Earning Extra Money for Christmas

There aren’t too many jobs out there that you can take in order to make money for Christmas this year that won’t have you working Christmas Eve, as well as the day after, dealing with long lines of disgruntled gift receivers trying to figure out what Aunt Marge did with the gift receipt for that purple reindeer sweater she thought they’d like. To get a leg up on your Christmas shopping, and not lose the holiday yourself, check out these ideas for making a few bucks that you might actually enjoy!

Hold an online garage sale- You’ve got stuff, the internet has a way to dispose of it. Usually it’s cheap, always its easy, and more often than not, you won’t have to worry about people checking out the ‘not for sale’ stuff in your garage for a potential late-night visit later on! Electronics and collectibles are generally hot sellers through auction sites like Ebay, but if you have cds or DVDs to sell, you can usually find buyers either through the Amazon resellers program or any of a number of CD/DVD repurchase sites. Obviously, DVDs and CDs aren’t bringing much right now, but if you’ve already transferred your collection to your computer and rarely use discs, anyway, there’s really nothing to lose by doing so. Some of these sites also buy gently used books, as well.

Take on odd jobs- What a great way to kick off the holidays! Odd jobs around the house are often the ones that don’t get done in the flurry of throwing together holiday celebrations and decorations. Speaking of decorations, of course, have you got a knack for putting together holiday decorations that bring a tear to the eye of those who see them? You might be able to hire yourself out as a decorator. Plenty of businesses and individuals would love to gussy up their place for the holidays, but may not have the time or manpower to do so. Gather up the vacationing kids, put on your best Martha Stewart impression, and give it a whirl. Chances are good that there are more people around who want help putting up holiday decorations than there are actual decorations. It may even blossom into a lucrative seasonal business if you aren’t careful!

Work at home opportunities- Yes, they do exist, and no, they aren’t scams. That being said, there are infinitely more scams out there than there are actual opportunities, particularly during the holidays, so you’re going to have to be careful to avoid the businesses that just want to take advantage of you. A good place to start is Craigslist, where you can find writing opportunities on the internet. At first glance, they really don’t pay very well. Some, in fact, offer only $1.00 for a 500-word article. These are scams. They rewrite existing content on the web and republish it, pretty much amounting to plagurism, which can get you into big trouble. Many blog owners, though, pay fairly and provide a steady stream of work. You may just have to contact a blog owner personally and ask if they’re looking for contributors.

Go on a cookie spree- Everyone loves Christmas cookies, even if they don’t necessarily celebrate Christmas. Get on your Facebook or other social media account and rent out your cookie-making abilities and your kitchen! You can take orders from your friends and neighbors to make specialty cookies that they may not have time to make themselves, and cookies even make great holiday gifts, so with these, the sky’s the limit! Just be sure to appropriately price your services, so that you’ll actually make some money rather than just making (and tasting) a bunch of your friends’ favorite cookies!

Although retail is traditionally the big employer throughout the holidays, it isn’t always necessary to put on a smock and work all weekend to make some green. You just have to get creative!