I Tried Everything to Make Money This Is What Finally Worked

Money 0

I Tried Everything to Make Money This Is What Finally Worked, and the main thing I want to clarify in advance is that this is not some sort of story about miraculous achievements. This is how I make money by my own experience, which includes both what I did not manage to do and what worked for me in the end.

The thing is, it all started when I was living in the Philippines and had no clue about how I should earn something on the side. I was not a “tech person,” I had no contacts whatsoever, and there was no particular field that I wanted to try myself at.

And if you are somewhere around my age and in the same position – trying something, then moving further – perhaps this will ring a bell.

I Tried Everything to Make Money This Is What Finally Started With Confusion

When I said that I did everything possible, I didn’t mean that I started 50 different businesses or became proficient in many areas. I just kept switching from one thing to another because I kept getting frustrated.

This is how my days used to go before anything changed for me:

At night, I would watch YouTube videos on side hustles. The following morning, I would try something else. After a few days, I would quit due to poor results. Then, I would find something better and start all over again. And yet, I thought that I was being productive.

The Things I Actually Tried (And What Really Happened)

Now let me describe my experiences honestly—not the ideal version but a reality.

1. Freelancing (Upwork and Fiverr)

First of all, I have accounts in Upwork and Fiverr because of the advice from numerous posts in the Internet: “Make your own account and wait.”

It did NOT work. Here is what really happened: Many hours spent on making a profile. Efforts were made to make it look “professional” despite lack of any experience. 10–15 proposals written and end up with no responses.

One important aspect that I could not understand before was: Clients do not value efforts. They want to see results! I lacked any proof – no feedback, no portfolio, nothing. Consequently, I was ignored.

2. Online Surveys and Microtasks

This method was my first attempt to earn money quickly and easily. Some websites and applications guaranteed small payments for doing simple things. I got my income—yes, but a very little one.

Here are my experiences: 1–2 hours of work invested, $1-$3 earned. It seemed that I was actively working but there were no real achievements. The main issue here was related to the ability of earning money in proportion to the time spent.

3. Affiliate Marketing (With No Knowledge of How)

One of my greatest mistakes ever. I was thinking, “If I post my links then people will buy.”

And I did that, Posted links on Facebook randomly, Spammed my captions and Built no audience. Result – no sales!

Now when I reflect on it, I understand that I missed out on the most critical point – trust and traffic.

4. Small Purchase and Reselling

I also tried reselling smaller products. What I did, Buy cheap products from e-commerce platforms then Sell them with a bit of profit

What happened, Some products were sold. Others weren’t I earned minimal profits. The problem with this strategy was that I had no consistent buyers.

The Moment When I Realized There Was a Problem

I recall calculating the total income I received despite experimenting for weeks. It was not even close to $50. Nor was it daily income. Or weekly. It’s total income. And it was then that reality slapped me into the face.

Since I was using so much effort and spending so much time, but creating no foundations at all. And at that moment, I posed to myself another question, “What if I continue to change techniques instead of developing one?”

I Tried Everything to Make Money This Is What Finally Shifted My Focus

From then on, I didn’t try to find anything new anymore. I began to study patterns. I found out a very basic pattern: All opportunities that I explored online had something in common: They all required me to write or talk about something.

Like: Creating job posts, Marketing products, Talking to my clients. And all of these activities required me to write something.

And hence, I did something that seemed very obvious to me: I decided to write content.

The Changes That I Made This Time

Here is when things began to change slowly. First, I stopped jumping from idea to idea. I made one rule for myself: Focus on one skill for at least 30 days straight.

It was not an easy task. Secondly, I tried practicing without expectations.

I wrote: Short drafts of simple blogs, Product descriptions, Caption ideas for social media posts. Just for myself and no one else.

Thirdly, I started creating some samples. Instead of waiting for clients, I created some fictional projects:

“Product description for a skincare line”
“A sample blog post about traveling around the Philippines”

It gave me self-confidence.

Fourthly, I reached out but in a different way. This time instead of telling them that I could do it, I proved it with examples. Little did I know how much that mattered at the time.

My First Writing Job

The first paid job I ever had was pretty small. It was about helping an online shop write product descriptions. I charged a low price since I still doubted myself.

However, I still vividly remember the moment. It was not about getting the money. It was about getting recognized.

My First 3 Months Doing This

Here is an honest overview of what followed after I did this:

Month 1: Mainly work practicing. One small job paying.

Money earned: about $10-$20

Month 2: Two-three small clients. Increased confidence in writing.

Money earned: about $40-$80

Month 3: Continuing with small jobs. Repeat business.

Money earned: about $100-$150

It didn’t make much money. But it was steady compared to all previous.

Mistakes That I Continued to Make After Success

When I began to see some success, I continued to make mistakes.

1. Setting prices that were too low.

Afraid to lose clients, I would accept any rate.

Lesson: If you do not respect yourself, neither will others.

2. Failing to be consistent on social media.

While I did my work, I did not share my work consistently.

Lesson: Visibility is just as important as ability.

3. Spending too much time perfecting each project.

I used to spend far too long trying to get each project perfect.

Lesson: Imperfection is better than procrastination.

What Really Worked at the End

If forced to conclude I Tried Everything to Make Money and This Is What Finally Worked, the conclusion is that: It didn’t have to be any specific platform. It wasn’t a trick or shortcut. It had to do with consistent execution of a skill over time until it became a competency. That’s all there was to it.

Reasons Why People Fail According to Me

According to my experience, people fail because:

They are quick to switch.
They demand immediate results.
They overlook simple skills.
They give up without any improvements.

And so did I.

Things I Will Do Differently Next Time

If I were to redo all the things:
I will choose one simple skill early.
I will ignore money-making for a month.
I will work on making sample portfolios.
I will do something “too small” as a start.

That’s about it.

My Final Take: While writing this essay, I have realized that I Tried Everything to Make Money This Is What Finally Worked is not about discovering some ultimate approach. It is about overcoming the tendency of constantly changing my mind.

The breakthrough did not lie in finding something new but sticking to something until the end. Moreover, I am far from being the best in this area. However, unlike before, I do not start from scratch each week.

In case you are going through the phase of failure, remember that your approaches can be quite good. However, this does not mean that you should continue trying something new every time you face a problem.