I proved a profit, so is it time to commit to that business?

[Mada_]

I know I want to be an entrepreneur. But I also really want to find that creative, artistic work that fills my soul (being a youtuber, a music composer), and reselling items for profit on eBay is not that work. 

But, I resold a DVD, and I made more than 100% profit. Today I sold an old book that was lying around for $30. I have proven that there is potential to make money doing reselling, and if I actually put time and money into it, I could create income on my own schedule, not answering to a boss. 

My question is, is this a wise route to put time and money into, or would it be more worth my time to just go straight for my more creative ideas e.g. Start a Youtube channel, a personal development vlog etc. 

@Average Investor I understand you make a living from reselling, I'd love to hear your take. 

[7thLetter]

Why not? You could always focus on the Youtube stuff later on.

Make a living first, then focus on what you're most passionate about. It would be just like how most entrepreneurs start with a job first to build up some capital in order to invest in a business or other investments. I'm sure 95% of self-made millionaires started with some type of job in the very beginning. That job may or may not have been their passion, but it was a learning experience for them and it was a source of income. I'm sure you'll learn a lot through experience when re-selling. Sure it might not be a learning experience that is directly related to your passion with Youtube, but you could learn things about financial independence, entrepreneurship, money management, etc. which could be important to know about when you start your path on Youtube, and start earning some income from there.

Just don't dabble into too many things. In general, as someone who wants to achieve success, there's just so many enticing lucrative business ideas out there on the internet that people try to sell us on. Don't get sucked into the marketing, and just focus on 1 or 2 things within' a 5-10 year time period.

[Average Investor]

I mean it really depends where you are at. I have been slowly building my reselling business on the side for years without realizing it. For me reselling is a no brainier compared to a job. I already have all of the systems in place and I have a ton of inventory. My memory about items is fantastic compared to most people who are reselling it seems like. I will remember little things I had seen online about an item even over a year ago and it will get me a good profit.

The pandemic has made all of my items worth more and I don't have to leave the house. I was actually working on youtube and this as the same time, which was a bit of a mistake. However, I made a ton of growth doing that when it comes to my speaking skills and getting more of a taste for what I want. Problem is I have not really invested enough full time into reselling for it to make enough money with little effort. Although, it is starting to get there for me. 

If I could trade it for having something more fulfilling I would. It's fun to run this business and it is profitable. I love having my own schedule and it has really advanced my development. My goal is to make it mostly automatic, have a good amount of savings, then I am going to deeply pursue a life purpose. 

It probably sounds really nice to be doing it. There are a lot of aspects of this business that aren't really as cool as it sounds. You'll find it interesting how much hostility is baked into buying and selling stuff. It's directly tied to your survival and the buyer or seller depending on the situation. No matter how nice you are to people. Returns, damaged goods, theft, etc. Not only that it isn't a cake walk to actually make a good profit. Even making a few thousand a month can be a bit of a task. You have to be able to source a lot of inventory. You either need really good inventory or a lot of inventory. A big factor will come into play is where you live. I am an hour a way from a really good city to source in. My own city sucks. 

A lot of the time it is going to take upwards of 2000 items in your ebay store to have a consistent income. I am at 750 and I can hit times with no sales. I have the back log of inventory to hit about 2k and my average item price is pushing towards $50 each, which makes a big difference. I also pay very little for each items. Usually a dollar or two. If you are not able to pay that little it starts adding up. Thousands of investment capital. I have well over $5000 invested in inventory right now that is not listed yet. 

I don't want to come off saying you can't do it. You totally can. I think anyone could become a reselling if they were dedicated. It's a great skill to have. I'll never pay much for items again. I could easily furnish a house with quality stuff for under $100. I also enjoy learning about collectibles and stuff. There is a good amount of satisfaction knowing that my customers are very happy receiving my products. 

It's going to come down to if you really enjoy it or not. Nothing wrong with making a few bucks on the side with it either. It isn't a do or die. If you wanted to escape wage slavery, it is possible. You would need to aim for that 2000 listing mark to make it happen. Or have really hot selling items, or somewhere in the middle of that. 

A more creative business would also produce more money potentially. Reselling really does not have a roof though either. The richest man in the world is a reseller. However, the timing is not as ideal compared to that now, but still plenty of meat on the bone with the amount of online shopping expanding. Also, the pandemic is making stuff sell much better and for more money. 

[Leo Gura]

It's not enough to prove one or two profits. You must prove a consistent and reliable stream of profits every month, for months on end.

[Average Investor]

1 hour ago, Leo Gura said:

It's not enough to prove one or two profits. You must prove a consistent and reliable stream of profits every month, for months on end.

This and you will probably need about 6 months of living expenses build up.