Finding Cash Jobs
The true story in the following article shows the the kind
of attitude you need to have to survive in a tough economy. It's
about finding cash jobs when regular employment isn't an option.
Although it's from our writer in New Zealand, the basic idea
can be used in the U.S. or just about any country.
Hire Yourself Out for a Set Rate
By Tanya Whitehead
You are a young student or still at school so you literally
have a full time job. How do you make money? You don't like serving
tables or flipping hamburgers. Perhaps you live in a small town?
How do you make some good pocket money, especially during the
holidays, which still gives you time to catch that wave, walk
that mountain or just hang with your friends?
Hire yourself out. A group of young guys in my hometown did
this and it has now extended to a full time business to the ones
who have just left school. Battling to find holiday and weekend
jobs, especially in these difficult economic times, they decided
to create their own.
Advertise Yourself
They placed a weekly advertisement in the classified section
of all the local free papers and this seemed to work the best.
Need a job done? Any job? We will do any job for a flat
fee of $10. Yes, you heard correctly, $10. So whether you want
us to mow your lawn, bath your dog, clean the windows, look after
your kids, paint the fence, dig a garden bed or run an errand,
we will do it.
Did it work?
Yes! So much so, that they were inundated with calls. Of
course, you would get the oddball who would want them to do a
whole days work for $10, but there were not many of them. Mostly
it was for the, well, odd job that took no longer than an hour
or two, often less. Yes, it was way below the minimum wage level,
but they were kept so busy, they made more money and took it
in turns or did the jobs together.
Costs
There are no costs involved, except for your labor, some gas
money and maybe a bit of sweat if you have to dig a garden up.
The people who hire you out have to have all the equipment
and pay for the electricity bills.
Schedules
If you get together with a few friends, then this spreads
the work out and ensures that you get enough off time to ensure
a good break. If it is a job like cleaning windows, having help
makes it go quicker and you can get to the next job much faster.
There is nothing like a bit of enthusiasm.
Cash Jobs
What kinds of jobs should you take on?
Anything that is not illegal or that will take the entire
day, as this is just taking your for a ride. You are well within
your rights to decline any job, even after you have arrived at
the place where it is to be done.
If you are a girl, I would advise you to always take a male
friend with you. You never know what weirdos are out there!
Best idea is to make sure you have all the information on
what is required, the size of the property if it is for mowing
a lawn, how many windows there are to be cleaned, clothes there
are to be ironed, before you agree to do it. Never take on a
job that you have no idea how to do it and may mess up. This
is bad advertising.
Always tell the people before you get there, that you require
cash after the job is complete. And don't be shy if it is a big
job, to let people know that it will be more than the $10, they
will probably go for it anyway otherwise they are stuck doing
it themselves.
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Editor's Suggestion: In order to avoid being taken
advantage of too much with cash jobs like these, you might make
that set rate an introductory one. In other words, you could
offer to do any task that will take a couple hours or less for
$10, but then charge a decent per-hour rate for any subsequent
work. If the customer likes your work you'll often get hired
even at the higher regular rate.
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