The $25K eBay Store I Shut Down (And What It Taught Me About True Freedom)

I want to share something with you that might sound crazy - I once shut down a profitable $25K annual revenue business. On purpose.

Let me explain why, and what it taught me about building real freedom through online courses.

The Business That Almost Worked

A few years back, I was running a hobby eBay store that was doing pretty well. I was only spending 1-2 hours a week on it (sometimes less), and it was consistently profitable with a $25-30k per year turnover. Sounds perfect, right?

But here's the problem - the only way to grow it was to hire staff. And having managed teams in my charity work, I knew I didn't want to go down that path again. I also needed that time to pursue other ventures. So I shut it down.

That experience taught me something crucial: if you want true freedom, you've got to start with scale in mind.

The Three-Part Formula I Discovered

Through multiple business attempts - a software platform, the eBay store, self-published books - I learned that sustainable online business needs three things:

1. Making a meaningful difference to people's lives
2. Doing something you love (passion is non-negotiable)
3. Getting paid well for it (value over volume)

Most people get one or two of these right, but miss the third. That's why so many online ventures fail or burn people out.

Why Online Education Hit the Sweet Spot

After trying various online business models, I finally found my answer in online education programs. Here's why they work so well for busy pastors and leaders like us:

Impact: You're genuinely changing lives through education. My first course was helping people to write and self publish their first book. I've worked with people who'd been trying to write a book for 10 years - seeing them cross the finish line is incredibly rewarding.

Income: High profit margins, minimal ongoing costs, no physical inventory. My first course hit my income goals within three months while working just 4-5 hours per week.

There's also other associated income that links to your online education but is extremely passive - affiliate revenue. The other day I woke up to an affiliate payment of $700. I did nothing for it apart from recommend a piece of software to someone a few months ago.

Freedom: Location independence, flexible schedule, and systems that work 24/7. You can literally run your business from anywhere and have clients from anywhere.

I have clients in New Zealand, New York and just down the road!

The Market Opportunity

Here's what got me really excited: there are 800-900 million English speakers in the developed world who are online. The online education market is currently worth $250 billion and projected to hit $600 billion by 2030.

That's not just growth - that's explosive opportunity.

But Here's the Key Insight

The real breakthrough for me came when I realized that time is your most finite resource. If you tie your income to your time, your earning will always be capped. You've got to unlink the two.

Digital products - especially online education programs - let you create assets that work for you even when you're not working. That's the only way to increase revenue without proportionally increasing work hours.

The Question People Started Asking

Once people saw what I was achieving, they started asking: "How on earth are you doing this? Could you help me take my knowledge and build an online program? How do I do this in my spare time?"

That's when I switched to helping others build online programs rather than simply helping people write and publish their first book.

Real Results from Real People

I recently worked with two busy professionals who were skeptical about whether they could make this work with their demanding schedules. They launched their first online course and earned $13,000 from that initial launch.

(By the way, if you want to see exactly how they did it I've put together a detailed case study showing their step-by-step process, the mistakes they avoided, and the specific strategies that generated those results.

Watch the $13K Course Launch Case Study Here →)

The beauty of their approach is that it's designed for people who already have demanding careers. No need to quit your day job or work 80-hour weeks.

Your Knowledge Has Value

Here's what I've learned after multiple business attempts: your unique perspective and knowledge are more valuable than you think. The key is packaging them in a way that creates genuine transformation for people.

Whether you're considering online programs, real estate, consulting, or any other tentmaking venture, remember these three non-negotiables:

1. Making a meaningful difference to people's lives
2. Doing something you love (passion is non-negotiable)
3. Getting paid well for it (value over volume)

For Chris, he found these three elements in house flipping - helping families transition while building wealth that funds ministry. For me, it was online education. For you, it might be something completely different.

The key is to find YOUR sweet spot where impact, passion, and profit intersect.

The Bottom Line

Your tentmaking calling isn't about choosing the "right" business model. It's about finding the model that's right for YOU - one that leverages your unique gifts, serves people meaningfully, and creates the financial freedom to pursue your ministry calling without compromise. Whether it's education, real estate, consulting, or something else entirely, the principles remain the same. Find your intersection of impact, passion, and profit, then build from there.

Whatever path you choose, make sure it hits all three elements. That's where sustainable tentmaking success lives.

Grace and peace,
Simon