5 Unusual Ways to Earn Extra Money
By Eric Hammer
These days, we're all looking for ways to earn extra money.
You've likely seen the usual suspects - earn money by doing odd
jobs, take an extra job, work from home, etc. etc. However those
are not the only ways to earn extra money. Here are five rather
unusual ways to earn extra money which you may not have heard
of before but which will still help you earn extra money (if
you're willing to do them that is).
Become a Focus Group Participant
There are a handful of people who actually make a full time
living doing this, though most people just earn extra money doing
the occasional focus group. You can find listings for focus groups
on the web by searching through Craigslist as well as contacting
various companies which run such focus groups and asking if they
have any in your area. You generally won't make enough to live
on, but these groups can be fun to participate in and you often
get to try free food or watch a pilot of a new TV show.
Become a Scrap Metal Recycler
If you have a truck and don't mind getting your hands dirty,
you can make extra money by collecting scrap metal from all over
your neighborhood. People throw away useless junk all the time
- old bed frames, ovens, refrigerators and other odds and ends
with lots of scrap metal in them. If you don't mind going around
collecting it all and dropping it off at a scrap metal recycler,
it is possible to earn extra money from this junk. Don't expect
to earn much though. Scrap metal recyclers typically pay just
a few dollars for a whole truck load of junk metal.
Still, if you can do it efficiently enough to cover gasoline
costs, it may well be worth your while. Just look in the Yellow
Pages or online for scrap metal recyclers in your area and ask
them what their rules are for turning in scrap metal.
Sell Your Hair
No, selling organs isn't legal, no matter what the shady guy
on the street may tell you about selling a kidney. However, there
is one way to earn extra money which does involve selling parts
of your body and which is perfectly legal. If you happen to have
long hair, you can sell it to wig makers who use the stuff to
create natural hair wigs. These wig makers will often pay hundreds
of dollars for quality human hair. The catch of course is that
you can only do this once in a while since your hair will take
time to grow back.
Participate In Medical Trials
Okay so it's not super unusual, but it is at least a somewhat
unusual way to earn extra money. Medical schools and pharmaceutical
companies are always looking for human guinea pigs willing to
try out some new medicines and see how effective they are. These
pills have typically been tested in animals already and are found
to be safe, however there is of course at least some risk involved.
Often though, the only thing you are risking is that the pill
simply won't do what they promised it would do.
Become a Surrogate Mother
Finally, for women who don't mind carrying a baby to term
and then giving it away, it's possible to earn extra money by
(pardon the expression) renting out your womb for nine months.
In essence, you'd be working with childless couples (or gay couples)
who can't have a baby of their own and carrying the baby for
them all the way to term. This can be emotionally draining though
as you will often be required to give up your child without any
right to see them after they are born. In some cases however,
surrogate parents are asked to be part of the baby's life though
that needs to be negotiated in advance.
|
