How to Make Money With No Skills: 8 Ways to Make Money Online

Most people postpone starting an online income because they assume they need a degree, a portfolio, or years of experience first. Alston Godbolt tested that assumption by walking through eight specific income paths that require zero prior training. Six of the eight can be started this week with nothing more than a laptop and an internet connection, and one of them can technically be started with a phone and a stack of books.

This post unpacks all eight in the order Alston covers them in the video above. For each method you will find how it works, how to get started, what you can realistically earn, and the honest drawbacks Alston mentioned. If you already know you want to start but are not sure which path fits your current situation, skip to the “Find Your X” section at the bottom.

What You’ll Walk Out With

The exact steps to sign up for Amazon Associates and start earning affiliate commissions today
What data entry actually pays per job and where client work tends to dry up
Why some virtual assistants clear $100,000 per year and what separates them from those who earn $20,000
The seven different income streams inside a single YouTube channel
Where to find transcription gigs if Rev rejects your application
The one ETF investing mistake Alston says he sees constantly
How to figure out what knowledge you already own and could sell this month
A free quiz at finder.platformproof.com that matches your current skills and schedule to the method most likely to work for you

Method 1: Affiliate Marketing

Affiliate marketing is Alston’s top pick, and he calls it potentially his favorite of all eight methods. The concept is straightforward. You find a product or service you are interested in, you create content about it, and you include a special link that gives you a commission when someone buys through it.

The entry point Alston recommends is Amazon Associates. To sign up, go to amazon.com, scroll all the way to the bottom of the page, and click “Become an Affiliate.” Walk through the sign-up process, grab your unique affiliate links, and you are ready to go. Amazon is the largest affiliate network in the world, which means nearly every product category is available.

Here is the part that trips people up: they think they need something new or exotic to review. Alston points out you can create content on anything you purchased in the last ten years. He holds up his own phone in the video and walks through exactly what that looks like. An iPhone unboxing video, a comparison of two models, a first-impressions take after using a device for a week. These are all search-friendly formats that attract people who are already deciding whether to buy.

The content types that work best for affiliate marketing include unboxing videos, written or video reviews, first impressions, and comparison pieces where you put two similar products side by side. The audience you attract is already purchase-ready, which is what makes affiliate marketing such a strong starting point. You are not convincing anyone to want something. You are meeting people who already want it and helping them decide.

The biggest investment here is time, not money. You can start with a phone, record in any room with decent lighting, and upload to YouTube or write blog posts without spending a dollar. Commissions on Amazon range widely by category, so your earnings will depend on which products you focus on, but the method itself has no cost barrier to entry.

Method 2: Data Entry

Data entry is about as low-friction as it gets. You receive information in one format and you move it into another. Alston describes a real example from his own business: he took screenshots of keyword research he had done, handed them to a data entry worker, and had that person transfer the information into an Excel spreadsheet. No specialized knowledge. No judgment calls. Just accurate input work.

The going rate Alston mentions is around $25 to $30 per job, depending on how you find your clients. You can stack multiple clients since the work itself is self-contained and does not require ongoing coordination once instructions are clear.

The honest drawback Alston names here is inconsistency. Data entry work can dry up without warning. You may have three clients one month and none the next. This makes it a good starting point for building your first online income, but a difficult one to rely on long-term without constantly working to replace finished projects with new ones. Think of it as a first paycheck method, not a career plan on its own.

Method 3: Virtual Assistant

Virtual assistant work looks similar to data entry at the surface level but goes wider. A VA handles whatever tasks a manager or business owner assigns. That can include data entry, but it usually extends into things like scheduling meetings, organizing calendars, managing inboxes, and keeping daily operations moving.

Alston references the TikTok creators who claim to earn $100,000 per year as virtual assistants, and he does not dismiss this. The income ceiling is higher than data entry precisely because VA relationships tend to be ongoing rather than project-based. A business that trusts you with their schedule keeps paying you. A data entry project ends when the spreadsheet is full.

The key Alston identifies is organization. You can work with multiple clients simultaneously as long as you can keep each client’s tasks and priorities straight. That organizational ability is not a technical skill. It is a habit you can build before you land your first client. Alston’s point is that you do not need skills to start, but you will develop them over time, and those developed skills are what push the income up.

Platforms like Upwork, Fiverr, and PeoplePerHour all have active demand for virtual assistants. Starting with one client, delivering clean work, and asking for a referral or review is the entry pattern that leads to a full client roster.

Method 4: Start a YouTube Channel

Alston is direct about this one. You do not need any skills to start a YouTube channel, and you do not need any money either. His literal setup recommendation for beginners: stack some books on a surface, prop your smartphone on top of the books, and record. That is it. No ring light, no microphone, no editing software subscription.

What to make videos about? Alston says to start with things you already do every day, things you are interested in, or hobbies you have. There is demand for content on an enormous range of topics, and the video that feels mundane to you is often something thousands of people are searching for.

The income upside on YouTube is one of the highest on this list because a single channel can generate money in multiple ways at the same time. Alston lists seven:

The YouTube Partner Program (ad revenue once you hit eligibility thresholds)
Affiliate marketing (linking to products in video descriptions)
Selling your own digital products (courses, ebooks, templates)
Selling your own physical products
Brand deals and sponsorships
Merchandise sales
Channel memberships and direct support from subscribers

The caveat Alston is honest about: your first videos will be bad. He says 99 percent of creators produce terrible early content and that is completely normal. The only metric that matters at the start is whether you keep uploading. His framework is simple. Get one percent better every time you upload. Not ten percent. Not dramatically better. One percent. Over dozens of videos, that compounds into actual competency and an audience that grows with you.

Method 5: Transcription Work

Transcription means listening to recorded audio and typing out what you hear. Webinars, conference recordings, podcast episodes, legal proceedings, medical dictation. All of these need someone to turn the spoken word into written text.

Alston names two platforms specifically: Rev and Transcribe Me. Both are well-established and have steady work. To access the higher-paying jobs on Rev, you need to pass a typing accuracy and speed test. If you are not there yet on typing speed, Alston recommends going to Fiverr, Upwork, or PeoplePerHour and finding direct gigs with small business owners, solopreneurs, and mid-sized companies who need transcription help on a project basis rather than through a platform’s grading system.

The two real requirements Alston names are: decent hearing and the ability to type proficiently. Neither of those is a skill you need to acquire. They are baseline abilities most people already have. The income varies depending on the platform, the audio quality, and how much work you take on, but it is a genuinely no-barrier entry point for someone who needs to start earning before they have anything else set up.

Not sure which of these eight paths actually fits your situation?

Take the free quiz at finder.platformproof.com and get a specific recommendation based on your schedule, current income goal, and what you already have access to.

Method 6: Invest in ETFs

An ETF, or exchange traded fund, is a collection of stocks bundled into a single investment you can buy like a share. Instead of picking individual stocks and trying to out-think professional traders, you buy into a fund that tracks an index. Alston specifically mentions funds that track the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average.

The entry point is low. Alston says you can start investing in ETFs with around $100. This is not a get-rich-quick path, and Alston is clear that he is not offering investing advice and that this method carries risk. His framing is that investing in broad-market ETFs removes the need to become a stock expert because the fund’s performance is tied to the market as a whole rather than to individual company decisions.

The critical rule Alston states: only invest money you can afford to lose. This is not a marketing disclaimer. Market values drop, sometimes significantly, and if you need that money for rent in three months it should not be in an ETF.

The mistake Alston says he sees most often: people invest once and walk away. They treat it like a one-time action. The way compounding interest actually works is through consistent, repeated investing over time. You put in a set amount on a regular schedule, regardless of whether the market is up or down that week, and the growth happens over years, not months. If you are going to use this method, build a plan for consistent contributions rather than a single deposit.

Method 7: Sell Your Knowledge

This is the method that catches people off guard because their first reaction is always some version of “I do not know anything worth paying for.” Alston directly addresses that. He says we are all experts in something, and the examples he gives are deliberately ordinary: raising twins, accounting basics, making it through a difficult year. His point is not that you need to be the world’s foremost authority on a topic. You need to know something that someone one or two steps behind you wants to learn.

The formats for selling knowledge include ebooks, blueprints, structured courses, and workshops. Platforms like Udemy let you host and sell a course without building your own website. If you do have a website, you can sell directly and keep more of the revenue. If you do not, you can use Gumroad, Teachable, or similar tools with low setup friction.

Alston’s income framing for this method is the highest on the list. He says people can earn six, seven, or eight figures selling their knowledge. He does not attach a timeline to that, and it is worth noting that the high end of that range takes years and usually involves an audience, a marketing system, and ongoing product development. But the floor is also accessible. An ebook on a specific topic priced at $17 and sold to 100 people is $1,700 with no physical product, no shipping, and no inventory.

The first step Alston recommends: sit down and actually list the things you know how to do, have done, or have gotten through. Most people skip this step and decide they have nothing to offer before they have even looked. The list usually surprises you.

Method 8: Learn a Skill and Flip It

The final method is different from the others because it involves acquiring something new rather than using what you already have. But Alston’s framing makes it feel achievable: you can learn a marketable skill over a single weekend, then turn around and sell that skill or teach it to others.

The example he uses is Google Sheets. Someone who knows nothing about it on Friday can find free tutorials, work through the basics over Saturday and Sunday, and by Monday have enough knowledge to create a YouTube channel around Google Sheets tips, build a short Udemy course, or offer Google Sheets setup and cleanup services directly to small business owners through Facebook or YouTube ads.

This method is technically one step removed from the “no skills” framing, which is why Alston puts it last. But the investment window he is describing is a weekend, not a semester. The skills he has in mind are tool-based and practical: software, platforms, specific systems that people need help with every day but do not want to spend weeks learning themselves. That gap between “I know this” and “I need this done” is where your weekend of learning becomes someone else’s paid service.

Honest Drawbacks by Method

Alston does not oversell any of these, but it is worth pulling the limitations together in one place so you can plan around them rather than into them.

Affiliate marketing: The main challenge is that commissions take time to build. You can create content for weeks before earning your first dollar. Amazon Associates also has a 180-day account closure policy if you do not generate sales within that window.
Data entry: Alston explicitly calls this inconsistent. You will need to continually find new clients. It works well as a starter income but stalls if you rely on it too heavily without diversifying.
Virtual assistant: The income ceiling is real, but so is the time ceiling. Serving multiple clients simultaneously requires strong organization. If you oversell your capacity before you have systems in place, quality drops and clients leave.
YouTube channel: The Partner Program has minimum thresholds (subscribers and watch hours) before ad revenue kicks in. The path from first video to first check is measured in months, not days.
Transcription: Top-tier platforms require speed and accuracy tests. If your typing is slow, your entry point is lower-paying gigs while you build speed.
ETF investing: This is the only method where money going in does not guarantee money coming out short-term. Market downturns are real. Only use funds you genuinely do not need for day-to-day expenses.
Sell your knowledge: Finding your first buyer is the hardest part. You need some form of audience or discovery mechanism, whether that is YouTube, social media, or paid ads.
Learn a skill and flip it: The weekend learning window works for tool-based skills with a narrow scope. Trying to flip a complex skill like coding or graphic design in 48 hours sets unrealistic expectations.

How to Pick the Right One for Where You Are Right Now

The framework is simpler than most people make it. Ask yourself three questions before choosing a method.

First: how quickly do you need income? If the answer is this week, data entry and transcription are the fastest on-ramps because they are services you can offer immediately through existing platforms. Affiliate marketing and YouTube require an audience build first.

Second: how much time per week can you consistently put toward this? A YouTube channel rewards consistency over intensity. If you can post one video per week for six months, that is more valuable than twenty videos in one month followed by silence. Data entry and VA work are better fits if your schedule is irregular.

Third: do you already own something you could monetize? If you have made purchases in the last ten years that you have opinions about, affiliate marketing is already available to you. If you have a skill, even a basic one, the knowledge-selling path opens up. If you have $100 sitting in a savings account earning near-zero interest, ETF investing is at least worth understanding.

The common thread across all eight methods is that the barrier is almost never what people think it is. The barrier is usually inaction dressed up as preparation.

Find Your X

If you went through all eight methods and are still not certain which one fits your current life, that is what the free quiz at finder.platformproof.com is built for. Answer a few questions about your available time, current income target, and what you already have access to, and you will get a specific recommendation rather than a list to sort through on your own.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I really need zero skills to start any of these?

For six of the eight methods, yes. Data entry, transcription, virtual assistant work, ETF investing, and starting a YouTube channel all have starting points that require no prior training. Affiliate marketing requires you to create some form of content, which most people can do even if they have never done it before. Selling your knowledge requires you to identify what you already know, not acquire something new. Learning a skill and flipping it is the one exception, though the acquisition window Alston describes is a single weekend for a narrowly scoped, tool-based skill.

How much can I realistically earn with data entry?

Alston mentions approximately $25 to $30 per job. The number of jobs you complete per week depends on your speed and how many clients you manage at once. It is not uncommon for data entry workers to take on several small projects simultaneously, but the income stays relatively flat unless you move toward higher-value skills over time. Think of this as a starting income rather than a ceiling.

Can virtual assistants really make $100,000 per year?

Alston references this figure from TikTok creators who make that claim, and he does not push back on the number. The path to that level as a VA involves working with multiple clients simultaneously, charging premium rates, and having long-term retainer relationships rather than one-off projects. It is achievable for organized, reliable VAs with good clients, but it represents the upper end of the range, not the typical starting income.

How do I get my first client for data entry or virtual assistant work?

The most direct starting paths are Upwork, Fiverr, and PeoplePerHour. Create a simple profile that lists your availability and what you can handle, set a starter rate, and apply to relevant jobs. Referrals from your first few clients are the fastest way to grow a stable client base once you have completed a few projects successfully.

What is the fastest way to get approved on Rev for transcription?

Rev requires applicants to pass a grammar and transcription accuracy test. The main bottleneck is typing speed and accuracy under test conditions. Practicing with free typing tools for a week before applying can meaningfully improve your score. If you do not pass on the first attempt, Transcribe Me is an alternative with a different test format, and Fiverr allows you to offer transcription services without any platform testing requirement.

Is Amazon Associates the best affiliate program to start with?

It is the most accessible starting point because the sign-up process is simple and virtually every product category is covered. The commission rates on Amazon are relatively low compared to some digital product affiliate programs, which can pay 30 to 50 percent per sale. Amazon’s advantage is that almost everyone already shops there, so the conversion rate from click to purchase is high even when commission per sale is modest. Starting with Amazon and expanding to higher-commission programs as you build an audience is a common path.

What happens if I invest in ETFs and the market drops?

The value of your investment goes down temporarily. Broad-market ETFs that track the S&P 500 have historically recovered from downturns over time, but there is no guarantee and the timeline for recovery varies. This is why Alston’s rule is clear: only invest money you can afford to lose and have no near-term need for. Consistent investing over years rather than a single large deposit also reduces the risk of buying at a peak and having to wait out a long recovery.

How do I figure out what knowledge I have that people would pay for?

Alston’s suggestion is to sit down and make a list before deciding you have nothing to offer. Start with things friends or coworkers have asked you to help them with. Look at what you have figured out the hard way that others might want a shortcut to. Consider any system, tool, or process you use regularly that other people in your life find confusing. The person who is one or two steps behind you in that specific area is your audience. You do not need to be the top expert globally. You need to know more than they do and be able to explain it clearly.

Sources

Alston Godbolt, “How To Make Money With No Skills 2022 (8 Ways to Make Money Online 2022).” YouTube. youtube.com/watch?v=F7X6lbWCyX4
Amazon Associates program. Sign up at amazon.com (scroll to the footer and click “Become an Affiliate”).
Rev transcription platform. rev.com
Transcribe Me transcription platform. transcribeme.com
Fiverr freelance marketplace. fiverr.com
Upwork freelance platform. upwork.com
Udemy online course marketplace. udemy.com