How to make money?

The eternal question: how do you make money? Bored with your current work or job? You are looking for an activity that will fulfil you and, at the same time, finally earn you enough to buy, say, the yacht of your dreams. This article contains a complete list of specific tips that work!

How to make money in 2023?

This page will focus on general tips and advice on how to get and earn money. If you are focusing only on the online world, be sure to also read our in-depth and regularly updated article on making money online →

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Making money: the journey or the goal?

For many people starting out, money is the goal and the dream. They simply want to have it, and earning it is something they need to get through quickly. Only with time, as happened to me, will you discover that money is a journey and that making money should be fun: an activity that fulfils you. You also need to be clear about whether money is your main value or whether you prefer freedom, independence and enjoying your work. Experience shows that the second path is the happier one. But we are all different. 100 people = 100 tastes. Let’s look at the money-making models that work in our world and let you earn well above the average salary.

Which paths can you take to make money?

For this first breakdown, you should mainly be clear about how you want to earn money in the long term and which direction you would like to take. If you are interested in specific tips, skip to the second part of the article. The following breakdown shows, in a very simplified way, the paths people most often take to earn money. Some people are better suited to climbing the corporate ladder, some can be excellent independent professionals, and others seem born to run their own business. If you take a path that does not suit you, you will never be successful and you will not earn enough money either.

1) Freelancing

Are you responsible and driven to succeed? Start learning and become a freelancer. You do not need to spend long years at school, because successful freelancers are not created in those institutions. They become successful because they teach themselves and are not afraid to commit fully to their field. Not everyone has what it takes to be a freelancer, though, as it demands a great deal of self-discipline. You carry more responsibility for your actions, but if you can handle this and become a specialist in your field, you will gain freedom, independence and good money.

2) Career growth

Instead of uncertain freelancing, many people prefer a secure job in a corporation or a medium-sized company. This type of person mainly wants security and a carefree life after work. Working for large corporations also has significant drawbacks, such as soul-destroying processes or being unable to change anything. In a corporation, it is also harder to find fulfilment and self-realisation. But of course there are exceptions. On the other hand, one advantage can be that you get to work on projects that would be far out of reach for a freelancer.

3) Startup

A startup is a tiny, growing company that often comes up with something revolutionary. It is a kind of combination of freelance work and working for a larger company. In a startup, you have more opportunity to fulfil yourself, progress and develop a product. However, a startup will ask for more commitment and flexibility from you than a traditional company. The pace in startups can be gruelling, and in the early stages you may not even be paid enough. You will, however, gain valuable experience, and if the startup succeeds, its key employees are often rewarded too.

4) Public sector employee

To keep things simple, this category includes everyone who works in institutions set up by the state. This means teachers, civil servants, police officers and firefighters. These professions come with great security guaranteed by the state. Most of these jobs are also very well paid today, and they suit people who are looking for security, do not mind an often inefficient structure and way of working, and do not want to spend too much time at work. People who dream of certain professions that only the state offers also often become public sector employees.

5) Skilled trades

A tradesperson is really a kind of freelancer who makes a living with their hands. Today, skilled tradespeople are highly valued and can earn very good money. However, they face similar pressure to freelancers. They have to find their own jobs, manage their costs, set their prices and handle the whole process from A to Z. Tradespeople also do not go to work just to sit out 8 hours. It is often hard work driven by deadlines and demand. During the busy season, tradespeople have to work weekends to meet demand and save something for harder times.

6) Traditional company

Between corporations and small startups are established medium-sized companies. If you are deciding which field to go into, pay attention mainly to two aspects. The first, very important one is how much the field itself interests and attracts you. Is this company your dream one? The second important aspect is how wealthy the field is in which the company operates. Will this company be able to meet your financial expectations and ideas? Your work should always fulfil you and be enjoyable. But choose companies carefully. Today there is no longer any need to stay in one place for 20 to 30 years; you can move between jobs.

💡 Employment first, then business. If you want to become truly wealthy, you will have to run a business, not just be self-employed. Even as a self-employed person, you can earn more money than employees, even several times more. But for real wealth, you will have to build a business, come up with something and get something off the ground. You will most likely need people whose work, combined with your risk, will help the business grow. How do you work your way up to running a business and succeed? Take a look at our 5 tips:

 

  1. If you are still a student, think about whether you are studying something you enjoy. Whether it fulfils you or at least makes sense to you. If not, leave.
  2. While at school and studying, you have a unique chance to try out what you enjoy. Do not spend 7 years working behind a bar; instead, try to get into companies that inspire you and aim to work in your field. It does not matter at all that you earn less money for now. Do internships and skilled part-time jobs, and get to know relevant, interesting people.
  3. Try out a project of your own while studying or working. Devote perhaps just 30% of your capacity to it and check that you enjoy it and have what it takes.
  4. Gain experience and do work that helps you grow. Money should not be your only motivation. Uncomfortable situations are hard, but they shape you. Observe how companies work. It is the key to one day setting up your own.
  5. Think about the world. What could be improved. Where you could solve a problem or fill a gap. How to start a business.

“You have to make sure that your recurring activities are, as far as possible, directly related to making money. There is nothing wrong with having a hobby, but if you want to call it a business, you have to make money.”

Chris Guillebeau

33 tips on how to make money

In this part, we bring you specific tips and types of work. If you do not know exactly what you want to do and how to make money, this part can point you in the right direction. These are not only ideas for earning extra money but also life and career paths you can take. You can also try our 8 tips for making money quickly for the less demanding.

1) Copywriting

We all learned to write at school. Some people write better, others worse and with mistakes. If you belong to the first group, you have a great opportunity to become a copywriter or online writer. With just a few references, you can start writing for 100 CZK per hour. Another great thing about copywriting is that you can work almost any hours that suit you, and you can do your work from the comfort of your home at any time of day or night. Demand for copywriters remains high. If you do not know where to start, you can try our copywriting internship →

2) Construction work

You do not have to search only through online adverts to find a job or a way to earn extra money. You can try going directly to any smaller building site or workplace and asking. Tradespeople and small companies are often looking for a helping hand. If you offer yourself, they may jump at the chance. Occasional jobs or side work on building sites are fairly demanding work with little opportunity for further development or career progression. But if you need money quickly and physical work is no problem for you, this opportunity could be just right for you. Skilled people are valued everywhere.

3) Instagram influencer

An influencer is a personality in a particular field who has a large reach and can set trends and influence the buying behaviour of their followers. The sums influencers earn around the world increase every year, and even in the Czech Republic there are quite a few people earning six-figure amounts on Instagram. Several things are good prerequisites for success on Instagram. Ideally, you are famous and beautiful. If you lack this, you have to create really good content and focus on a specific area in which you will give your followers interesting information.

4) E-shop and sales

There really are a lot of traditional e-shops in the Czech Republic, and in this segment we are among the world leaders, at least in terms of numbers. However, it is still possible to make money with an e-shop and secure a stable income. You need a few things, though. An original product is a good start, as competing with large e-shops and their product ranges is not a particularly good strategy. Secondly, you need some knowledge of marketing to break through in this field and get your first orders. The last thing is logistics and margins, in other words, how your e-shop will operate in practice.

5) Dropshipping

If you like the idea of an e-shop but do not want to deal with shipping goods or handling complaints, dropshipping may be just right for you. The system works like this: a customer places an order with you, and someone else takes care of everything else. You simply receive a commission for the completed sale. Simple, right? In reality, however, you will have to work very hard on marketing, as that is the only thing that will set you apart from hundreds of other entrepreneurs in this field who are selling the same product. Dropshipping is now also taking off on Instagram in connection with influencers, where you do not even need your own website.

6) Affiliate marketing

Affiliate marketing is based on a similar principle to dropshipping. In its simplest form, it is a recommendation. If you recommend a product to someone and they buy it based on that recommendation (tracked through a unique URL), you earn a commission. Many Czech e-shops run this kind of programme, but you can also come across a simplified version at Revolut, for example. There, every user has the option to invite a friend, which is essentially that recommendation. If the friend signs up, the app rewards both of them. So it benefits both sides.

5) Sell on Facebook

Thanks to the internet, you no longer need your own platform and can sell through groups or your own page, for example on Facebook. It is cheap and fairly simple. Some people have built a system around this and are able to make a full living from selling on Facebook. Like all other social networks, however, Facebook has one BUT. Your Facebook profiles can easily be deleted, leaving you with nothing but your sales knowledge and, at best, your contacts. On Facebook you can sell items you order from China or, better still, your own products or even services.

6) Woodworking

Wood is a material that has accompanied and fascinated humankind since the dawn of history. If you look around your home, you will surely find at least 5 things made of wood. High-quality, originally crafted wooden products and pieces of furniture are in great demand, so if you are good with your hands and enjoy working with wood, do not be afraid to try making something people are willing to pay for. Try to be innovative and make original products, for example for offices or homes. Spoons, monitor stands, small tables, figurines, chopping boards and much more.

7) Virtual assistant

You do not have much experience, but you would like to gain practical insight into a particular field. Try working as a virtual assistant. You will most likely be hired for this work by someone who already has too much on their plate. This way you can learn from someone successful in their field and, at the same time, earn some extra money from home. Time management, project management and, of course, reliability are very important in this job. Always choose virtual assistant work in a field where you would like to keep working and developing. It can be a good start to your new career.

8) Internship

What is an internship? It is essentially a combination of a temporary job and school. An internship should educate and train the person taking part in it. At the same time, the participant should get to fully try out various work tasks so that they are not just a drain on the company’s time. In the later stages of the internship, they should work more independently, and they often then move on to another type of employment. Internships are common at multinational companies in various sectors, but smaller IT, marketing and technology firms also frequently offer this kind of learning on the job, which most participants speak highly of.

9) Social media manager

This is how many influencers got their start. Before they made their brand or name famous, they managed social media for companies. Many companies today leave their social media to agencies or freelancers. Smaller companies often turn to a part-time worker. What do you need to start earning money by managing social media? The prerequisites are the basics of marketing, excellent writing skills, empathy and basic graphic design skills. At the moment, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and TikTok are especially popular. Demand for moderately advanced “marketers” is huge.

10) Digital product, course

What is a digital product? It is anything you can sell on the internet. Online courses, e-books, videos, programs and any kind of software. What do digital products have in common? Above all, they can be replicated endlessly, and the cost of replicating them approaches zero. No logistics and limited scope for complaints make digital products a very good commodity. In this industry, the costs of creating these products are objectively low, but the reality for high-quality courses is significantly different. In addition, much more emphasis needs to be placed on marketing and promotion.

11) Trading through a broker

Thanks to mobile platforms and online brokers, almost anyone can start trading. First, you need to get to grips with the trading platform and the principles of investing. Then you can move on to trading cryptocurrencies, shares or even commodities. If you have capital, you will find things much easier in this area. If you start with just a few thousand, the road to success will be more difficult. The next level is managing other people’s money and investments, but for that you need a certain amount of experience, results and references. Ideally, start trading as a hobby and then, if it works out, turn it into a full-time job.

12) Reselling

Selling to end users through an e-shop is a common starter business. The big money, however, is in wholesale, where we are talking about very different figures. The key is to discover a product area or a foreign brand that has no representation in the Czech Republic. You can then resell larger volumes of goods. Setting up a wholesale business is demanding in terms of both logistics and sales, but once everything is running, you can rake in attractive money for a reasonable amount of work. In today’s world, many things can also be outsourced, which helps you avoid high start-up costs.

13) Renting out

The problem with renting out is that you first have to own something before you can rent it out. Or is there another way? Yes, there is! Companies and individuals rent entire buildings, which they then sublet in smaller parts or to individuals. One example is a house that the owner rents to a company, which then rents out individual places in the separate flats and rooms. The same works with parking spaces or storage units. It is always about estimating market demand and adapting what you offer to the requirements of potential clients. But it is not all rosy. You need to have everything carefully calculated.

14) Coach and tutor

If you have a particular skill and know how to pass it on, you can try being a coach, tutor or trainer. It is well known that the best people do not teach in schools but give private lessons. If you enjoy sharing information and working with people, this job could be just right for you. On the open market, however, you first need to build a brand, develop a client base and, at least at the beginning, work hard on your personal marketing. Your reward can be flexible working hours, decent money and a sense of fulfilment from work in which you pass on your know-how to others.

15) Sharing economy

The sharing economy is mainly made up of services that go from people to people. You have certain resources that you only need some of the time. Thanks to the sharing economy, you can make money from them. You can lend and rent out your flat, your garage as storage space, your car and other things. Thanks to various apps, it will take you just a moment, and you can earn money from things you already own but do not always need. The sharing economy is a way of thinking and a style of small business made possible by the internet and modern technology. You can start almost any time and with almost anything. Renting out space, your car or offering rides are popular options.

16) Driver

A driving licence opens the door to a wide range of jobs, part-time work, business opportunities and side incomes. It just depends on your willingness to try different jobs and then choose the one that suits you best. In the city, you can even start without a licence by making deliveries by bike. The pay usually reflects the value of the work, so the bigger the vehicle you drive and the more complex the job, the more you are likely to be paid. Driving is a nice side job, but to make it a long-term job, you really have to love driving and be able to cope with the daily jungle on roads, motorways and in cities.

17) Make the world a better place

If you have an idea for something that could improve people’s lives or might become popular, give it a go. You do not need to have worked out exactly how to make money from it, and you can try different platforms such as Patreon or Hithit. Here are two more options and models for how to work this way. The first is the typical Patreon route, where you do something the market does not value very highly but people are willing to support you regularly: art. It is a classic example that worked in the past, and only the form has changed. The second example is Hithit, which is used more for one-off funding of a project, such as making a film, writing a book or creating an app. You outline your vision online, and people who like the idea support you financially.

18) Adult content

Web 2.0 has also put a powerful tool in the hands of performers and people who are not afraid to show their bodies. These are most often young women who easily gain fans on Instagram or TikTok and then try to turn those fans into paying supporters on Patreon or OnlyFans. On these platforms, content is locked, and users can unlock it with a regular payment. This gives creators a regular income and lets them focus on their work. Much of it is erotic content, consumed mainly by men. For many young women, this way of earning money has become very comfortable, and they can make decent sums. You can find out more in the article about earning on OnlyFans.

19) Specialist in your field

Would you like to earn at an hourly rate of 2,000 CZK or more? To have no employees and no worries, and still comfortably earn over 100,000 CZK a month? The path of an independent professional and expert in your field may be the right one. First, you need to find a field, and a specific part of it, that you feel passion and enthusiasm for. Then you have to invest. Invest your time in education and improvement. You have to become the best. Another essential activity is building your own personal brand. The market must see you as an authority in the field. After that, you just wait for enquiries. It is not an easy or quick path, but it is a very free and dynamic one.

20) Bar or café

Do you go to bars and cafés and think you could do it better? There are plenty of opportunities. People are increasingly looking for unusual food and drink experiences and speciality coffee. If you can provide excellent service, you can make good money even from such a traditional business. But it will not come without work. You will have to work with people, which is not easy at all. The time this work takes is also relentless, so prepare for a fairly tough start, which you can only overcome through hard work and belief in a well-designed service. If you do everything right, success will surely come. You can then delegate some tasks and focus on expanding and growing the business.

How to earn money and live on the beach!

The following set of tips is for more ambitious and determined people who dream of earning money without a heavy workload and living somewhere warm on the beach.

How to earn money and stay relaxed!

Are you tired of going to the same job and the same office every day? Take a look at which roles and fields people most often work in from the seaside. Before heading off to work abroad, people usually try working from home first. With this kind of work, it is important to remember that it also has its downsides.

1) Marketing

Marketing today includes many roles, and most of them can be done remotely from the comfort of your home. Or you can just as easily fly to Colombia or Vietnam and work from the beach. Marketing is known for these opportunities. All you need is a computer and an internet connection. Nothing more. Another great thing is that many marketing roles do not require any major qualifications. For example, you can learn PPC or the basics of social media in 3 months and then simply keep improving while working with clients. Within six months, your hourly rate can be double what it was at the start.

2) IT

Do you have an IT degree or know how to code? Then you are all set, but even technically minded people can learn the basics of programming or so-called front-end development fairly quickly. On the one hand, with these skills you can let yourself be shut away in some corporation, but on the other hand, you can also find jobs where you do not need to be there in person. And if you move to Vietnam, for example, you will live like a king even on a below-average programmer’s salary and be able to afford to rent a luxury house complete with a cleaner and a gardener.

3) Sales

Business meetings, calls to business partners and record-keeping. Today you can be a modern salesperson who does everything via the internet, email and video calls. Sales has changed slightly. You can get much more done in a day. But one thing stays the same. In business and sales, you still need to build trust and convince the other side that they need your products or services. Nowadays, even really big deals are closed over Zoom, for example, and the parties to the contract may never meet in person or shake hands, as used to be the custom.

4) Online business

The best off are people who have a purely online business, or who have reliable people to handle its physical side. The great thing about a purely online business is that, with fast internet, you can run it just as well from Prague as from Mexico. It simply makes no difference. The only limitation is that you will probably be answering emails at night, and your working hours will not overlap much with your partners’. For some types of online business, however, this does not matter at all. Other advantages are, again, often lower living costs and an inspiring change of business location, which can help you develop further.

Frequently asked questions about earning money

A very important question to start with. Some people want to earn straight away, while others mainly want to build something, with the money coming later. This also illustrates a common difference between running a business and being employed. Employees can get fairly decent pay and security at the start, but on average these increase very slowly over time. Business owners, on the other hand, usually count every penny in the early days, and some barely scrape by. When a business owner pursues their goal the right way, they can achieve an attractive, almost passive income in the long run. On top of that, they will have a company they can also sell.

Many people chase only money, but above all it is important to do what you will really enjoy. It is better to work in a field you enjoy than to struggle in a better-paid job you do not want to go to.

Do not stand still. Whatever you do, keep up with trends in your field and try new things. You must not stagnate. If you take an interest in what is new and devote time to it, it will always pay off. It may help you make a breakthrough, or at the very least you will increase your value on the job market.