This post is a part of Women’s Money Week 2012. For more posts about entrepreneurship and making money, see womensmoneyweek.com.

Each day this week, websites across the blogosphere are working to improve women’s financial literacy. Historically women have lagged  men in their financial knowledge. It does not need to be like this.

I am committed to helping women master their money.

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My Experiences with Entrepreneurship and Money Making Schemes

My dad was an entrepreneur from the time he was a young boy. I’ve had a plethora of money making gigs thoughout my life as well, starting with my Avon business as a teen on up to my current personal finance blogging gig and freelance writing. On top of that, I’m surrounded by successful entrepreneurs in my family. These models have been helpful, but not imperative.

Even if you’ve never met an entrepreneur in your life, you can make money on the side. Although it’s not easy, it’s no more difficult than achieving any other goal. Becoming an entrepreneur and making more money on the side is as simple as Leo Babuta of Zen Habits.com recomends in the article, How to Build the Muscle of Change. In short, any change can be made by starting small, regularly practicing the new habit, and increasing your efforts on a regular basis.

Where to Begin

After doing a quick Google search for the term “make money” and coming up with 424 million results, I realized that you don’t need ideas about how to make money. The methods to make money are plentiful and easily accessible with a click of your mouse.

In fact, the advice usually goes like this, find what you are passionate about and figure out how you can monitize it. Technologically oriented? Hire out to help others with their web sites and computers. Like to sew? Do alterations on the side. Good at basic math and English? Tutor others. Have lots of junk? Sell it on Craigslist and Ebay. Have extra blood or plasma? Why not sell it?

 This article will give you the framework to become a successful entrepreneur and as well as the mindset. All you need to do is insert your own idea(s).

Complete one activity per day and by the week end, you will be on your way.

Day 1; Get Started Immediately

 This is not a make moneyquick article, but a “get started now” article.

Do not wait until you are “ready” or your life is all organized before you start. Due to fear of failure, many of us procrastinate beginning new ideas until we have done oodles of research and considered all possible angles. This attitude is WRONG! There will always be more information to be gathered and more questions.

If you do not start immediately with your plan, you are wasting time. 

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Day 2; Review Your List and Choose a Project

Look over the 5 options for a few minutes. Talk you those close to you for some input. Spend a bit of time online doing a bit of checking. Input the idea in google search and see what comes up.

Remember, this is your project, consider other’s opinions, but don’t let them deter you.

Do a quick pros and cons evaluation for your favorite money making idea.

Choose the money making idea. That’s right. Choose the idea now.

You don’t need to do a ton of research before you begin. In fact, frequently, your first impressions tend to be the correct ones. 

Day 3; Get Started Today

No excuses. Get started.

If your idea is to sell your technology services, your child care services, your organizing services, your landscaping services, your painting services or more, put an advertisement on Craigslist TODAY.

If you are beginning by selling some old stuff, put advertisements up on Ebay and Craigslist.

If you decide to sell Avon or other products, order your kit today.

If you’re looking for a part-time job, fill out one application today.

If your plan requires a bit more start up work, do the next step today.

Overplanning, leading to procrastination, leading to never getting started does not work.

Day 4; Steal Yourself for Setbacks

The most successful people experience the most failures.

Embedded on the path to success are frequent setbacks and failures.

Don’t be surprised when they occur, be prepared.

Recognize that there is no winning without a lot of losing along the way.

Do whatever it takes to keep positive. Personally, whenever I experience a set back, I tell myself that I must be making progress and getting closer to my goal because having setbacks proves I’m putting myself out there.

Day 5; Formalize your next Steps

Sum it up; you have an idea or two and you have begun to put your ideas in action. Maybe you haven’t received any response yet, in fact, that is probably likely.

Today, spend 15 minutes making a to do list of the behaviors and activities you need to practice to get the cash flowing.

Day 6; Follow your Plan

That’s right, you know what you need to do. It’s not hard to outline the action steps. The hard part is continuing.

Do not wait until you are motivated to act. Motivation comes and goes, but behavior yields results.

Write down right here the next step you will take in your money making journey:

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Use this article as a simple blueprint for creating a money making plan.

Do not jump around from one idea to another. Give your chosen strategy time to work. The money rarely starts flowing immediately. But if you give up, it will never come in. Give yourself several months at the bare minimum to see some results.

Do not quit!

Women’s Money Week

I’m participating in Women’s Money Week next week. Women have historically been laggards when it comes to finances. This week is about encouraging women to speak up about money, take control of our finances, and reshape our financial future. Women’s Money Week will run from March 5th-11th, 2012 on WomensMoneyWeek.com — coinciding with International Women’s Day.

Following are a few of the participating blogs in Women’s Money Week (I’ll include a few more each day)

• Girls Just Wanna Have Funds
• Go Gingham
• Go Green Travel Green
• Golden Girl Finance
• Good Cents Savings
• Happy Homeowner, The
• Help Me to Save
• How to Have it All
• Inspiring Ventures
• I Will Teach You to Be Rich
• Kellyology
• Laura Vanderkam
• Lean Times, The
• Life and My Finances
• Little Miss Moneybags
• Making Sense of Cents
• Making Time for Mommy
• Meal Plan Rescue
• Michelle Barry Franco
• Minting Nickels
• MLISunderstanding
• Mo’ Money Mo’ Houses
• Modern Financial, The
• Mom Saves Money
• Mom’s Money Jar
• Mom’s Plans
• Money and Company
• Money Crashers
• MoneyCrush

 Write in with your money making idea and how you are getting started!

 Is Collaborative Consumption for You?

It wasn’t long ago when communities pooled their resources for the good of the group. Neighbors worked together to build a barn. In fact, the Amish still practice that communal approach today. I’ve been a suburban dweller my entire life and was raised to abhor waste. In spite of my upbringing I certainly don’t want to be perceived as a mooch. Here’s the conundrum; when I go out to buy a hedge clipper I cringe knowing I’ll only use it only once or twice per season. That same discomfort occured when I recently considered buying a 12 foot ladder to change a light bulb in our cathedral ceiling hallway. I decided to borrow a ladder from my generous neighbor, but am worried about what to do the next time a bulb burns out. (Although I did thank the neighbor with  box of treats.)

It seems that I am not alone. There are others out there with the same dilemmas. If it’s for lack of funds, or interest in the  sustainability of the planet, there is a growing minority who prefer to share resources instead of adding to the glut of stuff in our ever crowded world.

What is Collaborative Consumption?  

COLLABORATIVE CONSUMPTION

In a recent issue, Success magazine put out the revolutionary idea of sharing our resources. According to the article, the venerable Time magazine calls collaborative consumption one of the “10 Ideas That Will Change the World”.

The concept posits that it is better to share or rent than to buy.

As I drive to work at the University, I pass several “zip cars” parked in the lot for community members to rent on an “as needed basis.” If I was a university student and only needed a car on occasion, I wouldn’t hesitate to participate in this transportation sharing plan. Underscoring the popularity of this concept, RelayRides.com has joined the car sharing craze, with a twist. RelayRides allows those who have a car a means to rent their car to others. Imagine this, you can make money off of your car when you don’t need it.

Zimride.com is another take on the ride sharing concept. Need a ride from Virginia to Pennsylvania, but have no car? Check the Zimride site and see if anyone is making that trip. A guy driving from Richmond, Virginia to Harrisburg, PA is looking for passengers to share the cost of a trip and will take you along for a small fee. Going somewhere and want to defray the cost? Adverstise your trip and see if you can snare a paying passenger or two.

Like to travel, but hate the expense of hotels? Try out Airbnb.com, the world wide lodging sharing site. Find apartments, and homes across the world to rent or rent out your own space. Have an extra room and want to make some cash? List it on Airbnb. I first read about this concept when a guy was making extra money renting out everything, from his wife’s blender (she wasn’t too happy about it!) to a room in their home. It worked out quite profitably for him.

Skillshare.com is such an amazing concept that after visiting the site I want to jump in immediately and search for classes to take and teach. According to their site;

Learn Anything From Anyone. Our vision is to increase the global passion index by building a new world of education. Skillshare.com

 Swap.com is another opportunity to get what you want and get rid of your unwanted items. As in Skillshare.com, after visiting this site, I’m ready to dive in and give it a try. I need a new blender and wouldn’t mind trying out a bread maker. Next, I’ll have to look around the house for stuff to unload.

According to their website, The Swap.com Market is the world’s largest swap marketplace. Simply list things you have and things you want. If there’s something you want, you can use the stuff you have to swap for it. Don’t want to swap? Feel free to offer another form of payment.

Here are a few more ideas for those interested in making the world a bit smaller; Swishing.com offers clothes swapping parties for the UK readers. Visit their site for a list of the upcoming events. Thredupup.com is great for moms and dads who don’t want to add to the kids’ clutter. This site caters to parents who want to trade “anything kids” from toys to clothes. Parents, this one’s for you.

These opportunities are expanding quickly with several gaining venture capital to grow their models. Our world clearly is becoming smaller and smaller.

 Do any of these ideas resonate with you? Have you participated in collaborative consumption?

image credit; the facey family

Brian, the guy who cuts our grass began his conversation with me, “You look lovely today Ms. Friedberg.”

1. Great move to start with a compliment

Upon inquiring about Brian’s well being, he mentioned that he’s not doing too well due to his case of poison ivy.

2. Garner symathy

He went on to comment about the two big hideous brown patches in our yard where some trees were recently removed. Genially, he offered, “I have everything in my truck today to reseed the bare areas. I’m looking to offer you more services and help keep your lawn beautiful.”

3. Ask for what you want

How could I say no?

I was in a great mood, due to his initial compliment. Then, I empathized with Brian about his poison ivy. He set me up to say yes. When you are in a good mood, you tend to say “yes.” Needless to say, I agreed to the additional services. Brian made some extra cash that day, and I got some work completed I probably could have done myself for half the cost. Nevertheless, I was happy and so was Brian.

The Takeaway

I don’t think Brian went through this conversation off the top of his head. Brian had superior sales techniques, honed and practiced. He may have said to himself, I’m going to upsell every customer I see today and increase as many extra services as possible. We can all learn from Brian’s technique.

Have a success plan every day; make it specific, and detailed. Align it with your goals.

I doubt whether Brian sold extra services to every customer he saw that day, but if he succeeded with 50%, that may have yielded a few hundred extra bucks. Multiply that amount by 20 working days in a month, and he could double his monthly income!

Be a Success

There are opportunities to increase your income in every situation. By being a stellar employee and making money for your employer, you set yourself up for a raise. You don’t need to succeed 100% of the time to benefit.

Work for yourself? Set a big goal. Give yourself something great to reach for.

Improve your services, you will create additional income through excellent performance, and self marketing.

Set that goal. There are a group of bloggers taking the $30,000 Challenge, banding together to increase their blogging income this year. Whether they succeed or not, remains to be seen, but taking that pledge and setting the goal, is a step in the direction of greater wealth.

What commitment can you make to increase your income?

image credit; @Doug88888

INVEST YOUR EXTRA CASH TO GROW YOUR WEALTH

How to Make More Money Starting Now

In Part 1 of Enjoy Life and Make Money, I wrote, “One of the great challenges today is balancing your present needs and wants with those of the future.” I implored you to find out the things that make you happy and put your efforts in that direction. I went on to state that “wealth is an attitude.” If you are satisfied with your path, income, and lifestyle, you are wealthy.

But what if you want to grow your wealth more quickly? Creating some side money making gigs, to go towards saving and investing can beef up your net worth.

Today’s article touches on ways to make more money. I’ve found these “make more money” articles to be the most popular posts with my readers. And who doesn’t want more cash?

Here is an abridged list of some of my money making schemes;

• Sell lemonade
• Sell Avon
• Sell hand made shirts
• Provide tailoring for a shop (fired after one week)
• Provide individual career counseling
• Sell professional books
• Teach English in Spain
• Tutor students
• Blogging
• Sell items on Craigslist (which reminds me, I have an old bicycle gathering dust)

But, I want to go beyond the typical advice; “Find out what you are good at and then sell those services.” So in order to give you a really great and inventive list, I decided to do some hard hitting research!

Ways to Make More Money

In the fashion of great inventors, I’ve decided to steal a few great money making ideas from others, and repackage them for you; and add some of my own.

1. PT Money recommended Cashcrate.com, a clever company which claims to pay you for trying new offers. I cannot vouch for this system, but it certainly sounds like a good idea.
2. Elance.com offers online employment in a variety of areas. From their website, “If you have skills and talent and are seeking independent work online, Elance offers access to qualified clients, a virtual workplace and guaranteed pay for great work..” I’ve heard good things about this site from individuals on both sides of the trade, the sellers of services and the buyers.
3. PTMoney also reminded me of Fiverr. This is a really cool site where you can sell almost anything for five bucks. Now five dollars doesn’t sound like much, but if you create the product or service in a few minutes and sell it for $5.00 many times throughout each day, the money starts to add up.
4. Look for ads to be a focus group participant. I’ve tried this before and the pay is fairly good.
5. If you live near a medical center or research hospital, there are multitudes of research studies looking for participants. Sign up and get some free health care along with the cash.
6. Lawn care and baby sitting are frequently relegated to the younger set. If you have a lawn mower or are good with kids, put together some flyers and distribute in your district. Don’t forget to post some ads on Craigslist for greater visibility.
7. Tutors make big bucks if you are well educated and an articulate teacher. Every library or a Barnes and Noble coffee shop has men or women tutoring children in their basic subjects. Again, flyers (especially in the libraries) and Craigslist ads are great for marketing your skills.
8. Financial Highway had an abundance of methods to develop multiple income streams. This next one hit home as I spent $200.00 paying someone to haul our boxes away after we made our cross country move. If you own a truck and a strong back, consider hiring yourself out for debris removal. There’s lots of money in this one.
9. For you bloggers out there, this one has made the rounds; be a virtual assistant. There are thousands of people who work online or work remotely and have no assistant. Their days are filled to the brim with work and they frequently need some help. That’s where a virtual assistant comes in. If you’ve got decent communication skills, hire yourself out for any number of computer and related writing tasks. And there are no geographic limitations for this one.
10. Lots of folks have an extra room and would be willing to take in a room mate or just rent the room out to the occasional tourist. Now that type of money really adds up. Just make sure to screen your roomies well. After a quick online search, I came up with quite a few services which can help with process.
11. Do you like to write? ProBlogger Job Boards lists lots of writing and web related gigs. The more quickly you produce content, the more income you mke.
12. Retail is starting to pick up, with night and week end hours available. Take on a shift or two per week, get some store discounts, and boost your weekly pay.

Growing your personal wealth takes time and determination. Earn more, spend less, and invest are time tested strategies. For tips on investing your extra cash, sign up on right for my WEALTH TIPS NEWSLETTER and receive a free eBook; 20 Minute Guide to Investing.

Action Steps:

Get a notebook label it: “(your name) Personal Finance” and keep it by the computer. Use it for all of your personal finance goals, thoughts, activities, and plans.

1. List 10 ways to increase your income that are realistic.

2. Choose one money making strategy and begin this week.

 How do you define wealth?

How You Turned Your Passion Into Cash

Sign up on right to get free WEALTH TIP’s Newsletter, and FREE bonus eBook; 20 Minute Guide to Investing!

Welcome to Part 3 of this series.

If you are just joining us, don’t miss Part 1; “Why I Freelance”

And Part 2 of this series; How to Live Well if You Work in a Low Paying Field

A commenter from part 1 asked this question:

I’d love to hear stories of folks who monetize passions that people think “don’t pay.”  It might be a great “part 2″ (or 3 or 4).

Nick from Step Away From the Mall

The integration of “doing what you love” and making money is a popular topic. There’s lots of advice about doing what you love and the money will follow. Is this always true? What if the money doesn’t follow?

What if you are doing what you love and the money isn’t following. Need some motivation? Read on about how others are are making money from their passions.

Readers, let’s hear about your experiences about “doing what you love, and making money as well.”

We are particularly interested in those experiences which started without monetary expectation, and turned into a cash flow stream.

I’ll begin by talking about my story. I began blogging to educate others with my decades of personal finance and investing experience. I had no idea there was a possibility to make money from a blog. Initially, I assumed if enough people liked my work, I would get a book contract, and then I would make money.

Well, I’m still working on the book contract…. Any publishers out there?

In the meantime, I found a love of blogging, educating, interacting with others and lo and behold, I’m making some money. The income streams come from ads, freelance writing, and hosted content. I’m lucky, as my passion and work in the investing field is lucrative and my money habits have allowed our family to grow our net worth.

Yet, there are many stories of folks with average salaries who amass great sums through their passions.

What are your stories? Write in and inspire and learn from others.

Here are a few more success stories to get you started:

I’m currently in Seattle for a work trip. While strolling along the waterfront at Pike’s Market I met Pixie, an inventive vendor. She and her husband have taken a love of creating art and crafted a full time cottage industry. They make large artwork and sell it at their booth along the water. After sold, they shrink the image, encase it in plexiglass and create smaller pieces to be used as wall art, magnets, coasters or other. Their business is simple, creative, and supports their family of 3 (without a website).  Jr. Carino and I bought 4 small pieces to use as magnets and other decoration. Her shop is on the side of the water (west). Stop by when you’re in Seattle. The art is affordable, one of a kind, and really cool!

Pixie-Pikes Market, Seattle

Mark Riddix is studying the on line world and building quite an empire. He has a wealth of resources for you. Mark is a perfect example of determination.

Crystal of Budgeting in the Fun Stuff was so determined to become a full time blogger she quit her salaried job months ahead of schedule. Read about her strategies at How I Make Money Blogging.

Jessica Streit wrote about a fascinating opportunity as a “Sample Passer Outer”, over at Budgets are Sexy. She’s one of those friendly folks who gives out free yummy samples at supermarkets; and gets PAID FOR IT! It sounds fun and diverting. Maybe this could be your passion!

Need some ideas about how to find your passion? Check out LifeHack’s Susan Baroncini Moe’s article, How to Find Your Entrepreneurial Passion and Purpose.

Ordinary Traveler talks about his big break came, in spite of the naysayers. He never believed photography, surfing, traveling, and writing could become his livelihood.

Don’t miss Part 1 of this series; “Why I Freelance“

And Part 2; How to Live Well if You Work in a Low Paying Field

image credit; Ayham Al-Hamwi

Now, it’s your turn, write in and share HOW YOU MAKE MONEY FROM YOUR PASSION.

Forward this link to others for their input!! Let’s make the comments a huge list of SUCCESS RESOURCES.

And Barb Recommends Links

In Where to Get a Loan; Help I’m Really Struggling last week I wrote about peer to peer lending for those of you who need some extra cash. Many commenters asked about my experiences as a lender. Full disclosure, I started lending to borrowers through Prosper.com in October, 2011 so I don’t have too much history to report. As of January, 2012, my annualized investment return is 7.66%. This return is quite short term and not of too much value yet, but I’ll continue to update my results as time goes on.

Prosper advertises over 10% returns which includes a quantified default rate on some of their loans.

10.69% Returns With Prosper

Why Am I Lending? Like many out there, I’m looking for a higher return for some of my portfolio. In fact, like a banker, there is a possibility of 10.69% Returns With Prosper.

Why Prosper? I read about the concept many years ago, but not until I met one of the key employees and grilled him endlessly, spoke to another large investor, Peter Renton of Social Lending Network, and read through the SEC corporate documents did I decide to invest.

What is the risk of lending in this platform? A borrower might default and you lose your investment in that particular loan. The company might fall on hard times and you lose some of your investment.

How do I compensate for the risk? I only put a small amount of money in each loan. I invest in many loans to diversify the risk. Ultimately, I will invest less than 3% of our overall investment portfolio.

How does it work? You can either automate your investing, or read about each individual case and choose which loans to fund. Want to narrow your choices even more? Set specific parameters for your loans.

Investment returns? It is too soon to analyze my returns as my dollars have been invested slowly over the last 2 months. Check out Prosper’s site to read more about lending money with Prosper. For the thorough investors, there is a link to Prosper’s Securities and Exchange (SEC) legal documents as well!

Caveat, this is not a recommendation but an introduction to an investment product. Please consult your own financial advisor before considering any investment product. As stated in my disclosure, per FTC guidelines, this website may be compensated by companies mentioned through advertising, affiliate programs or otherwise.

Barb Recommends

“I always, always, always have a “Plan B”…and a “Plan C”.  I don’t believe that your income should depend on your job.” Sandy at Yes I am Cheap

After Len Penzo highlighted Sandy’s article, Stepping Out on Faith about her decision to quit a job where she was really happy with her co workers and many aspects of her job, I couldn’t tear myself away. I got very anxious on Sandy’s behalf as she described quitting her job without having another one in place. I read through every comment and finally, the above response reassured me. Sandy had a Plan B!!!

Budgets are Sexy divulges his new mindset, Gigs for Goals – This manner of thinking helps break down what you really want and how to fund it. If you think in terms of working to pay a specific bill or for a specific item, the effort may not be worth it. What do you think?

Farnoosh Torabi talks about HOW ANYONE CAN EARN $100.00 PER HOUR. Fascinating interview, replete with motivation for all you entrepreneurs out there.

My Dollar Plan gives a list of Free or Cheap Holiday Resources. Now who doesn’t want to save money?

How My Grandma’s Lumina Make Me Over 2 Million Dollars over at Soldier of Finance. If you have one piece of advice to take today, this is it!

A Curious Thing Happened to my Credit Score When I Took on Some Debt at Moneycone. Pay attention to your credit score, you don’t know who’s watching.

Are You Ready to be a Landlord? at Krantcents. I gave up personal landlording but still keep my hand in real estate with REITs.

Barb Across the Blogosphere

Expert Blogger, Findthebest.com,  How are Financial Advisors Compensated?

Wealth Creation Series, Interview with Barbara Friedberg at Financial Cactus

Guest article Green Tip, at Sustainable Personal Finance about the merits of Cloth Napkins

Bucksome Boomer included my Penn State Scandal post in her week-end round up

Len Penzo reminded the world of my faux pas in What Not to Wear to a Business Meeting

Carnival of Personal Finance in Personal Finance Journey published my article about True Wealth

Novel Investor featured Investing Rule #1; Know Thyself

What are your thoughts on the peer to peer lending format? Would you consider lending or borrowing?

Sign up on right to get free WEALTH TIP’s Newsletter, and FREE bonus eBook; 20 Minute Guide to Investing!

And don’t forget to pick up my RSS feed or email subscription and follow me on twitter so you get the word immediately. 

A method to grow your blog readership is to visit other blogs and comment on their articles. The theory behind that strategy, as I learned from the Problogger 31 Days to a Better Blog is that the more recognizable you are on line the more likely others will want to visit your site and read what you have to say. Krantcents has taken this strategy to the highest level and consequently is growing his readership quite substantially.

As I was visiting some of my favorite sites, Yes I am Cheap, My Multiple Incomes,  Budgets are Sexy, and Len Penzo dot com, I found a theme. Now, this theme is not new to me, but it got me thinking. There are a group of bloggers who choose to share their net worth, debt, and spending figures.

HERE’S MY SECRET; As a natural voyeur, I find this information fascinating. I am both amazed and curious about those who share this most sensitive data, and I can’t stop reading it! On top of that, I can’t help but compare my metrics to theirs. Sometimes I come out on top and other times, not so much.

My realization was that there are advantages and disadvantages of both sharing your personal financial information on line and reading about others who disclose this sensitive information.

Advantages

For the ones who put their information out there, I’ve heard it is motivating and serves to hold them accountable. That’s what Flexo of Consumerism Commentary shared with me during my Personal Finance Luminaries interview with him. For the bloggers sharing their earnings on line, it is a source of pride that readers enjoy their articles and advertisers support them.

For the readers of these financial disclosures, we get to peek inside others’ bank and debit accounts. This fulfills the prurient curiosity in us.

Disadvantages

With such transparency on line, there is always a possibility that some evil hacker will get access to someone’s identity or financial data and use it for themselves. If you use your own identity and share this personal information, it may be a bit uncomfortable when your boss, friends, and family have all of your financial statistics.

As a reader, you might feel badly if your net worth or blog earnings don’t measure up to those of another. After all, we all tend to compare ourselves a bit with others. This comparison might also cause you to neglect some responsibilities and devote more time and effort to blogging than is appropriate for your situation.

The Takeaway

In blogging as in life, watch out for the tendancy to compare yourself with others. You create uneccessary stress by worrying about the decisions and actions of those around you. Be mindful of your own goals and objectives and don’t be swayed either positively or negatively by what you read about others’ endeavors. After all, the only one keeping score is you!

What’s your secret take on this topic? Are you a financial voyeur? Or, what leads you to share your personal data?

image credit; photoshoparam Dan

BEST MONEY TIPS FROM PEOPLE LIVING THEIR DREAMS

Just out, you must read my latest Benzinga Brain Trust column, Advice for Investors, Informed by Ben Bernanke

These past 3 days I learned scores of tips from the top personal finance bloggers in the world and I want to must pass them on to you. I want you to live a wealthy life, personally and financially and I can help you do that. For the next week I am going to divulge a tip a day that, if taken, can lead you closer to your dream life and greater wealth.

In Part 1, I explained, ”You Can’t Do Everything, But You Must Do Something”

Part 3, instructs how to “Learn from Others“

TIP 2; The Most Successful Individuals Do What They Fear; The Power of Networking

“This is the first public speech I have ever made.” Lynn Truong, Wise Bread

I ran into Lynn in the airport on the way home and exclaimed how professional and polished her presentation was. I was shocked that this was her first public presentation.

Wise Bread ranks among the top comprehensive personal finance websites. Adorable and very pregnant Lynn Truong, one of their three founders, gave an inspiring presentation today with more than 20 “Ways to make Money from a Blog”. The breadth covered everything from selling advertising, promoting other products through affiliate ads, to selling products.

There is no substitute for relentless effort

When asked how she gave a most engaging and inspiring talk, her answer was simple, “I practiced over and over again.”

Even after hours of practice, that a newbie could deliver an address so entertaining and informative was completely impressive. Now, I’ve talked about doing what you fear a lot. And as I try to be quite disciplined in my writing, I worry that maybe this type of advice is too far adrift from core personal finance information. Yet, when I first started investing, in my mid 20’s I let my fears of stocks govern my first investments, choosing only bond investments initially. Because of those fears, I left a lot of money on the table that could have been growing and compounding over time had I studied history a bit more and put some of my savings into stocks.

Fortunately for me, I continued to study investing and finance and overcame my initial fears only to grow my net worth through balanced investing.

But the caveat for me was the same as for Lynn Truong, we both spent countless hours studying and practicing that activity we wanted to perfect.

Networking is So Scary Yet Can Yield Gigantic Rewards (Financial and Personal)

Since my days as a Career Counselor at San Diego State University, many years ago, I learned the power of informational interviewing. In fact, Richard Bowles,, the iconic author of What Color is Your Parachute recommends talking to as many individuals as possible when looking for a job in order to increase your mathematical probability of finding one.

How this works is that the more individuals you speak with about your hopes and dreams, the more chance you have of coming into contact with someone who can help you. This is a key approach in making contacts, making money, and reaching your goals. In short, that is what networking is all about. It works in job search, dating, entrepreneurship, and just about any endeavor where you can benefit from learning from others.
Here’s how doing the most scary networking worked for me at the Personal Finance Bloggers Convention (FINCON).

MY GOAL: I want to grow my blog and get a book on personal finance published.

STRATEGY: Meet and talk to as many people as possible that may be able to help me. And, figure out how I can help them too.

PROCESS: I made a decision that I was going to create a videotape of any personal finance blogger from the biggest names on down to the newbies which would offer excellent personal finance tips. This would help the public by giving them access to premier personal finance information and the individual bloggers by giving them exposure.

I also decided that I was going to introduce myself to as many bloggers as I could and tell them what I liked about their sites and ask them for tips and suggestions.

THIS WAS SCARY AND DIFFICULT.

OUTCOME: I met some of the biggest names in the personal finance blogging sphere and made some wonderful contacts and was able to offer them something concrete as well; a chance for additional publicity.

EXAMPLES: I sat next to Pat Flynn of Smart Passive Income, a real superstar and he was one of the most generous and expansive folks ever. Luke Landes, of Consumerism Commentary turned out to be more inclusive, warm and engaging than he was on the phone. And the multiple Plutus Award winner, J. Money from Budgets are Sexy came up to me and introduced himself. Talk about being magnanimous. I’ve been in awe of the owner of the Digiterati Life ever since before I began blogging, and she turned out to be willing to meet me for coffee and treated me like a long lost friend. Kylie Ofiu, author of 365 Ways to Make Money was more than happy to help me find a publisher for my book. Lazy Man and Money offered to help me with any tech questions I might have. Even the big television guest and author of Psych Yourself Rich, Farnoosh Torabi offered to speak with me in the future. And Tess Vigeland from American Media Marketplace suggested I call her after the conference was over. Jesse and Andrew of  Money Crashers were both warm, personable, and extremely open to collaboration.

There were scores of other bloggers I spoke with over the week-end and look forward to showcasing them in the future.

The Takeaway

Had I not forced myself to go out of my comfort zone and talk to all of these accomplished folks, I never would have had the opportunity to increase the reach of my site, develop contacts for future projects, and ask for help finding a publisher for my book.

It was hard, but I will keep you posted on how doing what I feared pays off.

ACTION STEPS:

Get a notebook and label it: “(your name) Personal Finance” and keep it by the computer. Use it to keep all of your personal finance goals, thoughts, activities, and plans.

• Make contact with someone who can help you with your personal and/or professional life. Ask them for advice and figure out a way you can help them too.
• Remember to send a thank you note after the meeting.

For a quick overview of Investing Strategies, pick up my FREE eBook; 20 Minute Guide to Investing (top right of the page). If you like what you’re reading, sign up for my RSS feed or email subscription and follow me on twitter so you get the word immediately.

What scary action have you taken that led to more wealth?

image credit; job4business

Just out, you must read my latest Benzinga Brain Trust column, Advice for Investors, Informed by Ben Bernanke

LIVE PERSONAL FINANCE LESSONS FROM  FINCON

These past 3 days I learned scores of tips from the top personal finance bloggers in the world and I want to must pass them on to you. I want you to live a wealthy life, personally and financially and I can help you do that. For the next week I am going to divulge a tip a day that, if taken, can lead you closer to your dream life.

Personally, I’m at a crossroads in my own life. I have more to do in my life than I can accomplish in the amount of time available. So, I’ll let you in on a secret, these tips are for me too, to help me organize my expanse of personal and financial aspirations.

Step back this week, and let’s work on our personal dreams and see if we can take a step closer to wealth in money and life.

TIP 1; You Can’t Do Everything, But You Must Do Something

“If you say yes to one thing, you automatically say no to another. And, conversely, if you say no to something, you free up time to say yes to something else.” Suze Orman

One of my favorite presentations was a top notch tutorial about “How to Create and Sell a Product” by Adam Baker of Man vs. Debt. Adam is a credible spokesperson as he completely transformed his life going from deep debt, selling everything, to a six figure income earned from his products.

Among his inventory of products is a multipart video series detailing how to get out of debt. His comprehensive advice included recommendations to poll your audience and test your ideas, basic market research so you are giving your audience what they want. He also talked about the psychology of pricing and how $99.00 is better than $100.00 and if you are going to charge $22.00, you can probably get the same amount of sales for a price of $29.00. The abundance of information went on and on. He is an awesome resource for Selling Your Crap and getting out of debt.

The presentation was awesome, products professional and high quality. And this system is a great money making opportunity for him. And, it reminded me that everyone has a niche. A niche is something you are great at for which people will pay! Although this was Adam’s niche and he was quite successful, and there were some excellent takeaways, the key message is this; INVENTORY YOURSELF and find your niche.

Carve out a few minutes, maybe during a break at work, or when the kids are napping, and think about your own situation.

• Do you have enough money?
• Do you have enough leisure time in your life to really enjoy yourself every day?

If not, realize that something has to change.

Here’s how to get started today.

ACTION STEPS:

Get a notebook and label it: “(your name) Personal Finance” and keep it by the computer. Use it to keep all of your personal finance goals, thoughts, activities, and plans.

Write out the answers to these questions:

1. What do you like about your money and lifestyle?
2. What do you want more of?
3. What do you want less of?
4. Write down 3 actions you need to take to better your situation.
5. Put in your planner how and when you are going to get started. (For example, if you’re in debt, visit Man vs. Debt; if you need to learn about investing visit Oblivious Investor and check out his blog and books.)
6. Get rid of the activities that won’t get you where you want to go.

Decide how you want to focus your own time and energy. Use what you read to inspire and motivate you to action on your own goals.
No one is excellent at everything, but everyone has a talent and a dream.

Stop by next time for Part 2, The Power of Networking.

And don’t miss Part 3, Learning from Others

For a quick overview of Investing Strategies, pick up my FREE eBook; 20 Minute Guide to Investing (top right of the page). If you like what you’re reading, sign up for my RSS feed or email subscription and follow me on twitter so you get the word immediately.

What is your success dream?

image credit; anshumm.com

& Side Hustle Round up

News Flash; I’m nominated for a Plutus Award in the Best New Ebook Category for my ebook 20 Minute Guide to Personal Finance (download for free on the right)!! Please vote for me here! Don’t delay, voting is only open for a few more days.

I was inspired by this CNNMoney Side Hustle Series to discuss ways folks are adding to their income. In addition toways to make extra cash, it seems my readers are really interested in “How to Get Rich,” as illustrated by my 2 most popular posts this month:

14 Traits of the Rich, How Many do You Have?

Get Rich, Develop 4 Wealth Habits

The ways to make extra cash are only limited by your imagination and those that amass wealth over their lives are regularly thinking about creative ways to make more money. In fact, spend some time brainstorming and I’m sure you will come up with a few yourself. Here are some of the ways I’ve made some extra cash over the years:

• Sold Avon
• Sold books
• Invested in real estate
• Lemonade stand (well, haven’t tried this one in a few years )
• Career Counselor
• Blogger
• Garage Sale
• Author
• Sold on Craig’s list
• Taught English in Spain
• Made and sold hippy shirts
• Invested in dividend paying assets

For those creative types, Etsy offers a great opportunity to make some extra cash. In fact, a friend of mine has an adorable shop, Never Ending Knits. She showcases her knitted products and offers them for sale. It’s like having your own online store, only much easier. If you’re in the market for some knit wear, or want to see a college student’s side hustle, stop by Amy’s shop!

More Side Hustle Ideas From Across the Web

Sustainable Personal Finance-Making Money Online – 4 Decades of Deals

My Multiple Incomes–Selling Online for Income

The Penny Hoarder-How to Make $750 a Month Selling Used Books

Narrow Bridge-How I Make Money Online – Part I and Part II – A look at my successes and failures generating income on the Internet

Mom’s Plans-My Experience as a Virtual Assistant

Totally Money-Make Money From Your Clutter

Frugal Confessions-Free Oil Changes for Life: My Experience with Mystery Shopping

My Personal Finance Journey-Ebay versus Amazon-part 1

Smart Family Finance-Optimizing Your Savings Account: How to Earn Interest Like You Have Money Even When You Don’t

Master the Art of Saving-Go Ahead….Take a Peek!

Stoopid Success-How to Make Money with Sponsored Posts

How I Make Money Online – Part I and Part II – A look at my successes and failures generating income on the Internet

Now, go on and count up the number of money making strategies listed, there really are 25!

Add to the conversation, how have you made extra cash?

image credit; dan olean