OK, so you don’t want to have to pay those outrageous fees involved in taking a payday loan. Or, maybe you just have a history with payday loans. You know that it’s likely you’ll renew the loan several times, and wind up paying huge amounts in fees. In fact, you’ll pay more over time in fees than the original loan.

Fortunately, you’ve got some choices. Here are some alternatives to jumping on the payday loan treadmill:

• Get a part-time job. What, did you think I was going to tell you how to get something for nothing? You have to work for the dough, kiddo. Yeah, it’s going to take a couple of weeks to get a paycheck, I realize that. But there are also part-time jobs that let you make money immediately, like bartending or food serving.
• Start a business. Offer to walk your neighbor’s dog. Fix someone’s computer. Pick something you’re good at and then figure out how to get someone to pay you money to do it. Almost every successful small business started out when one person decided they wanted to make money doing something they love.
• Make something to sell (and then sell it, of course). Get out your knitting needles and make some baby booties. Sell them on Etsy. Etsy is an online marketplace where crafty folks like yourself can get connected with people that want to buy their crafts.
• Look into emergency assistance. There are charities that will give you things like food and clothes. You can also save money on utilities, for example, or get help making sure your heat doesn’t get shut off. There are both private and public assistance options, and you can check into both.
• Sell your stuff. Ebay is passe, but Craigslist is a great place to sell nowadays. Whether it’s furniture, a bicycle, your trumpet or artwork, you may be able to convince someone to buy it on Craigslist.
• Find online work. There are companies that will pay you to do things like do mystery shopping or write blog posts. Be careful here, of course, because the work-at-home online marketplace is rife with scammers and hooligans.
• Freeload. It’s not the best option, but borrowing or begging from friends and family is sometimes a better alternative than jumping into a payday loan mess that could literally take months for you to get out of.

Photo via Bartholomew