The next time your DVD player, refrigerator, calculator, or digital camera starts acting up, find the users manual online to troubleshoot the problem.

If you’re brave, you can discard all of your paper manuals to reduce clutter and still have a go-to source for manuals when you need them.

1. Freelance Writing

You don’t have to have a degree in English or Literature to become a writer. You also don’t have to quit your day job to write full-time. Free-lance writing is a legitimate way to earn a little extra income each week.

You will probably not become rich, and you probably won’t be able to quit your day job, but if you are looking for a little extra income, and you have a little spare time each day or week, then you have the potential to earn.

There are two ways to earn money with freelance writing.

You can sell articles to websites and blogs, or you can sign up with a freelancing service to find writing jobs.

Web content such as informative articles, product reviews, short stories, etc. are in need for website managers who lack the time needed to maintain their site. Sites like DigitalPoint and SitePoint allow you to sell your articles to them, on any subject you feel like writing about.

Instead of trying to sell your articles, you can sign up with services such as Freelance Home Writers to find writing jobs. These sites work by allowing publishers to post a writing job and allow writers to bid on the work.

The process is simple. You simply search for the jobs you are interested in, put in a bid (how much you want for the job), get the job, write the content, submit it to the publisher, and then get paid.

Freelance writing will not earn you mega-bucks, but you will be able to earn enough to pays a few bills or simply have a little cash on hand for entertainment.

2. Selling things on Ebay.
Ebay allows for you to sell anything and everything through their site. The benefits of Ebay are that it is a very established website with millions of viewers and customers.

Finding items to sell on Ebay is simple too. Many people spend a little time each week going to thrift stores, resell stores, and yardsales picking up small goods to resell on Ebay.

If you don’t want to do the searching for items, look through your own belongings for items that will sell on Ebay.

Collectors are always looking for what may seem to you the most insignificant item to add to their collections. Clothing, in good condition, especially vintage, sells very well on Ebay. You can sell old dvd’s, music, and books too. College books are easy to sell. Selling your textbooks through Ebay will often earn you more money than if you sell your books back to your university.

3. Online Tutoring
If you are a college student and need extra cash, you might find that the easiest way to earn is through online tutoring. Companies like e-Tutor, SmartThinking and Tutor.com allow you to teach others and in return get paid for your services.

If you enjoy helping others learn, are especially good at certain subjects, and have a little time each week, this can be a viable option for earning extra money online.

4. Give Computer Lessons
If you know a particular computer program especially well, you have the potential to earn money by teaching others the same program. Most everyone who uses computers these days understands the basic programs, such as MS Word, but other programs such as Adobe Photoshop, are less understood.

If you are a pro with a particular program that others want to learn how to use, you can advertise your expertise and offer to teach others.

You can advertise through craigslist.org, backpage.com, or your local paper. If you are a college student, you can also advertise in your university’s paper to attract local students.

5. Become an Online Juror
Lawyers often need practice with their cases or want to do case studies of their cases before they actually go to trial.

Websites like TrialJuries.com and eJury.com allow you to sign up to be an online juror and in exchange, you receive payment for your participation.

Lawyers will present their cases to the jurors they choose, and you will examine evidence and testimonies through transcripts, audio tapes, or videos and then, just like in a real jury, you will provide a verdict.

It’s a relatively simple way to earn extra cash. There is no guarantee that you will be selected for one of the online juries, but if you do, then the earnings are simple and not too time consuming for you.

Whether you are a college student looking for extra income to purchase textbooks, or you are a full-time working in need of a part-time job for extra income, there are opportunities available online which are not scams and can actually allow you to earn extra money.

“No one wants a physical, but we all need one now and then, just to keep tabs on our well being. Your finances deserve nothing less, and determining your net worth is a good first step. It’s all about keeping track of your overall financial health.

NetworthIQ™ is a social personal finance manager designed to make monitoring your net worth easy and, dare we say it, maybe even fun. Heck, it’s even FREE!”

I get an idea in my head and I act without thinking it through. I come up with an idea of how to make money and try to run with it, without acknowledging that I have neither the skills or time to actually be successful with that idea.

I see a product advertised and buy into it quickly. I am enticed by the false promises of quick riches from lottery tickets and scratch offs. I find myself longing for a new household item, one which I can use in the kitchen to create lovely and cute desserts, even though I rarely have the time to cook.

I’m impulsive. There, I said it. This is a lot of the reason I find myself without money so often. I save a $20 here and there, then blow it here and there impulsively. At the grocery store, at the mall, at the gas station, online, etc. I’m impulsive and have a hard time holding on to my meager savings.

Learning to be less impulsive is difficult. But possible. I constantly struggle to become less impulsive and more responsible. Here’s a few ways I keep myself under control (at least, sometimes.)

1. Lists

Where ever I shop, I take a list with me and stick to my list. If I”m going to the drugstore for toiletries and miscellaneous items, I take my list. What do I really need? Deodorant, shampoo, conditioner, toothpaste, toilet paper, and a box of crackers. I pull out my list as soon as I enter the store.

I avoid looking at anything in the store unless it is on my list. If I’m shopping for toilet paper, I go directly to the toilet paper aisle and avoid the magazine aisle. I do the same for each item on my list.

Once I’ve filled my basket with the items on my list, and only the items on my list, I go directly to the check out counter. I do not pass go, I do not collect $200. I simply force myself to go checkout. I do not allow myself to browse.

Once I make it to the check out counter, I avoid looking at the impulse shopper paradise that litters the check out area. I look directly at the cashier (without appearing creepy) and no where else. I stay focused. Check out, pay, and leave.

You’d be surprised what you can manage to do, or not do, when you carry a list.

2. Stay off of shopping websites.

Amazon, Ebay, and similar shopping sites are evil. They are there to tempt you. Avoid looking and you will avoid buying.

If you find yourself on one of these sites, and can’t resist the urge to add the item to your shopping cart, then do so. Add it to your cart or wish list. Once you do this, get off the computer immediately.

Go outside for a walk, go make some coffee and flip the channels on the television for a while, do anything that will remove you physically and mentally from your computer.

Often times, just taking the time to think it through will be enough to curb your impulses. I find that if I will simply get off the computer and do something else, I eventually come to my senses.

Simply going elsewhere online is not sufficient. Just switching from Amazon to Facebook will not work. If you are still at the computer, you will still be thinking about the item you found on Amazon that you must have. You are also allowing yourself to be too close to the item of impulse. Get away from the computer entirely and you will be able to disassociate with the impulse much easier.

3. Don’t carry around your extra cash.

Carrying around extra cash, that you don’t actually need, will only result in you spending it impulsively.

If you are going to the gas station to fill up your Prius, then only take the amount of cash you need to do this task. Putting $25 in the tank? Then don’t leave the house with more than $25 in your pocket. Purchase what you need and only what you need. Don’t let an extra $5 in your pocket be tempting.

4. Don’t carry credit cards.

I could go on and on about this one, but the principle is simple. Don’t carry money that you don’t have. Credit cards are money that you don’t have. Don’t bring them with you when you leave the house.

They are too tempting when you are strapped for cash. Need that new blockbuster movie but don’t have an extra $20 in your pocket? Then you don’t need to buy the movie. If you don’t have your credit card with you, then you won’t be able to buy this movie impulsively.

These are just a few tips for avoiding impulsive buys. Do they always work for me? No. But do they help? Absolutely. I’m still working toward becoming less impulsive, it’s a daily struggle. But it’s easier if I do these things. Maybe these tips can help you too.

And remember, that money you didn’t spend on an impulsive buy – put it into a savings account immediately. Get it out of your reach. Deposit it and forget it. You will be happy later that you did this.

Sell Stock photography online

Write online and sell your work
If you are good at writing, you can sell your work to online sites that need it. Web articles, short stories, creative writing, magazine articles, etc. All of those are in need for online sites. English and literature classes weren’t just for a GenEd credit.

Be a tutor
You rock at physics. Do you know how many students in pre-med are struggling with physics? Do you know how many students in the architecture program are struggling with their physics and math classes? Offer your services, get paid to get them higher grades. Maximize your earnings by charging a small fee to several students and hold a study group session.

Take odd jobs
Have a friend who’s moving from the dorm to an apartment? Does he need helpers for moving? Do you like children? A lot of students are single parents who might need an inexpensive baby sitter while they attend classes at night. Check out your university’s daycare center to see if they have any students who need a baby sitter.

Fixer-Upper
Repair computers “Yes! I will fix your computer…for a small fee.” Can you make the dripping stop in the dorm room bathroom? Maintenance still hasn’t fixed it and it’s driving the students crazy. Those drafty windows in the dorms aren’t conducive to productive study habits in the winter…can you fix them?

Clean sorority houses/frat houses
All those parties, all that mess. Offer your cleaning services to keep these houses tidy.

Model for the art department
Those art students, how strange they seem at times. Nude models are always needed for art classes. You can get a flat fee for a few hours of posing. You took those clothes off the other night at that party, remember? Well, do it again, this time sober, and get paid for it.

Sell your class notes
Good at taking notes and creating study guides? Well, others aren’t. You can sell these things multiple times if the price is right and the quality is great.

Be creative. Think of what students need and how you can give it to them…for a small fee. You’d be surprised how quickly all these little fees can add up for you.