Five Reasons You’re Making More than Minimum Wage Selling on TPT, even if you’re not

When they tell you you’re making less than minimum wage selling on Teachers Pay Teachers

When I first began selling on teachers pay teachers my income was not a lot. However, the money that I was making was exciting.

Making money on Teachers Pay Teachers is so much better than a side job, I don’t have office hours, I’m not doing extra wear and tear on the vehicle, or you can work on my family is busy, or I have a little bit of free time that I would otherwise Waze, and the thought of being an entrepreneur is exciting.

Here are 9 Reasons Why Selling on TpT is Better Than a Side Job

However, when I would share this excitement with others, there were always the naysayers who would hear my sales numbers and then ask me how many hours I was putting in every month. They were quick to point out that I was making less than minimum wage.

And while this is true, back then I was making less than minimum wage, this way of evaluating the numbers is very shortsighted, and not the whole story.

Your products live forever

When you go to work, you know exactly how much money you will make. Even if you are in a commission-based job you still have a pretty good idea of what you’re making per hour.

This means that your income is capped by the number of hours you are able to work.

And after you have worked those hours your ability to make income off of those hours is finished.

However, when you create a product and put it for sale on Teachers Pay Teachers, it continues to make money for all of time.

An example

Alison has just started selling on TpT. She spends several hours getting her store setup and creating her first product. By the end of the month, she has three products for sale and makes five dollars.

Alison excitedly share with her husband that she has made her first $5 on Teachers Pay Teachers!

Her husband, knowing that she spent hours this month working for these $5, is not impressed. “Hun, you’re making like $1 an hour,” he says, bursting her bubble and robbing her joy.

While he is right, she has not made much for the time that she has spent, his analysis is very short-sighted. She has done much more than earning $5. She has started a business and laid a foundation for future earnings.

Plus, if she stops, and never spends another minute on her store, those three resources can go on making her more money. What if her store continues to make $5 a month, every month, for the next year? Then her income per hour will be much higher than it would have flopping burgers at the local fast-food joint.

Work when you want

When you go get a side job, minimum wage or better, you sacrifice your time and lose your availability.

Steve worked a second job as a grocery store clerk. Two days a week, after school, he changed in the teacher lounge bathroom, raced to his car, and headed to his second job. Plus he worked 8 hours on the weekend.

Not to mention the time he spent getting ready for work, driving back and forth, lunch breaks, and other time lost due to this second job.

Those 15 hours of work are more like 20 hours of lost free time. And he doesn’t even get to pick his hours!!

Selling products on TpT is a much more efficient use of your time. You pick your hours, you can work in short bursts or long hauls when you have time, and there’s no driving!

I drove into work and had a great idea for a product. So, at a red light, I recorded it in my notes on my phone. I doodled a bit on a sheet of paper at work later that day as my thoughts led me. When I got home, after school, I played with my kids, ate with my family, and tucked them into bed. I worked a few minutes on the computer while the kids got ready for bed, and spent another 30 minutes or so working once everyone was asleep.

The next morning, I had ten minutes to spare before leaving for work, so I added to my product. I continued working this way for a few days until it was finished.

Over the week, Steve and I both put in 3 hours. He probably earned more money this week than me, especially if I’m just getting started. But I didn’t sacrifice any family time, no miles on my car, no racing out of the school parking lot, and no stress!

Plus, my 3 hours of work have the potential to earn money every week for all of time.

No expenses

Working an extra job has expenses. Things like gas mileage, wear and tear on your vehicle, meals, uniforms or work clothes all add up.

Not to mention the cost of not being with your family, or the added stress you put on your body by working so many hours.

Selling on TpT has no extra miles on the car, you can eat from home, and work when you want (in your pajamas!)

Your Income Grows Exponentially, Without a Ceiling

What’s your average raise? Yes, consider what it is as a teacher, but since we’re talking about extra income, think about what it would be at a side business. Maybe a quarter an hour… or a dollar?

What could it be selling on TpT?

The truth is, the sky’s the limit.

Your income on TpT will grow exponentially. Every sale, every follower, every new product you create is an opportunity to generate more and more income. And it just keeps growing!

There’s no limit to the amount of money you can make as a seller. And you are in control of your timeline.

If you want to double your income, you can! Double the number of products in your store, increase traffic, and make sure your products are of good quality.

You can get results that are not possible anywhere else

The TPT Snowball

In my online course on beginning as a TpT Seller, I teach aspiring and beginning TpT sellers about the TpT snowball.

Just as a snowball gets larger and larger as it rolls downhill, so will your TpT income as you create and sell more products.

As you get more traffic looking at more products, eventually you’ll get more sales. Which will turn into good reviews and repeat customers. Your increased income will motivate you to create and market more, and as you do, your skills will increase.

More products, that are of better quality, will again result in more sales and on and on the snowball grows!

Haters Gonna Hate Hate Hate

When the detractors come, don’t let their words stop you from reaching your goals or changing your life. Your time will result in more money – but it won’t happen overnight.

It’s a process. Trust the process.

Keep creating, keep promoting, keep hustling, and soon… you’ll move mountains!

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