With the holiday season approaching and money already being tight due to inflation, today’s blog post is going to be about the easiest ways to make some extra cash….while chronically ill. The stress of money troubles and any stress, in general, can have a hand in pushing you into a flare-up. Click here to read up on “Stress and Autoimmunity” and how stress can affect your autoimmune disease.
So this year let’s start early and have a stress-free holiday season! Living with chronic illness means you have to find ways to work with your chronic illness instead of against it. Planning and looking into the future is always a place to start when it comes to living a stress-free life.
I’ve started multiple online “side hustles” to make some cash for the holiday. I’ve found a list of ways that brought in a decent amount of money and don’t take up a lot of my time. During my search for the easiest and most effective ways to make money I came across a long list of options that just weren’t worth it to me. The first option that popped up first every time I searched surveys for money. It was intriguing and sounded easy but after an hour of taking a survey, I got a few cents. Which doesn’t mean taking surveys and getting money in return isn’t possible. I just didn’t find it worth hours of my time after finding 4+ ways to make actual “quick” cash.
Here are my favorite ways to make some quick cash on the side that are chronic illness friendly! Keep in mind some of these are ways to make money from nothing and some are off your old junk you don’t want!
Facebook Marketplace
Selling old furniture, workout equipment, children’s clothing, electronics, etc. has never been easier. Until I tried selling on Facebook marketplace for myself I thought it was a waste of time and no one would want to buy my junk…but boy was I wrong. The only con to the Facebook marketplace is having to meet people or give them your address. I recommend only meeting at your local police station(when possible) for safety reasons. Other than that I love getting cash for old junk around my house. It takes five seconds to snap some photos and post a listing. Give it a try if you haven’t already sold before on Facebook marketplace.
You can waste time on Facebook by dealing with the wrong buyers. I have created sort of a mental checklist to weed out scammers and people who have no intention to buy “now.” My best piece of advice is someone who knows that what you’re selling is a good deal, and really wants the product WILL immediately buy and not ask a million questions. Just keep that in the back of your mind and it will be very easy to avoid wasting time talking to potential “buyers” who actually had no intention of buying your item in the first place.
Facebook marketplace can be super useful for selling old things just laying around your house if you know how to not get your time wasted!
Here are a few best practices that will help you sell the fastest:
- Join all the groups you can in your area
- Take photos from every angle and in good lighting
- I only accept cash (cashapp or Venmo payments can be disputed so I find it best practice to not even allow that to be a possibility)
- Meet at the police station if possible
Mercari
Selling old clothes and shoes is an easy way to make some cash off things just sitting around your house. I ended up finding 180 pieces of clothing. I listed them at $12 apiece. After mercari took their share I made a little over $10 off each piece. Why I don’t mind mercari taking a percent of the money is because of how easy the app is to use, you can schedule a mail pick-up from your mailbox, and it clears out closet space from unwanted clothing I would never touch again. I like mercari more than Facebook marketplace just due to the fact I don’t have to meet anyone out or give my address out to a stranger. And you avoid the people on Facebook marketplace that just want to waste your time. On mercari someone just buys the item and you ship it out, it’s that easy!
If I haven’t convinced you already to sell on mercari. Maybe one of the most random items I sold will help convince you to start selling your junk now. I once sold a partially used Victoria Secret perfume for $10. I didn’t think it would sell, it was several years old from when I still used products like that. I had used it a few times and just didn’t like the scent….it sold in 15 minutes. And I got a five-star review for that purchase!
Click here to use my link to sign up. If you use my link we both have the opportunity in receiving a bonus when we both sell stuff!
Etsy
If you’re crafty, give selling on Etsy a chance. You never know what the market for your niche product could be until you try. I’ve sold resin ashtrays, t-shirts made with my circuit, customized tumblers, and slime. Esty has always been a nice way to make a little spare change on crafts I would be doing either way.
Ideas of stuff to sell on Etsy:
- paintings
- drawings
- jewelry
- vintage items
- home decor
- sewing patterns
- candles
- digital designs
How I get the most sales possible on Etsy:
- Offer multiple payment options
- Write a good About page
- Maximize tags on listing (don’t repeat tags, use relevant tags, and use similar tags to your target keyword)
- Write detailed product description (Put your keywords throughout, include dimensions, estimate production time and shipping, be as detailed as possible)
Fiverr
Fiverr is a versatile place to sell if you are a writer, graphic designer, video editor, video animator, etc. Setting up a fiver account takes less than 15 minutes. I will say I’ve only personally had a few sales on Fiverr…But that’s not my main side hustle and making $50 bucks from the comfort of my couch is nice!
The options of what you can sell on fiverr are really endless I’ve seen listing for love letters. So I’m sure everyone could think of at least one thing to sell. It’s worth a try! I offer SEO services and things in that niche and I’ve made some good side money.
Of course, there are more passive ways of making money like amazon dropshipping. Most of the options I’ve already gone over are passive but my favorite way of making a 100% passive income is digital items I create one time. The options of digital products you can sell online are endless like digital kid’s books, planners, mini-guides, etc. Making products like a planner or a book is a one-time thing that I’m able to sell an unlimited amount of times and make money while I sit on my couch at home. Sounds nice right? Click here to read up and learn more!
I haven’t stepped foot into the world of drop shipping personally but a handful of my friends swear by their side hustle of dropshipping. If you’re interested and want to know more click here to check out an article that goes over dropshipping 101.
These are the best ways I’ve found to make side money while chronically ill that are worth your time and pay well. Of course, there are loads of ways to make money online. Leave a comment below with the best side hustles you can do at home!
