There are two ways to get ahead financially: Spend less and make more. Unfortunately, you can't give yourself an instant raise. But that doesn't mean you can't turn a quick buck if you want or need to.
- Sell your body. For science, that is. You can sell whole blood or plasma. According to American Red Cross standards, you have to weigh at least 110 pounds, be 18 or older, and be in good health. Plasma can be sold monthly, and it takes about an hour and 15 minutes. Whole blood can be sold only every two months, but it takes just 10 minutes, on average. Check with your local hospital or clinic to see if it pays for donations. Each visit can be worth up to $35.
- Do clinical trials. Provided you qualify, participating in tests of new medicines and procedures can earn you up to a couple thousand dollars. Two sources for finding clinical trials are the National Institutes of Health database and the Center for Information and Study on Clinical Research Participation, which can also help you over the phone.
- Show talent. Fiverr.com helps you make money from your ability to do anything from retouching photos to singing. You can net $4 (the site takes a $1 cut) for a wide variety of small tasks. And if you don't have a special skill, try being clever or weird. Recently on the Fiverr front page, someone was offering to do voiceovers in a Power Ranger costume and another was offering to write messages on her lips. While lots of this stuff is silly, this site can theoretically be used as an entree for those with serious ambitions to showcase more traditional work.
- Sell used goods. If you have stuff you don't use -- and who doesn't? -- there are plenty of places to sell it, from Craigslist to eBay to Amazon. And if you don't want to wait on a buyer, you can trade in used electronics, books, movies and games at Amazon for credit. We have a few more ideas in "5 best websites for turning junk into cash." While this idea isn't particularly weird, if you need money, it's a good place to start.
- Sell crafts. Better than selling used is selling new -- especially if you have something unique to offer. Websites like Etsy.com can help you launch a side business selling your own crafts, from jewelry to painting to custom purses and clothing. Promoting your crafts on a social network like Pinterest can help drum up business.
- Work online. One of our most-asked questions: Is there legitimate work from home? Technically, yes. In fact, you're reading some right now: Every Money Talks News staffer works from home. But finding a legitimate work-at-home job isn't easy, and there are a lot of scams. Still, you can use the Internet to make extra cash. You can provide product research on sites like SurveySavvy.com for anywhere from $1 to $15 per survey, or perform quick menial tasks like tagging images for a few cents each on Mechanical Turk. You can also use the Internet to find offline jobs in your area (like bartending or short-term work as a personal assistant) at Zaarly, where some gigs are worth $100 or more.
- Find missing money. "Finding unclaimed cash" explains how to check with government agencies for cash you didn't know you had, like tax refunds, retirement accounts from old employers, abandoned paychecks, and unclaimed life insurance proceeds.
- Try apps. As smartphones become more popular, some startup businesses are based entirely on apps that get you to use them in certain ways while you're out and about. In "5 smartphone apps that can earn you money," we covered apps that can make you $5 to $10 for something as simple as snapping quick photos to prove a store has a certain product in stock. There are even apps that reward you for trying and reviewing other apps.
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