I believe in providing hard, concrete evidence to support claims. If you are reading this page, you are either 1) looking for real proof that it is possible to build a successful online business, or 2) you already believe it and are seeking inspiration. You’ll find both here. And I’m not talking about those scammy ads we’ve all seen online with some stay at home mom or unemployed student claiming to make a bazillion dollars an hour, no I’m talking real numbers and real people.
I have arranged the list in order of increasing income; if you are in a hurry, jump to #1 for my personal favourite.
Website: my4hrworkweek.com
Who: Eric is a part time blogger who works full time as a CPA (tax accountant) in Chicago.
Niche/topic: Time and money management
Income report:
- Month: November 2014
- Total income: $436.36
Website: dumbpassiveincome.com
Who: Matthew Allen is a part time internet marketer in Michigan who still has his day job, and you won’t believe what he does…he’s a truck driver, and he loves it!
Niche/topic: Passive income online
Income report:
- Month: March 2015
- Total income: $1,538.56
Website: viralblogtips.com
Who: Bishal Biswas is an entrepreneur, writer and blogger based in India. (when I read his bio I nearly fell off my chair after seeing his age…he’ll be 13 this year, 2015!!!)
Niche/topic: Internet marketing
Income report:
- Month: March 2015
- Total income: $3,386.00
Website: acoupletravelers.com and avocadopesto.com
Who: Dave and Vicky, a couple who decided to take a two-year travelling trip through Asia and Europe and blog about the experience.
Niche/topic: Travel and food respectively
Income report:
- Month: December 2013
- Total income: $9,610.00
Website: matthewwoodward.co.uk
Who: Matthew Woodward is a British blogger who helps people gain traffic and increase sales on their website.
Niche/topic: Internet Marketing
Income report:
- Month: March 2015
- Total income: $12,215.22
Website: Shoutmeloud.com
Who: Harsh Agrawal is an engineer turned professional blogger who lives in India and has built a very popular blog.
Niche/topic: Internet Marketing
Income report:
- Month: March 2015
- Total income: $15,313.41
Website: byregina.com
Who: Regina writes a marketing blog for bloggers and creative entrepreneurs.
Niche/topic: Internet Marketing
Income report:
- Month: January 2015
- Total income: $16,382.91
Website: moms-make-money.com
Who: Deby is a mommy blogger who shares her internet marketing secrets with her readers.
Niche/topic: Internet Marketing
Income report:
- Month: January 2015
- Total income: $18,376.70
Website: pinchofyum.com
Who: Lindsay and Bjork are a husband and wife team that write and post photographs of yummy food. Lindsay was an elementary school teacher while doing part time blogging at night but made the switch to full time blogging in June 2014. The freedom of an online business allowed them to spend a year in the Philippines, living and teaching at an orphanage.
Niche/topic: Food
Income report:
- Month: March 2015
- Total income: $25,364.51
And finally, #1 and my personal favourite….
Website: smartpassiveincome.com
Who: Pat Flynn is a regular guy living in Southern California who makes a living on the internet. He got started on the journey of online business after getting laid off as an architect in 2008 when the economy imploded.
Niche/topic: Online passive income
Income report:
- Month: March 2015
- Total income: $153,397.47
No, that isn’t a typo. He really did make $153,397.47 in one single month. Pat Flynn is an outlier and his results are definitely not typical however it goes to show that technically it is possible to make such unbelievable amount of income online.
How I first heard of Pat Flynn and Smart Passive Income
After reading Rich Dad Poor Dad (resources page) in 2010, my mindset shifted and I began searching for information on various new ideas. Since I was spending about 45 minutes each way on the TTC for my commute, I decided to load up my iPod mini with business and entrepreneurship podcasts to listen to. When I searched iTunes for business, The Smart Passive Income Podcast with Pat Flynn was either right at the top or very near it. That’s how I first started following Pat and was very impressed with his transparency and authenticity.
Summary
I hope I have done a good job providing proof that it is possible to earn an income online. You can visit each site and see their individual income reports with the exact breakdown. You can see that these are regular people, not the expected suit and tie business people we think of when those high incomes are mentioned. This is a very small subset of the internet entrepreneurs who are online today and yet you can see the diversity amongst them.
Here is a summary of the people on the list and some characteristics:
- 2 women
- 2 people in India
- 1 person in the UK
- 2 couples
- 2 part time bloggers
- 1 person as young as 12
- 1 used to be a teacher
- 1 used to be an engineer
- 1 was laid off as an architect
- 1 couple has the freedom to take a 2 year vacation
- 1 couple had the freedom to spend a year in the Philippines and teach in an orphanage
Just based on these 10 examples, can you relate to any of these stories or do you share something in common with any of the people? Let me know in the comments section.
