Earning Money

Whether you live in America, Canada, Japan, India, China, Britain, or any other nation, there is no denying that these are incredibly tough times when it comes to the economy. The dollar is losing value, the stock market is plummeting, consumer purchases are down and when it comes down to it, people are worried more about paying off their debt than they are worried about spending their money on buying a new laptop, a new guitar, or other things (that’s what I want). But, one thing that people are hesitant to talk about is the thought of entering a recession. THAT scares people.

But, the big question is: are we entering one? There are a lot of different beliefs right now going around the word of economists. Some say that we are getting dangerously close to a recession and others say that we are not there yet and that we still have time to recover. Regardless of what exactly is going on, what I can tell you is that the economy is pretty messed up right now. People fear spending. They’d rather save and governments around the world are trying to figure out how to really fix what is going on. But, to do that, they need to address the problems. Here in America, I can see a few problems:

• Oil prices: $100 a barrel is a lot of money and if I have to spend so much of my money on gas, I don’t have enough to spend on other goods. So, naturally, the economy starts to deteriorate.
• Jobs: Jobs are being sent overseas. It benefits the company, but not the nation. Without jobs here, no money to earn. Without money, no money to spend. No spent money, no profit for the company.
• Housing market: There’s no denying that there is a crisis in the housing market right now. People can’t pay their mortgages and they are losing their homes. The housing market is really screwy right now and it’s causing a lot of problems.

So, what can we do to fix this? If you’ve been following the news, you’ll know that George Bush and Congress are agreeing on a plan that will allow for $300 to be sent to each individual who earned at least $3,000 last year. To him, it’s a shot. This bipartisan plan will hopefully give the economy a bit of a boost. And we all know that the economy needs that boost. Jon Waraas talked about how Apple is taking a beating. The economy is desperately shaky and it’s going to continue to get worse if things aren’t fixed.

Can the $300 work? It can help. But, other things do need to be fixed as well. Are we entering a recession? I think we are. I think that we are going to continue going downhill unless something can be done. If we continue on the path that we’re headed, whether you work online or offline, for yourself or for someone else, we’re all going to feel it. We’re all going to feel the pains of less money because advertisers are spending less money. I only hope that the economy can be fixed so that we can have strong years again. So, if you have some extra money hanging around, treat yourself to dinner or something. It all helps boost the economy.

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I remember when I first started earning money on the web, people asked me what I did and I explained that I worked online and made my money on there. And then they’d respond, “Dude, that’s so cool…I wish I could do that…Oh, I got to go…McDonalds is calling me.” I’d stand there looking at them and then roll my eyes and go back to writing a blog post or something along those lines. And at first, I was like, “I guess I can understand what they’re saying. It’s tough.”

And then I stopped thinking that and looked at my control panel on Wordpress and looked down at my quarters that littered my desk and then I rolled my eyes. Making money on the web was as easy as one two three. I learned to count at a young age, why couldn’t I learn to make money on the web? And I did. But others were insistent that earning on the web was like rocket science and if I wanted to make money on the web, I’d have to have tons of money. And I’d hear this enough and finally, one day, I said “shut up” and I sat down one of my friends and I began to explain to them what they needed to make money on the web. So, I thought I’d give you that same list:

• You need $25.00. That’s IT! Get twenty five dollars and you can make money on the web. What for? Ten bucks for a .com and then $15.00 to pay for $5.00 a month hosting. So, for the next three months, you’re covered. So, for $25.00, you’re set.
• But wait a second! I can’t make websites, I don’t know HTML. So? Think I do? Guess what? Make a blog. It’s all set up. You type and then click “Publish” and suddenly you have a post! Amazing, huh?
• But how can I get people to see the site without money? You said I only needed $25! And I was right. Why do you need to spend money to make money? Guess what you can do: Guest Blog Posts. Stumble Upon. Digg. With those THREE things, you can get traffic.

By now, they are just sitting there looking at me as I explained each of those things. And they then pushed themselves to stand and rolled their eyes. “Whatever, dude,” they said and walked off. I sat there looking at them walk away and then shrugged. I didn’t care if they didn’t want to take the chance. I didn’t care if they were too afraid. It wasn’t my problem. I knew that I loved what I was doing and that was what mattered.

So…If you are one of those people that don’t think that they can make money online, read the above three bullets. With $25.00, Wordpress, and the ability to write compelling enough content that people digg and stumble you, you can easily make money. But you know what? If you’re still afraid or still don’t think you can, then go back to flipping your burgers. However…Let me tell you one thing. The feeling of working for yourself is absolutely amazing. Truly is. So, do it. Stop saying you can’t. Shut up. And do it. You’ll love it.

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