Brainstorming

MollysMom · #1 03/03/13, 05:33 PM

Well, I'm still unemployed, it has been 3 months since I have worked as a nurse. I have applied everywhere and have had lots of interviews. I have always had luck with job hunting, but not lately. I hope it's no because I'm 61. So if I am not able to get a job I'm looking for ways to make money at home. I already have an Etsy shop and have items posted on Ebay. I'm planning to sell plant starts at Farmers Market this spring and have some seeds planted in seed starting trays. I plan to start a flower farm. We have 8 acres of land to use, although I won't use that much. I have done alot of research, have had many flower gardens, have the equipment and seeds to plant. I also have the book The Flower Farmer. I have wanted to do this for years, so this might be the time to do this. Any advice or ideas?

**clovis** · #2 03/03/13, 08:18 PM

Was this thread supposed to be in the Gardening forum?

snowcap · #3 03/03/13, 08:46 PM

With garden stuff you have to learn as you go what sells in your area. And your timing has to perfect.
I tryed selling tomato plants and some one else had bigger , cheaper ones than me so i didn't do very well with it.
Do you have a green house?
I am finding You have to have lot of things going at the same time to make enough to count. raise other cash crops besides plants, and any thing else you can think of.

45n5 · #4 03/05/13, 02:43 PM

i think you should read up on "affiliate marketing" i just wrote a post about it

http://www.makemoneyhomesteading.com...peoples-stuff/

katlupe · #5 03/07/13, 11:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MollysMom

Well, I'm still unemployed, it has been 3 months since I have worked as a nurse. I have applied everywhere and have had lots of interviews. I have always had luck with job hunting, but not lately. I hope it's no because I'm 61. So if I am not able to get a job I'm looking for ways to make money at home. I already have an Etsy shop and have items posted on Ebay. I'm planning to sell plant starts at Farmers Market this spring and have some seeds planted in seed starting trays. I plan to start a flower farm. We have 8 acres of land to use, although I won't use that much. I have done alot of research, have had many flower gardens, have the equipment and seeds to plant. I also have the book The Flower Farmer. I have wanted to do this for years, so this might be the time to do this. Any advice or ideas?

Can you write? I think the best way to make consistent money each month is if you can put together an eBook. Information is what people pay for. As a nurse, you could put together a book about what to expect when you go into a hospital, health concerns, a nurse's point of view, how to become a nurse, etc. Or write about your homestead, growing flowers, recipes from your farm, etc. Look though the kindle shop on amazon. Lots of good eBooks out there.

Even the months I don't make good money on my affiliate links on my blogs, I always make some money on my eBooks. I am working on updating them so they will be better, but they still bring in some money each month. $50. +

MollysMom · #6 03/07/13, 06:31 PM

Katlupe, I love writing, I have a novelette I wrote during NaNoWriMo, which hasn't been published. I have thought about writing ebooks, but we don't have internet on our desktop computer. I just have my android phone. I did apply for a job today at the Dialysis Clinic. They are opening another clinic in a nearby town. So who knows. I would love to write ebooks for extra income, yet it is hard to do without internet.

45n5 · #7 03/08/13, 11:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MollysMom

but we don't have internet on our desktop computer. I just have my android phone.

you can use an android phone to connect your desktop computer to the internet, it's called "tethering" and just uses a usb cable to do, it's the only internet I had for a couple years before I got hughesnet

blynn · #8 03/09/13, 11:54 AM

Just throwing this out there, but when I was new in town I spent a lot of time at the library, donated my old paperbacks there, used the internet, etc. And eventually ended up with a part time job there because they knew me, and knew I cared about books. When it came down to hiring, out of the three top candidates I was the only one who actually used the library, so it went to me.

I also volunteered at the city visitor's center (answering tourist questions, taking phone messages, etc.) and this year I was offered part time seasonal work there, which is all I was looking for. Sometimes volunteering is a good way for people to get to know you, and since you're already a familiar face and knowledgeable about the way things run, they're more likely to offer a position to you if one opens up.

I love your idea for a flower farm. If I had a bit more room I'd start doing seedlings for my friends, but currently I've only been able to expand enough just enough to keep up with my expanding garden!

joebill · #9 03/09/13, 09:16 PM

If you plant flowers for sale to flourists, keep in mind that those same customers will want dried stuff, too. You can plant Statice (spelling?) and sell them all year round.

We sold dried and bleached Manzanita to flourists for years, and a lot of driftwood and other neat stuff to put in arrangements....Joe

CntryDaydreamer · #10 03/10/13, 07:56 AM

I have seen bulb farms, however the bulbs would take several years to spread.

MollysMom · #11 03/10/13, 08:05 PM

I'm still going to interviews and filling out applications, so I haven't given up. In the mean time I had a business idea, which goes with my passion for growing veggies and flowers. A small space and container gardening business. I plan to start small, selling my container gardens at the Farmers Market, we have our first farmers market meeting March 21. Our farmers market is $30 for the whole season. What ya think?

katlupe · #12 03/11/13, 09:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MollysMom

I'm still going to interviews and filling out applications, so I haven't given up. In the mean time I had a business idea, which goes with my passion for growing veggies and flowers. A small space and container gardening business. I plan to start small, selling my container gardens at the Farmers Market, we have our first farmers market meeting March 21. Our farmers market is $30 for the whole season. What ya think?

I think it sounds like a good idea! I believe in "many streams of income" in this life. It has always gotten me through the tough times. Good luck on your job search too!

happychick · #13 03/11/13, 08:32 PM

Share your ebay and etsy stores with us please!

strawberrygirl · #14 03/12/13, 08:38 AM

Have you thought about leasing/renting an unused portion of your property? Maybe to a farmer that needs more hay or corn for their cows. It would be a great way to generate income.

SashayXP · #15 04/04/13, 11:54 PM

mollysmom...I can sympathize on the job search. Seems like anyone over 40 is automatically discarded. I know that you want a full time job with benefits...but until that comes along...think about applying to a temp agency or a home health agency to do at home nursing...or a hospice. It probably does not sound like your dream job...and maybe it is not...but income is income and everyone I know that has worked for a temp agency has been kept pretty busy not just hit or miss. It might work for you too.

MJDC · #16 04/24/13, 05:28 AM

Mollysmom, I think with your nursing background, you might easily get taken on as a part time caregiver/nurse. If you forgo the idea of full time steady work, then you might be able to find an agency that allows occasional type. I live with a woman who has 3 part time caregivers-basically companions. Nurses can get very undemanding jobs or more demanding ones-you can set some parameters.Not sure where you are, but we have a HECK of a time finding a reliable person that we can count on. Your skill level would put you in a higher wage bracket and the part time nature could give you both an income and the time to pursue your beautiful garden idea. Some hire privately, somethrough agencies. See Craigslist and go online to some agencies. It wouldn't be the way to go when you are a younger go getter, but at this stage, that kind of work might suit you well.

MollysMom · #17 05/25/13, 01:17 AM

Huh? I already own one.

fransean · #18 05/26/13, 10:50 AM

Can you get internet access on your computer where you live? There are websites that hire writers who work from home. There may even be a health care niche for writing.

sisterpine · #19 05/26/13, 01:19 PM

Ok, I dont normally gove away my own money making ideas but since you are in need and I am not I am gonna share.

You may have noticed that preparation for disaster is pretty big in most places right now. I happen to have some skills that are useful in this type of scenerio. My plan was to offer short 4 hour classes to folks interested in learning what I am able to teach. I do not know what your speciality is but I do know that everyone has one. So that is my idea, teach right on your homestead and advertise in the nearest towns. I just saw that you are a nurse, I used to be one as well as an EMT in my young and daring days. Teach medical triage and emergency medical care when there is no doctor available. Help folks figure out what they need in their first aid kit too.

By the way, I am also 61 and live in a large city. I am teaching how to travel on foot or by vehicle/bike safely in a big city as well as in the surrounding desert. I am also teaching firearms cleaning and assembly for women. So far so good!

MollysMom · #20 05/28/13, 12:32 PM

Lots of good ideas! Thank you, everyone. My husband is now working 3 1/2 days per week. So one day he told me I could take the summer off to grow and sell my flowers. Yes!! I have glads, daylilies, lots of different sunflowers and zinnias, cosmos, etc growing in my garden area. I have the weeds under control and the flowers are doing well. Hope to begin selling them later next month. My retirement money from the hospital got us through many months. Hubby had retirement from a job he held about 6 years ago, plus he is getting SSI. Our veggie garden and strawberries are better this year than they were last year. My blueberries and raspberry plants are full of fruit. The maple, dogwood and oak tree seeds are all germinating in my greenhouse. I love propagating, been doing this for years. My favorite plant to propagate is african violets. My mother plant is about 7 years old and is 14" in diameter and has donated leaves in the past for new plants. I will not sell her, she is so beautiful, but I do sell her babies. Plants and gardening is my passion.

This weekend I'm having a yard sale, decluttering. I have a large tent which I used when I sold at the Saturday Market in Oregon. So if it rains there will be shelter besides the front porch. I also will sell my crafts and craft supplies I no longer use at my yard sale.
Hopefully then I can get internet back in our house, so I can look into phone triage or freelance work. I usually do well selling my stuff by yard selling.
Enjoying life! Oh and my doctor said I'm in better health now that I'm not working at the hospital. Gardening, taking care of the house and animal can be physical and tiring, but I am so happy!