“Fun is fundamental,” Sir Richard Branson reminds us. That’s the antithesis of all those business mottos which sound more like Fun is Forbidden.

How can you earn money by having fun? There are numerous ways, but the essential thing is to begin by creating a business that’s so much fun for you that you can’t wait to get at it every morning.

Then you can heighten the fun—and build your entrepreneurial thinking—by creating small projects where you get paid to do things you find pleasurable. The trick is to take a creative approach and uncover new funding pleasures. You won’t get rich with any of these ideas, but your life will be noticeably richer in fun.

Do You Love…

° Working out? Check with your health insurance provider and see if they offer a financial reward if you take care of yourself. Mine gives a $20/month discount on their premiums to anyone who goes to the gym eight times a month.

°  Classical music? Usher at your symphony hall and get paid to listen. The same goes for theater and other entertainment venues. Sometimes these are volunteer positions and sometimes they pay a small salary.

• Having a massage? Schools of massage need bodies to practice on and sometimes they even pay to use yours. Other programs offer free or almost free massages for those willing to be part of the curriculum.

Then there’s the woman who evaluates spa services for a hotel chain. That’s an idea that could be turned into an independent business.

° Giving your opinion? Sign up with local marketing agencies that put together focus groups to evaluate new products. Everything from frozen food to legal services get evaluated by focus groups.

I once participated in a focus group for an airline and we were pleasantly surprised at the end of the session to learn we could be paid $70—or receive two roundtrip tickets to Europe on the carrier.

° Shopping? Mystery shopping companies hire people to evaluate employees and service in businesses. The mystery shopper poses as a customer and then files a report on the transaction. I once got a new muffler installed in my car this way.

Not all shops are exciting, but if you like dining out or going to the mall, why not get paid for it? Make sure you’re working with a legitimate operation.

° Research? Ah, those closet detectives among us are the folks who love digging deeply into a subject. Besides creating a business that does other people’s research for them, there’s another fun possibility: creating an independent research project and then getting it funded.

The reference section of your local library will have directories of grant opportunities. Also helpful to the nonacademic grantseeker is The Complete Guide to Getting a Grant by Laurie Blum. This book has been around for a while, but the information is still valid.

° Travel? Of course, I have dozens of suggestions for getting paid to travel in my How To Support Your Wanderlust seminar. One of those ways is to organize a tour. Special interest tours work best for the independent organizer.

I met two delightful women from Australia at a restaurant in London who told me about a tour they’d taken to the US to visit quilting museums and workshops. They were on another special interest tour on their UK trip.

If you have a passion you love sharing with other people, find a company that specializes in group travel to help you put the tour together.

Use this Money for Fun exercise to wake up your imagination to new possibilities. The options are endless, but not automatic.

You could challenge yourself to think of five fun activities that you truly enjoy, but normally pay to participate in. Start exploring ways of being paid instead of paying. Coming up with new options will be as good for your imagination as it is for your pocketbook.