Could you do with some extra cash?
I’m sharing this story partly in case it’s helpful to anyone here who’s struggling with cash flow right now. Also, there are several insights here that any of us can be inspired by.
So, my creative-thinking, 76-year-old mother has casually made over £2,000 worth of sales via Facebook Marketplace in bursts of time over two years.
She began the selling a couple of years ago, mainly to declutter, as she’d moved from a larger property into a flat with fewer rooms and less hideaway storage. She just looked at it one day and thought, should I give it away, or should I sell it? She was also concerned about the environmental impact that just throwing old stuff away at the tip has on our planet.
All she did at first was declutter stuff from her flat by selling it on FB Marketplace. Then she moved on to buying stuff from charity shops: cleaning them up or repurposing them. When people come to collect their items, she also ‘up-sold them potted plants she had grown. She even checked with the tax office that it was ok to do so. She was pleased that by selling (and even many times giving away small plants to buyers she got on well with), she encouraged the ethos of taking action to green the planet, no matter how small.
She says, ‘I’ve also donated many items to charity shops and repurposed clothes and fabrics into other items for myself and as presents. A thrift installed in me by growing up in a large family where I had to make do and mend’.
I keep telling her she’s a business genius and could increase her income even more, but she’s not really interested; it’s just a casual hobby to her! (She’s also an in-demand yoga teacher and was running 3 sold-out classes a week before Covid. She’s not that keen on delivering them via Zoom but may be coming round to it).
Anyway, the insights I get from her story are:
- it’s never too late
- you don’t need expensive training to get selling
- there’s always a way
- get creative
- your junk is someone else’s treasure
- always look for ways to up-sell
- be generous with giveaways
- sales make the world go round: keep that energy moving from person to person!
- re-sell, share, repurpose and grow stuff to save the planet
- your mother probably doesn’t know she’s a business genius (and probably neither do you!)
I’m happy to say that my own coaching business is doing very well, and sales are flowing in: I wonder who I get my business passion from : )
I hope this was useful to someone reading this – never give up!
This time of year is a good time to do a clear out.
Could you earn or give in this way?
Or are you realising there’s something you could introduce to your sales approach?
By the way, if you have a creative (and legal!) way of earning extra cash, drop me if a line if you have time – I’d love to hear it.
