Five Ways to Make Money Online Right Now

Life isn't just about saving money. First, you have to make it before you can save it. But, there may be times when your paycheck falls a little short and there's too much month at the end of the money. Now what do you do? You could take a part-time job, or deliver newspapers as an independent contractor (which I have done in the past. No, it is not fun.) OR you could use that time to make money online from your own home. How do you do that? I'm glad you asked!

I have used the following methods to make money online:

1. eBay. Yes, I still use eBay, and it's great when I need some fast cash. By fast, I mean within a week or so. If I need a quick hundred bucks for an unexpected expense, I know I can list my old action figures or comic books and sell the items relatively quick. On year, I sold a bunch of items on eBay, and then turned around and used the money to purchase Christmas presents on eBay as well. In the end, the gifts did not cost me any of my own money.

2. Amazon.com affiliate. If you have a web site or blog, you can enter into an affiliate agreement with Amazon.com to sell books which are related to your site. This hasn't been a huge money-maker for me, but every little bit helps.

3. Freelance writing. I write articles and blog entries for other web sites and blogs. Some of them give me free merchandise. Others pay me per article. I make a few hundred dollars each month through freelance writing. The opportunities are out there. You just need to look for them. Begin by posting to message boards on a topic which you are passionate about. You never know...the right person might see it and ask you to write for their site!

4. Google Adsense. Again, you need to have a web site or blog for this one, but those little Google ads on my blog do help generate some extra revenue. I just started with Adsense, so it's not much, but hopefully it will grow in time, and it doesn't require me to do anything but place ads on my site.

5. Craig's List. This site is good for placing free ads to sell larger items you can't sell or ship through an online marketplace like eBay. Think of it as your local classified ads. Got a bicycle you want to unload? Post it on Craig's List.com.