Turn talents into cash

"I had a vague idea that I would find something. I knew I wanted to be creative... but that was about it." Meanwhile, she enrolled in an advanced cake decorating class that she had always wanted to take.

"I was practicing on a cake at home when one of my nieces said that my cake looked better than the ones at the store. And you know what? She was right."

Soon after that Avery decided to see if she could turn her hobby into a business. "The first mistake I made was in charging too little. I knew that especially at first I couldn't be paid for most of my time because I was coming up with ideas and then having to practice them. But my first few cakes almost cost me money, especially with having to deliver them." After a rocky start, though, Avery finds she is now starting to make enough money to notice. "This summer we're going to fly out West on the money I made in the fall."

How do you turn your talents into money? Take the following into consideration:

Follow your passion
If something fascinates you, chances are you're not alone. Take bugs... that's right, bugs. Vanessa Bright of Edmonton, Alberta found that her family's budget was strapped for cash – but she wanted a job that wasn't 9-5. After a fortuitous meeting with a clown specializing in children's parties, she realized that she could take her knowledge and interest in bugs and turn that into a money-making act. In the Fall 2006 issue of Birth Issues she wrote:

"A week after I made my decision, my little guy and I went out after a rainstorm. We came home soaking wet and I had 2 earthworms in one hand, and three tent caterpillars in the other. My little guy couldn't wait to show his dad what we had found. I realized with real joy that this was exactly what I was doing when I was six years old."