Yes, I was broke. Like, sharing-a-Netflix-account-and-eating-noodle-cups broke.
But I still managed to pull in $500 every single week, without clocking into a job or chasing clients.
How?
Passive income.
But not the Instagram-influencer, crypto-millionaire, need-$10K-to-start kind.
I’m talking real, accessible ways to build passive income when you don’t have much money to begin with.
If you’re trying to earn more without working yourself into the ground, keep reading. I’m laying out the exact steps I took.
First, Let’s Get One Thing Straight: Passive Doesn’t Mean Instant
When people hear “passive income,” they assume it’s money that just magically appears.
It’s not. There’s always some kind of investment, time, effort, money, or all three.
But once it’s built? The income keeps coming even when life gets chaotic. That’s what happened to me.
Step 1: I Turned My Skills Into a Digital Product ($200/week)
At the time, I wasn’t making much, but I had one thing going for me: I could write.
So I created a short digital guide on how to write freelance pitches and listed it on Gumroad. Price? Just $9.
I promoted it through Reddit, Twitter, and Facebook groups where beginners asked for help.
Within a few weeks, it started bringing in $25–$50 a day.
No shipping. No customer service. Just a downloadable file making me money while I slept.
Tools I used:
- Google Docs (to create the guide)
- Canva (to make it look good)
- Gumroad (to sell and host it)
If you have a skill, design, budgeting, workouts, meal prep, or language learning, turn it into something digital.
You create it once, and it sells forever.
Step 2: I Rented Out My Stuff on Fat Llama ($100/week)
When you’re broke, selling things isn’t the only option. You can rent them.
I had a camera collecting dust, so I listed it on Fat Llama (a peer-to-peer rental platform).
Photographers, event organizers, and even students started renting it for $25–$30 a day.
I made over $400 my first month, just from that one camera.
Eventually, I added a tripod, a ring light, and an old GoPro.
I didn’t buy anything new, I just monetized what I already owned.
Other ideas to rent out:
- Camping gear
- Power tools
- Bikes
- Drones
- Game consoles
You’d be surprised what people are willing to pay for temporarily.
Step 3: I Joined Affiliate Programs and Promoted What I Use ($100/week)
Even before I had a big following, I started sharing links to products I genuinely used and liked, books, apps, tools.
I created short blog posts and social media content around them, using affiliate links from Amazon, Canva, Bluehost, and even smaller brands.
Every time someone clicked and bought, I earned a commission.
I didn’t go viral. I didn’t need to.
All it took was:
- Writing helpful content (like “The Budgeting App That Helped Me Save $1,000”)
- Sharing it in Facebook groups, Reddit, or Pinterest
- Letting the links do the work
Once those posts were out there, they kept working for me in the background.
Step 4: I Uploaded Stock Photos I Took with My Phone ($50/week)
I’m no photographer. But I had a phone with a decent camera and access to natural light.
So I started uploading random, aesthetic, everyday photos to stock sites like:
- Pexels
- Adobe Stock
- Shutterstock
- EyeEm
You only need to do the hard work once. Every time someone downloads or licenses your photo, you get paid.
One shot of my coffee cup earned me $110 over 3 months.
Passive income at its finest.
Step 5: I Made YouTube Videos Without Showing My Face ($50/week)
I wasn’t trying to be famous, I just wanted extra money.
So I made simple slideshow-style videos explaining topics like:
- How to start freelancing
- What’s a credit score and how to fix it
- How to save money on a low income
I used free tools like Canva and CapCut, and uploaded to YouTube with monetization turned on.
The channel grew slowly, but even a few hundred views a day was enough to start earning.
Now, the videos are still up. Still getting views. Still making money.
The Weekly Breakdown
Here’s how it averaged out once everything was running:
| Income Source | Weekly Income |
|---|---|
| Digital Product Sales | $200 |
| Renting Out Equipment | $100 |
| Affiliate Commissions | $100 |
| Stock Photo Downloads | $50 |
| YouTube Channel | $50 |
| Total Weekly | $500 |
Final Thoughts: Passive Income Is Built, Not Bought
You don’t need a million dollars to start earning passively.
You just need to look around and ask:
- What do I already know?
- What do I already own?
- What am I already using?
- How can I package or promote that?
This isn’t a get-rich-quick story. It’s a get-paid-consistently strategy.
Start with one stream, build it up, and layer in others over time.
You’ll be surprised how much money is out there, just waiting for you to tap into it.