A bit of ingenuity will land extra dollars in your account

We had such a huge response to last week's column about the list of can-do things that the young of age and young of heart can engage in to earn a few extra dollars that we thought we would mention a few more.
House minding while the owners are away on holiday. Although the owners may be on holiday, the jobs that need to be done around the house don't go away. Jobs like watering the garden and pot plants, sweeping leaves, mowing the lawns, feeding and walking the pets and clearing the mail box all need to be done. And why not offer a security service while they are away? Make it appear as though the owners are home by putting some washing on the line, opening and closing the curtains, turning lights on for a short time at night and so on.
Helping out at kids parties. Mums and dads are always looking for extra hands to do the many things required to keep kids entertained at parties. Help blowing up balloons, baking, decorating, getting games and activities ready, serving food and drink, refereeing disputes and tidying up the mayhem left after everyone has gone. There's always loads of extras you could do: dress up and perform tricks or supervise the face painting. The same goes for helping out at adult parties ... serve food and drinks, take coats, and most importantly, help with the clearing up and cleaning up.
What about organising a local art exhibition? All you need are willing artists and a place to display their work. It may even be an open-air exhibition in a local park, so you don't have to hire a hall. Why not specialise in kids' art and group the displays by age? Take 20 per cent as a commission on things that sell for organising the event - and you won't have to spend any money to make money. Attract interest by putting flyers around the neighbourhood.
For those with some spare land - grow Christmas trees. Pine tree seedlings grow fast and within a few years they will be ready to go. Sell them directly or split the proceeds with someone good at selling. The worst case scenario, if they don't sell, is that you will be able to go into the firewood business.
Here's a way to make money by standing around - in a queue. It could be queuing for sporting or concert tickets. Every queue is an opportunity.
Teach people to use computers.
Most people are keen to learn about the amazing things computers can do, but are a little lost when it comes to even the basics, like email.
Offer your services "email made easy", and charge on an hourly basis. Once you have a client base ask them what else they would like to know about computers. There will be no end of the topics, and the list is growing by the day as more cool things are done by computers.
Frank and Muriel Newman are the authors of Living Off the Smell of an Oily Rag in NZ.
Readers can submit their oily rag tips online at www.oilyrag.co.nz.