Running a sign shop is NOT passive income.
Yes, owning and running a sign shop is NOT Passive income! Some of you might know what I’m talking about and some of you think I have lost my mind… that’s OK, I’ll explain,
Essentially, Passive income describes earnings received on a regular basis with little effort required to maintain the income flow. Yes, there ARE ways that people can make money while no longer actively participating in the product, work or service.
The most common examples are…
- Royalties from a patent
- Royalties from publishing a book
- Royalties from writing a song
- Earnings from rental properties
- Earnings from a Network Marketing business
- Earnings from developing / licensing a business system
- Earnings from a business that does not require direct involvement by the owner (systems and employees ensure the work continues)
- Revenue generated from online advertisers who advertise on your site
So, if a passive income business can generate money even when I’m not participating then what is my sign shop? First and foremost, it is an Active Income business. If I stop making signs then I stop getting paid. For most of us, this is an uncomfortable fact. If I lose my sign business to a natural disaster, a killer lawsuit, or an act of God… then I stop getting paid.
I don’t know about you but I don’t particularly like that idea.
So, we know passive income is good but what is the downside? Why doesn’t everyone have a nice passive income business going?
CONS: The downside is that, like any business model, you have to educate yourself on how to build such a business. This requires a large amount of upfront time, effort, and work to get it going. If you look back at the list of examples, you will realize that every one of these Passive Income examples absolutely demands an upfront cost. If you are prepared to pay the price in time, effort and dedication then you CAN build passive income.
PROS: Now, the upside is a pretty attractive one. Once you have devoted your resources to building one, two or more passive income streams then you should start to see some nice benefits….
- Minimal time/ effort needed to maintain the income stream(s)
- Earn more by progressively doing less
- Freedom to decide your own work schedule and location
- Give yourself a raise anytime by creating another income stream. Once you have learned the skills needed to create such income then you can do it again and again whenever you need to.
- No limit to the wealth you can create with enough ingenuity and creativity.
Personally, I have joined a Network Marketing business called Monavie because I am willing to sacrifice some time, effort and money in order to grow another passive income stream. I hope you will make the effort as well.