Credit Card Deals (U.S.)

Higher Salaries On The Way, For Some

Hoping for a salary boost this year? Well, you might just get it, as some companies' confidence of future economic prospects here in the U.S. improves.

Income Growth In The U.S. (What Recession?)

At Credit Card Outlaw, we like to cover the bad news -- because that noise can affect your portfolio, and can also provide tremendous opportunity for loading up on great companies at a discount.

GM Set To Add 1,600 Jobs

As reported over at CNN Money, "General Motors will announce Tuesday that it will add 1,600 jobs as part of a $890 million upgrade of five plants in North America, according to a person familiar with the matter.

10 Best Jobs With "Great" Pay In 2010

U.S. News & World Report has an article up right now about the 10 jobs that have a "great return on investment."

What are they? Well, they include:

Making Money In College (Make It Now, Son!)

If there is one thing I regret about college, aside from not pursuing this girl in junior year Astronomy class who was total wife material, it would be not earning more money at that point in my life.

It's easy to make money in college. I know this flies in the face of conventional wisdom (the "broke student" stereotype), but it's true.

Your operational costs and personal overhead are the lowest they will be at any point in your life, most likely. And you are already part of a community that is RIPE for commercialization. Facebook, after all, was launched on a college campus -- as were countless other successful enterprises. Here are some ideas for ways to earn money with part-time gigs while still in college:

* Make money by waiting tables. Select a fancy steakhouse where the typical tab for a party of 2 is at least $120. This means that for every table you serve, you will make a tip of at least $22 or so. 

* If you prefer the bar scene, learn how to bartend. The right gig can net you $300 or more per night in tips. That's serious money. Hell, you might even decide to become a career bartender if you keep making that much out of school. 

* Sell your skills as a web designer or programmer. College campuses are loaded with wannabe entrepreneurs who need tech savvy people to execute their ideas for them. (Facebook's founder actually started off as a programmer working for other entrepreneurs on campus.) 

* Tutor! Where else can you make $20 per hour or more for helping someone slog through their calculus or history homework? It's easy money if you are good at the subject you are tutoring. 

There are many easy ways to make money while in college. I would personally avoid demeaning options, such as selling plasma at a health clinic or participating in drug trials. I knew some kids in college who did that stuff, and it just seemed sad to me. 

Can You Make Money From Blogging? How Much Can You Make?

Yes, you can make money from blogging. I make money from blogging and many other people, some of them less talented than your humble Outlaw and others much more talented, also make good money from this line of work. 

For me, it is more of a calling than a source of income: I love personal finance and I have always enjoyed writing. Unfortunately, the professional writing circuit is somewhat limited these days -- you can't just ramble for 1,000 words about some new cool finance book you read last week on the flight to Miami and expect a newspaper or top 100 web site to publish that. 

But when you run your own blog, anything goes, and you can offer truly original content -- opinions and commentary that attract a large following. 

Plus, you can update from anywhere and at any time. If I have a brilliant idea and want to beat the pack of other writers online, I can post something here at 3 a.m. 

Okay, okay, but how much money can you actually make from blogging? What are your earnings like? 

I do not disclose my earnings from this site or from other projects, but if you do a search online you will see some first-hand accounts of bloggers who earn more than $1,000 per day from their publications. On the other hand, there are newer blogs that may only be making a $1 or $2 per day, but regardless of the amount, it is truly exciting to be paid money to do something you would probably do anyway. 

Bloggers tend to blog regardless of whether anyone is listening. 

I don't have any secrets to share with you, sadly. Blogging is pretty straightforward: as your traffic goes up, you will typically earn more, if your site is properly monetized. In my case, I have figured out (on average) how much money every single new visitor to this site makes me. You will be able to do the same: just divide your total earnings per day by the number of unique visitors who come to your site during the same period of time.  

There is obviously a period where you aren't getting much traffic, when you are a new blog, and the only way to beat those initial traffic doldrums is to keep going. Break through. Don't give up. This initial tough period is great because it weeds out the bloggers who aren't serious -- the ones who are purely in it for the money, and not in it because they love to write and communicate with others. 

If you are a good writer, or even a decent one, you will eventually make money from blogging. That's not the issue. 

The key is to do it because you love it. The right passion for your blog, and a sense of ownership for the publication you created from scratch, will keep you up late at night working on new ideas and posts, even if your earnings are down today, or this week.

Successful bloggers are also consummate networkers, reaching out to other blogs with strategic partnership ideas and developing symbiotic relationships with other publications in the "blogosphere" (hate that word!). 

In addition, network with your readers. Answer their questions intelligently, engage them, challenge them, help them find new information or deals. Help them improve some aspect of their lives, completely free of charge. In exchange, they will spread the word about you, eventually posting some of your articles on Facebook and elsewhere. This is why it is so crucial to write in a way that is entertaining and informative.

If your articles are uninteresting, no one will feel compelled to share them with friends. And this limits your potential for traffic growth, which in turn limits your profit potential. 

Make your readers your friends and your greatest allies. 

(Part 1 of 2; more information on making money from blogging will be posted in Part 2 on Friday.) 

How To Get A Paid Internship

It's summer internship hunting season right now, and although this is not a career advice blog, your career path does relate closely to your financial success (or lack thereof).

So thought I would share my tips on how to secure not only a good internship this summer, in the field of your choice (finance, journalism, marketing, etc.), but an internship that is a) paid and b) might lead to a full-time career, rather than just a cool line or two on your resume. 

So here's how to get a paid internship. I did my fair share of internships in college, some good and some horrific. But I learned a lot from every single one. Here are my tips:

1. Don't be afraid to network with senior executives at the company, when appropriate. You don't really have anything to lose -- you're gone at the end of the internship cycle anyway. If you are one of those interns who never rocks the boat, works silently in your cubicle, and is only known as the "copy guy" or the "social media girl" then you have failed.

Sure, every once in a while an executive may not respond well to you, or may treat you as if you are "inferior" to them. This reflects more about them than it does about you. Keep networking. I dealt with a few a**holes while interning, but I also became friends with some very powerful people. Now I get drinks with them from time to time and stay in the loop. This is the value of an internship. It's not about fetching sheets of paper from the copier or doing menial promotional stuff on Facebook. It's about getting your name out there.  

2. Try to get a paid internship. As with all areas of life, we respect a paid professional more than an unpaid dilettante. Your co-workers and supervisor will respect you more if they know you are on the payroll (albeit only making $10 or $12 per hour) -- and you will respect yourself more. How to make sure it's paid? Sell yourself! During the interview process, explain that you will bring a lot of energy and an eagerness to perform well. Explain that you are simply not interested in an unpaid internship. If you set your value at the right level, eventually you will find opportunities worthy of you. Don't sell yourself short. If your only options by May or June are a couple of lame internships that don't pay, launch your own small business or web site instead. It may be the best decision you ever make. 

3. "Yes we can!" It got Obama elected, and it will get you the recognition you deserve. No matter what the task, be the man or woman who gets the job done. Let "yes we can" become your professional motto. Don't know how to do it? Ask someone who does, and then do it. 

A supervisor loves to hear "Sure, it's already handled" or "I'll do it right away." There are so many lazy, entitled trust funder interns (especially in media and finance circles) who sit around shuffling their Vampire Weekend songs on iTunes. If you stand out by being a genuinely hard worker, in addition to an adept networker, you will go far. 

Credit Cards: Best Way To Pay?

If you pay your balance in full each month before the due date, then you typically won't accrue interest charges.

And if you have a good rewards or cash back credit card, you are getting anywhere from 1% to 5% cash back -- or free hotel points or air miles. 

This sounds like an unbeatable deal: why ever use cash or a debit card? This is how I feel.

Of course, the problem is that MANY people cannot use credit responsibly -- asking them to do so is like asking a life-long smoker to "only" smoke 2 cigarettes per day... it's an impossible request. 

If you are someone who has abused credit in the past, stick to a debit card. You get the same $0 liability against fraudulent charges (always report them within 60 days, however) and now there are a few rewards debit cards out there which offer air miles or cash back, similar to a credit card. I have reviewed some of the best ones here in the past, including the Chase United Mileage Plus debit card I currently use from time to time. 

Of course, you can always use old-fashioned cash as well. This is an option I am not fond of, for many reasons, including a lack of accountability and the possibility for theft. 

Companies That Are Hiring Right Now

According to an article I read on Yahoo! Finance over the weekend, a number of large companies are now hiring "aggressively" in some areas of their work force.

The companies mentioned include: Amazon.com (AMZN), Comcast (CMCSA), and retailer Lowe's (LOW).

Wholesale retailer Costco (COST) is also included in the mix, since it reportedly added "4,000 net workers" to its payroll last year and opened 16 new store locations.

Each new Costco location that pops up requires them to hire 180 to 300 new folks to man the store, and pay is decent (starting at $11 per hour, well above minimum wage). The company, according to the article, will hire 1,500 to 2,000 new workers in 2010... mostly in positions generated by these new store openings. 

Another company hiring: Apollo Group (APOL), which owns University of Phoenix Online. The company hired 3,700 people last year and will continue to grow, it seems.

Six Figure Income Jobs: No Degree Required

Money Crashers has a good article about six figure income jobs that don't require a college degree. Of course, many careers do not require a degree from an accredited university, but the problem is that these careers tend not to pay well.

Here are just a few of the 6 figure positions Money Crashers highlights, along with my commentary:

- Real estate broker: Yes, this is a great one. I have met several people who became real estate brokers and are now millionaires... you definitely don't need a college degree or Ivy League pedigree to succeed in this field. You do, however, need a certain type of personality. Type-A, sales individuals with charisma and/or the ability to connect naturally with others will do best in this one.

- Air traffic controller: It's true. These guys make good money. The men and women who keep the national air traffic grid running smoothly command good salaries, and are certainly skilled, but they don't need to have 4-year degrees. Of course, however, the job is EXTREMELY stressful from what I hear... you have a ton of responsibility, after all.

- Court reporter: Another field that requires specific expertise, but not a degree. 

- Ultrasound technologist: You do need training, but this can perhaps be done on the job or through a two-year accredited health sciences program. I know someone in this field who makes around $25 per hour. Not bad, and you get the fast-paced environment of a hospital to keep you mentally occupied... certainly beats stacking shirts at the mall for $7 an hour.