Mystery Shopping is The BEST Part Time Job | Money Struggle Success
For the past 12 years, I have been mystery shopping on and off as a single mom. Without mystery shopping, I would have missed many bills, and my credit would have been terrible, probably still to this day because I did not have enough money. Trying to navigate a regular full-time job that always didn't pay me enough and then finding a secondary job that still allowed me to be a mom and not worry about daycare was really stressful. Mystery shopping allowed me to get the extra money I needed without worrying about daycare full-time or part-time, and most times, I could take my child with me.
I want to outline to you the different ways mystery shopping can be a benefit to you no matter your situation.
College student
While attending college, I understood firsthand how difficult it is to maintain a living while trying to get your education. I went part-time and full-time while having a full-time job and being a mom, and I can tell you it was extremely hard. The most difficult part was trying to make a living while still maintaining my grades, with class timings being so inconvenient to work a regular job. Again, at this time, I was only doing in-class sessions as an online school for certain subjects was not available.
Mystery shopping allowed me to make money on campus and sometimes in class. Professors can be very long-winded, and my attention span was not as good, and it still isn't, so I would find online-based shops and make about 8 to $12 per shop while sitting in class. When I had a 30-minute to an hour gap and mystery shops were within walking distance of my campus, I would go do them, receive Food, and get reimbursed, all while still attending school.
The opportunities available with mystery shopping as a college student are plentiful. However, This can only be true if you sign up with multiple Mystery Shop companies so that you can always find Opportunities whenever you want.
Single parent
As a single parent, the number one thing that was so stressful was trying to make money while also finding a way to pay for daycare. Even when my child was in school, the hours always coincided with my regular job, which never paid me enough money. Mystery shopping allowed me to do many online shops, phone shops, and fun activity shops where I could bring my child along and still make money. I did not have extra money to do fun activities with my child, but mystery shopping gave me the opportunity to be reimbursed for all of my expenses and sometimes even make a little profit.
Getting a turn-off notice is never fun, and thankfully, I never received one of those because mystery shopping always allowed me to find opportunities on my own terms, depending upon how much money I knew I needed to obtain to go towards a future bill. Being broke and living paycheck to paycheck is already stressful enough, but finding mystery shopping allowed me to have a sense of normalcy by giving me the opportunity to take my child on trips, go out to restaurants, get clothes, and so much more.
Retiree
Since I've been a mystery shopper for so long, I always want to share how this can help retirees have a sense of purpose in life without worrying about boredom or regretting retirement. Of course, there can be so many other reasons why they may forget retirement, but I have come across many who just find they have no sense of purpose or schedule that makes them feel productive and active.
I gave them information regarding mystery shopping, and many of them have stuck with it and find it to be so much fun because they get to choose what they want to do, they get to make a little money that does not interfere with the Social Security, and they have that sense of adventure because they don't know what they going to find in regards to the mystery shops.
Teenager/Youth
I started my first job when I was 15 and 9 months, which was the legal work age limit when I was younger, but that wasn't helpful in regards to mystery shopping. I didn't know about it at that time, but many companies only allow you to become a mystery shopper with their company if you're 18 years old or older.
The way around this that I have found with many mystery shops is they will ask the 18-year-old or older shopper if they have a teenager or young child in their home that can help them fulfill that particular shop. The payment will still go to the individual who is signed up with the company, but your age helps them fulfill that shot because you are the target audience for that Mystery Shop.
Overall, this side hustle has been life-saving for me and my family because I tried it after learning about it. Mystery shopping was one of the biggest helps for me as a single parent making little money as a college student.
