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I've been struggling with this myself since the 90s. Had high hopes for independent income streams like eBay and Etsy that didn't pan out. I'd like to expand t

I've been struggling with this myself since the 90s. Had high hopes for independent income streams like eBay and Etsy that didn't pan out. I'd like to expand the list of income sources where the worker has 100% control over their own schedule and is not beholden to a client, does anyone know of more? * Donating plasma (upwards of $1000 per month due to pandemic) * Uber/Lyft

bilekas 4y ago
Donating plasma? Isn't that really taxing on your body or not?
- tomashertus 4y ago
  I think it depends on the individual, but for example my grandfather lived completely healthy life till his 89 and was donating his O- blood frequently his entire life. And by frequently I mean at least 6x a year.
  - cinntaile 4y ago
    Donating blood is not the same as donating plasma.
  - bilekas 4y ago
    So I just did a brief lookup after work because I was curious. For those who want to know. > It is healthy to donate once or twice each week, if there is a 48-hour period between each donation. Plasma is 90% water and frequent donation will not harm you. It can lead to side effects such as dizziness and fatigue, but staying hydrated can help avoid these.
    - madsohm 4y ago
      I've donated plasma a couple of times. The machine they use to separate the plasma from your blood cells will give you your blood back. They mix in a non-coagulating agent. This can give a tingeling feeling in your lips, that is best alleviated by eating chocolate or drinking chocolate milk.
      - imtringued 4y ago
        >This can give a tingeling feeling in your lips, that is best alleviated by eating chocolate or drinking chocolate milk. HAVE YOU lately experienced a craving for chocolate milk? If you’re lucky, it’s just a symptom of lactose intolerance. If you’re less fortunate, there’s a serious glitch in the space-time continuum.
- zackmorris 4y ago
  That's a good question. It depends on many factors like age and frequency, which might be why it's so popular with college students! Donations clear the blood of stuff like cholesterol and microplastics, so the first donation can leave one feeling better the next day. Donating twice a week can be more taxing on the body and result in stuff like a lower body temperature, slower heartbeat and lower blood pressure because the heart doesn't have to work so hard to pump thinner blood. I'm mostly concerned about using up the body's regenerative ability, since nobody knows how many times that plasma can be synthesized over a lifetime. But many of the components in blood have a natural recycling rate anyway. I suspect that the body can't tell if it's building new plasma from old plasma or nutrients in food though. Without more evidence, I feel that it's better to rely on the expertise of the medical community than speculation. Just my two cents, YMMV.
Cerium 4y ago
It does not make any real money, but there is Mechanical Turk.
krageon 4y ago
Donating plasma might make you money in the US, but I'm 100% sure in the EU (or at least some parts of it) it is not legal to be offered money for this.
- willcipriano 4y ago
  In the EU I imagine your plasma donation will go to someone under your socialized medicine system who needs it at no or low cost to them. In the US it will be sold at a very high cost by a series of for profit firms. Organ donation works the same way. It can be very profitable for the hospital and others involved. However we ban the sharing of those rewards with the people who actually provided the organ in that case.
  - krageon 4y ago
    Please take the time to actually understand things instead of parroting the "socialized" talking points US politicians use. There's a reason the rest of the world views them as thunderingly ignorant.
- yayachiken 4y ago
  Not sure about the rest of the EU, but at least in Germany, plasma donations at private collection companies are a common way for students to earn beer money or end-of-month money, as you can donate plasma every couple days. You also get paid for "normal" blood donations, even though the payment is technically only a "compensation" for your time and trouble. The donation services like German Red Cross usually still make a profit, which is why some people make a point to donate directly to hospitals if possible.
herbst 4y ago
Both eBay and Etsy work well for me as long as I only look for a few hundred dollars per month. Once you find products that work, it starts working from alone. It's boring work and customers are annoying and postal services really unreliable in some countries. Other than that, easy extra cash
- helloworld11 4y ago
  If you don't mind my asking, what do you usually sell on these platforms? particularly Etsy.
  - herbst 4y ago
    Late answer sorry, I stopped Etsy because they have literally zero support and many problems. However I resold whatever worked. Pins were a interesting business for example. Whatever people need to create things on their own goes well, even simple juwelry worked well. Thing is it is very dishonest. 99% of the 'Handmade' products aren't Handmade. If you are ok with this fact and just want to compete with other Chinese resellers Etsy allows a huge Markup by their average pricing. Some markets like Pins are 99% resellers that picked Handmade as source. They have zero quality control. Not sure what I should say, kinda easy money, very dishonest and ugly platform.

bilekas 4y ago

Donating plasma? Isn't that really taxing on your body or not?

tomashertus 4y ago
I think it depends on the individual, but for example my grandfather lived completely healthy life till his 89 and was donating his O- blood frequently his entire life. And by frequently I mean at least 6x a year.
- cinntaile 4y ago
  Donating blood is not the same as donating plasma.
- bilekas 4y ago
  So I just did a brief lookup after work because I was curious. For those who want to know. > It is healthy to donate once or twice each week, if there is a 48-hour period between each donation. Plasma is 90% water and frequent donation will not harm you. It can lead to side effects such as dizziness and fatigue, but staying hydrated can help avoid these.
  - madsohm 4y ago
    I've donated plasma a couple of times. The machine they use to separate the plasma from your blood cells will give you your blood back. They mix in a non-coagulating agent. This can give a tingeling feeling in your lips, that is best alleviated by eating chocolate or drinking chocolate milk.
    - imtringued 4y ago
      >This can give a tingeling feeling in your lips, that is best alleviated by eating chocolate or drinking chocolate milk. HAVE YOU lately experienced a craving for chocolate milk? If you’re lucky, it’s just a symptom of lactose intolerance. If you’re less fortunate, there’s a serious glitch in the space-time continuum.
zackmorris 4y ago
That's a good question. It depends on many factors like age and frequency, which might be why it's so popular with college students! Donations clear the blood of stuff like cholesterol and microplastics, so the first donation can leave one feeling better the next day. Donating twice a week can be more taxing on the body and result in stuff like a lower body temperature, slower heartbeat and lower blood pressure because the heart doesn't have to work so hard to pump thinner blood. I'm mostly concerned about using up the body's regenerative ability, since nobody knows how many times that plasma can be synthesized over a lifetime. But many of the components in blood have a natural recycling rate anyway. I suspect that the body can't tell if it's building new plasma from old plasma or nutrients in food though. Without more evidence, I feel that it's better to rely on the expertise of the medical community than speculation. Just my two cents, YMMV.

Cerium 4y ago

It does not make any real money, but there is Mechanical Turk.

krageon 4y ago

Donating plasma might make you money in the US, but I'm 100% sure in the EU (or at least some parts of it) it is not legal to be offered money for this.

willcipriano 4y ago
In the EU I imagine your plasma donation will go to someone under your socialized medicine system who needs it at no or low cost to them. In the US it will be sold at a very high cost by a series of for profit firms. Organ donation works the same way. It can be very profitable for the hospital and others involved. However we ban the sharing of those rewards with the people who actually provided the organ in that case.
- krageon 4y ago
  Please take the time to actually understand things instead of parroting the "socialized" talking points US politicians use. There's a reason the rest of the world views them as thunderingly ignorant.
yayachiken 4y ago
Not sure about the rest of the EU, but at least in Germany, plasma donations at private collection companies are a common way for students to earn beer money or end-of-month money, as you can donate plasma every couple days. You also get paid for "normal" blood donations, even though the payment is technically only a "compensation" for your time and trouble. The donation services like German Red Cross usually still make a profit, which is why some people make a point to donate directly to hospitals if possible.

herbst 4y ago

Both eBay and Etsy work well for me as long as I only look for a few hundred dollars per month. Once you find products that work, it starts working from alone. It's boring work and customers are annoying and postal services really unreliable in some countries. Other than that, easy extra cash

helloworld11 4y ago
If you don't mind my asking, what do you usually sell on these platforms? particularly Etsy.
- herbst 4y ago
  Late answer sorry, I stopped Etsy because they have literally zero support and many problems. However I resold whatever worked. Pins were a interesting business for example. Whatever people need to create things on their own goes well, even simple juwelry worked well. Thing is it is very dishonest. 99% of the 'Handmade' products aren't Handmade. If you are ok with this fact and just want to compete with other Chinese resellers Etsy allows a huge Markup by their average pricing. Some markets like Pins are 99% resellers that picked Handmade as source. They have zero quality control. Not sure what I should say, kinda easy money, very dishonest and ugly platform.