I mainly use this blog as a study for my own goal of becoming financially independent. Hopefully, my progression towards that goal will inspire others to go on the journey with me, so we can achieve financial freedom together. In this blog post, we will have a look at how we can make a successful online business.
We will have a look at the story of a successful online business started from scratch and what we can learn in our pursuit of financial freedom.
The Story of “Pat Flynn and Smart Passive Income” – From Laid Off to Leading the Passive Income Movement
How It Started
In 2008, Pat Flynn was an architect studying for the LEED certification exam (a green building certification). In the meantime, he created a blog to document his study notes. Unexpectedly, the blog attracted a growing number of readers who were also preparing for the same exam.
Then came a life-changing moment: Pat was laid off from his architecture job.
With no backup plan, he looked at his blog and wondered — Could this become a business?
He compiled his notes into an eBook and sold it for $19.95. In his first month, he made $7,008 — more than he earned at his job.
The Birth of Smart Passive Income
Thrilled and shocked, Pat started a new blog: Smart Passive Income. His mission was to openly share everything he learned about making a successful online business — successes, failures, income reports, tools, and strategies.
He became known for radical transparency. Every month, he published detailed income reports, showing exactly how much he made and from where — whether affiliate links, courses, ads, or books.
The Ups and Downs
Ups:
– Created a loyal following by being honest, humble, and generous with information.
– Diversified his income: affiliate marketing, podcasting, books, courses, YouTube, speaking.
– Became one of the most trusted voices in the online income space.
Downs:
– Early doubts and impostor syndrome — he wasn’t a tech expert or marketing guru.
– Personal challenges include balancing family, work, and being constantly online.
– Copycats and scams using his brand name.
Where Pat Flynn Stands Now
Pat’s business now generates multiple seven figures annually. He runs Smart Passive Income, a top-ranked podcast, SPI Pro (a paid community), and a series of courses and tools for creators and entrepreneurs. He remains fully transparent about his business, which has inspired countless people to launch their own.
Key takeaways:
- Make a business from something valuable to yourself, because it will most likely be of value for somebody else: Pat Flynn started his blog for himself as a study for his exam, and it turned out that there were a lot of other people studying for the same exam so he got a lot of readers. So start a business for something valuable to yourself, and others might follow. For example, I started this blog for the same reason. My exam will be passed when I am financially independent, and I’m sure others want the same thing.
- Be open and transparent with your customers (followers): The second blog he started, he was radically transparent. He showed everything about his business. How much he earned, from where, etc. It created trust in his followers, and that created a more loyal fan base.
- Diversify your income: Pat didn’t rely on one source of income. He created multiple streams of revenue because he knew it wasn’t smart to rely on one source. He earned from affiliate marketing, podcasting, books, courses, YouTube, and speaking.
Thank you so much for tuning in to this post! I hope you enjoyed it and that you learned something useful for your pursuit of financial independence. I would love to hear your feedback! Share your thoughts in the comments, and share this post if you think someone else would benefit from reading this.
Be sure to check out my previous post about one of the richest countries in the world that went totally broke in a few decades: https://freedomwithmarkus.com/how-a-country-sitting-on-trillions-went-broke/
Here is a link to Pat Flynn’s YouTube channel, if you want to learn more from him: https://www.youtube.com/@patflynn/videos
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