Supplemental Income

I love making money, and I especially like it when making said money involves as little effort on my part as possible. Sure, I hold a steady job where I have to deal with jackasses and morons on a daily basis and it's entirely mind-draining . . . but a paycheck's a paycheck. Now, this post is not about that. This is about the cash I make on the side, and as much as I would like my little side gig to be the black market sale of human organs (kaching!), it's something that requires much less surgical implements and more of an opinionated demeanor.

I am a part-time market research-ist. This is not the a formal term, this is just something I coined for myself on the way back from tonight's little market research session. The reason I like these gigs is simple. Minimal effort for maximum pay. I've given my opinions on a miriad of subjects from beer taste-testing to videogame testing. I'm not a fan of beer per say, but it did pay upwards of 200 bucks for 8 one-hour sessions.

Recently, though, I had hit a dry spell on the market research front. It had been months since I had participated, but now, all of the sudden, the recruiters are calling. Last week I had a granola bar testing session that lasted less than an hour and paid out 30 bucks. Today's market research session was an actual market research-ist's dream . . . an overbooking. In the market research world, they recruit more people than they need. But, instead of sending you home empty-handed, they pay you anyway. The would-be 2 hour session on cigarettes turned into a 15 minute sit-around waiting to get paid. How much? 75 bucks. God I love this business.

Tomorrow I have 2 lined up. I have to go to a Taco Bell at 6:30 in the morning to taste some tacos for an undertimate amount of money. Can't be less than 30 bucks, which is fantastic since they're paying you to eat. Then, after I go to work, I have to head out to North Hollywood for a couple of hours worth of watching something that's Comedy Central-related. That's another 70 bucks. I just hope they keep calling me.

And I know, the recruiters always ask if the person they're screening hasn't done any market research sessions in the past few months. You're supposed to answer this question with a no and tell them, if they want more info, that it hasn't been less than a year since you last did something like this. Is it ethical to do this? Who cares? Fuck them for not keeping more accurate records. I need to make up all the holiday money I've spent somehow. A brotha has to hustle for the dolla' sometimes.

Where do I find these? Craig's List. It's a great resource on finding all things market research and other gig-related things. I suggest you check it out. If you want to make some money the easy way. Oh, but it's perfectly ok if you want to keep making all your money the chump way . . . by putting effort into it. Pfft! Loser.