PUT YOUR SKILLS AND TALENTS AT WORK FOR BIG BUCKS

Of course not all people make good teachers but talent and skills can be used to bring you income inother ways. Perhaps your music lessons "took" and you have kept your proficiency high enough to get ajob as a musician in your area. Try "moonlighting" at first on certain nights or on weekends. Maybe youcan organize your own group. If you tend toward the more classical approach you might get a job playing the organ at a local church or giving recitals several times a year. If you have a boat or plane you might take tourists out on weekends for a pleasure excursion. (Make certain you charge enough to at least cover the insurance which may well be too high for a part time business to handle.)

Of course the products of many of the skills you have acquired could be retailed. We all know about the successful pottery or woodcarving business that started as a basement hobby. By now you should be looking at yourself and your family in a different light. You might be seeingdollar signs on cinnamon rolls that have won first prize at the fair the last seven years.

You may understandably not want to exploit (what a "loaded" word) any of these talents.You are comfortable at the moment and enjoy being the guy whose son can fix anything for your " all thumbs" associates at the office. I understand that it gives you a feeling of pride\when everyone asks for Judy's baked goods when a party is being planned and would just love it if you could only coax Molly to play a few pieces.Fine! That's the way I hope your life will remain. But remember these skills are also insurance.

Is it possible you've read this far and don't see yourself or family in any of the illustrations? Highly unlikely but possible. It could be you, the reader, are unattached with no present family and have buried yourself in your one and only job. Even if you've never had a lesson in your life, have had no time forhobbies, know nothing about cars and live in an apartment where all the maintenance is taken care of by picking up the phone, you can still acquire "unemployment insurance" in a myriad of ways.

The government, through the National and Coast Guard and other branches of the military, have Reservist programs. As a reservist, you can learn, at the government's expense, just about any skill imaginable by applying for the desired training. Once more, you do not pay to get this sometimes highlytechnical and potentially lucrative knowledge, rather you are paid to learn! This training need not interfere with your present employment. The time required as a Reservist is usually a weekend per month and a few weeks at a time for the extensive training sessions which can be arranged with your employer.
Chances are your employer will be proud to have a Reservist in his employ. Such as an affiliation is more likely to help rather than hinder you in your present career. At any rate, by law your employer must give you the needed time off and cannot discriminate against you because of your Reserve status.

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