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One Minute Odd Job Tip

Creativity is something that needs to be nurtured. As I see it, much of what’s going on today doesn’t nurture creativity — it seems that much of what people are encouraged to do is to conform, to color inside the lines.

It takes some guts to break from this. Can it be worth it? Yes it can, but don’t count on a lot of support from those around you.

We knew a farmer who developed a method of raising very good quality, lean pork. When he was talking to his own father about wanting to pursue this, his father’s response was, “Well, if it’s such a great idea, someone else would already be doing it!”

This kind of response can be enough for some people to give up, but it wasn’t for Dan and his family, who are still producing great pork products.

>>> NEXT WEEK: In the “creativity” vein — how can you nurture creativity?

Strictly Business:

Over the centuries, there have been some incredibly creative people. People have done incredible feats in the past, while we in modern times can’t figure out how they did what they did.

Think of the pyramids. How did they hoist those massive stones — some weighing in the thousands of tons — all the way to the top?

Stonehenge. How did they do it?

That being said, the mind has amazing abilities to create. How? Well, I have some ideas. They’re just observations, out MY window, so to speak.

I can’t help but think about my great great-grandfather, who sat behind a couple of horses and quietly plowed the same fields that I did. All he could hear was the jingle of the harness, birds, the turning of the soil. It took him a lot longer to do the same work I did with a hundred horsepower of diesel pulling the plow through the soil. And what was I doing while I plowed?

I was diggin’ on the radio.

Can you see the difference? I was inputting sound into my head and thinking about the Beatles and Mark Knopfler. My great great-grandfather was contemplating life and solving problems, and yes, creating solutions to problems. It’s no secret that most farm technology years ago came right from the farm. Farmers who had a problem designed and engineered solutions.

Now we watch cat videos on YouTube. Talk about a decline in culture. But I digress.

I remember an old friend of mine who, every time he saw someone walk by with earbuds in his ears, would say, “There’s another person who’s afraid to be alone with his thoughts.” It makes you wonder, doesn’t it?

Today we’re going to explore some ways to make a living, or even better, create something. I hope these are some ideas that won’t just make you want to try one of these specific ideas, but more than that, get your creativity flowing to come up with something totally new. 

Some Odd Jobs You May Never Have Considered:

Number 1 - Making Jewelry — (S Quadrant¹)

I’ve always had an interest in jewelry-making. I designed and carved my wife’s wedding ring, among other pieces — always with the idea of turning my hobby into a business, but it just hasn’t happened. Well, not yet!

The nice thing about jewelry-making is that it can be started in a very small space and with very little in the way of tools. Mostly it’s a matter of having an idea and then figuring out how to make it happen. Of course, there are all kinds of jewelry, from fine gold and precious stones to stringing beads on fishing line.

The best thing is to do something that you’re interested in.

As a side note, akin to this is flipping precious stones. I lived close to Reno, Nevada, for several years. Reno is a gambling town, so pawn shops are all over the place. I learned all I could about diamonds and made a regular route of visiting those pawn shops and buying diamonds. I didn’t actually flip any of them, but I did use them all in the jewelry I made and I was able to get them all at a very good price.

My warning to you is that you need to know what you’re doing. Remember, those pawn shops are in business because they know what they’re doing.

So, as I said there are all kinds of jewelry you can mae. If you have something that you particularly like, investigate that and see if you can make your own venture in that area.

If you really don’t know where to start, YouTube.com is a great place to get ideas. A search as broad as “jewelry making” will get you all kinds of things to look at.

We had some friends in Wyoming who owned a rock shop.

In this part of the world rock shops are common since there are so many spelunking opportunities and fossils and even jade. These friends started their business back in the 1960s by actually mining jade. Anyway, these friends would have an artist wire wrap stones for them to sell in their shop. The person they had doing it disappeared, and they were desperately looking for someone who had this talent — opportunity, right?

This is also a type of venture that a person could even do while on the road. There’s a great YouTube channel of a guy who does this while traveling in his RV. He’s really entertaining, but also quite informative. Here’s a link to one of his videos where he shows making a Byzantine Bracelet. He does videos in several different subjects, but in some of them he actually shows his production silver jewelry making that he does on the road. He has wholesale clients that he sells to and seems to do pretty well for himself.

Number 2 - Copywriting — This is a “We Did This” Job (S Quadrant¹)

Copywriting can be defined as “the process of writing persuasive marketing and promotional materials that motivate people to take action.” Basically, we’re exposed to good — and today, a lot of bad — copywriting every day in commercials. Case in point — Bad: Who thought the Charmin commercials with the red bears was a good idea? “Enjoy the Go”? How tacky is that?!? 'There’s a GREAT need for good copywriters.

This is a skill, and even an art, that can take years to get very good at, but if you grasp the concepts and can do it well, you are gold!

Dan Kennedy is a legendary copywriter who I’ve learned from for over 40 years. I’ve read dozens of his books and use his insight almost every day in my own writing. Just as a side note, if you wanted to hire Dan Kennedy back in the day when he was very active it was in the neighborhood of $35,000 for an hour of his time, so learning this skill CAN be lucrative.

To learn more about this talent, I’d suggest starting by just paying attention to the advertisements you see hear and read every day. Make a study of why they work or why they don’t work. In a more active vein, find any books by Dan Kennedy, Gary Halbert, Wallace Wattles or Robert Collier, to name a few. One book that I’ve worn out two copies of over the years is The Ultimate Sales Letter by Dan Kennedy. I have no idea how many thousands of dollars I’ve made with the help of that little $10 book.

Another rather fun way to get some insight into this type of business is the TV show “Mad Men”. It’s based on the Madison Avenue advertising business in the 1970’s. There are some very true-to-life lessons in that show. I hate the soap opera aspect of the show but absolutely relish the insights into advertising when they appear. Here’s an example of what I’m talking about. It’s about advertising the Carousel Projector.

Give this one a a real think if you’re interested in marketing and writing. I’ve found that it can really get under your skin, because you can always make a piece of copy better. Some of the greatest fun I’ve had is A-B Split testing some of my sales letters.

Number 3 - Woodworking — This is a “We Did This” Job (S Quadrant¹)

I have, ever since I was very small, enjoyed making things out of wood.

Of course, making bucks is whole different ballgame than just making something out of wood. Selling it is the real key to success. My caution is to make at least as much effort in how you’re going to cash in on a project as you do on actually making the project. There are garages full of woodworking projects that didn’t sell.

There’s still great opportunity in this type of venture.

You can make large projects like furniture and such, but that can be a huge commitment on your part in materials and labor, as well as a huge commitment on the part of your potential client.

I was watching a video on YouTube that made a good point. This particular woodcrafter, it seems, sells his products at craft fairs and such. He said that he was given a great piece of advice by an old time woodworker. This old timer was looking at his furniture at the show and told him that he did good work, but to be successful it’s a good idea to have $20 items. His reasoning was that everybody who comes to these craft shows is expecting to buy a little something. That’s why they come, and “They all have $20 in their pocket to spend.” Fifty $20 items will gross you $1000 :)

In this same video, he was showing some of his best-selling items, and many of them were made from scraps or very inexpensive furring strips that he bought at Home Depot.

Depending on your item(s) and sizes, there are also opportunities to sell online and ship them worldwide. You can utilize some platforms like Etsy.com. The key is to make something unique that people will want to buy from you because it can’t be bought anywhere else.

What have we done?

Well, we’ve had several little successes. Nothing earth-shattering, but profitable. One spring I built about 100 simple bird houses, painted them all white by dipping them in white paint in a rubber made tub and them my wife painted them with flowers and other things. Each one was unique. We went around to feed stores and garden centers and sold them. And that was just one project we did that helped us pay the rent.

We also made hardwood cutting boards, bread knives, wooden spoons (we’re still using some of these in our kitchen 30 years later). After I get done with this newsletter I’ll think of others.

If this is something that you can see yourself doing, look around for a need or a want and see if you can fill that void. It’s very satisfying to make a product that people like and enjoy.

Number 4 - Invent Something — This is a “We Would Like to Do This” Job (S and B Quadrants¹)

I have a friend who has over 30 patents to his name. Out of curiosity I looked him up at the U.S. Patent Office. He would never have told me this, but I was curious.

He’s a brilliant man and has always noticed where something falls short. He then designed something to make that shortfall disappear, and he’s been paid quite well to do it.

Of course, just inventing something and getting a patent doesn’t necessarily translate into money. There are a lot of patents that have never become a viable product. The key is to solve a real need.

I also have another friend who solved a problem in construction. In the old days (well, 40 years ago) putting sheetrock mud and tape on sheetrock seams was a labor-intensive job requiring a trowel and a mud tray. He had a vision of making the job much easier. If you’ve ever been in a house when mudders are smoothing out the sheetrock walls, you may have seen a tool called a bazooka. Well, this is the tool my friend came up with and it’s now the standard in building.

Here is his even more brilliant idea:

After he patented his bazooka, he didn’t sell the idea for a one-time payout, and he didn’t manufacture the bazookas and sell them for a one-time pay out on each bazooka. He leased them.

Now’s the time for your mind to explode! During the life of his patent, he got monthly payments for each and every bazooka ever made. What a great business model for a new invention!

That was many years ago, and the patent has run out so now anyone can make and sell bazookas. Does he care? Not really, he made enough money during the life of the patent to be very happy with what he invented.

It can be time-consuming and expensive to invent and patent something, but the rewards can be huge! Who knows, maybe the next great thing is germinating in your head right now. Don’t stifle it!!

This Weeks Quotes:

I'm tired of all this nonsense about beauty being only skin-deep. That's deep enough. What do you want, an adorable pancreas?

— Jean Kerr

Patterning your life around other's opinions is nothing more than slavery.

— Lawana Blackwell

Live as brave men; and if fortune is adverse, front its blows with brave hearts.

— Cicero

Talking with you is sort of the conversational equivalent of an out of body experience.

— Bill Watterson

The creation of something new is not accomplished by the intellect but by the play instinct acting from inner necessity. The creative mind plays with the objects it loves.

— Carl Jung

A Book for Success — I just finished reading The Big Rich — The Rise and Fall of the Great Texas Oil Fortunes by Bryan Burrough. This book goes all the way back to the early days of oil in Texas and gives great detail about the lives of these oil pioneers.

The creativity of these early oil men was amazing and at times, quite entertaining. They weren’t afraid to try just about anything!

There are some parts that were a little dry when talking about the politics, but overall, it’s very entertaining. You’ll probably get some take-aways that you can implement in your own life.

Snarfy Jokes —

You know why you never see elephants hiding up in trees?

  Because they’re really good at it.

A horse walks into a bar.

 The bartender says, “Why the long face?”

How did the hipster burn his mouth?

 He ate his pizza before it was cool.

What do you get when you cross a dyslexic, an insomniac, and an agnostic?

 Someone who lays awake at night wondering if there’s a dog.

As a scarecrow, people say I’m outstanding in my field.

 But hay, it’s in my jeans.

Some last Random Thoughts —

Creativity is dying. There are some very creative people out there, but so many people I talk to seem to have no idea how to come up with a new idea. Much of what a lot of people do is to just memorize and mimic something they’ve seen or heard.

There is great opportunity for anyone who is creative enough to do something new and different.

I have a friend who is a very creative photographer. Actually I have 2 friends who are very creative. They are in different parts of the country and don’t know each other. One day I was telling Jeff about Craig and how creative he is. I told him about his website and Jeff’s response was that he doesn’t want to see other people’s ideas, he wants to be creative without the risk of copying someone else. Interesting, huh?

This is fair warning to any who may want to pursue a creative avenue of making money. Pull your ideas out of yourself, and don’t get lazy and just copy what someone else is doing!

Now go out and create!!!

¹ CashFlow Quadrant references the book, Cashflow Quadrants by Robert Kiyosaki. In a nutshell, there are four sources of income — “E” Employee, “S” Self-Employed, “B” Business and “I” Investor. We reference these quadrants at the beginning of each of the jobs we talk about in Odd Job Tips Newsletter. To see more about this concept refer to this issue of this newsletter.

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