You can literally make money collecting coins with just the coins in your pocket and the dollars in your wallet. You can change regular money you have into coins that people will be willing to pay a premium for.

You don't need overpriced seminars or late night infomercials; just a little work and dedication will go an awful long way. But then again, as the risks and financial involvement increase, so do the potential rewards.

Much of this depends on how far you want to take your pursuit of numismatic profits. Do you want to do this as a fun pastime, to make a little extra cash so that you can purchase coins you want to keep? Do you want to do this full time, as a coin dealer? Put yourself through college? All of these questions you need to ask yourself before you venture forth on your path towards numismatic riches.

In the spirit of our coin collecting community, I've devised three different levels of commitment, Copper, Silver, and Gold, with Gold being the highest tier. I think Dr. William Sheldon would be rolling over in his grave at my delegation of Copper! (The former sentence is what is known as a "Numismatic Joke", completely unfunny to 99.99% of the population. Google him!)

These 3 levels correspond with one's budget, coin collecting (numismatic) knowledge, and ambition. I wrote this with the thought that a ten year old could do Copper level, twenty year old Silver level, and thirty year old Gold level. Completely arbitrary, of course, just a reflection of one's general life trajectory.