Have you ever heard the saying, ‘money’s too tight to mention’? I am familiar with it because I have personally experienced financial struggles like many other young people. I have faced difficulties in affording data, airtime, or simply hanging out with friends. In light of this, I have created a list of job suggestions to help you earn some pocket money. While we acknowledge the challenges posed by the current state of the economy in South Africa, there is still a demand for services that make people’s lives easier and more convenient. So, let’s get into the list and see how you can start earning today!

From Trash to Cash. I made R100 a week washing bins in Khayelitsha. I had four clients from my streets, charging them R100 a month or R25 a week/wash. I live in Khayelitsha, where the trash is collected every Tuesday. The money helped when I was starting a new job. This may seem like a hard job, but after two weeks of washing the trash bin, all other weeks become more like a rinse. This is a convenience to people; when bins are collected, they are at work, so I would wash them and put them back in their yards – to also prevent theft because, surprisingly, trash bins are stolen now and then in Khayelitsha.  

Help others to boost their grades . Tutoring or assisting learners with subjects you are strong in, and by strong, I mean that you scored at least  75% on your matric certificate for those subjects  I wanted to check the current rates for tutors in my neighbourhood and met with Monwabisi Kibido, who runs a local tutoring business. His business has two options: Learners can receive tuition for an hourly rate of R100. The second option is a package of five hourly lessons per subject for R500, this includes additional educational resources, such as subject question papers and further  assistance via WhatsApp. 

Child care/Babysitting. If you are good with children and have patience, are active, responsible and have a knack for teaching; you can be a child carer. People have to work, and some don’t feel comfortable sending their babies to daycare, but rather with someone they can trust to pay all their attention to their baby. A neighbour of mine who has to work uses the services of a babysitter. This childminder cares for her daughter from 6 am to 6 pm, and charges R1500 a month. Baby is dropped off with their food, formula, nappies and all baby essentials. My neighbour trusts the childminder because of good recommendations from my neighbours family friend who previously who used the service. If the whole day does not work for you, as you may have other things to do, you can do hourly sitting for people who come home late. You can fetch the baby from the daycare centre and stay with the child until the parents come home, and charge R100 an hour.

Queue for people at government offices like Home Affairs, SARS, and SASSA. These places can be packed, and some people don’t have the time to queue for themselves and would pay someone to do it, and they go when the person queuing for them. You can charge R100 to queue someone. Bahle Ngqula from Langa started this business and ran it quite successfully but has since moved on from it.

Offering services is a great way to earn money. Just remember to set a price that works for you and your customers. For example, when washing bins, I charged R100 a month to cover costs and make a profit. With unemployment on the rise, some people may be unable to afford your services but don’t sell yourself short. Understand your target market and find a pricing point that works for everyone.

Good luck!

Tell us: What are some of the side hustles you’ve tried or are thinking of trying?