Jasmine Birtles
Your money-making expert. Financial journalist, TV and radio personality.
6 unusual part-time jobs well-suited to the super social
Reading Time: 5 minutesBeing a super social people person can be both a blessing and a curse. While many will love you for your gregarious and empathetic ways, others may find you a little ‘too much’. Apart from affecting your personal life, it could also have a huge influence on finding a job that really satisfies your soul.
If this sounds familiar, we’ve rounded up 6 part-time jobs that would allow you to connect with others to your heart’s content.
- Offer your services as a friend
- Be an undercover bridesmaid
- Attend funerals as a professional mourner
- Chat your hours away as an Uber driver
- Meet interesting people while standing in line
- Become a chocolate taster
Offer your services as a friend
Chances are, as a super social person, people love being around you as much as you love being around them.
So, why not use this special talent to make a bit of extra money? Thanks to a site called Rent a Friend, you can actually get paid for your friendship!
It doesn’t cost anything to sign up as a ‘friend’ and advertise your services on the site. If someone wants to hire you, the two of you will agree on an hourly fee for your company and go from there.
People usually charge £5-£30 for an hour of their time.
According to the site, people who are ‘rent a friend’ full time can make over $2,000 (about £1,260) a week. Those who only do it over the weekend can make $300-$500 (£190-£317) a week.
Although it might seem a little weird at first glance, there are some sensible reasons people might be looking for a friend online:
- show them around a new city
- teach them a new skill
- do a specific activity with, like a gym buddy
Read more about becoming a ‘rent-a-friend’.
Be an undercover bridesmaid
Apart from your super social skills, you might have an additional talent for organising. Well, guess what? There are hundreds of brides out there who would pay good money to have you by their side on their wedding day. Nope, not as a wedding planner, caterer or coordinator, but rather as an undercover bridesmaid.
Basically, you’d form part of the bridal party and ensure that everything runs smoothly. Or, in some cases, you may just need to fill an empty space due to a last-minute bridesmaid cancellation (there’s always some drama).
In 2016, Tiffany Wright became the UK’s first Undercover Bridesmaid and has been running her own flourishing business ever since. She offers different packages, including virtual assistance, maid-of-honour support and a comprehensive deal where she helps pre-wedding and on the day.
Her packages are priced from £250 upwards.
Attend funerals as a professional mourner
While everyone might think being super social is all about having a good time all the time, the truth is it also might make you’re able to connect with people going through a hard time.
One job that immediately springs to mind in this regard, is attending funerals as a professional mourner. It may sound strange, but this profession has actually been around for centuries in various cultures around the globe.
In the UK today, professional mourners have also started playing an important role in attending the funerals of people who either outlived their family and friends or simply don’t have any.
Envisage is a company that facilitates professional mourning. They don’t have an official sign-up page or process, the best way to offer your services is simply to get in touch through the website.
If you decide to, they will get in touch with you to talk over the brief, then they will brief the mourners, all in a discreet and respectful manner.
Read more about earning extra cash as a professional mourner.
Chat your hours away as an Uber driver
If you have a lot of time on your hands and enjoy hitting the road every once in a while, you may want to consider being an Uber driver.
Although you may never have thought about it like this, it’s an excellent part-time job for anyone who likes meeting a diverse range of new people. Even if you just do a couple of trips a day, you’re bound to meet a bunch of really interesting characters and exchange some entertaining stories with them.
According to Quora, the average trip for an Uber driver pays out £18.20, and drivers reportedly complete about 2 full trips per hour (i.e., an hourly earnings total of £36.41) in London. In quieter areas this might be a little less. However, as a super social person, you’re probably doing it more for the company than the money. So, it’s totally worth it!
Meet interesting people while standing in line
Do your loved ones always tease you about making new friends everywhere you go? Even while queueing at the bank?
Well, joke’s on them! You can actually earn good money while putting that skill to use. Well, the bit about standing in line, at least. Connecting with those around you is just an added bonus!
A London-based startup called Bidvine.com now offers a queuing service for anyone who needs someone to stand in line for them at the January sales, the ticket queue for the O2, the latest offering at the Apple store and more.
Once you’ve signed up as a line queuer, people will start bidding on your services. It’s expected bids will be around £15 p/h but, it’s up to you what you want to quote per hour, or per job.
Read more about how you can make money as a professional queuer.
BECOME A CHOCOLATE TASTER
Every now and again Cadbury hire new chocolate tasters. These work alongside one another and a leader who will agree a taste on the product.
The pay is pretty good too, at £10.75 per hour, for up to eight hours each week. However, you do have to get to Wokingham, which is just outside London, and be prepared to talk a lot as you’ll be required to give honest and good feedback. People with allergies or food intolerances may not be best suited to the role.
Full training is provided, so confectionery lovers, get applying!
Having someone queue for you is a great idea.