10 crazy ways to make money

1. Have a garage sale. This one is obvious. It is summer after all, and if you are home anyway, why not? Recently thrift shops and charities have had to go begging for second hand merchandise because people are either hanging on to their old stuff in case they need it, or they are selling it themselves. The market for cheap, used, usable goods is very hot right now. If you spend some time preparing by tagging all your stuff with prices and advertising your sale, you'll get better results than if you don't plan it out. Don't forget to set yourself up with a box of change before you start, and think about what you want to do with the stuff that doesn't sell. If you donate it, get a receipt to take off your taxes.
   
2. Pawn stuff. Pawn shops have seen a huge uptick in merchandise over the past six months, but most of it is crap. If you have anything of actual value that you can part with, now might be the right time. It depends on how hungry you are. Stuff they like: gold, diamonds, newer electronics, good bicycles, guns, musical instruments. Stuff they might take but aren't so nuts about: DVDs, CDs, video games, broken stuff, really old stuff. 
   
3. Sell your blood. Ick? No, actually it helps people and they will pay you for it. What you are really selling is your blood plasma, the clear stuff that your red blood cells float around in. To find a plasma donation center near you go to http://www.pptaglobal.org/ or http://www.pptaglobal.org/plasma/find.aspx. According to maddhubber's hub on plasma donation, you can make up to $260 per month this way, and you will help a sick or injured person in the process. Check out madhubber's hub at the embedded link to find out everything you ever wanted to know about how it works and then some. 
   
4. Cash in your unwanted gold jewelry and old coins. I see these ads on TV all the time, and I always ask BIll, my best friend and roomie, where do we keep all of our 'unwanted gold jewelry and old coins'? Because I can't ever seem to find them. He can't find them either. It's a mystery. In the event that you actually have gold that you just don't want, you can indeed cash it in for less than it is actually worth. A pawn shop will also do this for you. Some people really do happen to have tons of jewelry they don't wear and coins that pile up, so if you are one of those people then... 
   
5. Cash in your change. If you throw away pennies, (and lots of people do, believe it or not), stop doing that and start saving your change. When you get enough of it, roll it up yourself (don't go to one of those change machines--it will charge you 8 cents on each dollar you dump in there). Put an address label and your phone number on each roll. Then take the rolls to your bank or supermarket office and ask for cash. 
   
6. Pick up some freelance projects. With so many people out of work, freelance job boards are pretty hot right now. If you can write, or if you have web design or programming skills, financial skills, clerical skills, or any other kind of skill you can market remotely, go to www.elance.com, www.guru.com, or www.odesk.com and check out the project listings. On a good week I have been able to pick up between $100-$500 this way, depending on what's listed and how aggressively I go after the work.
7. Place an ad for errands, laundry, yard work, or dog walking. You don't have to print up business cards and hire an accountant to work for yourself, you just have to be willing to work and get the word out to people who need help. One of my kids picked up $50 a week doing laundry for elderly people in her own home (she picked it up and dropped it off for them), and I weeded perennial gardens for a summer and had no trouble staying busy just through word of mouth. Post a flyer at your local supermarket and/or community center, or place a cheap ad in the newspaper. 
   
8. Sell your crafts. Do you make something that other people are always asking about? Consider making lots more and then sell it on consignment at local second hand stores or sell it directly from a booth at your local farmers market or online. I know a woman locally who earned a decent living selling decorative bird houses and chachski at craft fairs five or six times a year. She'd make a bunch of the cutesy stuff, rent her table, sell out, start over. Repeat as necessary. 
   
9. Rent out a room. If you own your home or are buying your home, think about how you could rearrange your space to make room for a boarder. Lots of people are having housing issues right now, and while you do want to be careful about who you let into your personal space, taking in a boarder can help both you and the person who lets the extra room. Decide ahead of time what you will offer and what will be off limits so there isn't any confusion over privileges and boundaries. 
   
10. Borrow against your life insurance. Do you have a whole life policy that you never think about and that you ought to cancel because it's a total rip off (in terms of actual interest earned and so forth) but that you never got around to nixing? You may be able to borrow against the equity you've built up in that puppy, or in other words, borrow the money from yourself and then pay yourself back. Dig that thing out and call the carrier and ask. You may be pleasantly surprised.