Now that you’ve overcome the fear of writing and publishing—and have begun gathering audiences or fandom even—it’s easy to think that you “have the world on your plate” and that you can do no wrong.

This isn’t true, and many self-published authors made mistakes in the past that cost them a perfectly fine career. In this article, you’ll learn what to do and not do when generating passive income.

What to Do to Generate Passive Income With Self-Publishing

Find Your Authority

Write, publish, and talk about those topics you are experienced or educated in. Don’t try to lecture people on the stock market after reading a couple of e-books; instead, focus on the areas and topics where you can contribute with your unique insight.

Be Honest

Don’t use exaggerations like “best” and “ultimate” to describe your knowledge and tips. Instead, be open about your level of certainty in the things you’re saying. You can most likely give educated opinions and evaluations on certain topics, but remain humble and open to the possibility that you’re wrong.

Embrace Criticism

No matter how hard you try to please all of your readers, there will always be those who are unhappy with your work. Some won’t like the language you’re using, and others will find ways to misinterpret your words and accuse you of saying things you didn’t mean to say.

Never get defensive. Instead, acknowledge criticism and choose to take in only those pieces of feedback you think are correct.

What Not to Do When Generating Extra Income

Tell People You’re Making Money When You’re Not

Don’t claim that doing certain things is profitable if you haven’t experienced it firsthand. That said, you can use different wording and simply say that you heard about certain strategies to make profit, or you read research which showed that doing some things is beneficial. You’ll still share the information you intended, and you won’t be deceiving your audience when making passive income.

Promote Shady Products and Services

Be careful who you associate with. Whenever you’re approached with a promotion or an affiliation offer, first do due diligence on the company to make sure they haven’t been accused of scam or false advertising. While companies can make mistakes in doing business, the two mentioned actually drag you down with them, and it will be hard to recover your reputation from such a negative association.

Mislead Your Audience

Be aware of what your words make readers think. The audience will think of you as manipulative if you try to leave a false impression—even if you didn’t make any outrageous claims. Remember to stay ethical and open with your readers to maintain a good reputation in the long term.

Conclusion

Make sure to be careful with your words, cautious with affiliation, and honest with your audience. Online presence and reputation are hard to build but easy to destroy, so don’t take that risk!