Different Ways to Make Money

Recently I was speaking with a friend who has made millions of dollars and leads a wonderful life of leisure now. He owns several sports cars, a yacht, and a restaurant that serves buffalo. He likes to go mountain biking and pays some of the best riders around to accompany him on multiple day excursions. He has never gotten married and settled down, yet doesn't seem to have any problems attracting the ladies. He gives generously to charity and is friends with professional athletes and celebrities alike.

Yet it wasn't always like this for him. Growing up, he didn't do very well in school. The only thing he liked to do was listen to music. He knew all the hot bands and who was playing where. He dropped out of school before his senior year and bought a vacant lot on the outskirts of the city. Everyone thought he was nuts, but he had a plan.

He built a cheap concert hall and invited local bands to come play. Soon, Friday nights at the "lot" became the number one event for hundreds of people. He started charging four dollars a ticket and people kept coming. He took the money from ticket sales and then hired bigger, more famous bands to perform. Every time he got a more famous band to come, he would raise the ticket prices. Then, when he had steady weekly income, he invested in the hall. He put in better seating, air conditioning, and a bar. The people kept coming.

Before he turned eighteen, he had made two hundred thousand dollars. Then, he used the internet to find cheap properties in a few more cities. He build more concert halls. When he didn't have concerts, he rented them out for conventions, weddings, you name it. By the time he was thirty, he was making millions every year and hanging out with the hottest music acts.

All you need is guts and a little vision.

George Clooney heads a stellar cast in the remake of the 1960s classic "Oceans Eleven." Clooney plays Danny Ocean, a con man with big ideas. He's recently released from prison and meets up with fellow partner, Rusty (Brad Pitt). Ocean has come up with a heist and needs Rusty's help as well as team of eight, highly specialized experts to pull it off. They plan to rob the bank vault of three Las Vegas casinos owned by Terry Benedict (Andy Garcia). Besides the lucrative payoff to pull off this big job, Ocean wants to win back his ex-wife, Tess, who is now Benedict's girlfriend. With an incredibly elaborate plan to penetrate the security system and stage the robbery, you see this impressive group of men go into action. That's what makes this movie work. You've heard the cliched term on-screen chemistry used over and over again. But in this case it really exists, and you can't avoid it. Clooney and Pitt look so natural working together; it doesn't look forced. The banter is great. Even though Ocean's gang are technically breaking the law, you end up rooting for them. Benedict is really the bad guy in this movie, not Ocean and his friends. You want them to stick it to Benedict and "acquire" the $150 million payoff. One of the great scenes of the movie is rounding up the gang as well as recruiting the new guy, Matt Damon who's a skilled pickpocket. They gather together as Ocean explains the level of security surrounding the vault. Of course it's tighter than Fort Knox, but Ocean and Rusty are cool as cucumbers and confident that it's doable. It doesn't matter that it's highly improbable to pull off a heist such as theirs. You spend money on a ticket to be entertained, and this movie does the job in spades!

Can you guess what is the most common investment of the world's billionaires? It is not high tech, entertainment, or retail. What the world's richest people have in common is that most of them based their fortunes on owning land and buildings -- the fast moving world of commercial real estate.

What most people don't realize is that it is relatively easily to get into the business of commercial real estate. All you need to find is a few good agents and access to some capital to get started. Once you start renting out properties, you can repay the initial investors and then just rely on your own profits.

How does it work? Simple. First, drive downtown and find some property that looks a bit dilapidated. No matter what condition it is, if the location is good you can make very nice money. There are always building that do not see their potential because the builders are not giving the building or the tenants the attention they both need. Buildings that have a lot of vacancy can often be bought for far less than their market value.

As soon as you have the title get a team of contractors in to clean up the place. Stick in a gym and a coffee shop and start marketing. Don't expect businesses to find you, go to them. Look for stable clients like well established law firms and offer to pay all their moving expenses and give all the partners free gym membership. You will make back all the money you spend very quickly in rent.

Just remember, all you have to do is listen to your clients. Keep them happy and they will keep you happy. Sometime all it takes is a monthly free lunch to get people to feel great that they are your tenants. Of course, don't sit still. As soon as you have enough capital for another building go for it. The more commercial real estate you own, the more you can control the market.

I recently visited National Stadium, the newest Major League Baseball stadium in the United States. I was there for the second game ever played in the fantastic stadium. I can tell you, Marl Lerner, owner of the Stadium, the team, and half of Washington, D.C. office space, knows how to make money.

The stadium is very family friendly. Ushers are polite, rowdy fans are immediately ousted, even smokers are told they have to leave the ballpark to smoke. There are literally dozens of restaurants around the park. Not just hot dog stands, every thing from salad bars to kosher food stands circle the stadium. All are just steps away from the field. Stepping out to grab a bite, you will never miss any action.

I think the key to Lerner's fortune has to be in the caps though. Every fan just has to buy a souvenir Nationals Cap. You figure it is the least you can do. Yet these caps, which are just regular cotton caps with the Nationals logo, cost twenty dollars each!! Think about how many thousands of fans come to the park during the season (with over one hundred games). If just half of them by a cap (which I am guessing wholesale for about $1), then the Nationals (A.K.A. Lerner) have just made a fortune.

Yet I do not begrudge Mr. Lerner for selling twenty dollar caps. Quite the contrary, I admire him. If you are serious about making money, follow the trail of the billionaires. The audacity to take something which you buy for one dollar and sell it for twenty is just the kind of attitude you need to make a fortune. Don't be timid. Timid people never make fortunes. Dare to be bold. You never know what people will be willing to spend money on.

You may not be aware of it, but the world of competitive eating can make you very wealthy. It is a bit like professional sports, only you don't need to work out much to be great. You just need to eat a lot.

Take Joey Chestnut for example. He is probably the best American eater around right now. Joey first gained attention by winning Competitive Easting Rookie of the Year for 2005. He was asparagus champ two years in a row and placed second in hot dogs on July 4 with the new American record of 52 dogs and buns in 12 minutes. For a young guy to be second in the hot dog eating contest, which after all, is really like the Super Bowl of competitive eating -- is something very special.

I can only imagine how much Joey is worth now. With each victory on the food circuit comes more endorsements and paid speaking engagements. Then there is the merchandising. If someone knows what they are doing, they can turn a weird and somewhat gross habit into millions. All this without going to any training camp or working the way up through the minor leagues!

Then there is Sonya Thomas, the Black Widow. This slender lady weighs just 100 pounds. Yet she crushers her opponents regularly. She once eight eighty chicken nuggets in five minutes! I am sure every chicken company out there wants her as their spokeswoman.

So if you have no athletic ability whosever and want to make a fortune and get on TV, try going the route of competitive eating. All it takes is a big appetite and lots of practice. Also, I don't think you have to pay for the food at the competitions so at the very least, you get a free lunch even if you don't win.

It's hard to get into most retail markets because there is so much competition. If a product is in demand, there will be a hundred companies selling it overnight. Within days, the margin will be gone as everyone tries to make the sale by offering the lowest price. That is the main reason retail is so difficult. For every one guy who makes money in retail, nineteen people fail. Yet I will tell you about one product where there is very little competition right now.

The item is becoming more and more popular every day. Everyone wants one. All you need to do is set up a website and you can start taking orders overnight. Since these products offer thousands of dollars per unit in profit, you can become wealthy very fast. Just do a search until you find the manufacturers and ask for an agreement to be an official seller. But don't delay. Within six months, the market will be flooded.

Are you ready to learn the name of the item that can be sold on the Internet and make you tens of thousands of dollars. Well here it is. Just remember, this blog is one of the few places you can get such good inside information without paying for it. I don't even get a cut of the money you will make. Why do I do this? I don't need any more money. I have plenty. I delight in seeing others get rich. Sometimes, being super wealthy is just too lonely.

So here is the product. You can use it to do the research. Go with the manufacturers of the higher end units. High end means high profit. So now, the item that everyone wants and many are willing to spend a great deal on is: The electric towel warmer. That's right. These great devices hang in bathrooms and heat your towels up. Some of the more artistic ones go for thousands of dollars. Now you have the information. What you do with it is up to you.

Of course, everyone knows that doctors make a lot of money. The only problem is that to become a doctor, you have to go to medical school, and that costs a lot of money. Then, you have to spend so much money to get started, that unless you really love the concept of being a healer, I would not recommend it. Remember, we are in love with the concept of making money, and for that you don't need an advanced degree. Here is an idea if you want to be involved in health but don't want to go to medical school. Become a physical trainer. More and more people around the country are becoming interested in working out. They want to get in shape, but they have no idea how. They are willing to spend a great deal of money for someone to come to their house and teach them about fitness. But here's the key. They don't really want knowledge. Anyone can put on a pair of sneakers and take up running. Want they are seeking is motivation. And anyone can become a motivator. You don't need any special talents or skills. All you need is a friendly personality and the ability to give people a little push when they need it. Just put a little ad in the local paper that you are a personal trainer. Charge about $100 per hour. Any less and they will think that you are too cheap. Then when you have your first client, start them off with some basic stretching. If you don't know how, just google it. There is tons of stuff about stretching on the Internet. After stretching, do some basic exercises. Try a few push ups and sit ups. Maybe running in place. You want to get a feel for how in shape they already are. Don't push too much. Just enough so that the client feels they are getting a good workout that is challenging, but do-able. Later you can add more complicated workouts. Take my word. People will pay good money for a little motivation. Once you have a whole bunch of clients, then you can buy a good mountain bike and take some time to get yourself in tip-top shape.

Nowadays many single and unmarried people, families with young children, widows, seniors, and the like have a dog at home. These precious animals are companions and watchdogs. They're really a member of the family. But unless you have a large, fenced-in yard, who is going to be responsible for walking the dog at least two times a day? It's a huge responsibility. We lead busy lives. And let's be honest....Fido is going to get the short end of the stick. Who has time to walk the dog beyond the front steps? Dogs need the fresh air and exercise every day. That's where you come in. Here's an opportunity to be an entrepreneur... and perhaps lose a few pounds along the way! Make a simple flyer and distribute it to everyone in your neighborhood. Leave some flyers pinned up in the local grocery store, library, or community center. Charge a flat fee for walking a dog two times a day for one hour, five days a week. Depending upon how strong and brave you are, consider walking three or four dogs at a time. Imagine the easy money you can make working a few hours a day. If you're not into fresh air and exercise, then recruit some hearty teenagers and give them a percentage of the weekly take. Be the dog walker broker, so to speak. But I heartily recommend getting out and enjoying the brisk walk. You'll benefit from the exercise, and the dogs will be thrilled. The dog owners will gladly pay you the money so they'll feel less guilty for cooping up their pets. It's a win-win situation. This could lead to other opportunities, like dog sitting or grooming. The possibilities are endless once you've established yourself as a reliable and responsible dog walker.

I hope that by this point, you have taken some of my tips and are well on your way to your first million. I have always said that it doesn't take brains or luck to make a fortune. All you need is perseverance and creativity. Now that you are reading my column, you don't even need the creativity anymore. I will take care of that for you. All you need is the perseverance.

Of course, you don't even need much of that. The proven solutions I have written about will start making you money if you persevere for about two weeks. Of course the big money comes in if you continue to work for a year. Notice, I did not say "work hard." I do not believe in hard work. Hard work is for guys who build bridges and dig ditches. I believe in easy, well-paying work. I think this is the attitude that you should adopt also -- it is the attitude of those who want to own yachts or pet zebras or a thousand other things that no one needs.

You know what else is for dummies? Paying retail. If you want to be super rich, don't pay retail for anything. I never do. It's not that I can't afford it. There is very little that I can't afford. Its just the principle. You are the rich guy. You are in control. You will not let some shopkeeper tell you how much something cost. Go to the Rolex Store if you need a watch. Pick one nice one out that cost $10,000. Then tell the guy behind the counter you will buy it for $7,000. Do not offer $7,000. Just tell him you are buying it for that price. If he starts to complain, look him in the eyes and say again -- slowly -- "I will take this one for $7,000." Trust me, he won't argue if you look like you mean business.

Now, take that $3,000 you just saved and waste it by going to a game and renting a luxury suite. Leave at half time. Just so that everyone knows that the $3,000 means nothing to you. Now that's the way to live!

What I am about to tell you, you will dismiss. You will probably laugh at me for suggesting it. You will be shocked and in disbelief. However, I want to remind you that I own a yacht. My guess is that you do not. So, if you aspire to wealth, keep an open mind and read on.

You may think that T-shirts are cheap. The often maligned under shirt is most likely the cheapest piece of clothing you can buy. Yet don't let that lead you to think you can't make tons of money off of them. Quite the opposite, that's where the genius lies.

You see a standard white T-shirt, purchased wholesale in bulk quantities of course, cost around $4. That's right, just four dollars. However, print a picture on it, or even some silly slogan -- and you can now market the shirt for $40. Yes, a 1000 percent profit margin! All you need is to come up with a slogan and start selling them.

The slogan does not even have to make sense. The other day, I saw a kid wearing a shirt that said "Soup Cool Rain." I do not know what it means, and I doubt the kid does either. But I do know that he spent real money on that shirt! All around the world, kids who don't even speak English are wearing shirts that say the craziest things. How about "Ride Dog Drink" or "Blue Fast Dance." They mean nothing, but kids think they are "cool."

You know what I think is "cool"? Making enough money to buy a yacht. Now, I think I have given you enough tips for today and I have an appointment with a gin and tonic on the deck. See you next week!