Authored by Cathrine
Many a time people have a lot of dead time in between important work. They end up spending endless hours just scrolling through social media, to no benefit. I have found that using that extra unclaimed time to earn pennies is actually a very good venture. Coupled with investing the few pennies to get compound interest, you would be very surprised how much you will have accumulated over a full year. There is a number of very straightforward and uncomplicated ways to make extra dollars if you are a 9-5 kind of worker. Most of them you can do from the comfort of your couch even as you entertain your family too. Here are some few ways i have made some coins after my 9-5 job.
1. Do surveys. I used to hear a lot on social media about how surveys can pay small money if you sign up and take them. For a long time I hesitated, for no good reason other than just being sceptical, but once I took the dive I have not gone back. There are a few survey sites that pay good money, like Attapoll, Octopus, Toluna, just to mention a few. These sites have surveys of different lengths, ranging form a minute to 30 minutes, which you can choose to do depending on the amount of free time you have at any given moment. The key takeaway points I have for this hustle is not to attempt to open several accounts on the same site as this may lead to you being banned from the site, sometimes permanently. Some sites like Attapoll will award you cash at the end of each survey, which you can cash out using different platforms like Paypal or several other cashout options. Other sites like Toluna will award you points after every survey, which you can redeem after reaching a certain threshold amount using gift cards and also Paypal.
2. Another online earning potential is testing game apps online. Some companies require you to download games and play until you reach a certain level then get rewarded. Apps like Clickworker, Multipolls, and others, allow you to earn small money through testing game applications. Download the games and give the phone to your children to play the games during the times you are busy with something.
This will help you reach the level you need for compensation faster. Chances are your children love to play online games and they are always going to use the internet anyway so use that to your advantage and it is a win-win situation.
3. Aside from doing surveys and testing game apps, another earning opportunity lies in training AI. There are several sites which you can sign up with and help train AI through carrying out certain tasks. I have personally worked on some Appen projects, specifically the Whatcom projects, and I have made some good pennies testing their new applications. When you join such projects, make sure to be on the lookout for what time the projects are normally uploaded.
Align your schedule with that timeline in mind to maximize the amount of tasks you work on in order to earn high amounts each day.
4. Use every available small break you get, even as short as 10 minutes to earn as much as you can. I have started giving myself target for each day, say to earn at least $7 from such small ventures. By the end of a 5-day week I will have more than $35 from surveys only. So many opportunities are present for you to do these little jobs. I used to think I did not have enough spare time until I started working on these little jobs. That is when I realized how much dead time I had on my hands. Use the time when others are just talking at work to listen to them and do surveys at the same time.
Work even at the park as you watch your child play. Choose to stay in the car at the mall when your partner wants to do some shopping for themselves and allow them to shop in peace as you earn your pennies in the car park. When everyone else at home is on their mobile binge-watching content on social media, be on your phone earning money.
Now that you have earned your pennies on the side, how best do you make them count? Simple. Invest all the money you get from your little side hustles. Buy EFTs or open a high yield savings account. Investing the money gives you a sense of achievement as you see your balance gradually grow. Remember to not mix you side hustle money with your income from your main job. Keep them separate so you can watch your few pennies grow into a good balance. It serves as motivation to keep going when you see the investment balance slowly but steadily grow. To date I have managed to invest $567 and I only started slightly more than 3 months ago.
While at it, set regular automated investment instalments to push you to achieve your targets. I cannot tell you where to invest but I use CommSec Pocket Investments, which is a subsidiary of my main banking institution. There are countless other investment platforms, like Moomoo, among others.
Whatever you do, make the pennies count by making them do work for you in your sleep through investments. And no matter how bumpy the market landscape becomes, ALWAYS be investing. You will thank yourself later.
Please share your own ways of making money on the side so we can all learn and earn some more.
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