The Austerity Diaries: If You Dont Have a Job, Make One UpDaisy Luther If you dont have a job, consider making one up. Actually, you might be better to make up several, considering the current economy and how difficult it can be to start a business these days. If you are in the midst of a personal economic collapse, you just might be able to change your course be creating your own streams of income instead of relying on an employer to pay you a living wage. Let me explain what I mean. There are a lot of little jobs a person can do, that individually dont pay the bills. However, an organized and industrious person can group a bunch of small jobs into a full-time income if they schedule carefully, work hard, and stay organized. I know, because Ive done it. Once upon a time, I did home day care on the weekends, tended bar on Monday and Tuesday nights, did dog-walking and pet-sitting during the week, cleaned house for a person one afternoon per week, and did the shopping and cooking for an elderly neighbor. At the time, I didnt have a car, so all of this was done on foot. Twenty years ago, the $400-500 a week I made from doing all of these little odd jobs paid the bills and left me with time for other things. Set up multiple streams of income The key to success with this is to have multiple streams of income. Dont put all of your financial eggs in one basket, because if that should dry up, youll be left unemployed yet again. As well, it really helps with budgeting if you are able to say, This task pays my rent, this task pays my utilities, this task pays for groceries. Obviously we all know that living frugally is like making money, but that is a topic for another article. The fact remains there are some things we need money for, so this article is focused on acquiring that cash. Some of us have specialized skills that make this easier for example, I am a writer and editor, so I focus my money-earning on those two skills. Others might be particularly handy, so they might focus their skills on doing home repairs. But it isnt necessary to have a skill-set to bring in multiple streams of income. You simply have to be willing to do small jobs that may or may not be short term. Here are some ideas to get you started. This list, of course, is by no means comprehensive. A few keys to success Its important to make a good impression on your customers. Handle these small jobs just like you would a corporate job and follow these key steps. Keep these principles in mind and you will never be lacking jobs. Word of mouth is the very best form of advertising. Dont limit yourself to only doing jobs for money. Is there a good or service that you want? Sometimes you can approach people and offer them a barter, particularly if they are in business for themselves. For example, I used to clean house for the person who cut my familys hair. Once I was hired to clean up a persons yard and I politely asked if we could keep the walnuts that had fallen off their tree. They didnt mind at all, as they had just asked me to rake everything up and bag it, and it gave us a nice little bonus of a winters worth of delicious black walnuts for a weekends work. The website Alt-Market.com is all about the approach of the barter system should our current economy totally collapse. They state that their website exists to facilitate networking, local community action, and the exchange of knowledge and ideas. We promote decentralization, localism, and the de-globalization of human economic systems. We aim to work with and support local economies, markets, barter networks, and farmers cooperatives; and to promote alternative currencies and monetary systems. Check it out HERE you will find some great ideas! Dont be afraid to approach people about the potential of bartering the worst thing that can happen is that they say no. Sometimes you can find work through people you know maybe they expressed a need to have someone walk Fido partway through the day. Other times, you will need to search a little harder to find customers for your services. What about you? Have you ever tried earning a living without a traditional job? Do you have any ideas that you can share in the comments section below? Note: Thanks to reader MM for the comment that inspired this article! Related selfnews Post Articles: Daisy Luther is a freelance writer and editor who lives in a small village in the Pacific Northwestern area of the United States. She is the author of The Pantry Primer: How to Build a One Year Food Supply in Three Months. On her website, The Organic Prepper, where this first appeared, Daisy writes about healthy prepping, homesteading adventures, and the pursuit of liberty and food freedom. Daisy is a co-founder of the website Nutritional Anarchy, which focuses on resistance through food self-sufficiency. Daisys articles are widely republished throughout alternative media. You can follow her on Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter, and you can email her at daisy@theorganicprepper.ca 