In an emergency, it can be difficult to raise money quickly. Fewer and fewer people have stable jobs and savings to rely on in times of trouble or to cope with unexpected circumstances. Fortunately, there are ways to recover the funds you need quickly.
Steps
Method 1 of 4: Doing Chores in Your Neighborhood
Step 1. Propose your services
Create a website or post ads on sites like Craigslist.
- In your listing, specify what kind of jobs you are able to do (household repairs, plumbing, electrician, gardening, cleaning, etc.), what your rate is, and the hours you are available.
- Provide multiple methods to contact you. If you have the ability to respond by phone and email, it will be easier to find jobs.
Step 2. Build your customer base
First, talk to friends and neighbors.
- Explain that you need the money and are willing to do some small housework and gardening in the area.
- Ask everyone to spread the word and recommend your services.
- Friends and neighbors could become your first customers. Once the assignment is finished, make sure they do you good publicity.
Step 3. Ask for a reasonable price for your performance
The main reason someone might decide to hire you instead of a professional is that your services are much less expensive.
- Ask for decent wages and not big bucks.
- To decide how much to get paid, set a fairly low hourly rate, for example 7-8 €. Round off working hours to the nearest half hour. In other words, if you worked 6 hours and 35 minutes, ask for compensation for 6 hours and 30. This will make the calculations easier.
Step 4. Behave professionally
Wear clean clothes and smile at people when you knock on their door. Present yourself with a handshake and look whoever is in front of you in the eye.
- Make sure you describe exactly what kind of services you offer, be it small home maintenance, gardening, cleaning etc.
- Be prepared to work on weekends or after dinner.
- Respond quickly to phone calls and job offers.
Step 5. Bring your own gear
If you can bring specific equipment, such as a home repair toolbox or a rake for leaves and grass, do so.
- You can leave heavier items at home, such as ladders and lawn mowers, but be sure to let your customer know that you have them available.
- Don't accept jobs that you can't complete because you lack the right equipment.
Method 2 of 4: Finding Short Term Jobs
Step 1. Think about what your skills are
If you have talents, it will be easier to find short-term jobs.
- Accounting jobs are often temporary or short-term. If you are able to do them, you will frequently find high-paying jobs.
- Human resources offices and departments often look for part-time workers when they have to deal with a lot of paperwork.
- If you are skilled in the use of technology, some companies or websites hire staff on a short-term basis.
Step 2. Check the local classifieds, looking for limited time jobs
You can find them on the internet, on sites like Craigslist, and in local newspapers. Search in all possible ways and think about what jobs you can do.
- Find work as a street advertising. Many businesses hire people to wave signs for 8-10 hours in front of passing cars. This marketing strategy is mainly used by dealerships, lenders and furniture stores. In most cases, you will receive your compensation in cash at the end of the business day.
- Help organize an event. Search ads for people and small companies that need to set up, use and dismantle stands for local events, such as markets and trade shows. These jobs often start early in the morning and are paid the same day. Get ready to do everything from booth construction to welcoming customers.
Step 3. Participate in studies or surveys
This is not the best way to make a lot of money, but if you only need a few dollars, it can be enough. With a Google search you will easily find online surveys.
- Make sure you meet the study requirements before applying. For example, if you are not a smoker, you should not apply for a study that seeks to analyze the effects of smoking.
- Apply in person to expedite the operation. In the case of some surveys, you will be able to introduce yourself and complete a paid survey right away. Studies usually last longer, but may be paid up front.
Step 4. Join a temporary employment agency
These agencies offer day jobs to thousands of people. If you have special skills or previous experience in a business field, you may be successful with this strategy. Follow these tips to start working with an agency:
- Visit the agency. Explain that you want to work and follow the instructions given to you. Often you will receive a form to fill out, followed by an interview, where you will tell about your previous work experience and explain your qualifications.
- Bring your resume with you. You will help the temporary agency decide which types of jobs you are most qualified for.
- Dress as if you were going to the office. Elegant clothes will show that you want to be successful and that you know how to immerse yourself in a professional environment.
- Meet your agent. This person will work hard every day to find a job for you. Try to be pleasant and get along with him; your chances of finding work may increase.
- Accept all the jobs offered to you. Temporary work agencies cannot work miracles; they cannot find employment for all employees every day. If your agent finds a job you can do and offers it to you, accept it without hesitation.
- In some cases, an intern on a long-term contract can be hired as a regular employee, so always treat your jobs as "real" jobs.
Method 3 of 4: Sell and Resell
Step 1. Consider selling your car
This is not a real possibility for many people, but if you are lucky enough to live in a place where you don't need a car to drive to work or the supermarket, a big stack of money is parked in your driveway. To complete the operation, follow these steps:
- Collect information about your car. Find the title deed, vehicle registration document, inspection receipts, coupons and history of the vehicle. Also learn all the features of the vehicle (air conditioning, CD player, heated seats, etc.).
- If you have receipts for oil changes and inspections available, you can prove that your car has been well maintained. The offer you will receive will therefore be higher.
- Set a price for the car. To choose the right one, do a search on Quattroruote, or look in the ads of other specialized magazines, to check at what price cars like yours are sold.
- Advertise your car on the internet and in newspapers. In your listing, specify the model and year of production of the car, its characteristics, its real condition (if it needs repairs, be honest), the price and the forms of payment accepted. Include many photos and methods of contacting you.
Step 2. Organize a flea market at your home
Promote your sale for free on Craigslist, or pay a small fee to post an ad in a local newspaper. Clean and tidy up everything you want to sell, then arrange the items in front of your house, starting the morning of the day of the sale.
- This approach is ideal for those who have not previously sold their assets and have many items to display. People are more interested in flea markets.
- Assign a slightly higher price to all items, but be willing to negotiate on the downside. You should be able to sell everything for half or a third of the original price as long as it is in good condition.
- Set prices at intervals of 0, 25 €, to simplify the rest.
- To earn good bucks, try offering large items, such as furniture and fitness equipment. Place these items at the end of the driveway or yard to attract shoppers.
- Many neighborhoods organize coordinated markets. Selling your items on these occasions is a good idea, because there will be many more potential customers.
Step 3. Sell your goods on the internet
There are two easy ways to do this if you need to make some quick cash: Craigslist and eBay.
- On Craigslist, post the items you want to sell in the appropriate section of the site. If you can, be sure to post pictures; people often don't even read ads without photos.
- Use the word "non negotiable" if you don't want to negotiate on the price; write, instead, "negotiable", if you are willing to settle for a slightly lower figure than the one set.
- On eBay, you can set up various time options and purchasing methods, but ads cost money.
- If you choose to sell your items at a fixed price, with the "Buy it now" option, you will have to pay a flat fee of a few euros, in addition to the percentage of the sale.
- If you choose to sell your items at auction, you decide when to make it active. According to sellers who frequently use eBay, Saturday nights are considered the most profitable time of the week for auctions.
Step 4. Sell your items at a pawn shop
In the pawn shops you will receive cash for any non-perishable or disposable item. The sums you will receive will be low and you will rarely be able to negotiate.
- Take the items you want to sell at the pawnshop with you. Most of these shops don't stay open for long for security reasons, so get there before 4pm to make sure you can access them.
- Decide whether to accept the offer or not. Expect to receive € 60 for a € 500 bike and similar ratings on each item. In most cases, you should only visit a pawn shop if you need to immediate of money and if you have no other options available, because you will not receive adequate sums for the value of your items.
Step 5. Resell items to collectors
There are collectors' markets for all items with cultural significance, from commemorative plates to video games and old toys. If you become an expert, you can earn a lot of money by buying items at a low price and reselling them to collectors for a higher amount.
- Specialize in one type of collectibles. You could indulge in old toys or special glasses. Start by evaluating which collectibles you already own and work your way up from there.
- Become an expert in your subject. Do your research to find out what items in good condition are worth and how to recognize them. Learn which items are common and which are very rare (rarer ones have more value).
- Visit the shops where you can find low-priced items. To find collectibles, you'll need to frequently visit flea markets and private stalls.
- Use your computer to your advantage. Websites that specialize in collectibles can help you gauge what price to sell for items in your area.
- Sell on the internet. You can often snatch better prices online than if you were selling to a local collector and you can reach a wider clientele.
- Get to know the vendors and industry experts. These people give you the ability to promote your articles and can help you place them.
Method 4 of 4: Using Non-Orthodox Strategies
Step 1. Perform on the street
If you are lucky enough to have a musical instrument and enough talent, you can try to improvise as a street artist. A competent artist, in a busy spot, can make good money in just an hour or two. Here are some useful tips for trying this strategy:
- Get permission. Some cities and communities have laws that require street performers to pay a fee or be licensed to perform.
- Choose a suitable location. Avoid areas where other artists are present, but choose a very popular one. For a start, find a chaotic, but safe, area of the center.
- Choose your repertoire carefully. The best time of the year for street performers is the holidays. The most popular styles are jazz and popular music.
- Treat the audience politely. Be warm and friendly to everyone you meet. Smile and nod when you look people in the eye.
Step 2. Collect some scrap metals
Iron, steel and, above all, copper can be sold by weight to junkyards. You will need to sell many kilos of material to make a sizeable profit, so make sure you have a vehicle with a large cargo volume available.
- Look for metal pipes and fixtures in dilapidated buildings and abandoned properties. In the trash cans outside offices and tech companies, he can find a lot of cables or other components that you can sell.
- Be especially careful when collecting scrap metals. Wear heavy gloves, have someone accompany you, and don't go out at night.
- Don't steal or remove metals from whatever is still in use.
- Search in the morning, before the passage of the garbage collection. You will often find items that can be sold as scrap or repaired.
Step 3. Go in search of rocks
You can get manuals that show where valuable materials can be found. Fossils, geodes and semi-precious gems are abundant in some areas. Remember, though, that this research can take time and often can't be a quick fix for your money woes.
- Learn about the different grades of precious stones. If you are looking for semi-precious stones remember that, in some cases, color and size can greatly increase their value.
- Bring a shovel or spade, gloves, a hat and a bucket with you. Often, to find the best quality rocks and fossils, you'll need to dig deep. Make sure it is a legal business in your country; in almost any place suggested by the manuals, you should have permission to dig.
- Be careful not to enter private properties, including mining basins.
- Sell your loot to a specialty store. In most cases, you won't get big bucks, but it's nearly impossible to sell rough stones over the internet.
Step 4. Sell some plastic bottles
You can collect other people's bottles and sell them, to make a profit.
- Before you can earn anything you will have to collect a lot of bottles, so it is not easy to use this method.
- You also need to find a domestic buyer who buys plastic bottles in bulk. With a simple Google search, you should be able to find a company that's right for you.
Step 5. Sell your hair
Believe it or not, there is a hair market. If you have "virgin" hair (neither dyed nor treated) and long, you can earn a lot of money.
- The health of your hair depends on what you bring into your body, so if you eat a healthy diet and don't smoke, your hair will have more value.
- There is an online tool that can tell you how much your hair is worth.
Warnings
- Do not steal, do not blackmail and do not counterfeit anything to make money. If you think that being broke is a problem, imagine how much worse your situation would be if, having no money, you had to go through a criminal trial.
- You may have to pay taxes on your earnings, especially if you have a second or even a third job. Don't fall into the trap of accepting black-box payments to make more money, because the problems with the taxman you will have as a result of your choice will not allow you to improve your financial situation in the long run.
- Don't gamble if you need money. At best, the odds of winning will be 50% (only in craps bets); more generally, statistically it is easy for you to lose. There must be a reason why many people consider the lottery the "tax on idiocy"!
