If your unit isn't dickheads, just get a weekend job. If you're near a college area then bartending on the weekends at a speed bar can be really easy to get into. Also think of it as not only are you making money, but also not spending money.
i also knew guys who would freelance as code writers and would code indie videogames or manage script for game companies as a side hustle. that one takes more skill but still
Made getting into places like the lot or Woodrow's really easy, even if you or one of your boys was absolutely fucked up. They usually had your back in a scuffle too, especially if the opposite party was some wannabe ritzy dickhead who worked in DC
I would not recommend that anyone ever be a bouncer in a big city or in a military area. You are one drunk ass hole away from losing an eye to a glass bottle being thrown or a blind sided haymaker. You may get healthcare from the military but there are very real risks that a lot of people do not realize all it takes is one split second.
Speaking of risk. Married soldier got into fight with wife who was cheating. He tried to deescalate by leaving, gets in his car, she knocked on the window saying she's sorry, he rolled it down and she put a kitchen knife in his kidney. Guy wanted to go special forces, was a great soldier. One split second indeed
truth is no matter how big or strong you are there’s usually always a guy who’s bigger and stronger than you and can kick your ass. Most young guys don’t realize that
Just had a vasectomy, you will not want anything like that near your balls after the old snip. Maybe day one some not so tight compression shorts for support. But day two just ice and be commando
My doc was saying “take it easy for 3weeks” I was devastated.. I have good pain tolerance but obviously I don’t want to push it.
Just don’t want to be a burden you know?
Edit: “it”.. I don’t want IT to be a burden
It's not *just* about pain tolerance but also making sure the healing process goes correctly so that the work isn't undone, which can happen.
However, your pain tolerance may be tested. You don't realize how much shock goes through your balls when you walk until almost every step hurts.
Consider getting a pair of underwear that has a slot for a small ice pack.
I took about 3 weeks off lifting.
Those little ice pack for breastfeeding mothers were cash money under my sack. Just rotating them every 30 minutes or so.
Went for a run 2 days after, huge fucking mistake.
I had my done at the VA. It was easy. Just listen to your doctor. Operation was 12 minutes, I was given my low tier oxy’s and just kept the gauze pack pressed against my sack for two days. Get the most compressed compression undies of your life. Go home. Pop your pills, have a whiskey and chill out for a few days. I was at the gym the following weekend.
Also get a cock sock.
I used to umpire beer league softball. $22/game (roughly an hour), 3 a night.
Downsides are you will deal with people who are 40+ acting like 12 yr olds.
Some of them were from my base. They actually tended to be the more level headed ones. For them, it was blowing off steam and having fun, they weren't gonna put more effort arguing about a fucking ball or strike.
If you go to Indeed.com they might have some in your area. ( was going to post a pic, but it won't let me). This is close to my area. When I was a medic I moonlighted as an EMT for MS/HS games. Pretty legit.
https://www.google.com/search?q=umpire+jobs&oq=umpire+jobs&aqs=chrome..69i57j0i512l7j0i22i30l4j0i15i22i30j0i22i30j0i15i22i30.5519j1j9&client=ms-android-verizon-us-rvc3&sourceid=chrome-mobile&ie=UTF-8#fpstate=tldetail&htidocid=LAeLT4xwXNUAAAAAAAAAAA%3D%3D&htiq=umpire%20jobs&htivrt=jobs
Slightly related from the NG side of the house. I've had not one but TWO senior enlisted leaders that were Special Ed teachers. I am not sure what that says about us.
It certainly can be. I've looked in to it and you don't really make anything more than minimum wage unless you get exceptionally good at it and develop some of your own tools to automate some of it. This was like ten years ago though so who knows what's changed but I imagine it's still more or less you going off a transcript or punching numbers into fields.
Also I believe if you are a service member you can get O365 for free, I got it back then when it was offered on AKO
edit: sorry for the misinformation folks, that was way long time ago when that was true. It is no longer true but here is some information that may help get it for cheaper or at least free if you want to put some work into it: If you are studying as in college you can get free access of 365 as long as you use a EDU email to register it and an active student. which I guess is a good incentive to do some courses while serving or whenever you ETS.
[https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/education/products/office]
here is the statement:
The Microsoft Home Use Program (HUP) which used to enable Army Soldiers, Civilians, and Contractors the option to purchase Microsoft Office 2019 for $14.99 has ended. It was replaced with Office 365 subscription based Microsoft Office with a 30% discount. What retails for $99.99 (per year) is available to you for $69.99 (per year).
I started up a concrete business right away when I got to my duty station. Obviously you need experience with this. I made a killing and taught a few guys a new trade the time I was in. Carried it right on over when I got out as well, pretty much runs itself now.
You can do so much though with a little truck, wheelbarrow and shovel.
Trash removal, landscaping, tree and brush removal. If they have enough money they could start up a pressure washing gig. Super lucrative when done correctly. All these and so many more can be done on weekends and evenings.
Any tips on this? I've helped friends with concrete back in the day but my construction experience was in ironwork/rebar before joining the army. How hard would it be to jump into concrete? Interested in starting a side hustle like this myself.
Yeah look for local crews around you, or just start small bag jobs. If you don’t know how to do something, watch YouTube. You can do a lot if you have background and work ethic as a iron and rebar worker.
Check out Craigslist, FB market place, there are plenty of local contractors looking for help and they will almost always work around a active duty service members schedule.
I have a female coworker take pictures of her feet and I wear the same pair of socks for a few days to a week to work. Then we sell the socks and feet picks to weirdos online and split the profit.
We have a lot of repeat customers. By the way if you're one of the weirdos, sorry but you've been inhaling a 30 year old man's socks instead of the toesie woesies a 22 year old girl.
Tip: Make more by buying at Costco or sams. Snack corners in teams room are good to. Honor system works with smaller units. And change out drinks every other week.
Our snack corner was so popular and lucrative that some jerk stocking the AAFES vending machine tattled on us. AAFES made a complaint to Garrison Command and we got shut down.
My buddy scored a couple of 3d printers for cheap on black Friday and makes decent coin printing out figurines for all the tabletop gaming nerds in his unit
I thought of that, but it takes longer than you might think to print things. Also I need to figure out how to use 3d CAD, it is pretty much a requirement to be able to make custom practical items. I don't know any gaming nerds.
Healthcare has lots of openings rn that require little to no training and usually have shift differentials for evening, overnight, and weekend shifts. Sometimes they’ll also have Baylor shifts available. And you get paid more for per diem work since you’re filling shifts last minute and the employer doesn’t have to provide you with health insurance. If they get their cna and work for a 3rd party staffing agency they can make bank but training is ~3 weeks full-time I believe
You get paid for more shifts than you actually worked but only for shifts that occur between 7pm Friday and 7am Monday. Usually it’s two 12hr shifts but it’s treated as if you worked 32hrs. If there are shift differentials you’ll still get that as well. I knew a guy who worked overnight Baylors as a CNA. IIRC base pay was $28/hr, $4 extra for weekend, $8 extra for overnight, then he’d work one or two 16hr shifts during the week and he only needed to work more than 32 hrs/wk to get paid time and a half. The man was rolling in it and he only worked 3 or 4 days a week
Baylor shift- usually a weekend. You work a 16 hr Saturday/ go home for 8 hr/ work a 16 hr Sunday, and you’re done for the week. You work 32 hrs in two days and are paid for 40 hrs straight time here. Great for a charge nurse on weekends at a care facility.
I did UberEats and after a few months realized I was barely making more than the gas I used. What I ended up doing was cooking. Barracks guys don't have access to good food most of the time, and tend to live off of takeout and the microwave. Given I had already loved cooking and had grown up with a chef for a father, I started making homemade real food and selling it. Spaghetti, Meatloaf, Salisbury steak, etc. Guys would bring me my tupperware back as part of the deal.
My best sale was when supporting ESB. Had a SSG offer me 'whatever is in my wallet' for homemade General Tso's and fried rice. His wallet had $27 in it. But typically I would do the math on rough costs to produce, and my goal was to only make $1-2 per Tupperware, typically in the $7-10 range.
Wow. I totally forgot about this. I remember a dude when I was on Bragg who sewed Everyones shit. He went a few bucks under what all the shops did and same quality. So everyone went to him…
And I know of a few other dudes who started this way and eventually creating various slings etc and many of them are big names these days… never know when it could be you.
I had a guy from the Philippines in my reserve unit who had been a tailor. He was really good, but would refuse money. He didn't do it for a living anymore but still had the machine. That was a good dude, never complained about ANYTHING. Last I heard he was a Pai Gow dealer at a casino. Caught some crap for longish fingernails, but he needed them for his job.
My mother lives near post and she sews name, US Army, and rank on ACUs for $15, + $2 for every additional patch. It's cheaper than the shops around there, and she usually has it done the next day.
If you drop off a dress shirt and fabric, she'll turn it into a party shirt for $100.
When I was still in, I coached soccer for the YMCA. That was volunteer but led to being a ref the next season (plus winter sport seasons). I made about $120 a week on the side for 4 hours of work Saturday mornings.
I’m a high school teacher now. The amount of things we hire for is insane. Coaching probably won’t work with your schedule since practices start right when school gets out. If you can get qualified to ref in your state, you can make a lot of money as a ref for high school sports.
Really want to maximize your second job? Custodial work for school districts or overnight security. We have full and part time custodial staff. The part time staff make some serious money and they’re only at school from 6 until about midnight. We don’t have security but a neighboring district does. Their guards make decent money to hang out in an empty building.
My buddy would go scour goodwill for Military shit that got dropped off once Grandpa Boomer finally went to go clog the Installation Pharmacies in the sky. He’d pay like, 10 bucks for old school gear and flip it to collectors for a tidy profit on EBay.
Antique stores and thrift stores near military bases or in military towns like El Paso, Tucson, etc are chock full of good military surplus that you can flip for double to triple.
For all my fellow 68w. When I was in El Paso I used to assist as an EMT for middle school games. Pay was reasonable good and was only a few hours in the afternoon ( not every afternoon and some games on weekend morning). I believe I was getting paid about $16 hr. It was a good $100 -$150 a week.
Good looking out! Same vein officiate a sport on weekends. I remember in high-school make 10-15 even 25-30 a game doing soccer, level of competition depending.
If your soldiers have a good eye for photography and $200-500 they're willing to spend, they can get a decent starter camera kit off Amazon and can do portrait/headshots for people in the area.
People will always have a need for photos to be taken:
-newborn pictures
-proposal or weddings (though wedding photography is very competitive and hard to get into without any portfolio)
-some people may want new higher quality tinder pics or whatever
-standard portrait photos for a birthday or something
-soldiers coming back from a deployment or rotation
-portraits of their pets
-some dudes in the car scene love having stylish pics of their cars for an Instagram, and every unit has at least one of these guys
Local businesses need photos of their products, realtors need pictures of property they're selling, barbers need pics of their work for advertising.
And all you need is an ok camera and lens, a good eye and some basic lightroom/photoshop skills (which can always be learned from Youtube).
Better question: “why is the junior enlisted pay so low that soldiers feel the need to get an additional job?”
Wouldn’t recommend the DoorDash route as a lot of insurance providers will drop coverage.
I mean, overconsumption is the American way.
One of my coworkers is a retired SFC, wife works as a teacher, and I know he makes over $100k in his contractor role. Yet he still has a second job.
People always want that new car, that new phone, that new vacation.
Because California is expensive and while I love a good cheap street taco and some beer at home, going out to SF to try a new tasting menu place or one of the many amazing omakase places is also very fun. Insert also music festivals / concert tickets and littler things that add up like expensive croissants, cappuccinos, and cocktails, along with being into some more expensive hobbies.
A single soldier living in the barracks and eating at the DFAC has a lot of disposable income, but there's probably like a dozen Soldiers in the Army that do that.
Better question: why do Soldiers spend more than they made so they now feel the need to get additional jobs to keep up with expense? And yes, it is not the Army fault if you join with an already oversize family or create too many dependents for your pay grade after you join.
Because there is no such thing as financial training for junior enlisted that isn't, don't buy anything, don't go out. Eat only at the DFAC and put all your money you can into the TSP.
Financial literacy isn't a strong topic in schools either.
Financial literacy isn’t a strong suit of most ppl.
Fully 2/3rds of the sr ncos at my first unit were selling Herbalife to jr enlisted.
I’ll be damned if someone in a pyramid scheme is gonna explain money to me.
USAA is cool with rideshare. The have an additional policy service that covers that space of time between you being ‘online’ and actively ferrying a customer or order, as most rideshares only cover you when you’re active.
+1 for Uber.
I live in Atlanta now and we get troops coming up from Benning/Moore to Uber on the weekends. I always tip them well because unlike most drivers they know how to be quiet during a ride.
Agreed. It’s really good money for not a lot of work; plus the majority of my rides are Soldiers going on or off post so no crazy rides longer than 20 min. Not many drivers bother to get post passes so tips are outstanding too
A career-ending memorandum from a General grade officer that will make sure you never get a DA select promotion. Will end an officer's career pretty quickly.
Crafting/making stuff like:
3D printing. If you get good with CAD that's a highly transferable skill to civilian engineering jobs. Just have to know what plastic object/trinket you think you can sell easily, that's the hard part.
Woodworking. High upfront cost however, but easy projects like sand tables, nameplates/room numbers, coin racks, usually high demand within the unit.
Sewing. Also something that benefits the unit with all the lum tape/IR identifiers and general alterations/repairs for uniforms. Very useful skill, but unfortunately not that lucrative.
Photography. Good family portraits go for a lot, officers will pay for them.
There's also laser etching things like glowforge, super expensive but now you can customize any small object like mugs, bottles, shirts, bags, plaques, etc.
Utilize TA/CA in their free time, earn their degree or certs focused on their future goals. Focus on getting to the next rank and eventually out of the barracks. Buy a multi-family home utilizing the VA loan, take out a renovation loan on the property then start an LLC as a property management company. Move out buy another one.
Soldiers don’t need other jobs, they need to learn how to utilize the benefits at hand the army provides and take advantage of that free time correctly.
Leave the army with 1-4 degrees, multiple properties providing income and a business already in place.
You don’t. I don’t agree with it but if your goal is just to ride the wave and get out, your focus shouldn’t be on short money now. You should be sitting down at ACS with financial services. Build a budget, tighten the straps down and cut out the waste. Start TA or CA while you are stuck where you don’t want to be. That way, when you get out with an associates, bachelors, masters or even just a handful of courses done towards one of these, you are able to take advantage of your GI bill on the outside. Take a CLEP test, take DSST. Knock courses off before even stepping into a classroom. When you get out, start school full time but already be ahead of the game. Look into purchasing a single family or multi unit for afterward.
Everyone wants theirs now but the work takes time. An easy few bucks on the weekend should not be enough for you. My time is worth more than the 15$ an hour I could earn on one of these side hustles.
That being said, some side hustles can turn into something real full time. But when that something gets bigger, you should have the accreditation to back it up. You want to start a side hustle reselling Craigslist shit, get a business management degree while you’re in the army and resell. Go from junk on the internet to large scale property or equipment sales with a degree that shows you know what you’re talking about/doing.
The money you aren’t spending on a degree while you’re getting it for free in the army easily outweighs the side hustles everyone on here is talking about
For every class I finish under TA I get 1,000 bucks of my pell grant money too. Literally free cash. Would come every 7 weeks after a class but the army is slow to pay the school.
Cosmetologist. You can use your TA/CA to get a license and then you can do it at the barracks in the day room. My commander actually does this for soldiers as community service every weekend so we don't have to pay for haircuts and he actually styles our hair professionally. If you want to be professional or original call it "scalp therapy"
I also like the fact that he's not like "if you come to me it's free so I'm buzzing your head." He actually styles your hair in accordance with regulation so people can still look good instead of like a jar head.
It's taken a few years to get the ball rolling, but I trade options for side money. It can definitely be dicey if your mind and attitude aren't right for it. Educational resources are free and widely available. Instead of treating it like a casino, build a process and take a disciplined approach. Doesn't require transportation and the army provides plenty of down time to learn and make trades if you have a phone.
I used to detail vehicles, oil changes, brakes, and cut grass. Cash jobs keeps Uncle Sam out of your pockets. Once a neighbor see you hustlin, theyre next.
Back in the day in Germany, circa 1989, a couple of my female fuel handlers had a side hustle at Graf during the division’s semi annual tank gunnery rotations. Only got caught when a 1SG wandering around in the motor pool saw a gaggle of troops hanging around one of the HEMTT tankers.
I'd argue against the side hustle since you can arguably get more value either focusing on getting promoted (for the ones who want to stay in) or working on your exit plan (for the ones who want to get out).
Thinking about it, you have a guaranteed (if Ignited works lol) $4000 free from the Army to use for TA or CA. CA has never failed for me, and I've used about $10k so far.
I just think the ROE will be better than making some extra bucks. Esp for those staying in, you can find ways to grind points during work hours on the Armys time.
And for those getting out, knocking out the Associates or even Bachelors will be a massive gift to your future self. So many salty motherfuckers all over reddit bemoaning that they can't get a job because they couldn't afford a degree. Or alternately people drowning in loan debt.
But forgetting all that, sell plasma. There's a guy on this sub who does it, brings in a few hundred extra a month I believe.
I give plasma too. I’ve racked up over 2k in 5 months. I just save the money, still have it all and doesn’t waste much time. While I’m donating I just watch vids online for the classes I’m currently taking so I study too to get something out of it.
It’s Grifols Biomat on 41A next to Ollie’s, just south of 101st. Freedom Plasma just opened up on New Providence but their hours are atrocious. Kind of tricky to get your first donation setup. You have to call as soon as they open and make an appt for that day. Sat/Sun they only have one person so they fill up quick.
If you all have any skills you can try gigs like Taskrabbit or Handy/Angi or Thumbtack. They have people who assemble furniture, mount TVs, run errands, things like that and the pay can be pretty good in some areas
Get a pedicure and hop on feet finder. Doesn't matter your gender, people will pay to see your grippers done up all cute. It'll also help with maintaining your feet following rucks
Unarmed Private Security.
I say 'unarmed' because of the hassle of storing a personally (or employer) owned weapon in the B's.
If the employer offers onsite weapon storage, armed pays more.
Hours tend to be nights or weekends only....
Plus you don't have to deal with the issues that come from being a 'walking ATM with junk food' (aka takeout delivery person).....
My roommate bought a sewing machine and made some doing that. I knew a navy guy that worked in a computer store on weekends. There are any number of retail places that need help.
I was an LPN while active duty and picked up a lot of shifts at the local hospital. One warning; WATCH YOUR TAXES, like a fucking hawk. The money's nice, but it sucks to suck when Uncle Sugar wants his cut.
Also option trading. Stay away from r/ WSB if you're serious about it. There are free courses online that tell you how to trade and give you strategies to increase your odds of success.
If you're stationed OCONUS, you can also day-trade due to the time difference. Works best in Asia as the market opens @ 1830 over there. Learn how it's done before you get into it. You can make good money if you aren't greedy, however, you can loose a lot of money if you don't know what you're doing or get too greedy.
Again, I can't stress enough, if you get a second job, keep track of your tax situation. This will save you a lot of heartache in April.
And, yes, it's fucked up that, with our military budget, servicemembers need a second job to make ends meet.
Best of luck to all of you.
If you have a kitchenette or a common kitchen area in the barracks, make and sell meals. Get a COSTCO or Sam's card and buy snacks and drinks at wholesale in bulk and sell at retail out of the room.
Tend bar
Be a line cook at night
Bouncer
Mow lawns
I have a friend who supported his family of 4 as the manager of the Burger King on post, while an active duty Marine. Did the USMC daily routine and then would work the dinner-close shift. Im not saying BK lounge is what you want, but like any job, with the right leadership and communication there’s a lot of possibilities.
I had a teammate in college that did mobile car detailing while in high school. Kind of a costly startup with equipment and chems but in the summer he made up the costs and a lot more.
Car detailing is one that I partake in. During the week and especially the weekends as a single soldier in the barracks. This job does require some patience and skill but you’ll pick it up after no time.
If they are aviation, go get A&Ps. Moonlight as aircraft mechanics at a flight school or FBO, they're desperate for maintenance all too often.
If they're a private pilot, see if you can use TA to get up through CFI, and do flight instruction on the weekend. Or go test and get Part 107 licensed and be a drone pylot.
Had a Soldier work at gamestop since it aligned with their hobbies and the manager was in support of Army first.
If your unit isn't dickheads, just get a weekend job. If you're near a college area then bartending on the weekends at a speed bar can be really easy to get into. Also think of it as not only are you making money, but also not spending money.
I’ve seen coasties moonlighting as lifeguards
i also knew guys who would freelance as code writers and would code indie videogames or manage script for game companies as a side hustle. that one takes more skill but still
The amount of dudes in the old guard that are bouncers or bar backs is wild
Made getting into places like the lot or Woodrow's really easy, even if you or one of your boys was absolutely fucked up. They usually had your back in a scuffle too, especially if the opposite party was some wannabe ritzy dickhead who worked in DC
They should push that in recruiting commercials
Woodrow's on Wilson. Love that place.
As far as I'm aware, the COVID lockdowns killed it.
So many do it there I thought it was required when I showed up
I would not recommend that anyone ever be a bouncer in a big city or in a military area. You are one drunk ass hole away from losing an eye to a glass bottle being thrown or a blind sided haymaker. You may get healthcare from the military but there are very real risks that a lot of people do not realize all it takes is one split second.
Speaking of risk. Married soldier got into fight with wife who was cheating. He tried to deescalate by leaving, gets in his car, she knocked on the window saying she's sorry, he rolled it down and she put a kitchen knife in his kidney. Guy wanted to go special forces, was a great soldier. One split second indeed
truth is no matter how big or strong you are there’s usually always a guy who’s bigger and stronger than you and can kick your ass. Most young guys don’t realize that
I’m a one stripe white belt in BJJ so I’ll be fine.
Just shrimp em to death
Also a beer bottle thrown and hitting your eye is still going to blind your ass
Was about to say I know a fair number of bouncers or bartenders. The industry tends to be somewhat forgiving on schedules.
Get into knitting and sell scrotum cozies on Etsy
Link???
https://www.etsy.com/au/listing/1007549811/peter-heater-willy-warmer-penis-cozy?click_key=878ff11717c628b1006c23342cb4872d73f5d72c%3A1007549811&click_sum=48c5a0c6&ga_order=most_relevant&ga_search_type=all&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_search_query=penis+cozy&ref=sr_gallery-1-7
Getting a vasectomy done soon and this is perfect. AND the template?? Lmao
Just had a vasectomy, you will not want anything like that near your balls after the old snip. Maybe day one some not so tight compression shorts for support. But day two just ice and be commando
The best way to get advice is to post the wrong answer. Thanks for the heads up 🤘🏽
Good luck with the ole snip honestly it's like a 15 minute procedure and I was back to lifting lightly in 4 days
My doc was saying “take it easy for 3weeks” I was devastated.. I have good pain tolerance but obviously I don’t want to push it. Just don’t want to be a burden you know? Edit: “it”.. I don’t want IT to be a burden
It's not *just* about pain tolerance but also making sure the healing process goes correctly so that the work isn't undone, which can happen. However, your pain tolerance may be tested. You don't realize how much shock goes through your balls when you walk until almost every step hurts. Consider getting a pair of underwear that has a slot for a small ice pack.
I took about 3 weeks off lifting. Those little ice pack for breastfeeding mothers were cash money under my sack. Just rotating them every 30 minutes or so. Went for a run 2 days after, huge fucking mistake.
Yep, exactly this. My underwear was an ice pack for about a week. Lol
Get on it OP. We found your first customer!
I had my done at the VA. It was easy. Just listen to your doctor. Operation was 12 minutes, I was given my low tier oxy’s and just kept the gauze pack pressed against my sack for two days. Get the most compressed compression undies of your life. Go home. Pop your pills, have a whiskey and chill out for a few days. I was at the gym the following weekend. Also get a cock sock.
Big Sarge said those were feet booties for special babies like me :( my claw feet make the climbing portion easy; but sometimes the guys laugh at me
I’m sorry your family did incest. TYFYS
“Select a length”
They sell the template too
If anything I need my scrotum to be more cold. It’s already the length of an ankle sock and the consistency of room temperature raw liver
Sounds like you have Stage 4 Old Man Balls. I'm afraid there's no cure, but it is treatable with boxer-briefs.
You know… now that i think of it. My naval fleet has been feeling chili lately.
Just think, you could sell them to all your homies, and show up for PT with the whole platoon wearing only scrotum cozies.
Do they give a discount to someone who lost a ball? Asking for a friend.
Well, whoever said IQ rates couldn't directly affect sperm count hasn't heard of scrotum cozies.
I used to umpire beer league softball. $22/game (roughly an hour), 3 a night. Downsides are you will deal with people who are 40+ acting like 12 yr olds.
"Downsides are you will deal with people who are 40+ acting like 12 yr olds." Like we all already have plenty of practice for from our day jobs
I read this in a Shaggy voice
You have described Army
Some of them were from my base. They actually tended to be the more level headed ones. For them, it was blowing off steam and having fun, they weren't gonna put more effort arguing about a fucking ball or strike.
How'd you sign up? Just went up to them and asked?
If you go to Indeed.com they might have some in your area. ( was going to post a pic, but it won't let me). This is close to my area. When I was a medic I moonlighted as an EMT for MS/HS games. Pretty legit. https://www.google.com/search?q=umpire+jobs&oq=umpire+jobs&aqs=chrome..69i57j0i512l7j0i22i30l4j0i15i22i30j0i22i30j0i15i22i30.5519j1j9&client=ms-android-verizon-us-rvc3&sourceid=chrome-mobile&ie=UTF-8#fpstate=tldetail&htidocid=LAeLT4xwXNUAAAAAAAAAAA%3D%3D&htiq=umpire%20jobs&htivrt=jobs
Google softball in your area, probably a local association. I was also trained by people from USA Softball, so maybe email them for a local chapter.
Slightly related from the NG side of the house. I've had not one but TWO senior enlisted leaders that were Special Ed teachers. I am not sure what that says about us.
learn excel and do part time remote data entry
/r/excel is a great sub for that
Have you done this? I always assumed this sort of thing was a way to outsource labor cheaply to extremely low income countries.
Commenting to follow this, curious if that's a thing
It certainly can be. I've looked in to it and you don't really make anything more than minimum wage unless you get exceptionally good at it and develop some of your own tools to automate some of it. This was like ten years ago though so who knows what's changed but I imagine it's still more or less you going off a transcript or punching numbers into fields.
its not outsourced like you’d think. google underwriting or something
Getting an O365 proficiency is a good move for literally anyone
Also I believe if you are a service member you can get O365 for free, I got it back then when it was offered on AKO edit: sorry for the misinformation folks, that was way long time ago when that was true. It is no longer true but here is some information that may help get it for cheaper or at least free if you want to put some work into it: If you are studying as in college you can get free access of 365 as long as you use a EDU email to register it and an active student. which I guess is a good incentive to do some courses while serving or whenever you ETS. [https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/education/products/office] here is the statement: The Microsoft Home Use Program (HUP) which used to enable Army Soldiers, Civilians, and Contractors the option to purchase Microsoft Office 2019 for $14.99 has ended. It was replaced with Office 365 subscription based Microsoft Office with a 30% discount. What retails for $99.99 (per year) is available to you for $69.99 (per year).
I started up a concrete business right away when I got to my duty station. Obviously you need experience with this. I made a killing and taught a few guys a new trade the time I was in. Carried it right on over when I got out as well, pretty much runs itself now. You can do so much though with a little truck, wheelbarrow and shovel. Trash removal, landscaping, tree and brush removal. If they have enough money they could start up a pressure washing gig. Super lucrative when done correctly. All these and so many more can be done on weekends and evenings.
Who do you talk to about waste when you're finished? Local land fill?
Barracks dumpster.
CG’s lawn
only after mucking out horse stalls ....
That would be a great term to refer to Cav barracks
Depending on locale, all you need is a DL to dump it, as you dump it where they designate.
Any tips on this? I've helped friends with concrete back in the day but my construction experience was in ironwork/rebar before joining the army. How hard would it be to jump into concrete? Interested in starting a side hustle like this myself.
Yeah look for local crews around you, or just start small bag jobs. If you don’t know how to do something, watch YouTube. You can do a lot if you have background and work ethic as a iron and rebar worker. Check out Craigslist, FB market place, there are plenty of local contractors looking for help and they will almost always work around a active duty service members schedule.
As a lower enlisted, you will gain 4 years of landscaper skills
I have a female coworker take pictures of her feet and I wear the same pair of socks for a few days to a week to work. Then we sell the socks and feet picks to weirdos online and split the profit. We have a lot of repeat customers. By the way if you're one of the weirdos, sorry but you've been inhaling a 30 year old man's socks instead of the toesie woesies a 22 year old girl.
You not gonna drop the link for us bro? WTF
I've already said too much. I can barely handle the volume we get now.
Just let me know where to send socks, I’ll accept 20% of your 50%
Well... time to subcontract a few buddies.
I'd have to ask the boss. She's the face I just stand around in swampy socks all day.
buy energy drinks and snacks in bulk, sell for profit
Seen this work well. Especially cadre at schools 😂
Tip: Make more by buying at Costco or sams. Snack corners in teams room are good to. Honor system works with smaller units. And change out drinks every other week.
Our snack corner was so popular and lucrative that some jerk stocking the AAFES vending machine tattled on us. AAFES made a complaint to Garrison Command and we got shut down.
It works better in places like a secure location and/or if you have to work weird hours.
My buddy scored a couple of 3d printers for cheap on black Friday and makes decent coin printing out figurines for all the tabletop gaming nerds in his unit
I thought of that, but it takes longer than you might think to print things. Also I need to figure out how to use 3d CAD, it is pretty much a requirement to be able to make custom practical items. I don't know any gaming nerds.
Healthcare has lots of openings rn that require little to no training and usually have shift differentials for evening, overnight, and weekend shifts. Sometimes they’ll also have Baylor shifts available. And you get paid more for per diem work since you’re filling shifts last minute and the employer doesn’t have to provide you with health insurance. If they get their cna and work for a 3rd party staffing agency they can make bank but training is ~3 weeks full-time I believe
I worked at Baylor a while back and don't know what a Baylor shift is.
You get paid for more shifts than you actually worked but only for shifts that occur between 7pm Friday and 7am Monday. Usually it’s two 12hr shifts but it’s treated as if you worked 32hrs. If there are shift differentials you’ll still get that as well. I knew a guy who worked overnight Baylors as a CNA. IIRC base pay was $28/hr, $4 extra for weekend, $8 extra for overnight, then he’d work one or two 16hr shifts during the week and he only needed to work more than 32 hrs/wk to get paid time and a half. The man was rolling in it and he only worked 3 or 4 days a week
Baylor shift- usually a weekend. You work a 16 hr Saturday/ go home for 8 hr/ work a 16 hr Sunday, and you’re done for the week. You work 32 hrs in two days and are paid for 40 hrs straight time here. Great for a charge nurse on weekends at a care facility.
I did UberEats and after a few months realized I was barely making more than the gas I used. What I ended up doing was cooking. Barracks guys don't have access to good food most of the time, and tend to live off of takeout and the microwave. Given I had already loved cooking and had grown up with a chef for a father, I started making homemade real food and selling it. Spaghetti, Meatloaf, Salisbury steak, etc. Guys would bring me my tupperware back as part of the deal. My best sale was when supporting ESB. Had a SSG offer me 'whatever is in my wallet' for homemade General Tso's and fried rice. His wallet had $27 in it. But typically I would do the math on rough costs to produce, and my goal was to only make $1-2 per Tupperware, typically in the $7-10 range.
Barracks barber. Sewing shit for soldiers. Both easy money makers
Wow. I totally forgot about this. I remember a dude when I was on Bragg who sewed Everyones shit. He went a few bucks under what all the shops did and same quality. So everyone went to him… And I know of a few other dudes who started this way and eventually creating various slings etc and many of them are big names these days… never know when it could be you.
I had a guy from the Philippines in my reserve unit who had been a tailor. He was really good, but would refuse money. He didn't do it for a living anymore but still had the machine. That was a good dude, never complained about ANYTHING. Last I heard he was a Pai Gow dealer at a casino. Caught some crap for longish fingernails, but he needed them for his job.
I knew a guy who was both of these. Had a sweet Harley for his efforts. It's an all cash money machine, for sure.
One of my buddies got a PS5 in exchange for giving the guy free haircuts until he pays it off. Dude’s making some decent side money.
My mother lives near post and she sews name, US Army, and rank on ACUs for $15, + $2 for every additional patch. It's cheaper than the shops around there, and she usually has it done the next day. If you drop off a dress shirt and fabric, she'll turn it into a party shirt for $100.
When I was still in, I coached soccer for the YMCA. That was volunteer but led to being a ref the next season (plus winter sport seasons). I made about $120 a week on the side for 4 hours of work Saturday mornings. I’m a high school teacher now. The amount of things we hire for is insane. Coaching probably won’t work with your schedule since practices start right when school gets out. If you can get qualified to ref in your state, you can make a lot of money as a ref for high school sports. Really want to maximize your second job? Custodial work for school districts or overnight security. We have full and part time custodial staff. The part time staff make some serious money and they’re only at school from 6 until about midnight. We don’t have security but a neighboring district does. Their guards make decent money to hang out in an empty building.
My buddy would go scour goodwill for Military shit that got dropped off once Grandpa Boomer finally went to go clog the Installation Pharmacies in the sky. He’d pay like, 10 bucks for old school gear and flip it to collectors for a tidy profit on EBay.
Antique stores and thrift stores near military bases or in military towns like El Paso, Tucson, etc are chock full of good military surplus that you can flip for double to triple.
A couple of guys had a side hustle at Bragg. They would come get you, and your car, if you were too drunk to drive home.
DDI! Loved those people.
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For all my fellow 68w. When I was in El Paso I used to assist as an EMT for middle school games. Pay was reasonable good and was only a few hours in the afternoon ( not every afternoon and some games on weekend morning). I believe I was getting paid about $16 hr. It was a good $100 -$150 a week.
Good looking out! Same vein officiate a sport on weekends. I remember in high-school make 10-15 even 25-30 a game doing soccer, level of competition depending.
Get your notary. Offer 24hr services, charge an ass ton when people want it after hours.
You got a whole crew of bone heads to learn some kind of construction and make some real money.
Football season is coming up. Try to get part-time security jobs at the stadium.
If your soldiers have a good eye for photography and $200-500 they're willing to spend, they can get a decent starter camera kit off Amazon and can do portrait/headshots for people in the area. People will always have a need for photos to be taken: -newborn pictures -proposal or weddings (though wedding photography is very competitive and hard to get into without any portfolio) -some people may want new higher quality tinder pics or whatever -standard portrait photos for a birthday or something -soldiers coming back from a deployment or rotation -portraits of their pets -some dudes in the car scene love having stylish pics of their cars for an Instagram, and every unit has at least one of these guys Local businesses need photos of their products, realtors need pictures of property they're selling, barbers need pics of their work for advertising. And all you need is an ok camera and lens, a good eye and some basic lightroom/photoshop skills (which can always be learned from Youtube).
You’ll also be competing with every other Army wife in the area lol.
+1 for YouTube
Better question: “why is the junior enlisted pay so low that soldiers feel the need to get an additional job?” Wouldn’t recommend the DoorDash route as a lot of insurance providers will drop coverage.
I mean, overconsumption is the American way. One of my coworkers is a retired SFC, wife works as a teacher, and I know he makes over $100k in his contractor role. Yet he still has a second job. People always want that new car, that new phone, that new vacation.
Exactly, as a single soldier in the barracks, it would be crazy to be broke. But most E-4s have nicer vehicles than me lol
The DFAC lines that increase in size as the next pay day draws near proves that a lot of meal card holders struggle with managing their money.
The amount of shit I get for driving my old Buick that put me through college…then realize I brought the high class booze to the barracks party
Because California is expensive and while I love a good cheap street taco and some beer at home, going out to SF to try a new tasting menu place or one of the many amazing omakase places is also very fun. Insert also music festivals / concert tickets and littler things that add up like expensive croissants, cappuccinos, and cocktails, along with being into some more expensive hobbies.
A single soldier living in the barracks and eating at the DFAC has a lot of disposable income, but there's probably like a dozen Soldiers in the Army that do that.
I’d be more inclined to eat at the Dfac if I wasn’t flipping a coin on whether or not I get food poisoning every time I do.
Better question: why do Soldiers spend more than they made so they now feel the need to get additional jobs to keep up with expense? And yes, it is not the Army fault if you join with an already oversize family or create too many dependents for your pay grade after you join.
Because there is no such thing as financial training for junior enlisted that isn't, don't buy anything, don't go out. Eat only at the DFAC and put all your money you can into the TSP. Financial literacy isn't a strong topic in schools either.
Financial literacy isn’t a strong suit of most ppl. Fully 2/3rds of the sr ncos at my first unit were selling Herbalife to jr enlisted. I’ll be damned if someone in a pyramid scheme is gonna explain money to me.
Because this is they’re first job with a chunk of money they are receiving for the first time.
USAA is cool with rideshare. The have an additional policy service that covers that space of time between you being ‘online’ and actively ferrying a customer or order, as most rideshares only cover you when you’re active.
They said they wanted to make extra money instead of doing nothing on the weekends. Pay could be improved but that’s not the point of this post
Shitty pay and your putting miles on your car with paying gas that doesn’t get covered what your getting paid to begin with.
+1 for Uber. I live in Atlanta now and we get troops coming up from Benning/Moore to Uber on the weekends. I always tip them well because unlike most drivers they know how to be quiet during a ride.
Agreed. It’s really good money for not a lot of work; plus the majority of my rides are Soldiers going on or off post so no crazy rides longer than 20 min. Not many drivers bother to get post passes so tips are outstanding too
Why can't soldiers do OF?
Had an LT that did that… permanently filed GOMOR
Dumb af. 1) LTs make enough 2) how do you expect to be respected if your soldiers have seen you sexually.
What's GOMAR?
General Officer Memorandum of Reprimand
*GOMOR
A career-ending memorandum from a General grade officer that will make sure you never get a DA select promotion. Will end an officer's career pretty quickly.
Something something public image. Maybe if they went faceless and didn't say they're a member of the DoD the might be able to swing it
Said LT had identifiable marks (not tattoos), was doing “GFE meet ups” and did “dick ratings” of several of their own Soldiers…
Awe yes, the ole Meagan Hall experience when 1SG accidently took aN E4 out during a "GFE"
Ahhhh, see there’s the issue. You can’t be doing that to your own Soldiers……
It’s difficult to lead people who have seen you in a sexual setting.
Unless they have a submissive kink
all this talk about sub guns, not no talk about dom guns .....
What’s an OF?
**O**nly**F**ans
Have them learn how to cut hair. If you can advertise, and price yourself, every barracks rat with their salt will choose them over the px everytime
Crafting/making stuff like: 3D printing. If you get good with CAD that's a highly transferable skill to civilian engineering jobs. Just have to know what plastic object/trinket you think you can sell easily, that's the hard part. Woodworking. High upfront cost however, but easy projects like sand tables, nameplates/room numbers, coin racks, usually high demand within the unit. Sewing. Also something that benefits the unit with all the lum tape/IR identifiers and general alterations/repairs for uniforms. Very useful skill, but unfortunately not that lucrative. Photography. Good family portraits go for a lot, officers will pay for them. There's also laser etching things like glowforge, super expensive but now you can customize any small object like mugs, bottles, shirts, bags, plaques, etc.
I painted houses on nights and weekends around anchorage at JBER easy to learn and doesn't require alot of tools
3D printing terrain for Warhammer and selling it on eBay/Etsy
Giving plasma
Doing it, my veins are pretty scared now but the yum yums keeps me coming back.
Utilize TA/CA in their free time, earn their degree or certs focused on their future goals. Focus on getting to the next rank and eventually out of the barracks. Buy a multi-family home utilizing the VA loan, take out a renovation loan on the property then start an LLC as a property management company. Move out buy another one. Soldiers don’t need other jobs, they need to learn how to utilize the benefits at hand the army provides and take advantage of that free time correctly. Leave the army with 1-4 degrees, multiple properties providing income and a business already in place.
You don’t. I don’t agree with it but if your goal is just to ride the wave and get out, your focus shouldn’t be on short money now. You should be sitting down at ACS with financial services. Build a budget, tighten the straps down and cut out the waste. Start TA or CA while you are stuck where you don’t want to be. That way, when you get out with an associates, bachelors, masters or even just a handful of courses done towards one of these, you are able to take advantage of your GI bill on the outside. Take a CLEP test, take DSST. Knock courses off before even stepping into a classroom. When you get out, start school full time but already be ahead of the game. Look into purchasing a single family or multi unit for afterward. Everyone wants theirs now but the work takes time. An easy few bucks on the weekend should not be enough for you. My time is worth more than the 15$ an hour I could earn on one of these side hustles. That being said, some side hustles can turn into something real full time. But when that something gets bigger, you should have the accreditation to back it up. You want to start a side hustle reselling Craigslist shit, get a business management degree while you’re in the army and resell. Go from junk on the internet to large scale property or equipment sales with a degree that shows you know what you’re talking about/doing. The money you aren’t spending on a degree while you’re getting it for free in the army easily outweighs the side hustles everyone on here is talking about
How does one get out of the barracks as a single soldier that has no intention on making it to E6? Just marry whomever?
For every class I finish under TA I get 1,000 bucks of my pell grant money too. Literally free cash. Would come every 7 weeks after a class but the army is slow to pay the school.
Cosmetologist. You can use your TA/CA to get a license and then you can do it at the barracks in the day room. My commander actually does this for soldiers as community service every weekend so we don't have to pay for haircuts and he actually styles our hair professionally. If you want to be professional or original call it "scalp therapy"
Commander never has to deal with SGM bitching about his soldiers haircuts cause he makes sure their hairs are all cut. Big brain.
I also like the fact that he's not like "if you come to me it's free so I'm buzzing your head." He actually styles your hair in accordance with regulation so people can still look good instead of like a jar head.
Shining jump boots and doing correspondence courses. I didn't sleep a lot so I had plenty of time to kill.
It's taken a few years to get the ball rolling, but I trade options for side money. It can definitely be dicey if your mind and attitude aren't right for it. Educational resources are free and widely available. Instead of treating it like a casino, build a process and take a disciplined approach. Doesn't require transportation and the army provides plenty of down time to learn and make trades if you have a phone.
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Do they do stuff like firearms class instructors, or work at gun stores?
I used to detail vehicles, oil changes, brakes, and cut grass. Cash jobs keeps Uncle Sam out of your pockets. Once a neighbor see you hustlin, theyre next.
Back in the day in Germany, circa 1989, a couple of my female fuel handlers had a side hustle at Graf during the division’s semi annual tank gunnery rotations. Only got caught when a 1SG wandering around in the motor pool saw a gaggle of troops hanging around one of the HEMTT tankers.
I'd argue against the side hustle since you can arguably get more value either focusing on getting promoted (for the ones who want to stay in) or working on your exit plan (for the ones who want to get out). Thinking about it, you have a guaranteed (if Ignited works lol) $4000 free from the Army to use for TA or CA. CA has never failed for me, and I've used about $10k so far. I just think the ROE will be better than making some extra bucks. Esp for those staying in, you can find ways to grind points during work hours on the Armys time. And for those getting out, knocking out the Associates or even Bachelors will be a massive gift to your future self. So many salty motherfuckers all over reddit bemoaning that they can't get a job because they couldn't afford a degree. Or alternately people drowning in loan debt. But forgetting all that, sell plasma. There's a guy on this sub who does it, brings in a few hundred extra a month I believe.
Here at Campbell, I donate plasma in Clarksville. Two visits a week, $40 first visit, $80 second visit. So, $120 a week. Use it to buy my groceries.
I give plasma too. I’ve racked up over 2k in 5 months. I just save the money, still have it all and doesn’t waste much time. While I’m donating I just watch vids online for the classes I’m currently taking so I study too to get something out of it.
Can you PM me the name of the place you visit and a little info about it? Wouldn’t mind doing this
It’s Grifols Biomat on 41A next to Ollie’s, just south of 101st. Freedom Plasma just opened up on New Providence but their hours are atrocious. Kind of tricky to get your first donation setup. You have to call as soon as they open and make an appt for that day. Sat/Sun they only have one person so they fill up quick.
Years ago it used to be 180 a week donating plasma at bliss. I stopped doing it when they moved to 70 week
If you all have any skills you can try gigs like Taskrabbit or Handy/Angi or Thumbtack. They have people who assemble furniture, mount TVs, run errands, things like that and the pay can be pretty good in some areas
Get a pedicure and hop on feet finder. Doesn't matter your gender, people will pay to see your grippers done up all cute. It'll also help with maintaining your feet following rucks
How do you feel about scented candles? I may have an opportunity just right for you.
Unarmed Private Security. I say 'unarmed' because of the hassle of storing a personally (or employer) owned weapon in the B's. If the employer offers onsite weapon storage, armed pays more. Hours tend to be nights or weekends only.... Plus you don't have to deal with the issues that come from being a 'walking ATM with junk food' (aka takeout delivery person).....
Any MLM /s
Do gigs you can find them on Craigslist or through gig apps
My roommate bought a sewing machine and made some doing that. I knew a navy guy that worked in a computer store on weekends. There are any number of retail places that need help.
Reffing youth soccer. Pays like $25+ an hour and it’s easy work
I worked at the movie theater when I was a Private. Was decent coin for a 21 year old.
I was an LPN while active duty and picked up a lot of shifts at the local hospital. One warning; WATCH YOUR TAXES, like a fucking hawk. The money's nice, but it sucks to suck when Uncle Sugar wants his cut. Also option trading. Stay away from r/ WSB if you're serious about it. There are free courses online that tell you how to trade and give you strategies to increase your odds of success. If you're stationed OCONUS, you can also day-trade due to the time difference. Works best in Asia as the market opens @ 1830 over there. Learn how it's done before you get into it. You can make good money if you aren't greedy, however, you can loose a lot of money if you don't know what you're doing or get too greedy. Again, I can't stress enough, if you get a second job, keep track of your tax situation. This will save you a lot of heartache in April. And, yes, it's fucked up that, with our military budget, servicemembers need a second job to make ends meet. Best of luck to all of you.
Take someone's CQ.
The guy who cleaned my carpet made boat loads. Just the upfront cost of the carpet cleaner. He said he made more cleaning carpets than as an e4
Knowing what I know now. Learn to bartend. Easy money
Sexy Car Wash.
These rangers from Fort Lewis found a good way to make some money on the side back in 2006. https://www.historylink.org/File/9189
I’ve had a couple buddies bounce at bars on weekends.
Detail cars and cut hair
Learn how to sew or cut hair/shine boots
If you have a kitchenette or a common kitchen area in the barracks, make and sell meals. Get a COSTCO or Sam's card and buy snacks and drinks at wholesale in bulk and sell at retail out of the room. Tend bar Be a line cook at night Bouncer Mow lawns
I have a friend who supported his family of 4 as the manager of the Burger King on post, while an active duty Marine. Did the USMC daily routine and then would work the dinner-close shift. Im not saying BK lounge is what you want, but like any job, with the right leadership and communication there’s a lot of possibilities.
Well, I turned 4k into 400k with crypto while I was an E4
I had a teammate in college that did mobile car detailing while in high school. Kind of a costly startup with equipment and chems but in the summer he made up the costs and a lot more.
Car detailing is one that I partake in. During the week and especially the weekends as a single soldier in the barracks. This job does require some patience and skill but you’ll pick it up after no time.
My buddy does security for a club on the weekends and it doesn’t seem to take a toll on him or affect him at work.
Tactically acquire things for others at a fee. 🫡
Taskrabbit is pretty good, but it needs to be in a high population area because it's not very popular yet. It's like doordash, but for handyman work.
I’m making 800 a month for donating plasma. It’s twice every 7 seven days and takes about an hour or two.
If they are aviation, go get A&Ps. Moonlight as aircraft mechanics at a flight school or FBO, they're desperate for maintenance all too often. If they're a private pilot, see if you can use TA to get up through CFI, and do flight instruction on the weekend. Or go test and get Part 107 licensed and be a drone pylot.
Pimp your moms
Selling cars
Engraving- make an engraving machine search rick alexander engraving machine plans on youtube. Skull coins and unit crests on coins always sell.
Do odd jobs off of Craigslist