28 April 2016

My Empire

I imported this article from my blog, Stories of an Unschooling Family: The Raw Files. When I created this blog, I had big hopes of using it as a behind-the-scenes blog, a place where I could jot down my raw thoughts, somewhere where I could post things that didn’t quite belong on my main blog. It was a good idea which didn’t work because of lack of time. So I’ve closed the Raw Files blog and imported the posts into this one.


I seem to be building a Stories of an Unschooling Family empire. Is empire the right word? Do you ever use words and then wonder if you’ve got the meaning exactly right? If I’m not sure, I change the word. I choose a safer one. A less interesting one.

Anyway, I have a Stories of an Unschooling Family video department and a podcast one too. Then there’s the photography department and one where you’ll find all my resources. There’s the Facebook department where people meet and chat and share. I mustn’t forget the newsletter department. And now I have a workshop department, a behind-the-scenes place for generating ideas. Lots of departments. Perhaps, instead of an empire, I’m putting together a department store. But if I am, I need a finance department.

Wouldn’t it be good to have a finance department? To make some money while blogging? Not that I mind telling the unschooling story for free. But sometimes money is useful. I could use it to pay for podcast host subscription fees and blog templates and video software and other equipment. I could buy coffee for me and my husband to make up for all those times I say, “Just a minute… I won’t be long… I just want to finish this blog post.”

I’ve been reading about making money from blogs. There are some podcasts on this topic too. I’m tuning into and reading Smart Passive Income and ProBlogger. A few days ago, I staggered home from the library with a huge stack of books some of which are on the topic of creating an online source of income.

My daughter Sophie would also like to earn some money online. She’s created a photography blog called The Techno Maid Photography. It has a store. At the moment, she only has a few photos to sell. But that will change.

No one would buy my photos. I’m getting better at photography, but I’m still far from professional. So I can’t sell photos. So what do I have to offer? Well, I have my children’s novel, The Angels of Abbey Creek. I’ve sold a few copies of that, and readers have said they enjoyed it very much. But I’m not very good at promoting my book. It sits in my sidebar unnoticed. Passive income? A bit too passive, I think.

But how about an unschooling book? I’ve been thinking about writing one forever. Perhaps I should stop thinking and start doing. Have you ever noticed how thinking is so much easier than doing? It’s easy to say, “I’m thinking about writing a book,” and everyone says great things like, “What a wonderful idea!” That’s happened to me. I collect all the enthusiastic responses but go no further. I need to move onto the next stage: I need to get down to the hard work of writing. But if I did make a bit more effort and write the book, I might end up with a finance department in my store… or empire.

Empire… I’m going to look up the definition of that word. I’ll be right back.

Empire: an extensive sphere of activity controlled by one person or group

How extensive is extensive?

Extensive: covering or affecting a large area

I have friends in all parts of the world. The world is a large area.

And I’m only one person.

I guess I have an empire.

Now I just need some money. 

Is it wrong to think in terms of money? What do you think? Would you like to earn a bit of passive income?

Image: We could buy a few more coffees and milkshakes if I earned a little bit of passive income.


Sue Elvis

I'm an Australian blogger, podcaster, and Youtuber. I write and speak about unschooling, parenting and family life. I'm also the author of the unschooling books 'Curious Unschoolers', 'Radical Unschool Love' and ‘The Unschool Challenge’. You'll find them on Amazon!

10 Comments

  1. Oh course it's not wrong! You produce so much material, why shouldn't you gain a little in return? And I love the idea of an unschooling book. You could include lots of stories from your blog, which you've already written. I often think about ways I could earn a little money online, or near my house, but I haven't figured out the perfect idea yet. (if you're wondering why I deleted the above comment, it's because it was full of autocorrected mistakes and I didn't know how to edit it).

    • Larkin,

      Yes, I do have a lot of material I could include in a book, don't I? I just need to make a start. I could take a look at my posts, choose suitable ones and then add additional information. I think my real problem is time. I'm so busy trying to keep up with my blogs and podcasts and all the associated comments, emails etc I never seem to have time left over for the book idea. Perhaps I should make it a priority.

      Perhaps your unschooling book will lead to a source of income for you. I like the idea you shared with me very much. Keep thinking about it!

      I 'tidied up' the comments by deleting the extra one. I totally understand about autocorrected mistakes!

  2. I certainly don't blame you for trying to make an extra income, after all you write extensively on unschooling, sharing strewing lists and reources along the way. You have found your niche market! Sadly as you well know, I am meant to be providing an income for my family and I cannot seem to progress with anything 🙁 I really admire you for having the enthusiasm to add an extra behind the scenes blog to your busy schedule. San xx

    • San,

      It would be good to earn a little money doing what I enjoy, though I wouldn't want that to be the main reason I blog and podcast about unschooling. Frienships and supporting each other is more important.

      Dear San, you have so many things distracting you from your goal of earning an income. Your own needs and those of your family must keep you very busy. Progress with your business may be slow, but you are certainly not behind when it comes to loving and caring for your family. Perhaps you find it frustrating when your creative projects come to a standstill especially if you'd really love to work on them. I hope the right time for your business does eventually arrive for you.

      Yes, perhaps this blog will result in more work for me, but I wonder if it's what I need to do to put a spark back into my writing and blogging. We shall see!

      Sending love to you and your family. xxx

  3. I've also thought about how that works. You see so many people making a little extra money doing blogging that it seems such a natural extension for your work and research. Of course, I'd have to get a little more serious about consistency in my blog. Yours however is beautiful and chockfull of ideas and tidbits and life changing information that I don't think it'd be bad at all if you got some extra cash for coffee! (Hopefully a little more!)

    • Sara,

      It's lovely to see you here on my new blog! I think you're right about consistency. I have to get more serious about that too. I post my podcasts regularly, but my blog posts are all over the place. From what I hear, bloggers need to make a plan and do things in an organised way. Lots for me to work on!

      Oh, wouldn't it be lovely to earn a little money from our efforts? Perhaps your novel will lead to some income.

      Thank you for your kind words and for stopping by!

  4. Maybe you could consider adding a "help support my efforts of sharing about unschooling" donation button. I think there are people who respond to such requests, especially after seeing all of the selfless effort that's put into something that helps them. This is in addition to your book that you should definitely write 🙂

    • Momof4,

      A donation button is a great idea. Thank you! I appreciate your encouraging words. I will make a start on the book!

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