"Odd Jobs: 101 Ways to Make an Extra Buck" by Abigail R. Gehring, Skyhorse Publishing, $12.95
Did you already buy all the graduation gifts for the year? If so, my apologies that I didn't get to this book sooner. It's a definite contender for a terrific gift, especially if you are the graduate's godparent, step-something-in-law or other funky relation. It's handy enough that the recipient may genuinely appreciate it but lighthearted enough that he or she won't feel that extra nudge of career pressure imparted by so many graduation gifts.
I admit to being a totally biased reader, however. I flat-out adore this category of job books. Give me any compendium of weird ways to make a living, and I'll skip dinner to read all the jobs. Abigail R. Gehring has created a better-than-average entry into this category (perhaps one of the best) by dint of her strong writing and creative selections.
Strengths of "Odd Jobs" include Gehring's organization of 101 jobs into seven categories of work, her inclusion of both full-time and hour-at-a-time positions, and a selection of Web sites in every category for further information. Perhaps best of all are her witty introductions to the sections, each of which provides a story from Gehring's deep reservoir of odd jobs (she's held 24 of the jobs listed in the book).
Because Gehring's own résumé includes work as a tattoo artist, a swimming companion for the elderly, a caterer, a dancer and a stint as "Cinder-
ella," her insights into the book's job entries provide just the right shot of optimism and reality. She understands both the upside and the downside of the odd-job lifestyle, and she shares both with good humor.
As the author of a jobs book, Gehring is a refreshing counterpoint to all the writers with initials after their names and master's theses on topics of labor saturation in urban cores — or whatever those papers are about. If I sound a little sarcastic, let's just say that an awful lot of jobs books seem to have been written by people who have conducted only one or two searches of their own. If you never change jobs or always have worked at a high level, it can be tough to sound relevant to someone who needs cash now.
In addition to her work experience, one of Gehring's best credentials comes to her vicariously, from her father. As she writes in the introduction: "I grew up in the one-stoplight town of Wilmington, Vt., where my father was the 'Hot Dog Man.' Tucking away his master's degree in horticulture and experience as a middle school math teacher, he bought a rusting metal pushcart from a man named Buzz and set up in the True Value [hardware store] parking lot. He worked for 25 years, earning enough to put four kids through college and a reputation for his chili dogs that spread down to the Carolinas."
Now those are chops. Gehring not only understands the fun and value of earning a living from a variety of jobs but also has seen that success in life is not a direct correlation to how many degrees one has or how tall his or her office tower is.
So what are some of the odd jobs in Gehring's book? It might be easier to tell you the seven categories with an example or two.
1. The Service Industry. This chapter includes a lot of no-bars-to-entry jobs, such as dog walker, Christmas tree decorator and pedicab operator. If you can hustle, you can make money here.
2. Making Money Online. More than eBay — eight entries include jobs such as survey-taker and virtual headhunter.
3. Entertainment and Culinary Pursuits. One of the oddest here might be the party-entertainment option of lipstick reading. Other, more "normal" jobs include special events waiter, hot dog vendor and barista.
4. Country Pursuits. We all know about fire lookouts, but who knew you could make a buck as a human scarecrow?
5. Travel and Adventure. This might be the section a footloose graduate turns to first. Entries include shell picker in Kauai and kayak tour guide off San Juan Island. Heck, forget the graduate — maybe this is the section the gift-giver most wants to read.
6. Capitalist Pursuits: Marketing, Selling Things and Letting Your Body Work for You. If body advertising or volunteering for a medical study doesn't appeal to you, promoting beer or making soap might be just right.
7. The Oddest of the Odd: Category-Defying Jobs. She's right. These are odd. Who knew you could earn money collecting carcasses off the highway or sorting vacuum dust? Not all of these jobs have such a strong "eew" factor; indeed, sleep director sounds downright genteel.
- Amy Lindgren owns Prototype Career Service, a career consulting firm in St. Paul, Minn. She can be reached at alindgren@prototypecare rservice.com or at 1071 W. Seventh St., St. Paul, MN 55102.