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With inflation reaching record highs, and economic crisis looming above us, our lives are getting tighter. Most people are already feeling it: from increased rent and ridiculous gas prices, to things many people took for granted, like morning frappuccinos and sushi takeaways, now becoming luxuries.
So when every little penny counts, you gotta hustle. In order to get us all some ideas how to survive in this gloomy economy, we looked at these two illuminating Reddit threads (this and this). People are sharing overlooked yet well (some unexpectedly!) paying jobs that desperately need workers right now, so it may give you some ideas for money-making career prospects.
Psst! After you’re done, be sure to check out our previous article about the easiest legal ways to make money on the side!
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
Self employed cleaning services (i dont know exaclty what to call it)
My parents started getting paid $35 an hour cleaning a community center to ~$50 from cleaning offices.
My mom started it then my dad joined in to help her with the hours and taking care of the house and kids.
Eventually my mom got good contacts, and started cleaning the offices of managers from factories, Sacramento politicians, and stuff alike.
Can't express how proud i am of my mom. She turned all those shitty Hispanic cleaning lady jokes into something brag worthy.
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#2
I work as a lunch lady.
I get school vacations off, summers off, and weekends. No nights, or even really afternoons, it's amazing. I also get benefits, and every year I get a raise, so between the money and the time off, the job is 100% worth it.
#3
Garbage collectors in New York are paid up to $112k, a solid salary considering you don’t even need a degree. Sounds like a nice fallback plan for me.
General Anaesthesia 2 years ago
Try a few months in a city without garbage collectors and then ask yourself if they're worth every penny.
If you've ever wondered what are the highest-paying jobs out there in this crazy job market right now, pull your seat closer.
According to recently updated data shared by Indeed, the top 3 best-paid jobs are as follows: cardiologist with a national average salary of $351,827 per year, anesthesiologist with $326,296 per year and an orthodontist with $264,850 per year. Understandably, these jobs are not something you can easily swap your career for and require years of preparation.
#4
If you have a strong stomach, cleaning up death and crime scenes pays very well and requires little education.
Electric Mayhem 2 years ago
They deserve every penny, they have extremely high rates of PTSD, because they see the outcome of some very tragic deaths and often have to do the cleaning around the family of the decedent, and iirc the average length of tenure in that job it 8 months because of it. They often have to do very physically demanding jobs fully suited up in PPE which can be extremely uncomfortable.
#5
Plumbers, they can charge 100$ an hour easy because people are stupid about regular things.
#6
Great money in pressure washing/exterior cleaning.
Also, gutter cleaning. $100/hr is no problem on gutter cleaning. Requires no skill, and minimal equipment. If you’re ever broke, buy a ladder and clean gutters.
Michael Sanders 2 years ago
And the neighborhood kids that used to go around asking if they could mow lawns are now walking with power washers and make bank.
If you are still wondering what career path to choose, it’s wise to look at the most in-demand jobs right now. According to indeed, based on 1M job postings, machine learning engineers who’re responsible for programming and deploying machine learning solutions have the biggest demand in the market. These careers have had a 344% growth in job postings since 2015, making it the top in-demand job right now. The average base salary for a machine learning engineer is $146,085.
#7
Mobile crane operator, union guys pull over 200k and its a trade thats pretty easy on the body.
#8
I’m a gardener. There’s a serious lack of folks willing to do manual labour in the outdoors year-round. Most commercial properties have to maintain a certain amount of green area in our city. Hospitals and other places like that need legitimate crews to do the work with professionalism (no cat calling or spitting or swearing etc) including bonded employees and good insurance and equipment etc.
As a result we are in demand and we get paid surprisingly well. No university education needed, low barrier to entry, great pay and job security.
#9
I'm a petsitter & I make pretty good cash from it during the busy times (summer & holidays) for very little effort in some cases. I've been doing it for a few years now & after busting my a*s & whoring my time out to clients & their critters I've built a great client base and can relax a bit now. Of course I work a full time job too, petsitting isn't steady enough to rely on but I can make an extra $5-600 a month when it's busy. It gets hectic figuring out the timing between the two jobs sometimes but it's so worth it. I'm currently petsitting for a week, $245 to hang out with two adorable dogs, eat their food, drink the wine they bought me, and relax. I love what I do.
Russell Rieckenberg 2 years ago
"hang out with two adorable dogs, eat their food..." No thanks, I think I'll stick with people food.
The second most in-demand career is a full stack developer. This position requires a person to have a wide skillset and be able to work in front and back-end development with a variety of programming languages. Indeed states that these developers are in high demand, capturing 828 out of every 1M job postings. Full stack developers earn an average salary of $114,316 per year.
#10
Waterslide tester, the rides are already confirmed to be safe enough for humans to ride. You're basically getting paid to ride on a safe waterslide and give feedback.
#11
I was a bathroom attendant in a fancy restaurant. Made hundred of dollars a night in cash to do next to nothing.
#12
Collecting golf balls. Saw on the news a guy makes over $250,000 traveling around and using scuba gear getting golf balls.
The third most in-demand career right now is realtor. Realtors play an integral role in helping people to buy and sell property. There has been an incredible 138% increase in job postings for realtors since 2015, which should be surprising considering the booming real estate market. Although most realtors work on a commission basis, the average salary earned is around $96,820, Indeed states.
#13
Technical writing. If you have the ability to take complex technical information and simplify it according to the reading audience, you can make well over $100K annually.
People ridicule English degrees until they find out how much can be earned as a technical writer.
#14
Medical illustrator.
You know like the anatomical drawings in scientific journals and such, the people behind that make a pretty good living. My friend dated one for a while and I was surprised how well she was doing.
Chucky Cheezburger 2 years ago
Yeah, but ya gotta have the talent to draw well. Some folks (me) can barely draw a stick figure.
#15
Skill trades. You don't need a 4year degree. Some programs are less than a year. Not everyone needs to be an engineer. Go be a welder, electrician, machine repair, or a pipe fitter.
Chucky Cheezburger 2 years ago
This.All this. College is an expensive scam. A lot of knowledge learned in the trades can be used in other places. Im not a plumber, but I can repair my homes plumbing because I learned basic plumbing skills where I work. You can save money because you learn to fix your own stuff.
#16
I drive machinery in a coal mine in Australia. I make about 170k. Even our new trainees are paid pretty well, about $48 per hour. I think it ends up being close to 90-100k. Easy money for sitting on your a**e in an air conditioned cab.
#17
Becoming a locksmith changed my life. Well paid and I get to help people out I love it
Qadgop the Mercotan 2 years ago
Q: Who are you and how did you get in here? A: I'm the locksmith and I'm the locksmith
#18
Utility lineman. There is a developing shortage nationwide due to baby boom retirements. It's well paid base, but the overtime is fabulous.
Rachel Ratty 2 years ago
NO thanks - have watched life on the line - high risk of death, especially for a clumsy sod like me
#19
Court reporting. Stenography is a tough skill to learn, but plenty of court reporters earn over $100k. And no college degree required (although most CRs will need to be certified).
Stephanie A Mutti 2 years ago
This is a risky job field to start in at this time. Automated voice stenography is not far from being perfected and once it is, the need for stenographers is going to plummet along with the salaries.
#20
UPS drivers can make close to 100k if you stay there long enough.
Chucky Cheezburger 2 years ago
But the stress of finishing your route and you don't start as a driver. You have to work your way up to being a driver
#21
I work at home as a closed captioner broadcaster for the News. I make my own schedule and make between $35-$65 per hour depending on the job. Large investment to get started but significantly worth the payout.
#22
Environmental Inspector in the Oil and Gas industry. Make $200,000 a year saving the planet.
#23
Landscape lighting installation, never knew the industry existed. Now I love it and hope to run my own company someday.
Glen Ellyn 2 years ago
Even better, how about focusing on environmentally-friendly, dark-sky compliant plans and fixtures?
#24
Scrum masters in software development industry. They are paid 6 figures for basically setting up meetings and being cheer leaders. They don't have any responsibility for delivery of work and they don't have any work beyond what I described.
Update: I am talking about a dedicated scrum master who does absolutely nothing else but be a scrum master.
Update 2: I agree with you when you say you hate that this position exists as an individual entity and do believe that having one person just do this is wasteful.
Update 3: I am specifically referring to Scrum masters. Project Managers and engineering managers and POs are not included in this.
#25
Hotdog vendors can earn 6 figures in a year
Kookamunga 2 years ago (edited)
Myself and my other female colleagues at my current work want to quit and open a Frozen Yogurt shop run by scantily clad ladies. We'll call it Fro Yo Ho. (edit spelling)
#26
Dog groomer. It’s a weird industry, though, and a skill that really has to be learned hands-on (grooming schools can be a good start, but I know great groomers that never went to school for it, and terrible groomers that spent thousands on classes). Just being good at handling dogs is the best foundation for success.
It’s not the easiest job in the world. It’s largely commission-based, and you’re lucky if you get any benefits out of it, but if you get enough practice in to be good at it and build up a loyal clientele base in a decently affluent area, it’s good money. The haircuts I do range from $70-$175, and I’m paid 50%, which averages out to around $30-$35 an hour most days. Not everyone tips, but those that do usually tip $5-$20 per dog, and because I do about 40 dogs in an average week, that’s an extra couple hundred in my pocket.
So if you don’t mind working on your feet all day, sustaining repetitive motion injuries, not taking lunch breaks, dealing with insane customers, and picking s**t off dog buttholes, it’s a good living.
#27
Did you know people put gutters on their houses to catch the rain as it falls off the roof? I didn’t either until a guy walked up to me and handed me a job doing it. Turns out making $300-600 a day is an every day thing doing it piece rate in Florida.
#28
Underwater welding pays a tremendous amount.
The only one I know personally retired comfortably in his 40's.
Wandering Hammer 2 years ago
You have to spend all day in heavy gear underwater and frequently get shocked
#29
Funeral Director is a great paying job with not a whole lot of schooling. That’s what I do and I make about $75,000.
#30
Ice, producing Ice with industrial machines and selling it to people who export food makes you about 3k per day(about 60 tons of ice sold per day)
What do you think ?
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