How To Make Money This Holiday Season

This time of year is my favorite. I don’t want to miss out on Pumpkin Spice Lattes and fall festivals because I’m on a budget. Instead, I want to enjoy everything that encompasses the holiday season. And yes, that means spending some money. Here is how to make extra money this holiday season.

Instead of providing the normal “How to save money this Christmas”-style post, I wanted to do something different. I want to show you how you can make money this holiday season so you have a bit more wiggle room in your budget.

How to Make Money This Holiday Season

A few of these items are things I’ve done or will be doing, a few are things John has done or will be doing, and some are just general ways you can make some extra money this holiday season. Again, with some extra funds, you don’t have to scrimp by this Christmas and can instead have a little more freedom to purchase and do the things you want.

Sell items on Craigslist

When we moved from AZ to NC, we made almost $1,000 selling unused tools and furniture. I know that’s extreme, but we rely on selling items on Craigslist as often as possible now. We bought our girls a trampoline last spring and while they loved it for the first week, it’s just not something that they use regularly. Also, our new yard has a million trees, which equates to a million leaves all over the trampoline. We’re listing this item on Craigslist sometime this week.

Take Surveys Online

First, let’s start with my favorite: Swagbucks! Take surveys, watch videos online and SHOP all while earning gift cards to your favorite stores including Amazon, Target, Walmart and more. This is my favorite survey company!

Sign up for Swagbucks and get a free $5 bonus!

If you want to make even MORE money, sign up to these awesome programs, too!

• American Consumer Opinion
• Swagbucks
• Inbox Dollars
• Unique Rewards
• Harris Poll <- Great rewards and you get to use your opinion to make a difference!!

It’s really easy – sign up and get surveys delivered to your inbox. Take a few each day while watching TV or taking a break at work and the money will add up! The earlier you start, the more money you can make.

Get a part-time job

There are four stores I would work at in a heartbeat, especially over the holidays. They are: Starbucks, Bath & Body Works, The Fresh Market and Kirklands. I love all of those stores and definitely wouldn’t mind working at any of them over the holidays. I used to work at Starbucks and one of the shifts at my store was 4am-8am. If you don’t mind waking up early, this can be a great way to earn a little cash before the day even starts.

Start a side business of your own

I have a side business of my own (blogging) and it recently became my full-time job. And luckily, it’s something I can do from the comfort of my own home. In fact, I’m sitting here now wrapped up in blankets and drinking a coffee while I work from my couch. I wouldn’t have it any other way. I am a freelance writer and blogger. If you are a new reader, you can check out my income reports to see just how much money I’ve been able to make on the side.

Here is how you can get started freelance writing and/or blogging:

How to Start Freelance Writing

This is a whole post of it’s own, but I wanted to quickly go through the steps of becoming a self-employed freelancer for anyone who might be interested. It’s a fantastic way to make extra money, especially because YOU control your income. If you want to make more over the holidays or save for an upcoming vacation, you can! If you want to scale back and spend some extra time with your family, well you can do that too. It really is the perfect business for us mamas!

Step 1: Invest in yourself. There are dozens of courses out there on how to become a freelance writer. The difference between an actual course and reading the information online for free is that the course will guide you in the right direction. Reading a few articles won’t necessarily do that. I highly highly recommend Gina Horkey’s course, 30 Days of Less to Freelance Writing Success. Her course is a MUST if you want to be a freelance writer. She’ll show you how to pitch, how to land clients, how to run your business, how much to charge and SO MUCH MORE.

Step 2: Start a blog. In order to get the best clients and grow your freelancing business, it’s a good idea to have a blog to showcase your work. I did not have a blog when I first started freelancing four years ago, however, I didn’t break into finance writing until I started my blog (even though I have a degree in finance). My blog proved I could write in finance even though I had never worked for a financial client before. You can use my tutorial here on how to start a profitable blog. For hosting, I use Bluehost and could not be happier with their service. Your blog “host” is where your blog lives, essentially. You have to pay for hosting in order to have a blog. Bluehost gives you a free domain name with your purchase, and if you use my link you’ll receive a special discount!!

Have an idea for a blog name?! See if it’s available here:

Step 3: Start pitching. I was sending out three pitches per day, but you can choose a number you are comfortable with. Pitching is something you are going to have to get used to if you want to freelance. Even top-earners in the industry still have to cold-pitch clients in order to keep up their workload or increase their earnings. It’s hard at first, but the more you do it the easier it gets!

So, that was my little mini-series on how to earn extra money this holiday season and how to start freelance writing. Basically, I want to break free from the mindset that you have to be frugal and scrape by. You don’t. But, you have to either do that or earn more money. And the only true way to make more money is to work smarter and start your own side businesses.

How to Make Money Blogging

If you get started blogging now (fall season), you could be making money by Christmas. However, making money blogging is not instant and it’s not easy. I made my first $100 after five months, and then consistently made an income each month after about 1 1/2 years of blogging. But, now I make over $3,000/month for very little time. It’s pretty awesome. But you have to get started!!! I encourage you to take that step now.

Bloggers make their money in four different ways: Ads, Sponsored Posts (this is where a company pays you to write about or mention their product/brand), Affiliate Sales (if I recommend a product on Amazon, for example, and someone makes a purchase, I would make a small commission at no extra charge to the buyer), and Product Sales (bloggers often create their own courses and ebooks to sell).

Here is my complete guide on how to make money blogging >>

Extra tip: Save money on shopping!

So, this isn’t a way to “make money,” but if you save money, that’s kind of the same thing 🙂 If you plan on shopping online, make sure to use Ebates to receive cash back on all your purchases, including Kohl’s, Macy’s, Nordstrom, JCPenney, Walmart and more!

And, just for signing up, you’ll receive $10 free after spending $25! Get started here.

What do you think? Do you prefer to earn more and work harder or spend less and work less? Are you planning on earning more money this holiday season? And how so?