My road to success (Moving Update 2) 8 8

[jcjames]

I have to say, this is truly becoming the most valuable thread I have ever read on any discussion forum.

 

The sheer volume of concentrated wisdom, advice, experience and good will shown to you by all these wonderful boardies who collectively have HUNDREDS of years of experience in the business/hobby truly is "priceless".

 

Mr. Uchiha101, I admire your willingness to share your learning experiences/bumps/mistakes here - you are laying it all out in the open and that's actually a good thing for you because you are getting SO much sage advice in return.

 

Now please, step back and TAKE this outpouring of wisdom and advice and follow their suggestions.

 

Start small.

 

I'm a nobody on this board who, like you, is just starting to LEARN about dealing in this hobby. But I CAN see incredible advice and experience here and I truly hope you can too.

 

Slow down, step away from the "big deals" and start small, and learn by experience without having to lose hundreds or thousands of dollars at a time on this learning curve.

 

Like I said, I'm just a guppy in this huge ocean-size discussion board, but the advice you've gotten here (especially the part below) has pretty much been what I've been doing for the past six months, and I'm pretty pleased with my "baby-steps" so far. My weekly ritual is to go digging for dollar-bin nuggets EVERYWHERE that sells comics and make about $5-10 per sale profit. But I LOVE doing it. It's not bringing in boatloads of cash every month, maybe a hundred or two a month, but it is FUN to me.

 

And that's a major point here - it doesn't seem like you're ENJOYING what you're doing, you're working hard, losing money (or not making much) and becoming frustrated.

 

I can't offer you a lick's worth of advice to compare with what you've already gotten other than to say - I really hope you find your niche so that you can ENJOY doing this.

 

Good luck son, and I hope you find your passion.

 

 

I have a feeling that my advice will likely be disregarded just as everyone else's has, but I'll give it a stab.

 

One of the reasons that getting a "regular" job is so important is that it gives you a stable foundation to work from. That includes a budget for discretionary spending - which would include a hobby.

 

When others here suggest that you start with comics as a hobby, they're not suggesting that you go out and pay full market value for high-grade keys and hot books.

 

There's 3 ways to pursue comics as a hobby:

 

1. Pay FMV by buying from comic retailers or bidding aggressively at auctions.

 

2. Get for a significant percentage off FMV (a "deal") by scouring yard sales, swap meets, used books stores, classified ads, local comic shop back-issue bins where they may have overlooked something, etc.

 

3. Doing a combination of the two.

 

Most collectors will do both, but will resort to #1 when there's a book they want and aren't particularly concerned about resale potential.

 

 

I think when others suggest that you pursue comics as a hobby, I think they have in mind that you stick almost exclusively to option #2.

 

Option #2 will really benefit you because it will help you develop the leg-work skills and connections to source material with big enough margins that you can make a profit when you sell. And I'm not talking about finding some hidden specu-key. I talking about finding books 50 cents - $2.00 that you know you can sell for $5-$10, maybe more. Doesn't sound like a lot of money but it's a healthy profit margin and doing it over multiple books will add up. And that means it will force you to become more knowledgeable about what the true market is for a broad spectrum of comics is, not just the flash-in-the-pan hot stuff.

 

By pursuing a collection this way you'll also have far less money tied up in your collection. So if you ever loose interest or it seems that selling comics as a business won't come to fruition you can sell your collection and at the very least make back what you made plus nice little profit. Or hold on to the books and be comfortable knowing that you're not out much in terms of money.

 

Option #2 requires a lot more of your time, energy and some gas money for driving around but the reward is that you'll put together a collection for less money than retail and develop the skills necessary should you decide to shift into selling later.

 

Starting by collecting using option #2 will do something else that's very important: it will help create passion for the hobby, and that's so vital for success.

 

Another member here - I think it was mintcollector - spoke one time about how he bought and flipped antique glass for profit. He said that you could go out and buy a book on antique glass values and identification, and then hit yard sales and antique stores looking for pieces to flip. But the only way you could be truly successful at it is if you develop a passion for the antique glass itself. And I think that's true of anything collectible, especially comics.

 

Right now it seems like you're chasing every shiny new thing that somebody else thinks is "hot" because there's a movie coming out or some development deal has been gossiped about. It seems like the only thing you have a passion for is having the bragging rights to flipping some whale book for thousands of dollars and looking like a B.S.D. dealer who's made phat stacks off a comic. That's not the kind of passion that's going to lead to long term success.

 

Forget that stuff. Start with the collecting rule of thumb using option #2: collect what you like.

 

There's all kinds of things you can sell for profit. So why are you focused on comics? What is it about comics that attracts you to them? What characters do you like? What stories mean something? Which writers and artists work do you esteem?

 

When you answer those questions (and have a stable job that gives you disposable income) than use option #2 to start pursuing those books. Sure, keep on eye out for books that you think others might be interested in down the road, but make sure you're picking up books you personally enjoy. That keeps your passion up which in turn gives you the motivation to learn and stay up on the market.

 

 

I understand that you really want to be you're own boss now, but you've really got to stop fighting your dad about getting one.

 

As mentioned, having a day job will give you the financial foundation to pursue comics as a hobby, which in turn will give you the skills and passion to later pursue comics as a business.

 

But getting a regular job will do something else: it's going to force to cultivate patience and discipline. Those qualities are absolutely necessary for running a successful business. Anyone here who's run a business will tell you that it often require sacrifice - giving up something that may be important to you in the short term for something that's more important to you in the long term.

 

And when you work a 9-5, 5-day-a-week job that's where your hobby comes in: Friday night you get off work, sit down and start planning on what yard sales and swap meets you're going to hit on Saturday and Sunday, maybe hit the back issue bins at a LCS, follow up on a couple classifieds. If you truly enjoy comics as a hobby, that's how you recharge your batteries for the next work week.

 

That doesn't mean buying collections of multiple long-boxes of 90's drek, or buying expensive key books. Just a few books every weekend that you enjoy and that you know you're getting for well below market value.

 

Slow and steady.

 

[Plantman]

Did you watch the Toronto Blue Jays in the ALDS, Gabe? If you did, you know Jose Bautista, Edwin Encarnacion, and Chris Colabello shined as the heart of their batting order. Each of those guys was written off at some point (or in Colabello's case, never heard of) by the majority of the baseball cognescenti. They could not show off their home run hitting power because they had holes in the rest of their game.

 

You know you can hit homers, but the rest of your game is lacking, just like it was for those guys!

 

So work your way up from the minors like they did. Step up your small ball game, just like jcjames said above me and others said above him. Dig through those dollar boxes, learn from the awesome people here giving you advice, and start laying down bunts on eBay or singles on this board. And if you happen to find a full run of New Mutants (Vol. 1) for cheap at a yard sale? Congrats, you hit a minor league homer.

 

Now go out there and find some copies of New Mutants #26 for a dollar each. Same goes for Marvel Comics Presents #19 or X-Factor #15 or anything else that should sell for $5 US or more on eBay. I know these comics are plentiful in the wild in Ontario. But you have an advantage over some people, because you can use your grading skills to avoid mid-to-lower-grade copies, and they do not know how to grade. Then put them on eBay, sell them, and build your reputation, and, perhaps more importantly, your confidence!

[mysterio]

Did you trade for it in person or was it more of an online trade like say, Facebook?

 

The ASM #129 was easily a $1000 USD in your pocket (going by GPA)...Last sale was $1600...Why bother to trade it at all? If movie hype is your thing, the Punisher is coming to Netflix in Daredevil and a always popular book is getting another shot in the arm...

 

If $$$ is important to you and your family, why did you not just sell it instead of dinking around? You could have sold that book and bought yourself a very nice graded Harley with $$$ to spare...

 

What was the reasoning for making such a trade? Do you have GPA?

 

Based on what a graded 9.0 BA #12 goes for, a CGC 9.0 Harley is around $500 - $600 if I'm looking at the right book in GPA...Using just the 90 day averages, you just "gave away" over $600...

 

In previous entries you posted this was a good thing to acquire but I think you should present the full story if the point of this journal is to get advice, at first it was "hey, cool 1st Harley" and now it is kind of

 

Uhmmm...How did the other party "blackmail" you?

 

My plan was to sell it at it's peak to make the most money like you said and this was a deal on facebook not in person. My reason for making that trade was black mail he said if I back out he would post in the facebook groups that I'm a scammer. I do have gpa which is why I wanted to keep and sell the asm 129 for a good profit.

 

The deal went down something like this because I posted that I bought a asm 129 and was excited

 

Him: "hey you have a asm 129 cgc 9.0 right?"

 

Me: "I don't have it yet but I bought one why?"

 

Him "I have a ba12 about a 9.4 raw"

 

Me: "ok show me pics"

 

(he showed me pics and I didn't agree with his grading so I asked if he wanted to do a cash plus trade deal and this was when gpa on the asm 129 was 1075)

 

Him "what do you think?"

 

Me: "I don't agree with your grading because your overgrading and over valuing the comic as it's raw"

 

Him "ok how about this? the ba12 plus 300 cash?"

 

Me: "that's sounds fair when I get it I'll let you know"

 

Him: "cool"

 

(the comic now arrived)

 

Me: "ok I got the comic and since the value of asm 129 went up would you add 100 bucks? because if not I'd like to keep it since it will go up in value"

 

Him: are you backing out of the deal? you said you agreed and now your backing out of it?"

 

Me: "The values of the comics aren't even anymore so if you can add a little more cash we can still do this"

 

Him "No what I gave you is fair all the dealers I went to said this is a 9.4 without a press"

 

Me: I don't want to lose money on this trade"

 

Him: "You won't trust me"

 

Me: "I don't want to do the trade if you won't add some more cash to your part"

 

Him "If you back out of this deal I'm reporting this to all the fb groups that you tried to back out of a deal and scam me"

 

Me: "I didn't scam you and we didn't fully agree on the trade"

 

Him: " I don't care you went against your word and you are trying to scam me now"

 

Me: Fine! I'll do the trade ok?"

 

Him: "good"

 

(keep in mind I asked him to do the extra cash part when then comic's value was at 1225 and I would take a little lower yes but I'd still make a decent profit on it or so I thought)

 

 

Said it before,

 

That bolded line is my mistake? so what should I have said?

 

It's not what you should have said

 

You shouldnt have shipped the book. Period.

 

Even with $100 kicker you were begging for..... there is not enough of a profit margin to make this trade worthwhile

 

With the 100 more I was asking I would have made a profit I'll explain

 

I bought the comic for 950 and I though his ba12 would be worth around 750

 

so that would mean I need to cash at least to make a profit on it and I said I wanted 300 so to me that margin of profit would do well for me since it's a quick sell

 

now to where it was worth 1225

 

his comic is worth around 750+300 cash

 

this is where I said I don't feel I want to trade it but if he put in extra 100 I'd do it and take a bit lower profit on the comic

 

so taking that into consideration it would go like this

 

I paid 950 for the asm 129

his comic is worth 750+400 cash = 1150

 

1150-950=200 profit for me as it would be a quick sell and easy to move it

 

 

Am I reading it right that you and this guy set up a trade:

 

Your ASM 129 for his BA12 + $300.

 

Then, once you got the BA12 (and presumably the $300), you asked him to kick another $100 on top of it?

 

Is that correct?

 

yes that would be correct

 

And you really think that he was in the wrong?

 

You accepted his deal and then wanted him to give you more on top of it?

 

As others have said, I don't think this is your thing. But, if you want to keep on pushing on then, as others have said, you probably would be better served scaling it back to small books until you figure out how this works.

 

In terms of how he forced me into the deal yes he was wrong on that regard and yes I did want more on top of because the value of the comic went up.

 

So in your way of thinking, for instance. If I buy a Hulk #1 from seller A for 2500 dollars, and it goes up in value to 8000 dollars would I owe him money because the value grew? Preposterous!

 

No I only thought that way because he pissed me off and I didn't like how he made me do a deal with him.

 

Until you quit playing the "he forced me into the deal" card, and own up to completing the deal because you made a deal you should honor, it doesn't appear that you've learned anything from the last several pages of discussion.

[uchiha101]

What I meant is that they don't trust the guy selling the comic and as to how they know if he's real? the answer is they don't they only have my word on it which is why I said I want people to send me the comics now and yes you have a point not everyone will believe me but I only need one buyer.

 

You're selling the comic for the owner so doesn't that make you the seller? Why does it seem like you're trying to hold others accountable for your poor decisions? I know you're trying to own up to some of your mistakes, which is a step in the right path, but you keep making blunders along the way.

 

 

That would technically make me the seller but I've had people tell me since I don't own the book I'm not the true seller of it. I don't hold others accountable for my mistakes unless they played a part in it.

[uchiha101]

Did you trade for it in person or was it more of an online trade like say, Facebook?

 

The ASM #129 was easily a $1000 USD in your pocket (going by GPA)...Last sale was $1600...Why bother to trade it at all? If movie hype is your thing, the Punisher is coming to Netflix in Daredevil and a always popular book is getting another shot in the arm...

 

If $$$ is important to you and your family, why did you not just sell it instead of dinking around? You could have sold that book and bought yourself a very nice graded Harley with $$$ to spare...

 

What was the reasoning for making such a trade? Do you have GPA?

 

Based on what a graded 9.0 BA #12 goes for, a CGC 9.0 Harley is around $500 - $600 if I'm looking at the right book in GPA...Using just the 90 day averages, you just "gave away" over $600...

 

In previous entries you posted this was a good thing to acquire but I think you should present the full story if the point of this journal is to get advice, at first it was "hey, cool 1st Harley" and now it is kind of

 

Uhmmm...How did the other party "blackmail" you?

 

My plan was to sell it at it's peak to make the most money like you said and this was a deal on facebook not in person. My reason for making that trade was black mail he said if I back out he would post in the facebook groups that I'm a scammer. I do have gpa which is why I wanted to keep and sell the asm 129 for a good profit.

 

The deal went down something like this because I posted that I bought a asm 129 and was excited

 

Him: "hey you have a asm 129 cgc 9.0 right?"

 

Me: "I don't have it yet but I bought one why?"

 

Him "I have a ba12 about a 9.4 raw"

 

Me: "ok show me pics"

 

(he showed me pics and I didn't agree with his grading so I asked if he wanted to do a cash plus trade deal and this was when gpa on the asm 129 was 1075)

 

Him "what do you think?"

 

Me: "I don't agree with your grading because your overgrading and over valuing the comic as it's raw"

 

Him "ok how about this? the ba12 plus 300 cash?"

 

Me: "that's sounds fair when I get it I'll let you know"

 

Him: "cool"

 

(the comic now arrived)

 

Me: "ok I got the comic and since the value of asm 129 went up would you add 100 bucks? because if not I'd like to keep it since it will go up in value"

 

Him: are you backing out of the deal? you said you agreed and now your backing out of it?"

 

Me: "The values of the comics aren't even anymore so if you can add a little more cash we can still do this"

 

Him "No what I gave you is fair all the dealers I went to said this is a 9.4 without a press"

 

Me: I don't want to lose money on this trade"

 

Him: "You won't trust me"

 

Me: "I don't want to do the trade if you won't add some more cash to your part"

 

Him "If you back out of this deal I'm reporting this to all the fb groups that you tried to back out of a deal and scam me"

 

Me: "I didn't scam you and we didn't fully agree on the trade"

 

Him: " I don't care you went against your word and you are trying to scam me now"

 

Me: Fine! I'll do the trade ok?"

 

Him: "good"

 

(keep in mind I asked him to do the extra cash part when then comic's value was at 1225 and I would take a little lower yes but I'd still make a decent profit on it or so I thought)

 

 

Said it before,

 

That bolded line is my mistake? so what should I have said?

 

It's not what you should have said

 

You shouldnt have shipped the book. Period.

 

Even with $100 kicker you were begging for..... there is not enough of a profit margin to make this trade worthwhile

 

With the 100 more I was asking I would have made a profit I'll explain

 

I bought the comic for 950 and I though his ba12 would be worth around 750

 

so that would mean I need to cash at least to make a profit on it and I said I wanted 300 so to me that margin of profit would do well for me since it's a quick sell

 

now to where it was worth 1225

 

his comic is worth around 750+300 cash

 

this is where I said I don't feel I want to trade it but if he put in extra 100 I'd do it and take a bit lower profit on the comic

 

so taking that into consideration it would go like this

 

I paid 950 for the asm 129

his comic is worth 750+400 cash = 1150

 

1150-950=200 profit for me as it would be a quick sell and easy to move it

 

 

Am I reading it right that you and this guy set up a trade:

 

Your ASM 129 for his BA12 + $300.

 

Then, once you got the BA12 (and presumably the $300), you asked him to kick another $100 on top of it?

 

Is that correct?

 

yes that would be correct

 

And you really think that he was in the wrong?

 

You accepted his deal and then wanted him to give you more on top of it?

 

As others have said, I don't think this is your thing. But, if you want to keep on pushing on then, as others have said, you probably would be better served scaling it back to small books until you figure out how this works.

 

In terms of how he forced me into the deal yes he was wrong on that regard and yes I did want more on top of because the value of the comic went up.

 

So in your way of thinking, for instance. If I buy a Hulk #1 from seller A for 2500 dollars, and it goes up in value to 8000 dollars would I owe him money because the value grew? Preposterous!

 

No I only thought that way because he pissed me off and I didn't like how he made me do a deal with him.

 

Until you quit playing the "he forced me into the deal" card, and own up to completing the deal because you made a deal you should honor, it doesn't appear that you've learned anything from the last several pages of discussion.

 

I wouldn't say I learned nothing from this last couple of pages I admitted already that I made a mistake with what I did multiple times as well unless you missed that.

[uchiha101]

 

No I only thought that way because he pissed me off and I didn't like how he made me do a deal with him.

 

And you want me to consign books with you?

 

No that choice is yours

[uchiha101]

Gabriel just take a step back, get a stable job. Make this a hobby first,enjoy collecting comics. Then maybe you can gain experience enough to really make a go of it. You just can't rush through this.

 

I'm surprised your attitude towards me has changed so much I must be doing something right

 

and yes my priority is to get a job and after I sell the comics I have I'm switching gears into consignments but I'll take what I can get for them I'll study the market through the sale of their comics but will occasionally buy and sell still.

 

I personally think you should stop altogether,and reflect what you should do with your life. Just my opinion.

Before you really get yourself into trouble.

 

I don't know what I want to do with my life but I do have ideas about what I want.

[spidrvacc]

I have said it before. admire your conviction and drive. All the best but you seem to be in way over your head with comics. Very few can make any money at it ion a regular basis. Get a regular job and start small. Follow the great advice here. Again best of luck.

[wamh0416]

....I have to agree, there's oodles of info here.

 

Not to sound like a broken record, but you should really REALLY take some business courses. That way some of what was written earlier would sink in a little more.

 

There's a program out there that will pay for your some of your courses (sponsored by the gov't) if you're unemployed. Take a look into it!

 

Good luck.

[uchiha101]

I'd like to repeat Wall Crawlers question: Why should anyone consign comics with you instead of an established dealer, or selling it themselves? What value are you bringing to the table versus the above mentioned alternatives?

 

I was thinking about that myself and I came up with a few answers

 

1. Time

2. less fees then some of the bigger players out there.

3. less paperwork.

 

You're going to have to explain these three points, because they make zero sense to me.

 

1. Time

What about it? Are you saying you can sell a book faster than a dealer who actually does it for a living or anyone can do themselves? Do you pay faster once or if, the book is sold? Do you get faster results all around? If so, how? What about "Time" should make a consigner choose you?

 

2. Less fees than some of the bigger players out there.

Huh? How do you know what fees the "bigger players" out there charge? Who are the "bigger players". If they do charge more, do you think maybe it might be because they actually know what they're doing and you very obviously don't?

 

3. Less paperwork.

This I have to hear. How is there less paperwork in consigning with you than with anyone else? If there is actually less paperwork, do you think it might be that there are steps in the process that you are forgetting, ignoring or just don't know anything about?

 

Time: When I sell a comic for the person and the buyer receives it I pay them other auction houses take a while to pay you. It depends on what the comic is that decides how quickly it sells.

 

Less Fees: The bigger players are heritage auctions, comic connect, and so on. I know what they've been charging because I wrote them down and I also don't charge buyers premium like heritage does. Do they know more than me? of course they do but I don't go overboard with the fees I charge and also they have appraisal fees in addition to charging for the drive to wherever you live.

 

Less paperwork: For my paperwork right now it's just a written agreement between me and the person that wants to consign with me and when I get a collector's insurance I'm going to have to have a bit more paperwork to go with it and have a faq's page as well because if I want to the cosigning and become good at it I'll have to make sure I leave nothing to chance.

[uchiha101]

I have to say, this is truly becoming the most valuable thread I have ever read on any discussion forum.

 

The sheer volume of concentrated wisdom, advice, experience and good will shown to you by all these wonderful boardies who collectively have HUNDREDS of years of experience in the business/hobby truly is "priceless".

 

Mr. Uchiha101, I admire your willingness to share your learning experiences/bumps/mistakes here - you are laying it all out in the open and that's actually a good thing for you because you are getting SO much sage advice in return.

 

Now please, step back and TAKE this outpouring of wisdom and advice and follow their suggestions.

 

Start small.

 

I'm a nobody on this board who, like you, is just starting to LEARN about dealing in this hobby. But I CAN see incredible advice and experience here and I truly hope you can too.

 

Slow down, step away from the "big deals" and start small, and learn by experience without having to lose hundreds or thousands of dollars at a time on this learning curve.

 

Like I said, I'm just a guppy in this huge ocean-size discussion board, but the advice you've gotten here (especially the part below) has pretty much been what I've been doing for the past six months, and I'm pretty pleased with my "baby-steps" so far. My weekly ritual is to go digging for dollar-bin nuggets EVERYWHERE that sells comics and make about $5-10 per sale profit. But I LOVE doing it. It's not bringing in boatloads of cash every month, maybe a hundred or two a month, but it is FUN to me.

 

And that's a major point here - it doesn't seem like you're ENJOYING what you're doing, you're working hard, losing money (or not making much) and becoming frustrated.

 

I can't offer you a lick's worth of advice to compare with what you've already gotten other than to say - I really hope you find your niche so that you can ENJOY doing this.

 

Good luck son, and I hope you find your passion.

 

 

I have a feeling that my advice will likely be disregarded just as everyone else's has, but I'll give it a stab.

 

One of the reasons that getting a "regular" job is so important is that it gives you a stable foundation to work from. That includes a budget for discretionary spending - which would include a hobby.

 

When others here suggest that you start with comics as a hobby, they're not suggesting that you go out and pay full market value for high-grade keys and hot books.

 

There's 3 ways to pursue comics as a hobby:

 

1. Pay FMV by buying from comic retailers or bidding aggressively at auctions.

 

2. Get for a significant percentage off FMV (a "deal") by scouring yard sales, swap meets, used books stores, classified ads, local comic shop back-issue bins where they may have overlooked something, etc.

 

3. Doing a combination of the two.

 

Most collectors will do both, but will resort to #1 when there's a book they want and aren't particularly concerned about resale potential.

 

 

I think when others suggest that you pursue comics as a hobby, I think they have in mind that you stick almost exclusively to option #2.

 

Option #2 will really benefit you because it will help you develop the leg-work skills and connections to source material with big enough margins that you can make a profit when you sell. And I'm not talking about finding some hidden specu-key. I talking about finding books 50 cents - $2.00 that you know you can sell for $5-$10, maybe more. Doesn't sound like a lot of money but it's a healthy profit margin and doing it over multiple books will add up. And that means it will force you to become more knowledgeable about what the true market is for a broad spectrum of comics is, not just the flash-in-the-pan hot stuff.

 

By pursuing a collection this way you'll also have far less money tied up in your collection. So if you ever loose interest or it seems that selling comics as a business won't come to fruition you can sell your collection and at the very least make back what you made plus nice little profit. Or hold on to the books and be comfortable knowing that you're not out much in terms of money.

 

Option #2 requires a lot more of your time, energy and some gas money for driving around but the reward is that you'll put together a collection for less money than retail and develop the skills necessary should you decide to shift into selling later.

 

Starting by collecting using option #2 will do something else that's very important: it will help create passion for the hobby, and that's so vital for success.

 

Another member here - I think it was mintcollector - spoke one time about how he bought and flipped antique glass for profit. He said that you could go out and buy a book on antique glass values and identification, and then hit yard sales and antique stores looking for pieces to flip. But the only way you could be truly successful at it is if you develop a passion for the antique glass itself. And I think that's true of anything collectible, especially comics.

 

Right now it seems like you're chasing every shiny new thing that somebody else thinks is "hot" because there's a movie coming out or some development deal has been gossiped about. It seems like the only thing you have a passion for is having the bragging rights to flipping some whale book for thousands of dollars and looking like a B.S.D. dealer who's made phat stacks off a comic. That's not the kind of passion that's going to lead to long term success.

 

Forget that stuff. Start with the collecting rule of thumb using option #2: collect what you like.

 

There's all kinds of things you can sell for profit. So why are you focused on comics? What is it about comics that attracts you to them? What characters do you like? What stories mean something? Which writers and artists work do you esteem?

 

When you answer those questions (and have a stable job that gives you disposable income) than use option #2 to start pursuing those books. Sure, keep on eye out for books that you think others might be interested in down the road, but make sure you're picking up books you personally enjoy. That keeps your passion up which in turn gives you the motivation to learn and stay up on the market.

 

 

I understand that you really want to be you're own boss now, but you've really got to stop fighting your dad about getting one.

 

As mentioned, having a day job will give you the financial foundation to pursue comics as a hobby, which in turn will give you the skills and passion to later pursue comics as a business.

 

But getting a regular job will do something else: it's going to force to cultivate patience and discipline. Those qualities are absolutely necessary for running a successful business. Anyone here who's run a business will tell you that it often require sacrifice - giving up something that may be important to you in the short term for something that's more important to you in the long term.

 

And when you work a 9-5, 5-day-a-week job that's where your hobby comes in: Friday night you get off work, sit down and start planning on what yard sales and swap meets you're going to hit on Saturday and Sunday, maybe hit the back issue bins at a LCS, follow up on a couple classifieds. If you truly enjoy comics as a hobby, that's how you recharge your batteries for the next work week.

 

That doesn't mean buying collections of multiple long-boxes of 90's drek, or buying expensive key books. Just a few books every weekend that you enjoy and that you know you're getting for well below market value.

 

Slow and steady.

 

Thanks I'm thinking of selling my comics then going onto consignments and I'll do things a little differently because I'll focus on smaller consignments and work my way up but if I get a big consignment I won't say no and I'll also be focusing on finder's fees. I've made lots of mistakes and I have and will admit to that but this time instead of me losing money I'll be making money with others peoples money which is a safe route but I definitely will be making purchases here and there. I honestly wish I could shadow someone and learn how they do things because I've asked and applied to the comics shops and they said no . On grading I will continue to improve on it because like the boardies say above it's a major advantage and it will help to keep you from getting ripped off.

[uchiha101]

I have said it before. admire your conviction and drive. All the best but you seem to be in way over your head with comics. Very few can make any money at it ion a regular basis. Get a regular job and start small. Follow the great advice here. Again best of luck.

 

I want to do that but at the same time I don't. I will get a job and start smaller once I sell the comics that I have and my focus will be consignments and finder's fees because that will help me learn the market more and earn money at the same time. With consignments I will start small but I'll accept anything that comes my way.

[uchiha101]

....I have to agree, there's oodles of info here.

 

Not to sound like a broken record, but you should really REALLY take some business courses. That way some of what was written earlier would sink in a little more.

 

There's a program out there that will pay for your some of your courses (sponsored by the gov't) if you're unemployed. Take a look into it!

 

Good luck.

 

I should check that out because I never heard of that and for those of you wondering if I took business courses I took five of them over the years nothing super professional but two of them were in college.

[Semicentennial]

Gabriel just take a step back, get a stable job. Make this a hobby first,enjoy collecting comics. Then maybe you can gain experience enough to really make a go of it. You just can't rush through this.

 

I'm surprised your attitude towards me has changed so much I must be doing something right

 

and yes my priority is to get a job and after I sell the comics I have I'm switching gears into consignments but I'll take what I can get for them I'll study the market through the sale of their comics but will occasionally buy and sell still.

 

I personally think you should stop altogether,and reflect what you should do with your life. Just my opinion.

Before you really get yourself into trouble.

 

I don't know what I want to do with my life but I do have ideas about what I want.

 

Just get a job and lower your expectations on what type of job you'll settle for until you stabilize your situation. And quit blaming your mistakes on your ability to learn. If you hadn't mentioned your learning disability I would have just assumed you were lazy.

[Semicentennial]

What I meant is that they don't trust the guy selling the comic and as to how they know if he's real? the answer is they don't they only have my word on it which is why I said I want people to send me the comics now and yes you have a point not everyone will believe me but I only need one buyer.

 

You're selling the comic for the owner so doesn't that make you the seller? Why does it seem like you're trying to hold others accountable for your poor decisions? I know you're trying to own up to some of your mistakes, which is a step in the right path, but you keep making blunders along the way.

 

 

That would technically make me the seller but I've had people tell me since I don't own the book I'm not the true seller of it. I don't hold others accountable for my mistakes unless they played a part in it.

 

You made the choice to finish that transaction just like you made the choice to buy that $1 book for $10 because you needed something to boost your feedback or reputation. Do you give the other party acknowledgement when the deal works out in your favor or do you just like blaming the other party if the deal is not good for you?

 

 

[uchiha101]

Gabriel just take a step back, get a stable job. Make this a hobby first,enjoy collecting comics. Then maybe you can gain experience enough to really make a go of it. You just can't rush through this.

 

I'm surprised your attitude towards me has changed so much I must be doing something right

 

and yes my priority is to get a job and after I sell the comics I have I'm switching gears into consignments but I'll take what I can get for them I'll study the market through the sale of their comics but will occasionally buy and sell still.

 

I personally think you should stop altogether,and reflect what you should do with your life. Just my opinion.

Before you really get yourself into trouble.

 

I don't know what I want to do with my life but I do have ideas about what I want.

 

Just get a job and lower your expectations on what type of job you'll settle for until you stabilize your situation. And quit blaming your mistakes on your ability to learn. If you hadn't mentioned your learning disability I would have just assumed you were lazy.

 

All I want right now is any job so that I can make money and to sell the comics I have. What do you mean I blame my mistakes on my learning disability? It does get in the way of how I think. I honestly hate the word lazy and I hate how people always assume that of me if I don't mention I have a learning disability it pisses me off if I were lazy I wouldn't even attempt this because it's too much work.

[uchiha101]

What I meant is that they don't trust the guy selling the comic and as to how they know if he's real? the answer is they don't they only have my word on it which is why I said I want people to send me the comics now and yes you have a point not everyone will believe me but I only need one buyer.

 

You're selling the comic for the owner so doesn't that make you the seller? Why does it seem like you're trying to hold others accountable for your poor decisions? I know you're trying to own up to some of your mistakes, which is a step in the right path, but you keep making blunders along the way.

 

 

That would technically make me the seller but I've had people tell me since I don't own the book I'm not the true seller of it. I don't hold others accountable for my mistakes unless they played a part in it.

 

You made the choice to finish that transaction just like you made the choice to buy that $1 book for $10 because you needed something to boost your feedback or reputation. Do you give the other party acknowledgement when the deal works out in your favor or do you just like blaming the other party if the deal is not good for you?

 

 

Have I acknowledged that that deals works out in my favor? yes I have done so before and since they are flippers they don't care because they also made money on it. I blame the other party never unless they mess up I own up to my mistakes and sometimes need to be pointed out to me but I own up to what I do if I honestly blamed the other party for the deal not working out in my favor do you think that I would have all the comics I do? no I know I overpaid for them and that's my mistake they made money off of my lack of knowledge and I'm fine with that because it's my fault and I won't blame them for it. Like I said before when someone tries to say I'm a scammer that's when I lose it.

[uchiha101]

Hey guys you've done a lot for me and put in lots of effort into helping me and I do appreciate it even though some don't believe me. I want your opinions on if you want to hear a story about me? I will hold nothing back and will be kind of graphic not in the sense of pictures but what I write about. I want you people to understand why I do things the way I do and will take a couple of days to write so lets hear your thoughts

[Semicentennial]

I think you would have been fine if you had just declined the deal instead asking for more money. Asking for more money was your mistake and I think he was right to be upset with your behavior. Being called a scammer might be a little extreme but you were definitely being a little greedy by asking for more. .

[Semicentennial]

Hey guys you've done a lot for me and put in lots of effort into helping me and I do appreciate it even though some don't believe me. I want your opinions on if you want to hear a story about me? I will hold nothing back and will be kind of graphic not in the sense of pictures but what I write about. I want you people to understand why I do things the way I do and will take a couple of days to write so lets hear your thoughts

 

I would not do that if I were you. It'll come back and bite you eventually. If you need to open up them pm the members you trust. You're not the only one with a disability and you shouldn't think that by letting people know about your disadvantages that people will give you a pass.