London

Get grumpy
Making a living by writing letters of complaint is impossible unless you are a) distressingly unlucky (caught in an existence fraught with soggy crisps, delayed flights and spontaneously collapsing furniture), or b) a compulsive consumer (Colleen McLoughlin, a woman permanently basking in a power-shower of consumer goods, must see many juicy complaining opportunities). For the rest of us, it is curiously pleasing to know that with a little effort, malformed products, abusive service and infuriatingly delayed transport can all be converted into vouchers that can be sold on eBay.
www.bbc.co.uk/consumer/how_to_complain/letters.shtml is a handy guide on writing complaint letters, including templates.
www.howtocomplain.com is another good resource. Feature continues

Try folk dancing in public!
Money can be made by doing something the general public don’t have the skills for (juggling, mime, a comedy act etc) or might not have the inclination to do (stand very still on a box for a long time, make a fool of themselves in public). Unfortunately, stricter laws covering street art mean that most types of performer now need a licence. If that sounds like too much trouble, your options are severely limited – to morris dancing, to be precise. Yes, this traditional, rustic folk dance, accompanied by strictly unamplified music, is one of the few exemptions. Bells and braces at the ready then.
www.morrisdancing.org

Take online surveys
Many companies will pay you to sit in your living room and answer easy questions over the internet. To access surveys you need to become a member of an agency, some of which will charge a one-off fee to join, although some don’t. Typically, you might earn from around £2 to £60 for a single survey. It is worth taking time to do very thorough research to avoid signing up to one of many scams (avoid companies which also offer to extend your penis). You can get signing up immediately by Googling a few and filling in your personal details. Then you will usually get emails inviting you to fill in a questionnaire. Some fill their quota up on the same day, so don’t hang around. Some pay cash while others pay in vouchers or enter you for prize draws. It can be time-consuming at first, and many of the payments can be paltry: 25p or 50p are common fees.
www.ciao.co.uk; www.acop.com; www.surveysavvy.com

Be a mystery shoppper
Many kinds of companies employ ‘mystery shoppers’ through agencies to check up on whether their customers are receiving a good service. Being a mystery shopper is a little like being a spy; in fact it is being a spy. Generally it involves performing a transaction, or making a query, and then rating the service against specific criteria. You may be allowed to keep the goods you buy, and jobs can sometimes be fun, including travel or rating hotel accommodation.
Mystery Shoppers 01409 255025/www.mystery-shoppers.co.uk
Retail Maxim 0845 900 5005/www.retail-maxim.co.uk

Busk
If you play a musical instrument or sing, busking is a good opportunity to simultaneously practise your skills, earn money, make contacts and develop immunity to the cold. It is generally more lucrative to play well-known hits than your own material. Busking is still strongly associated with begging in many people's minds – sidestep this by wearing smart, clean clothes. Your dog is not going to be your best friend in this instance, particularly if attached to a length of string. Good areas to busk are South Kensington station and the South Bank at weekends. Don’t play ‘Wonderwall’.
Audition to busk on the tube at www.tfl.gov.uk/tube/arts/busking

Enter competitions
Some feckless souls actually make a living from entering competitions advertised in newspapers, magazines and on the internet. Avoid competitions which announce themselves in pop-up dialogue boxes on your computer screen, or in scratch cards that tumble out of magazines (in which everyone miraculously wins a genuine emerald or a luxurious Caribbean cruise for two). Instead focus on the glossies and broadsheet newspapers. If a competition asks for a postcard make your entry as creative and unusual as possible (maybe even send an object with the answer written on it).