Many companies offer a Employee Stock Purchase Plan (ESPP) that is almost always a sure way to make some extra money. A typical ESPP plan allows employees to contribute some percentage of their pay and the shares are bought at a 15% discount to the lower of the starting or ending date. Even in the worst-case scenario (stock at a low point on the purchase date), there is potential for a 17% gain. The key is to sell the shares as soon as they are deposited into the brokerage account.

When I started on a new job last year, one of the first things I did was sign up for the ESPP program. Six months later, the shares were deposited into my account recently and I turned around and sold them all as soon as the market opened. Total profit: 25%. I wouldn’t mind a few more free lunches like this one.