Getting Smarter

Earn a little - learn a little

We've all worked for a living - and it hasn't always been stress-free. Now's the time to put what you know to good use, working for yourself - as and when you like, with lots of fun and no stress.

Utilising skills Sewing (see house, above); knitting/crocheting - but to your own design - can be lucrative if you make contact with some up-market places/people.
Proof-reading/editing books keeps your mind active and lets you read things before anyone else gets a shot at it.
If you have an inventive mind, word-wise, enter competitions. Not a sure-fire way of making money, but the occasional prize brings a big boost.(I've won holidays, a washing machine, store vouchers, etc, for very little work. You get better with practice and it keeps your mind sharp.)
Running an exercise class for over-50s, teaching dancing (salsa, latin or ballroom) privately or at your local community centre.
Putting together flat-pack furniture for people who haven't the time or confidence to do it for themselves.
Baby-sitting: many people would prefer a reliable 'grandma' to look after their children of an evening, rather than some untried teenager.
Dog-walking gets you out of the house and is a good way to meet people as well as good exercise.
(For these last three, put up a card in your local newsagent's window)

Learning new skills Become a guide to places in your home town. You can join a group or make your own. Learn about the history of places familiar to you - it's fascinating.

Stardom You don't have to be a Justin Timberlake or Keira Knightly - in fact that would be a positive disincentive. Lots of films and television companies need ordinary-looking people as 'extras' for crowd scenes, etc. With no experience at all, you could be one of them.
And, as you gain experience, you might even get a one or two line 'speaking' part. What fun!
Ugly as sin? - there are special agencies which provide 'ugly' people for work in the above. Maybe even more work!!

'Look-alikes' - if everyone keeps mistaking you for someone famous, look up an agency which handles these. There's plenty of work, opening stores, etc, for a good look-alike.

If you have a great voice, or a distinctive one, you could be doing 'talk-overs' for advertisements.

Television quiz shows - not a certain chance of earning money, but great fun. Plus, it gives you a modicum of 'fame' and - let's face it - we're not going to become front page streakers at our age. ;>)

The possibilities are endless....

The wisdom of life consists in the elimination of nonessentials. ~ Lin Yutang

He is richest who is content with the least; for content is the wealth of nature. ~ Socrates

He who doesn't find a little enough will find nothing enough. ~ Epicurus

Wow! This is an impressive list. Here are a few of mine.
Entertainment
1. Hook up your TV monitor to your computer and enjoy free movies at any time.
http://www.hulu.com
2. Enjoy free podcasts, such as NPR music specials. Download them for free from itunes
onto your ipod
3. Sign up for free music broadcasts from Pandora. I have a great set of speakers attached
to my computer and listen to music throughout the house all the time.
4. Join a social networking site for free. There are thousands of topics to choose from.
5. Plant a garden and reap the harvest. Even if you have no outdoor space, plant pots of
herbs in your house.
6. Our public libraries have websites where we can download books and CDs. If you prefer
to read a real paper book, then you can sign up online to reserve the best sellers.
Check out your public library website.
7. Sometimes, I enjoy playing the slot machines, so I play the free virtual slot machines
on my PC.
Communications
1. Get rid of your landline and get a GoPhone. No contract to sign and you can buy
prepaid plans for your GoPhones.
2. Skype for free. If you need to call a land line, you can put $10 or less on Skype and call
anyone, anywhere.
Travel
1. Always ask the airlines if they need volunteers to change flights. Airlines are always
overbooking now. On our last flight from Panama City, we volunteered to be bumped
from our flight and we each got $300 vouchers, plus a better flight back to the states.
2. If you enjoy camping, you can camp for free in any National Forest in the USA. You
must not be camped within 100 ft. of a designated camping area, but the rest of the
National Forest is yours for the staking.
3. The best credit card for frequent flyer miles is CapitalOne. There are no blackout dates
and all you have to do is to book your flight, then they will deduct the price from your
CapitalOne credit card. We pay for EVERYTHING with our CapitalOne credit card, pay
off the bill monthly so we have no finance charges, and get free trips all the time.
Supplemental Income
1. I work part-time as an online professor. I can work anywhere as long as there is internet
service available.
2. If you have a skill you can teach someone, you can teach through Skype. You can
sign up to take classes, or teach classes through Skype. I discovered this one day
when I needed help after someone hacked into my website. There was a computer
security specialist on Skype that I could contact. There are dozens of small businesses
teaching English or another foreign language through Skype.
3. When I returned from living in Nicaragua, I had thousands of Pre-Columbian pottery
shards that I collected. I thought that I would use them to make mosaic frames for
pictures. One day, at a craft show, I saw coal chunk necklaces. They were just chunks
of coal, wrapped in copper wire with a chain. What a great idea for my Pre-Columbian
pottery shards. I now have a little business selling pottery shard necklaces that are
dated to be 800-1,200 AD.
4. If you are lucky enough to get a job with a university, there are many benefits. My son
completed his university studies with no loans. He received 50% off tuition because I
work for a university. I get free membership to the university Center for Physical Activity,
complete with pool, exercise classes, weight rooms, indoor track, etc. Plus my spouse
can go for free, too. Also, I can take one free class each semester. I'm taking a web
design class now. In the past, I took a Spanish class, a women's study class, and
a digital photography class.

Oh well, I guess you can both teach at a US university anyway, and also still be greedy for free goodies and an eschewer of the simple life.

Why 'greedy', Meddler? And one person's 'complicated life' is another person's rich and full one.

My husband taught me to distinguish between 'wants' and 'needs'. He said that as long as one's needs were fulfilled first, there was nothing wrong with adding wants to them - in moderation. It's only when we confuse these two categories that we become discontented.

go_2 here are three of my favorite websites that pertain to your post:

http://www.craiglist.com The barter section is hopping now-a-days.

freecycle yahoo groups for your city. The freecycle groups are only for giving away items.
When you join a freecycle group, you must first give something away, before you request a free item.

http://www.bookcrossing.com I love this website and use it often. You register a book you want to give away, then drop it off on a park bench, or in a department store, etc. You can print a bookmark for the new owner, and then the new owner can register the book and it can be tracked all over the world. I've released several books at airports and tracked them on their journeys.

Meddler's quote by Lin Yutang in context:

Besides the noble art of getting things done, there is a nobler art of leaving things undone. The wisdom of life consists in the elimination of nonessentials.

Still leaves room for the practicalities of life :-)

Edited by: Trota1

I am officially retired but am still trying to find ways of making money without really working to cover travel costs. Thank you for all the wonderful ideas that everyone is sharing. I am wondering if the free coach/bus tickets in the UK for those over 60 is for foreign visitors as well or just UK citizens?

Ways that I make some extra money are:

Seasonal work at a local gift shop.....just working 2 hours a night during their busy hour. For just a few hours its a fun time and I walk to work for exercise.

Recycling bottles and cans....our state gives 5 cents each. I do not go walking or for a bike ride without a plastic bag in my pocket.

A new thing I have just started is hosting short time student guests from a local ESL college. I have also done some on call work at the local head start preschool but those little kids were too much for me. :o)

Propagating plants and selling them at a local store. I recycle pots and potting mix from the local graveyard trash dump and get free cuttings and seeds from my garden so that there is little cost up front. My emphasis is on plants that are useful....eg. herbs, passion fruit vines

I love to read but do not buy many books these day except the occasional second hand book. Instead I take note of interesting new books I see at the book store and then order them online from my local library. Even if our local library does not have it they will send it from any other library in the state system.

I have cut and pasted onto a word document all the info. PM me with an email addy if you want it.

The deluding word above is "only", since allowing both categories always leads to confusion, and hence discontentment.

I presume this is what you have found, Meddler - and who am I to debate your life choices?
As for me, I'm happier and more contented than I've ever been in my life. My needs are fulfilled, and also some of my 'unnecessary' wants. (But then, I don't have very many 'wants'.)