Additional Income
  • October 29, 2020
  • Peter Christoper
  • 0

Parents often tell their kids how much they have to work to make ends meet. Most children are aware of these efforts and they find this narrative a bit boring. So, repeating those corny phrases about your sacrifice won’t teach your kids how to be financially responsible.

What you should do instead is include your kids in the money-making process. That’s a better way of showing them how to earn for a living and start appreciating money.

In the following paragraphs, you’ll learn more about seven productive ideas for families to generate additional income together.

#1 Sell unnecessary things

In every household, there are different things that nobody uses anymore. You could join forces with your kids to select the items your family doesn’t need anymore. This can include toys, clothes, different devices, gadgets, books, furniture, and other stuff that only clutters your living space.

After that, you should offer all these things for sale. If possible, organize a garage sale. This will be a first-person experience for your kids to see how to make money. Also, it’s a practical option to sell a lot of things at once.

Another option is to offer this selection on Craigslist or any similar local website. You’ll make some money along the way while getting rid of the extra stuff.

When we’re talking about unnecessary things, many couples buy stuff that they don’t actually need. As one of the most common financial mistakes that partners make, it should be discussed on a family level. This would set a nice example for your kids that they need to use their money wisely.

#2 Follow sales and discounts

Buying items at lower prices is a reasonable way of making savings and leave more of your assets untouched.

For that reason, you should bring a coupon- and discount-based strategy within your family. Do some homework and make a list of the most reliable websites offering coupons and discounts. Select the categories that you’re interested in – say, electronics, clothes, kids’ stuff – and subscribe to newsletters and alerts when discount campaigns or coupons are launched.

Apart from that, always make a shopping list when you’re going to the supermarket, no matter how big or small that shopping session is. When you stick to the list, you’ll spend less money, plus, you won’t hoard more things that you use and need.

#3 Start renting things out

Families should try to generate some passive income, i.e. to keep money coming without working directly for it. Those well-off families will buy stocks, shares, and other similar valuable business papers to get dividends.

Average families usually don’t have enough money for such investments, but they still have options. For instance, you might buy additional real estate property and rent it out. Taking a mortgage to buy it is reasonable, as long as the rent you’ll be getting is higher than the monthly installment you’re paying for that property.

Also, think about renting out things that people use on a daily level. For instance, anything related to weddings can turn out to be a lucrative renting initiative. From wedding decorations and garden tables/chairs to lighting equipment and wedding accessories, many things can be used to make money that way.

If you have a spare room in a house that’s big enough, you might rent it to a student or any other person to make some additional money.

#4 Offer photos on stock websites

Today everybody has mobiles that can make great photos. But this activity doesn’t have to be mere fun. As you’re taking photos of interesting places around the town or in nature, think about offering them online as stock photos. There are many stock photo websites for both amateurs and professional photographers where you could offer your works.

In the beginning, it probably won’t a large amount of money, but things can change quickly if you make an additional effort to offer photos that are different in terms of motives and quality.

This activity will be both fun and practice for your kids. They’ll learn how to get into photography itself while learning how to earn some money with their own effort.

#5 Try pet-sitting

Spending time with pets and animals is sometimes more efficient than going to therapy or working out, in terms of relaxation and emission of positive energy.

So, you could try pet-sitting after work. From dog walking on a daily level to keeping cats while their owners are away, there are various options of pet-sitting that can be both amusing and lucrative.

And if you include your children in this activity, you can spend some quality time with them while making more funds for your family budget. In the times when both parents and kids spend too much time sitting in front of screens, this would be a useful activity to improve your physical condition, as well.

#6 Turn to creative industries

Many people offer their services and knowledge on the Internet. There are many ways in which families can jump on the bandwagon and spread the word about their efforts on the Web.

For starters, you could make different crafty things and offer them online. For instance, making Christmas decorations or unique children’s toys is a nice start. Instagram and Pinterest are full of inspirational ideas in this niche.

Those more ambitious families may buy some tools and machines and start making wooden toys or different home accessories.

If you play a musical instrument and you’re good with words, think about launching a YouTube channel and uploading your songs or covers there. It would be fun for the entire family and it has the potential of generating some additional income.

But whatever you do on the Web, make sure to launch your own website. As explained by the design experts from a Houston web design company, a business website doesn’t have to be expensive, but it has to be functional, so bear that in mind.

When families work together as a team, they can achieve a lot. Turning to side jobs or gigs as a join project might turn out as something bigger and you might even launch your own small business. But even if those activities stay just an additional source of income, they’ll improve the cohesion inside the family. Also, you’ll teach your kids what it looks like to earn for a living by setting an example. And if you make some extra money along the way, it will be a win-win situation for all interested parties.