My blog posts about eBay avoid the "how to get rich quick on eBay" gambit. For one thing, I don't know how to do that. For another, I don't believe anyone else really knows either. Maybe selling ebooks about how to get rich quick on eBay is a way to get rich quick. Some people make a very good living on eBay and there have been wild success stories, but for the majority of people, it doesn't rise above the level of hobby.

            What got me thinking about it was Daughter #2. She has finally figured out that education is in her best interest, so she visited the local community college. They gave her an aptitude test. For the record, I'm not a big believer in standardized aptitude tests. If I did, I'd be working in a discount tire store right now. Yeah, right, like I work well with others. What I did find interesting was how this particular test based the answers on Interest, Values and Education. While the possible career paths the test generated for D#2 made both of us laugh, those three criteria made sense by themselves. For selling on eBay, I would also add Nerves and Resources.

I have no intention of muddying the waters with yet another aptitude test (What? According to the results I'm supposed to sell bullhorns and baby clothes?!?), but I do have some opinions.

• Interests. Passion makes it the easier to market your product. Enthusiasm is infectious. It's human nature to want what others want. If you're interested in something, chances are others are interested in it, too. Whatever it is-collectibles, clothing, electronics, tools, art, etc.-make sure you believe in it. If you aren't convinced it's a good product, nobody else will be convinced. The more you care about what you sell, the more pride you'll take in your customer service and the quality of your products.

True Story: Over on the eBay blogs a woman posted an essay about bird watching. The more I read, the more I liked. I checked her listings. Gorgeous watercolor prints. I put in my high bid for one of her prints. I told a whole bunch of people, "You have to see this woman's paintings." I even checked out her website. This sellers cares deeply about her art and animals, and because she does, I feel perfectly safe doing business with her. I want her to succeed. I'm willing to put my money where my mouth is to own one of her paintings.

• Values. I believe the three most valuable values are Honesty, Work Ethic, and Follow Through.

True Story: I purchased a large jewelry lot. I paid instantly. I waited. And waited. I emailed the seller to ask her where my jewelry was. She fired back a long email about how her son was in the hospital, which was the only reason she was selling anything at all, and she'd get around to sending my stuff when she had the time. When I finally got my jewelry, it had been crammed into a too small box with no packaging material. Beautiful jools were broken and damaged. When I complained, she accused me of trying to get something for nothing. No honesty, work ethic or follow through there. By the way, she's no longer a registered user.

• Education. You don't need a college degree to sell on eBay. You do need to be willing to learn the ropes. Take the time to learn how to put up a good listing, figure out the ins and outs of proper shipping and handling, and how to deal with buyers.

True Story: A seller told a tale of woe about how she'd opened an eBay store, listed a whole bunch of stuff, and hadn't made a single sale in over a month. All she'd been doing was paying fees. So I peeked at her store. Her titles consisted of single words, such as "Shirt." Her photos were fuzzy. She'd managed to learn all the threats about "better pay up or I'll kill you" and put them in her listings, but she hadn't taken the time to learn how to write titles, listings, or how the eBay search engine works to draw in buyers.

• Nerve. What's your risk level? How willing are you to take a loss on an item? How willing are you to risk dealing with cranky, dissatisfied buyers? Any business venture has upsides and downsides. If you're too tender to take risks, maybe you shouldn't sell on eBay.

True Story: I purchased a huge lot of jewelry at an auction. I'm normally quite conservative and big numbers make me nervous. The old man urged me on, "You're a good seller, you can make a profit." Terrified, I took the plunge and basically cleaned out my entire buying budget. Turns out, even after fees, I made over four times my investment. It earned me Power Seller status on eBay, too. I had to really steel my nerves on that one, but it paid off. 

• Resources. If you intend to jump from hobbyist to businessperson, you need inventory and you have to pay your fees. You need space to work and time to devote. The best advice I can give anybody is to be realistic. Don't spend money you don't have and don't make promises you can't keep. If you decide to deal with wholesalers or drop-shippers, make sure you do your research, read all the fine print, and understand exactly what it is you're getting into. Information is a resource, too. Always consider the source.

True Story: Back when the Wii came out, people were listing "pre-sales" on eBay. They intended to stand in line, buy as many units as they could, and make a profit off people unwilling or unable to stand in line. It sounded like a good idea, but the sales were contingent on the sellers being able to get the units they'd promised. I saw horror story after horror story about transactions gone terribly wrong because it turned out those sellers could not get the Wii's. They didn't have the resources they hoped they had.

            Sorry I don't have advice about getting rich quick on eBay, but it's still a lot more fun than changing tires.