| No matter what the economy, the grass still grows. | | | | extension cord, you will want to replace it with cordless |
| There is always someone near by who needs their | | | | electric or gas-powered equipment as soon as you |
| lawn mowed and cannot do it themselves. These folks | | | | earn enough money mowing to do so. |
| have a problem and you, the full-time employee | | | | Starting within walking distance of your home |
| wanting to start a part-time lawn mowing business, | | | | eliminates the need for a truck or trailer to haul |
| have the solution. They can pay you to mow their | | | | equipment to job sites keeping costs down. If you live |
| yard. Problem solved. | | | | within walking distance of the job you can put your |
| I often get the question of whether you can start your | | | | equipment and gas can in a wagon or cart and pull |
| lawn mowing business part-time in the evenings and | | | | your lawn mower along by hand. If you are willing to |
| on weekends and keep your full-time job. The answer | | | | do this extra manual labor you are more likely to |
| is a big yes! | | | | succeed because you are not afraid of hard work and |
| The question is can you do it? If you have lots of | | | | not prone to overspending. |
| energy, enjoy being outdoors and working in your yard, | | | | Earnings |
| and can handle just 5 to 10 extra hours of physical | | | | One of the biggest reasons to have a part-time lawn |
| work each week, you can start a part-time lawn | | | | mowing business is you make significantly more |
| mowing business and keep your regular job. | | | | money for the time you spend working than at most |
| People who work 12-hour rotating shift schedules are | | | | other part-time endeavors. |
| in a terrific position to run a lawn mowing business | | | | If you charge $50 to mow the grass, edge and clean |
| part-time while keeping their full-time jobs because | | | | up and you can do 5 lawns after work and on |
| they have so many days off. | | | | weekends each week, you will earn $250 per week. |
| Marketing | | | | You will need to set 15% of your revenue aside after |
| First, you need to find some customers. Write a flyer | | | | expenses (gas, parts, repair, replacement equipment, |
| using word processing software, print it, take it to your | | | | etc.) for self-employment taxes which you will need to |
| local copy shop, have 25-30 copies made, and | | | | pay each quarter. If you spend $9 on gas and save |
| distribute them around your neighborhood within | | | | $36 for taxes, your net weekly earnings will be $205. |
| walking distance of your house. You may want to use | | | | Six weeks of hauling your equipment by hand will build |
| a half-page flyer so you can distribute to 50-60 | | | | physical strength and allow you to accumulate about |
| houses. Include what you offer the prospect (lawn | | | | $1230. You could also resubmit your form W-4 at |
| mowing, edging, cleaning off the concrete), your name, | | | | work to take the correct amount of extra money out |
| best phone number to contact you, your address so | | | | of your pay checks to cover these taxes. However, if |
| they know you are a neighbor and how much you | | | | you are trying this to determine if you want a full-time |
| charge. Since you are new to the business charge on | | | | lawn mowing business I recommend you become |
| the lower end of the average rate other lawn care | | | | familiar with paying self-employment taxes quarterly. |
| professionals charge in your area. Five dollars cheaper | | | | After 20 weeks of mowing 5 lawns per week you will |
| than average may get your neighbors to stop using | | | | have netted nearly $4,000. It will be less than this |
| someone out of the neighborhood and start using you | | | | because your equipment will need maintenance and |
| instead. | | | | repair. That will not cost more than a few hundred |
| Another reason to start with your neighbors is they | | | | dollars, so you will still have around $3,700 if you save |
| know you or know of you and we all want to help | | | | your profits. |
| other people, especially people we know. Since these | | | | Now you will have the cash to buy a good used |
| folks are close by, you get to go out, knock on doors | | | | commercial lawn mower. Once you have a |
| and meet your neighbors while marketing your | | | | commercial mower you will be able to increase the |
| business to them. Smile, introduce yourself and tell | | | | number of yards you can mow per week in the same |
| them which house is yours or what street you live on | | | | amount of time it took with your residential mower, |
| and get to know a little about them and some things | | | | increasing your revenue. You may be able to mow 10 |
| you might have in common. Hand them a flyer at the | | | | yards per week instead of 5, so your gross revenue |
| end of the conversation and move on to the next | | | | will jump to $500 per week. After another 10 weeks |
| house. | | | | you may have enough cash to buy a used trailer to |
| Keep this up until you have at least one person ready | | | | haul your commercial equipment. |
| for you to go home, get your equipment right now, | | | | Remember that in many areas there are only 3 |
| come back and work that day and are pulling out their | | | | mowing seasons or about 40 weeks of steady work |
| checkbook to pay you. If this happens, stop marketing | | | | each year. If you spend the first 40 weeks earning |
| that day, service your new customer and earn some | | | | enough to get some commercial equipment and |
| money. Continue marketing the next day. | | | | increase your customer base, your second part-time |
| When you have the number of customers you think | | | | year will be mostly profits. |
| you can handle, stop marketing daily and only doing a | | | | Two years part-time in the business will allow you to |
| little occasionally or when someone asks for your | | | | decide if you want to start mowing full-time. You will |
| information. You will need to keep a few flyers on | | | | know it is time to go full-time when you are turning |
| hand to give out. Be on the lookout for yards that | | | | customers away because you do not have time to |
| overgrow and see if a lawn service comes to mow | | | | service their yards and if you could take on those |
| them. These folks may need someone closer who will | | | | customers, you would earn more annually than at your |
| service their lawn regularly. Be sure to visit them and | | | | full-time job. |
| ask. | | | | Earning more means earning more than your current |
| Equipment | | | | annual pay after taxes plus paying for the benefits you |
| Do not buy any commercial equipment or go into debt. | | | | and your family need, like health insurance. If your |
| You only need the mower you use on your own lawn, | | | | spouse works outside the home, he or she may carry |
| a gas-powered string trimmer and blower to get | | | | the family benefits leaving you free to earn lots of |
| started. If you have an electric-powered string trimmer | | | | cash. You will have to save for retirement and pay |
| and blower, you can still use them, but make sure the | | | | your own disability insurance even if your spouse can |
| customer knows you will need access to an electric | | | | provide the other benefits. Few companies offer |
| outlet and you will need a very long extension cord. | | | | spousal retirement or spousal disability coverage. |
| Alternatives to gas and electric-powered trimmers and | | | | If you are willing to work during your off hours and not |
| blowers are the cordless rechargeable models. They | | | | spend money on equipment you do not need, you can |
| are less expensive than their gas-powered cousins, | | | | work part-time mowing lawns and earn a lot of extra |
| cheaper to operate and much more environmentally | | | | money. You may also be able to eventually leave your |
| friendly. If you have electric equipment that requires an | | | | job and run your business full-time. |