Source: Flickr

It has been quite the cold winter so far throughout the whole country, specifically in the northeast.  Coming from NY and going to school in PA I am used to frigid temperatures and an abundance of snow during the dark months.  I never have even really minded cold weather, I actually look forward to it, it helps me appreciate the summer months when they come.

Now the past two weeks its been freezing down here in the DC area, something I wasn’t expecting when I first moved down.  And with wind chills putting the temperatures in the teens, I’m getting sick of it quickly.  We even had the highest snowfall in 40 years a few weeks ago.  Considering it never snows down here, all I had were two dust pans to scoop up the snow to clear out my car, not fun at all.  It’s something I haven’t had to do in awhile.

After reading Centsible Life’s post on how she hired kids to shovel her driveway so she could spend more time with her family and getting stuff done around the house, it made me chuckle and think about my own childhood growing up in NY in the winter.

I used to love when it snowed as a kid growing up, because I would get to shovel it.  No, I didn’t look forward to my parents forcing me to shovel my own driveway, but after I was complete with that I became my own little entrepreneur.  either by myself or with a friend I would walk around the neighborhood trying to get hired to shovel someone’s driveway.  I did my research and would target the elderly in the development, who sometimes even if they had a plow scheduled to come would cancel it just because they could not resist a cute kid.

I would negotiate although t his is where I struggled, I never knew the appropriate dollar amount to ask and felt bad trying to get as much as I could.  I usually would charge $15-$20 and with one other person, would work hard to get it done fast.

Three houses shoveled later in the day, I would be completely exhausted, and more importantly $60 richer give or take.  That was a lot of money growing up, a solid days work.  Not just that, it really was hard earned money, something that really taught me the value of hard work and what it takes to make a buck.  I don’t remember if there was something specific I saved for or just wanted to have extra spending cash just in case, but I can assure you I didn’t just throw it away.

Now that I’m older I miss those snow filled days, and snow now becomes more of an inconvenience than anything else and I hope the kids today still take some time from the computer and PS3 to try to work hard and make some money on days that it snows a lot.  Because it really can be a kids financial dream.

Did you used to shovel snow as a kid?

Source: Medic999

About the Author: Joel is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ that has founded and managed 5 startup companies. Some of the projects he is working on now within one of his web publishing startup companies include websites for comparing credit card offers, searching for car insurance, and comparing health insurance providers.

If you have ever run a young and creative start-up company or have ever even spoken with anyone who has run a young and creative company then much of the culture was likely dominated by two words: getting funded. Raising money from outside investors is one of the primary focuses (if not THE primary focus) of almost every start-up company, especially technology companies, but should searching for outside investors really be something that is a priority for most early stage companies?

I say no. N-O. “NO” in all capital letters.

With the increasingly low cost options for bringing products and services to market via the Internet, the dampening effect on creativity that outside investors can often bring into a young company, and the added pressure that outside investors will bring I believe that often chasing after outside investment can not only do real damage to a young company by wasting time that is better spent on doing other things but do even worse damage if that goal of outside investment is actually realized! Let’s take a look at some of the reasons why I believe that in most cases small start-up companies should just quit trying to raise capital all together and instead focus all of their time and effort on building their business.

#1 Building an Internet Business CAN BE Cheap

If you are attempting to start a company that sells auto parts or weaves sweaters by the crateful or any other type of business that needs a large warehouse or has some other type of very capital intensive need then you can disregard what I am about to say because your company is the exception to this point about starting a business for cheap (although maybe you should start out by outsourcing…?). For the other 99.98% of startup companies I believe that if you took a good hard look at what your business model is that you can likely bootstrap yourself to launching a very meaningful test of your business model on the Internet for much less than you might think.

Why give up a large chunk of your company just for extra cash to spend on 6 web developers, 3 sales people, and a CFO when you could keep 100% ownership of your company by testing your business model out with 2 web developers, 1 sales person, and a paid by the hour CPA? Sure, you (the founder) may end up filling multiple roles at first before you can generate enough money to expand and hire more people but isn’t that better all around? With full control of your company you can test out what works and what doesn’t as you cheaply bring your beta idea to the market instead of having outside investors constantly breathing down your neck who you may or may not agree with when it comes to running the company.

Things like Amazon Web Services, Elance, and Odesk all make it very easy, very cheap, and very scaleable to bring your business idea to the mass market. Sure, you may end up not being able to afford to crank out every single feature that you would like to when you first release your beta version of your website but just focus on getting your product/service out there and in front of potential customers and then test, test, test (when I built my credit card offers website it was never a “build it and be done with it” line of thinking but rather an iterative development process that has me even now constantly refining features and adding totally new features like a comprehensive credit card FAQ section of the site – much like BudgetPulse is constantly adding cool new features to their core product like their recently released new savings goals functions).

#2 Outside Investors can be a Creativity Killer

When you take on outside investors into your company, yes, you are certainly getting an influx of cash but you may or may not be getting an influx of experience as well. Like it or lump it, your company that you have obsessed about, dreamed about, and poured blood, sweet, and tears into – “your baby” now has more than just you controlling it.

If you take on outside investors that are seasoned industry veterans then you may just find that they have some great ideas for growing your company. What you may also find is that those outside investors are most interested in one thing and one thing alone: getting a great return on their investment – sooner rather than later.

You may think that “your baby” is better off being launched after a full quality review while your outside investors that are hungry for a quick buyout demand quick results. It’s one thing to concentrate on bringing your product/service quickly to market but its quite another to be rushed by hurried investors who may or may not understand the creative underpinnings of your company and what your goals for the company’s future really are.

#3 Outside Investors = Pressure

Outside investors can not only stifle creativity by pushing for a quick return on their investment but outside investors can just add an extra layer of pressure all around. It not only takes quite a bit of time in most instances to find an outside investor but it can also take a good bit of time to manage your outside investors. Time that should be spent on building your company is instead spent answering phone calls, sending emails, and meeting face to face with your outside investors to discuss new hires, sales reports, progress reports, revised budget estimates, etc. There can be enough pressure inherent with starting your own company and making it successful without adding the extra dimension of pressure that comes from accepting money from people who very much want to see that money quickly turn a profit.

Is ALL Outside Investment Bad?

Every company is different and I certainly am not trying to make the point that it is always a bad thing to do to raise capital. However, before you get sucked into the “I must seek outside investors before I start my company” mindset that is prevalent among many startups I would challenge you to take heed to the 3 points mentioned above and see if you might be able to launch your startup while still owning most of or even all of your company.

By Mala Lal

Note:  These are not suggestions that should replace a full time job.  And if you find yourself collecting unemployment, federal law states that this income be reported to your unemployment agency.

As the holidays are approaching, you might find yourself searching for ways to make a few extra bucks this year.  While Thanksgiving hasn’t hit yet, I am already thinking about Christmas.  Here are some ways you can find that extra money when you need it.  Happy working!

1. Pay cash.
When I shop for groceries, I take the cash I have budgeted for week to spend.  This keeps me on budget and my kids see me pay for groceries without the swipe of a card.  Any cash that is left over goes into “the jar.”  By doing this all year, I stay within my grocery budget but also create a budget for my Christmas, birthday, anniversary, and vacations.  I do allocate some money to these expenses, but the bulk of it comes from the jar.  Every month I empty the jar and put the money into a separate interest bearing account at the bank.  I make extra money by making my money work for me.  I cut coupons for the grocery store and try to stay away from name brand processed foods so I can pay myself for being a savvy shopper.  You don’t have to have an extra job to make money, you just make your money work for you and reap the benefits of being an excellent shopper.

2. Recycle.
Aluminum is not only recyclable, it is worth money.  Collect aluminum cans from your school, your house and others without having to put on a suit.  You may feel like a trash digger, but think about the money you can earn while helping the environment.  It also can help you reduce your grocery bills.

3. Hidden talents.
If you are an excellent typist, advertise your services near a college campus.  You just might find someone who is willing to pay you for your speed because it will save them time.  Another hidden talent might be valuable for someone’s big day.  As a vocalist, for a long time I would sing at friend’s weddings.  That was my gift to them.  If you have a talent for calligraphy, are a musician, or simply have something that is admirable, try advertising for it.

4. English is power.
Thanks to a website for freelancers, I have been able to make some extra money simply because of my ability to research and my command of the English language.  While you should stay away from scams, like “companies” that want money up front so you can make extra cash from home, there are companies that simply help others network and find work for themselves, without paying any money.

5. Sell, Sell, Sell.
While this may not be the most unique, it is possible to make money by downsizing and simplifying your life.  With local businesses willing to barter with you, you can sell items that you have purchased or where given to make some money.  You just might not want to share with whomever gave you the gift that it helped buy their Christmas present.

What are some ways you may generate a little side money?

If you are like me and every other American in the country, you think big.  One philosophy that has been instilled in us is that we can never have too much of something.  But there’s a rule of thumb that we all need to think about whenever we get the urge to save everything:  if you haven’t used it in a long time, you don’t need it.

While there are some things you don’t need anymore but choose to keep, they are probably items that have sentimental value.  I still have my tiara from my wedding day and will never sell it.  For me, the culprit is clothes.  I know I have too many clothes in my closet.  I could choose to go through all of them and donate to GoodWill or sell at a consignment shop, but right now, I am not there yet in simplifying my life.  I am hoping by October I will have gotten rid of a large amount of clothes and maybe make some money along the way.  Here is how I am going to do it…

All of my clothes are hanging in the same direction.  After I wear a piece of clothing I am going to hang it in the opposite direction.  After two weeks, any piece of clothing that is still hanging the opposite way I will look at.  If I haven’t worn it because of the weather, it stays, but if I haven’t worn it during those two weeks and cannot remember when I wore it last, it is going in the sale pile.  That is one way to help slim down your wardrobe and put money in your wallet for a new one.

The guideline above can be used for all the things in your home.  In addition, if you don’t feel like selling these items, which can be a bit arduous, don’t feel bad re-gifting these items.  You may simply want to give these things that you bought for yourself to someone else as a gift, that way you don’t get scolded or embarrassed if you give back a gift to a person.  Simplify your life, it will help you feel emotionally and financially secure.

Garage sales are the obvious way to go about making money on items, but if you’re going to do that, you have to make sure you allot a little money for advertisement. Post signs up around the neighborhood and put an ad in the classifieds for your local paper. If you live in a neighborhood with awkward streets that will make it hard for people to find your house, be sure that you put signs that will guide people along the way. You will probably have to get a permit from the city to hold the sale, so be sure that you go do that ahead of time so your sale doesn’t get shut down.

If you have neighbors in the area that you like, try having a combined sale. You’ll get a whole lot of people to come if you advertise for a multi-family sale, and you can all work together to knockout set up time really quickly. Just put a different colored sticker on each family’s items so you can split the profits accordingly. Record the value of each sticker into a journal and then tally up the results at the close of the sale.

If you find yourself with a lot of extra stuff at the end of your sale, try having a giant clearance frenzy. In my garage sale, I told everyone that they could have whatever they could fit into a Wal-Mart sack for $5, and people went nuts! I had a clean driveway in a half hour, no lie. I was going to give the extra items away anyways, so that way I got to make an extra $60 or so for my leftovers.

No matter what you do though, getting rid of stuff you don’t need can be a great way to make money and clean up the house a little bit. A simplified life can lead to a maximized budget if you approach it the right way.

What are some ways you make side money off of things you don’t need anymore?

I was surprised when I walked in to McDonald’s the other day and saw a group of men sitting at tables with their computers going. I thought, maybe at Panera or Starbucks, but McDonalds has now jumped on the Wi-Fi bandwagon. Wi-Fi is the official term for a wireless internet connection. That means you and your computer can walk in to a public place like McDonalds and check your email, hold a video conference call, or even SKYPE while eating fries without plugging your computer into a phone outlet or calling to buy service at this place.

Wi-Fi became more of a phenomenon in colleges. Students wanted to work outside, at a library or at their student unions because there were not enough computer labs and so students were bringing their own laptops to campus. With people expanding their work day, there are times when people choose to work outside of their office or home in an attempt to get everything done. Fortunately for those of you who do have Wi-Fi at home, there is a way for you to earn money while you are working, or watching videos on YouTube.

The easiest way to make money is by using FON, the company’s name is Fonera. If you are using them as your internet service provider, they enable you to have your own private line, where your downloads, personal information and email are separate. They also give you a public line where foneros, people who use fonera, can use your signal to complete their work. The best thing about this service is that everyone’s visits to the internet are private. All the “Bill” provider knows is that someone was using the public line. They never know where the other person went and there is no liability for the person offering the service. PayPal takes care of paying you for each person who accesses your line, so you are free to use the money as you like, while not extending your Fonera contract. I once had a contract with a company and for each person who gave my name as a referral, they gave me money in the form of a credit to my existing account. This option, by Fonera, allows people to run a little side business while they are doing their own.

If you are happy with your internet service provider, there may be a reason to switch to Fonera. You will be able to download material while your computer is off. That means you are saving energy while still getting the material you need. If you don’t want to switch your Wi-Fi because you are very happy with it an option might be to collaborate with your neighbors into sharing a signal. I had a friend in college who decided to use her neighbor’s Wi-Fi access without their knowledge. In apartments, it is easy to find a signal, provided it is not secured by the buyer. Unfortunately, not only was she stealing, if she chose to give personal information, there is a chance that it might be seen by unwanted eyes. A more safe option is to talk with your neighbors and agree to terms for using the internet. If you are the provider, you may want to charge a per visit fee if your neighbor comes your house. You could even get away with charging a fee by the hour. Either way, there are many opportunities for making money off your Wi-Fi.