While I'm not entirely unsympathetic to such needs, I do always mention to these people that very, very few people can manage that, and they are best off getting a regular job if things are so urgent. Or a second one if they already work.

It's one of the ugly truths of working at home that it's not so easy as many would claim to make a living. Some do earn money that quickly. More do not.

In a bad situation you should always go for the money you know you can get. That is, a job. And while jobs are somewhat harder to find right now than at other times in many areas, you generally can find something to do. Think about temp agencies, grocery stores, retail, fast food and restaurants if you need a job fairly quickly and earning something is more important than the exact type of job.

But if you need money really, really fast, a job isn't the answer either.

A garage sale or selling things on eBay is a much better way to bring in some fast money. Almost everyone has some stuff they can sell. It may be hard to part with things you've had for years, but if that's what it takes to get by, sometimes that is quite simply what you have to do.

Think of working at home as a long term strategy. It may pay off in the short run if you do everything right, but you are more likely to go through a significant learning curve. It may be years before you're earning a living online.

Then again, it could be months. It depends on how well what you're doing suits you and your customers, and how fast you learn. But don't expect it to be one month to success.

Perhaps the fastest way to earn money online, if you have the skills, is to freelance. There are a number of sites, such as Guru, eLance and Shelancers where you can find work as a writer, website designer, graphic designer and so forth. It takes some time to get started, but once you have some clients things can go rather nicely. And if you provide a quality service you may get regular clients and word of mouth working for you.

Do not expect others to do all the legwork for you, however. I've had many people ask me if there's such a thing as a real work at home job, when they've found me through my site that has a nice long list of jobs. If the resources are there in front of you, take advantage. If you need help figuring out what to do, ask for help and include your interests.

It takes a lot of self-motivation to succeed in any work at home endeavor, whether it be a job or a home business. Keep that in mind even when you ask for help. Your willingness to work should show from the start.