Don’t Play the Stock Market — 7 (Genius) Alternative Ways to Grow Your Money

“Playing with my money is like playing with my emotions.”

You don’t need to have seen the movie “Friday” to get it. You work hard for your money. You can’t exactly afford to squander it on risky stock tips from that guy at the office happy hour. We all know that guy.

For every stock market success story, there are many more untold tales of hardworking people who watched their money evaporate after gambling on some “hot” stock that was supposed to be the next Amazon.

There are much smarter ways to grow your money. We’ve rounded up some of the best of them.

1. Invest in Famous Art (Even if You’re Not a Millionaire)

Here’s the deal: If you’re not investing in contemporary art, you might be missing out on an asset whose prices have outpaced the S&P by 164% from 1995 to 2020. (FYI, the S&P tracks 500 of the largest companies in the stock market)

You’re probably thinking you need at least a few more zeros in your checking account before you can even start thinking about investing in Warhols and Monets, right?

But a company called Masterworks lets normal people like us invest in multimillion-dollar works of art — something typically only available to the super rich.

You don’t need hundreds of thousands of dollars to buy a masterpiece outright; with Masterworks, you can invest in multimillion dollar paintings with only $1,000.

It takes less than a minute to sign up for a free account.

Investing in contemporary art is a long-term strategy, so patience pays off here — literally. But once your piece of art sells, you get your share of the potential profits.

2. Grow Your Money 17x Faster — Without Risking Any of It

You’ve been with the same bank for years, and how do they repay your loyalty? With a measly 65 cents in earned interest every year.

And you’re not alone. The national average interest rate for savings accounts is just 0.17%.

But there’s actually a way to grow your money 17 times faster — completely risk free.

When you open a Capital One 360 Performance Savings Account, you’ll earn 3.40% APY on your account balance. Just to be clear, that’s almost 17 times the national average on a regular savings account.

There’s no minimum deposit to open and keep your account. And, you’ll never pay any monthly or maintenance fees, either.

And there’s no need to worry about accessing your savings — you can take your money out at any time with no penalties. Plus, all your money is FDIC insured, which basically just means it’s super safe.

It only takes a few minutes to set up your Capital One savings account. All you really need to do after that is sit back and watch your savings grow with 17 times the average interest.

3. Let This App Pay You up to $83 When You Win Solitaire Games

Lots of us already play Solitaire on our phones for fun or just to pass the time. Want to see if you can win money at it?

There’s a free iPhone app called Solitaire Cash that lets you play for real money. You could get paid up to $83 per win.*

You might be thinking: There’s got to be a catch. This is definitely one of those spammy apps, right?

Wrong. There really isn’t a catch. Sure, you can pay to play in some higher-stakes tournaments, but there’s no pressure. And, in fact, there aren’t even any annoying ads.

With each game, you’ll battle it out against at least five other players. Everyone gets the same deck, so winning is totally a matter of skill. The top three players who solve the deck fastest can win real money — anywhere from $1 to $83.

Over on the App Store, it has over a million downloads and more than 15,000 ratings, averaging 4.7 stars (out of 5).

To get started, just download the free app and start playing your first game immediately.

4. Add $100 to Your Wallet for Trying Out Apps

Our smartphones are the world’s greatest time-killers. You can browse Facebook; watch a video; download a new app.

You’re doing all this anyway — why not get paid for it? With a website called KashKick, you could get paid for things like answering survey questions or downloading an app — up to $100 per app.

You can also earn money by playing games, watching videos and reading emails, but surveys are the main way to make money.

Once you earn $10 in your account, you can immediately get paid via Paypal. This is an easy way to make a little extra money while you’re killing time on your couch. All you need is your phone or computer.

It takes just a minute to sign up, and you’ll immediately earn $1 just for completing your profile on the site. You’ll be that much closer to cashing out.

5. Earn up to $69/Hour Working From Home

We get it. There are kids to drop off at school, errands to run and dinner to cook, so the idea of getting a full-time job without any flexibility just doesn’t work for a lot of people.

Truth be told, life would be a lot easier if you could just make money without leaving the house. But that’s not something most employers offer. But have you considered bookkeeping? It’s the No. 1 most profitable business, according to an article in Inc Magazine.

And you could earn up to $69 an hour by starting your own bookkeeping business, according to Intuit, the creator of QuickBooks.

You don’t have to be an accountant or good at calculus to be successful at bookkeeping. As long as you’re motivated, a company called Bookkeepers.com will teach you everything you need to know. It’s one of the leading training courses in the field, and it even gives you the first three classes for free.

It’s helped thousands of people launch their own businesses, including Daniel Honan, a military veteran and former painter. He never considered starting his own company, but he signed up for Bookkeepers.com, and now he’s making $50,000 a year.

It only took him three months to get started, taking one class a week. Oh, and he makes his own schedule, earns up to $69 an hour and is able to spend more time with his wife than ever.

If you’re just a little curious, you just have to submit your email address here to take the first free class. If you stick with it, you could be running your own business in just a few months.

6. Skip the Lottery and Play Bingo For Money Instead (You Could Win $83 For Every Win)

Luck alone will only get you so far in life. There’s something to be said for gaining a little bit of skill to improve your chances of coming out ahead.

A free iPhone app called Bingo Cash gives you the chance to play Bingo for real money. The game is based on the classic Bingo format, but with special power-ups you can use to do things like buy more time or dab an extra square.

You’ll battle it out against other players at your same skill level. Everyone gets the same board and sees the same Bingo balls. Winning is totally a matter of how you use the powerups you’re given.

The top three players in a game can win real money — anywhere from $1 to $83.* You can also play casually with virtual currency if you want.

Over on the App Store, Bingo Cash has a 4.7-star rating (out of 5).

To get started, just download the free app and start playing your first game immediately.

7. Skips the Stocks and Invest in Bonds

You’ve probably heard bonds mentioned alongside stocks all of your life. That’s because bonds are one of the most common ways to diversify an investment portfolio.

People invest in both because bonds are typically much more stable. As long as the U.S. government exists, you know you’ll get your money back from bonds.

Basically, bonds are loans that you give the government. You get to charge them interest, which they’ll pay back periodically.

You just have to commit to a certain loan term with the government before you get all of your money back — that could be three months, three years, three decades and everything in between.

We’ve got a deeper dive into how to invest in bonds to help you get started.

Caltier: An offering statement regarding this offering has been filed with the SEC. The SEC has qualified that offering statement, which only means that the company may make sales of the securities described by the offering statement. It does not mean that the SEC has approved, passed upon the merits or passed upon the accuracy or completeness of the information in the offering statement. You may obtain a copy of the offering circular that is part of that offering statement here:

You should read the offering circular before making any investment.

There is no guarantee of success, and there is a potential for loss of your investment.

*https://www.caltierrealtyfund.com/strategy 

*Solitaire Cash: Real Money tournaments are not available in the following states: AZ, AR ,IA, IN, LA, ME, MT, SC, WA

*Bingo Cash and Bubble Cash: Real Money tournaments are not available in the following states: AZ, AR, IA, LA, SC, WA