Passive Income Isn’t Easy. But It’s Worth It
Let’s be honest: earning a recurring passive income sounds great. You don’t do any (or much) work, but the money rolls in every month. What’s not to like, right?
But the truth is, earning passive income isn’t as effortless as some people make it sound, and it’s hard work. The reality is that building a reliable passive income stream takes a lot of time, effort, persistence, and a bit of luck. But once you’ve done the hard work, you can reap the rewards.
Here’s a few passive income ideas that are doable though, in my opinion
E-Books
Writing an e-book takes effort up front, but once published on platforms like Amazon Kindle, it can generate continuous income with minimal maintenance. The key is to choose a topic in demand, optimise for keywords, and market your book effectively. And it goes without saying, the book needs to be a good read!
This is a realistic option if you’ve already got a knack for writing, or if writing a book is already something which you have been thinking about.
If you’re interested in learning more, this article from Skillhub provides a good breakdown of how to write an ebook.
Another similar option is to create an audiobook with AI, which I talked about in this blog.
Blogging
Starting a blog requires commitment, but once you build traffic, monetisation opportunities can open up. You can earn through ads, affiliate marketing, sponsored posts, or selling digital products. The key is to consistently create valuable content and optimise for search engines to drive organic traffic to your blog
I know from personal experience that creating successful blog is not easy. It’s going to take a long time, a lot of dedication, and a bit of luck before your blog starts to see any traffic.
My advice is, to make sure you’re blogging about a topic that you’re actually interested in. That way, writing a blog post won’t ever feel like hard work.
Check out this article if this sounds like something that’s up your street.
YouTube Channel
This one is like blogging in a lot of ways. It also has the potential to provide long-term revenue whether it’s through ad monetisation, brand sponsorships, or affiliate marketing.
There’s a couple of different strategies that seem to work well. One is focusing on creating evergreen content such as tutorials, reviews, or educational videos. That way, the content can continue to attract views and generate income for months or even years. Alternatively, you could make videos for topics that you’re interested in, and hope that there are people out there that are also interested in the same thing.
Like with blogging, this one is a long term game. You won’t make money overnight, and creating content requires a lot of effort.
Ad earnings can vary massively, but YouTube videos tend to earn about £10 per 1,000 views, on average.
If you’re interested to know more, this guide on YouTube is a good place to start.
Print on Demand
With platforms like Redbubble, Teespring, and Printful, you can design t-shirts, mugs, and other merchandise without dealing with inventory or shipping. Even if you’re no good at drawing or graphic design, you can use AI free AI tools such as Midjourney to help you create the mock-ups.
Once your designs are uploaded, you earn a commission every time someone makes a purchase, making it a scalable passive income stream.
But…the market is starting to get saturated so it’ll take time and a lot of effort to start seeing any returns. This blog provides a good write up on the current state of the print on demand market in 2025.
So What’s the Truth About Passive Income?
Realistically, making a passive income is possible…BUT…it’s very difficult. Unless you have a massive stroke of luck along the way, each of these ideas will likely take months, if not years, before you start earning a decent amount of money. The key? Pick one, stick with it and stay consistent, and refine your approach over time.
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