longing to buy something or need a huge downpayment for a home. Maybe you just want to get out of debt. There are many reasons to consider doing something on the side to make more money.

The advantage to a side income is it generally does not interfere with your regular job. You have the security of a steady paycheck with extra money on the side. With a side business, you may even qualify for certain tax breaks.

I would not advise you to go way underground and go after under-the-table types of getting paid for your work, but there are people who do this to get around the tax issues. The problem is sooner or later you will get caught and have to pay heavy fees and penalties along with estimated back taxes.

Here are a few suggestions to make some extra money:

• Get a paper delivery route
• Babysit on weekends or overnight
• Sit with elderly or invalid patients
• Sewing
• Laundry (washing, drying, ironing)
• Typing
• Advert flyers (get local businesses to pay you to put ads in a flyer you distribute)
• eBay consignment (get people to give you things to sell on eBay on their behalf while you take a percentage of what is sold)
• Informational web site (set up a site about something you know and put in associated affiliate programmes or contextual ads)
• Direct sales (door to door, mail order, online, telemarketing...)
• Car washing and detailing
• Pet care (walking pets, bathing, manicures)
• Personal shopper
• Garden and lawn care
• Handy person (DIY projects such as paint, put up shelves, hang pictures...)
• Driver (taxi, chauffeur, pick up and delivery....)
• Adult services (but be sure to follow the law explicitly)
• Catering
• Party planning
• Wedding planning

Of course many of these can be turned into full time businesses if you become so successful with it on a part time basis and you love the work involved.

To figure out what is the best part time business for you think of all the skills you have (if you start off defeatist and say you have no skills, don't waste everyone's time by talking about how you want to go into business.) Think of how the skills you have will be useful to someone else and then think of a unique avenue to trade those skills for money. What would make your skills and service more unique than anyone else offering the same thing?

For instance, anyone could be a babysitter, but perhaps your angle is to have a safe place for children whose parents work a graveyard shift. Your rates are lower than a traditional sitter because you take in more children who will be sleeping for the most part, but you also provide comfort to them before they go to bed, help them with homework, give them snacks, read them stories, play with them, and help them get ready for school in the morning. By going after a niche market, you could build your reputation and get more clients in this manner making it pretty lucrative for you.

Maybe you like planning weddings, but to stick out from your competition you decide on a Carribbean theme wedding profession. You would aim for a market looking for something a bit exotic and fun. You would help them pick out everything relating to your theme from start to finish. If the event you plan is wonderful, you build your reputation with that niche.

You may even have a particular recipe you enjoy sharing with family and friends. Did you ever think about how well the public at large may like it? By getting appropriate permissions to sell food and complying with codes, you could set up a shop on a street corner during your days off from work or set up a booth at a community event. If your food is so great, it may even lead to a permanent business venture.

So think hard about your skills and what you like to do and find a way to make a profit from it. If this does not work for you and you need extra money, try a part time job at a fast food restaurant.

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