Just a thought about money...

OK... So I was awake in the wee small hours of the morning today. A raging case of sugar/caffeine overload from a generic brand cherry cola had my mind spinning and my limbs twitching well after 4am. I was thinking, I need to keep track of all of the little things I am doing to save money and to make money. Maybe seeing everything in black and white will help me feel a little better about the things I've given up in order to get a handle on the debt we've created over the last few years.

I've signed up for two online money making programs. One is Swagbucks and the other is YouData. I haven't been using either program very long, but here is what they say they are.

SWAGBUCKS

I spend a lot of time on the internet, and anytime I want to know about ANYTHING, I use Google. You probably Google all the time, too. Swagbucks is an alternative to Googling, but the results are powered by Google and Ask.com, both of which are great. One way to win Swagbucks is by searching. I set their search page as one of my homepage tabs on Internet Explorer so that I'll remember to use their service.

I like Swagbucks so far because you win Swagbucks just for doing something you already were doing anyway - searching the internet. They start you off with 3 Swagbucks for free and then you WIN Swagbucks when you search online. After only two searches last night, I had already accumulated 5 Swagbucks. I hope I'll earn even more after a week or two.

The best part - you can turn them in for cash, gift cards, and other items. I am seeing FREE Christmas gifts on my horizon!

A Few of my Favorites:
70 bucks = $5 cash in your PayPal account (they're on sale right now!)
45 bucks = $5 e-gift card to Amazon.com
220 bucks = $20 gift card to Target
130 bucks = $10 gift card to Starbucks
185 bucks = $15 e-gift card to iTunes
785 bucks = $50 gift card to Bass Pro Shop

You can also earn points for finding Swagcodes. There are hints for how to find those on the Swagbucks homepage and on their Facebook page. You can also earn a few bucks with referrals, so if you decided to try this out, sign up under me!

I also tried YouData tonight, and I love their concept! The premise of their site is that you should be charging advertisers to see their ads. And there are advertisers who will pay you. You can fill out profiles and give as little information as you want, so it doesn't seem invasive. Hardly any information is required. All you have to do is log in and they will tell you if advertisers are willing to pay you to look at a text ad. They pay you to look at an ad - doesn't take but a minute or so. You earn cash. Real Money! Every Friday they deposit your money in your PayPal account. They won't send you emails,you just visit them whenever you want. I like that. I also set their homepage as one of my tabs so I won't forget about them, either. Just looking at a few ads last night earned me $1.46! It took about five minutes. I haven't had any ads available today, but I will keep checking in!