I've always had an entrepreneurial spirit. As a kid I sold other kids "bicycle insurance". The insurance got them a flat tire fixed without needing to buy a patch kit or to do it themselves. I'm pretty sure I stole that idea from Triple A. In high school I created hand-painted sweatshirts that my mom would sell for me at her job at the Post Office. As an adult, I've always been interested in art and became an art teacher years ago before I started working as an administrator in higher education.Art is one of those things I can lose myself in. Time seems to fly and I won't even notice or remember to eat lunch or dinner. A few years back, I started selling things on Etsy. I find a lot of happiness when I am creating something for others. It wasn't until I ventured into the world of graphic design while working at a university in Nevada that it all made sense.
Graphic design is something that people use or see everyday and these days, more and more people request the services of a designer. I took notice of this last year when a graduate student I supervised talked about how she was getting so many clients as a freelancer that she was struggling to keep up. That conversation spawned more discussions over the next couple of years and with a lot of thought and consideration, I took the plunge and entered the world of freelancing with my site Diablo Design.
Taking something you love and figuring out a way to make money doing it is something that can help you get out of debt. I've had friends ask me how I find time to do all of these things and work my full-time job. The answer is that I'm motivated. Motivated to be out of debt and motivated to make money to pay my bills on time. Motivated to have money in my pocket to do more things for fun.
Not everyone has an artistic talent to do something like this but they probably do have a talent that others are willing to pay money for. Have you ever given any consideration to what service you might offer someone? Your talent may be proofreading. There are tons of people out there looking for that type of service. You might have a knack for writing and really enjoy sharing your words with others - you might want to share your writings by doing some self-publishing like the a friend of mine has done (she's now on her second book - Go Tumika!). Are you a person who's handy on a sewing machine? Spread the word that you know how to do a few things with needle and thread. Perhaps you're an awesome baker. Bake those cakes and pastries and sell them! The list of talents is seemingly endless.
I remember how my grandmother hustled. She sewed. She baked. She catered events. She used her talents and her personality to sell things she could make and she never had a full-time job that I knew of. Those things she would sell were her full-time job!
How does someone get started? Like Nike says, "Just do it". You start by telling friends that you have services to offer. You tell co-workers. You get on social media and scatter your skill set across the world wide web. You take risks. Not financially that is - that's how we got into this mess as it is but you can do what you can with the means you have available. The rest is all "learn as you go".
When I first started out back in 2002, I felt as though anyone with a serious passion to sell services had a website. I spent money on this (years ago) and failed. You can't be afraid to fail. You have to believe in yourself and in your talents that you will succeed. And you have to repeat to yourself that you must succeed in order to pay off debt. At least that's what I told myself.
Take some time and consider what services you have to offer to others. Is it something you'd be willing to pay for yourself? Is there a demand? Who is your audience? Here's a great article on this very topic that may give you even more insight on how to begin.
I'd love to have a full-time career as a graphic designer and be my own boss. I'm working on getting closer to that dream. For now, I'm working on getting closer to being debt-free.
Educate. Empower. Economize.
