Tuesday, August 25, 2009

Money troubles

Living paycheck to paycheck will not work for my family much longer. My husband and I are starting to drown in our bills. Being unemployed for 2 years after his layoff depleted all of our savings. We are so grateful that he is employed now, but his salary is significantly lower and does not meet our basic household needs. I need to find a way to help supplement our family income soon.

I wish I could find a legitimate way to make money online. There are so many scams trying to entice stay-at-home moms to invest in a product or program. I tell myself that there must be something online that I can do from home.

Since I love to write, I am hoping to find an online opportunity that needs writers, editors or researchers. I am really open to almost anything. If I could do it, I would even belly dance :) That would be a sight! All my dear friends, do you know of any potential income sources out there on this grand Internet?

Thanks for any help or guidance.

22 comments:

Warren Baldwin said...

You are so wise to not fall for some of the work at home scams. There may be a legitimate one, but I haven't found it yet. I've quit looking and started writing. Haven't made any income yet, but give it time!

Terri Tiffany's site is one you may want to look at. She is a very good writer and I think she has had a number of articles published. Here is her link: http://terri-treasures.blogspot.com/

Tiffany Stuart of Tea with Tiffany also did some writing.

God bless.
wb

Hyacynth said...

I have a good friend who works from home full-time, and it is legit. Do you want her e-mail?

Pegsy said...

So sorry to hear of your financial stresses. I have no advice about on-line jobs, but I will certainly keep you and your family in my prayers.

Christy said...

I am so sorry to hear of your troubles. I don't know of anything to help, but I will add you to my prayers. :)

Don said...

I looked at Googles AdSense once. It's legit and pays for referrals. I think sites like http://www.consumersearch.com make money this way. They review the reviewers and make a recommendation. The trick is generating traffic.

Besides supplementing income... I stretch mine via... http://www.mvelopes.com/ It's an online budgeting system that's pretty easy to set up and use. It's helped us spend more wisely.

Or... money maker: contract service rep... check this out... http://www.mysanantonio.com/business/MYSA040807_2G_HmbsdCstmrSvc_2bd513c_html.html

After you work out the bugs... let me know how it goes.

glnroz said...

I am not acquainted with what is on the internet, but I will continue to fight to get our economy back on track. I feel weak, you have been so kind with you comments on my site.

Shan said...

I'd love to me able to find a work at home option as well.

Anonymous said...

i'd love to help but i'd have no idea where to start either! these are trying times for all of us stay-at-home moms...i pray you find something soon to help supplement income. you are so talented with writing, something along those lines would be perfect for you!

The Write Girl said...

Hi Septembermom,

I'm sorry to hear your family is struggling. I do hope you find soemthing related to writing. I'll keep an eye out also. Have you considered doing any advertising on your blog? You may want to consider it since your site has gained in popularity. Just a thought. Have a blessed and wonderful day : )

Mandy said...

I'm sorry to hear about your struggles Kelly. So many people are barely making ends meet.

Like you, I wish I could find a job that pays me to write and not just occasional text in a promotional brochure like I do now.

You could try to look for different online writing contests. Good Housekeeping magazine has a short story contest going on right now for $3,000. There are probably others out there as well.

It's a hard time for writers though. I have done some freelance newspaper writing in the past but the newspaper stopped calling and soon were laying people off. It's just so tough.

Although blogging is fun, there seems to be no real money in it. I just read this interesting post this morning about blogging for dollars -- http://therfamilydiaries.blogspot.com/2009/08/blogging-for-dollars.html

Anyway, good luck to you in finding something. I wish all the best!

Unknown said...

Lots of luck. I'm in a similar situation, where I need to find a way to make money whist staying home caring after baby. It's not easy.

As for writing, well, that's what i love doing, but from what I've seen, only brilliant journalism gets real pay quickly. It takes tons of perserverance, the competition is fierce. Not to put you off writing!! Just considering the money-making side of things.

Randi said...

You're fantastic at poetry--what about making an ebook of all your poems and selling it for a small price online? Especially if you market it toward scrapbookers--the market there is HUGE. I had one friend who spent over $3000 in one year on scrapbooking supplies. There are many moms out there who don't have a way with words the way you do and would buy a book of poems that covered every day topics to go with their scrapbooking photos--poems on birthdays, graduations, new babies, weddings, first tooth, swinging at the park, the LAST DAY AT THE POOL, etc. Just think of photos that most people like to shoot and then go from there,marketing it to the scrapbook crowd. Maybe even include a few of your own photos as inspiration.

Judith Ellis said...

Continued abundant blessings to you and yours. They are all around.

Reading your story I am reminded of the necessity of passing health care reform: Families are struggling, fraud and abuse are prevalent, and system is broken. I am praying for you and will be looking out for you.

Your story is also the reason moms everywhere need to be active in their government. You all have a voice. Anything can happen to any of us and it has nothing to do with our lack of effort of pulling ourselves up by our own boot straps. It's difficult when you don't have boots.

I heard a politician recently say that passing reform limits neighbors from helping one another, as if your neighbors would supplement your income for those past two years or even now when the economic crises was largely caused by greedy “geniuses” on Wall Street and we, the middle and working class, pay for them to garner fat fees and return to the same policies, not to mention the money given to the likes of these, our elected officials.

Oh, you will excuse me please for ranting this morning on your blog. I am more than a little ticked that you are having such difficulties and angered by the hypocrisy of more than a few in Washington and Wall Street. I pray that many more blessings will come to you and yours. I do not know of any online opportunities, but I as I said I will most certainly be looking out for you now.—now this.

Be encouraged, my sister, my friend for "we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose." You are the heart of God and in his purpose, dear Kelly.

Gerri said...

Blessings to you on your quest. I have to work outside of my home for the very same reason...

Kim said...

What about taking in two kids to babysit when the older kids go back to school. You would need to pull out some of Jillian's baby stuff if you've still got it. I've bought so much stuff used - highchair for ten bucks, etc. You are already an expert in childcare and people are always looking for alternatives to staterun daycares. In our neighbourhood, I see signs from stay-at-home moms everywhere offering babysitting services.

The answer will come to you. Be really clear to the universe about how much extra income you need and start visualizing a situation. I'm sending you lots of positive financial energy!

Valerie said...

Have you thought of Helium? They pay for online articles. I don't know if it's good pay but it's a legitimate company. I can give you a link if you want to give it a try.

Anonymous said...

I hear you and share your pain. Believe me I've been there. Some legit maybe helpful links for you:

freelancewrite.about.com
www.freelancewriting.com/freelance-writing-jobs.php
ifreelance.com
guru.com

(A really good one)
abcnews.go.com/GMA/TakeControlOfYourLife/

Anonymous said...

PS: on abcnews look under Headlines for all the work from home opportunities videos. They are informative and proven to work.

SwedishJenn said...

I really enjoy your writing SeptemberMom and wishing you all the best on your journey. I recommend monetizing your blog through paid advertisements. It might not be THIS blog but take a page out of HolisticMama's book and dedicate a blog especially to being advertising-friendly. I look at www.mycharmingkids.net and imagine, based on the traffic and number of comments and advertisers, that she is a successful Mamma blogger who is likely making some decent money from her work. You have the writing down, the topics (Mom to many) and now you just have to put some effort into marketing your blog. I wish you the best of luck in making money from something you obviously enjoy doing.

Anonymous said...

Here's another one that is promising: odesk.com

They were featured on abcnews.com It's free and you do have to take a proficiency test but that's in your favor because I think you become certified. I forget, it's been awhile since I've been there and did not take the test myself. If I come across anything else I will send it your way~

Michelle said...

Have you looked into the Usborne Books or Tastefully Simple or those kinds of things? I have friends who do both (among others) and do well at it. It's great with those where you can crank it up or down as much or as little as needed baseed on your schedule. It's rough. Good luck to you, and ... fingers crossed you find a way to make it work.

Corrie Howe said...

Looks like many people have shared some great ideas. I would only add that I've seen a number of professional bloggers sharing tips on how to increase traffic to your site as well as increase revenue.

In the meantime, I've added you to my growing list of fellow blogger for whom I can pray about their situations.