Two weeks ago a good friend of mine called me. Due to some personal issues he were in need of three weeks vacation from his work as a delivery man. Unfortunately there were no one who could substitute for him and therefore he was wondering if I could fill in for him for three weeks.
Since I’m working from home I’ve got 52 weeks of vacation every year and therefore I could as well give him three of mine. Double salary while meeting people and helping a friend didn’t sound so terrible.
One week of unsatisfying work
It felt like my first week ran away and every evening I was wondering – What did I do today? The problem was that even though you had all the time in the world while driving, you couldn’t do anything in the car. Just listening on radio when they were talking about nonsense.
Even though the work itself wasn’t boring, it felt unsatisfying.
My first attempt
I decided to turn of my radio and started to philosophize about my future and all of my current projects. The problem was that even though I came up with some great ideas I forgot all of them within a few minutes.
Next day I brought a notebook and pencil with me. You can probably imagine how difficult it is to philosophize, looking at the road, maintaining control over my vehicle while taking notes. Big failure!
The solution
I thought about Dictaphones, software to my computer, etc. when it finally came to me. It’s possible to record audio with my cellphone! At the end of the day I had recorded 12 new ideas for blogentries, with several bullet points for each entry.
Even though I can’t physically make money while driving I can record blogentries and then simply publish them when I come home.
Another great thing with driving long distances is that you can make it your personal time. Before this job I could easily spend half an hour in the shower, thinking about new projects and doing math on the wall. Now I can do this in the car, for several hours each day.
Your thoughts
I’m sure this method isn’t the best and therefore I would be interesting to hear about your thoughts. How can / do you make money while driving?
I still got one week left, so who knows what I will come up with.
{ 11 comments… read them below or add one }
Hey Stefan!
Really nice post. Was this post one of the ideas that you got while driving?
In a way, yes. Since I was a kid I’ve always tried to find methods to make money irrespective of were I am. Therefore it came naturally for me to think about the subject while I was driving.
I do exactly this but in different way.. I do carry my laptop or notebook at least with me always. If i get any doubt or idea regarding my niche..i do note it immediately..later i think of making it to a post
Notebooks is actually the subject on a post I’m working with right now. The post will be somewhat controversial, but I think it’s time to update our notebooks with a cellphone. More info about this later.
Good idea.
I manage, and co-manage, a few different websites, and blogs, and ideas as to what to write about come to me all the time, no matter what I am doing. I have a full-time job where I interact with clients almost daily and sometimes I get ideas from listening to them.
Cool ideas for making money online.
Thanks!
This is a great idea — never thought of it. I do something similar, so I’ll share it.
I’ve found that people go into the deepest thought when they are lying in bed, before they sleep. I keep a notepad next to my bed, and write down up to 5 things that came to mind that night. I later use these to possibly write about.
Sounds like a good method if it works for you. Unfortunately I almost never remember anything about my thoughts the other night, but maybe it’s possible to become better at it?
Yeah, I think it depends what kind of sleeper you are. Some people doze off within minutes. I usually take a while to fall asleep, so I might as well put my mind to work.
If you are driving with a family member who is partnering with you on some things, it is a good idea to talk over ideas.
Another very good use of this kind of “downtime” (driving or otherwise) might be to study. If you have any amount of MP3 files or podcasts you have been meaning to listen to. There are a lot of marketing info products available in this format and some of it is good. I know one person has learned quite a lot by using this method, without actually using any extra time besides her driving and walking time.
I’ve been thinking about this since I started my “Read a Book a Week”-project. I think it’s a great idea.