Poor Man Survival
Self Reliance
tools for independent minded people…
ISSN 2161-5543
A
Digest of Urban Survival Resources
I don't want the cheese, I just want out of the trap...Spanish Proverb
Part-Time
Passion or Full-Time Gig
Do you have a part-time passion? Maybe your passion is painting or maybe you dig writing. Whatever it is, maybe it's time to think about turning it into your full-time job.
James Patterson was a part-time writer. He left his career in advertising to continue chasing the dream of being a writer. According to Forbes.com, in 2015, he topped their list of top earning authors with $89 million. I'd say that wasn't a bad career choice
I'm far away from those sorts of numbers, but writing earns a living. Here's how I took writing from a part-time thing to a full-time gig.
I've always been a writer at heart. The first short story I ever wrote was even before puberty hit and was called simply The Vampire. At about 500 words typed out, I sold copies to family members that were signed, of course
Whatever your passion it is likely
you don’t have a lot of funding. When I was a speaker and board member at
COSEs annual Entrepreneurship Conference in Cleveland this was the number one
plight of most start up businesses. The
standard joke was that we all started our business using ‘Hip National Bank,” meaning
family, friends, credit cards and home equity loans or other creative financing
methods including barter. [I did
informal, one-on-one bartering and also belonged to a local professional
bartering organization which allowed me to stretch my marketing budget
tremendously].
Today, because of the internet, home fax machines and
overnight delivery services, many businesses can be started from home [always
check with local bureaucrats to see what rules you’ll need to comply with first…or
at the very least, keep a low profile at the start of your enterprise].
I’ve been successful in several business ventures ranging
from newspaper publishing to owning a country inn to being a successful author
and seminar leader and was awarded the President’s Certificate for
Entrepreneurship and Entrepreneur of the Year by Venture Magazine. Times have changed however. I recently made a presentation to the
executive director of the Arizona Newspaper Assn. for a business concept I
created which included logo and domains called Your Personal Gopher [connecting college
students and 50+ seniors for odd jobs] via the internet and smart phone…they
didn’t even have the professional courtesy to respond!
Finally, check my ecommerce site if you might be
interested in this business [I would work with you] or to find books on
learning how to use barter…Meanwhile, here are a number of useful freebies you
can take advantage of. Feel free to share them…
Free Birthday Presents
Add more fun to a birthday party with
this little-known website.
Inside, you’ll find free gift vouchers,
rock climbing sessions, meals, ice
cream, car washes, movie rentals, and
bowling sessions.
Visit:
you get your free birthday present and aid you in saving $10–100.
Build Your Own (Digital) Library
Here’s how you can get over 45,000 books
mailed to your doorstep for free.
Sound crazy? Hear me out.
Project Gutenberg is the first and
largest single collection of electronic
books (or e-books) on the Internet. With
the help of thousands of
volunteers, this organization digitized
a good chunk of the greatest
books in history.
with 29,500 books—FREE.
To request yours, visit the link below.
her books fall into the public domain.
collection, you’re legally allowed to do
so. So here’s how you can get
ANY book you want for cost.
CreateSpace is a print-on-demand (POD) self-publishing
platform.
Print-on-demand means that when you use
their service, they’ll print
your book when you buy it online and
send it to you.
This makes sure you never have any
overhead when publishing your
book. What’s more, you can publish your book
(and get it listed on
Amazon.com) for free on their platform.
To get your Gutenberg books in print, all you have to do is . . .
1. Set up a free CreateSpace account.
2. Upload the file you received from Gutenberg.
3. And print the book!
All you’ll pay is the cost to print the book.
Gutenberg is far from the only company offering free e-books.
the links below for even more.
Book Swap
Can’t find the book you want for free?
Don’t buy it just yet. Try out a
company called PaperBack Swap. It’s
exactly as it sounds. You swap
books your books with other users. They
have a database of over 4
million books to choose from. All you
pay for is the shipping.
The Free Way to Get a Degree
The absurd price of a college education
is becoming a burden for even
the most well-off families.
daughters of our elected officials, who
are most likely there thanks to
their names and connections, the average
American can’t even get into
those schools, let alone afford the
tuition check.
matter who you are.
accredited academic institution. They’re
dedicated to opening access to
higher education for everyone despite
financial, geographical, or
societal constraints.
degrees in business administration and associate and bachelor’s
degrees in computer science.
These are two fields that are currently in high demand all over the
world.
Students will have to pay an application
fee ($10–50) and exam processing
fees ($100 per exam). If you are unable
to afford these fees,
they have a variety of scholarship
programs (link below.) For more
information, visit the links below.
Scholarship Programs:
Flip Designer Clothes
Do you already have a collection of
lusted-after brands, but want to
trade them out for new styles? Tradesy
is a site that allows anyone to
buy and sell their designer wear with
other like-minded fashionistas.
Check out their site at:
Dress Like a Celebrity
Our elected officials and their families
always seem to be decked out in
top-name designers.
If you like designer wear but hate how
expensive it is, you need Gilt.
Gilt provides instant insider access to
some of the world’s top designer
labels for up to 60% off retail.
Also, for each friend that you refer,
you’ll receive $25 to use toward
your next purchase.
More
Resources…Worth a Share!
- Kids cash in with their business ventures
- Don't penny
pinch the romance out of your marriage
- Developing a frugal attitude
Yours for another revolution,
Bruce ‘the Poor Man’
Additional
Resources
The Anatomy of a Breakdown
The Prepper’s Blueprint: The Step-By-Step Guide To Help You Through Any Disaster
Prepper’s Home Defense: Security Strategies to Protect Your Family by Any Means Necessary
Contact! A Tactical Manual for Post Collapse Survival
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A Smoking Frog Feature, Shallow Planet
Production
