In 2025, I tried many things to earn money and fund my travels on my own. But instead of success, I mostly faced failure, self-doubt, and confusion. This blog is my honest reflection on everything I tried, what didn’t work, how it made me feel, and why I still decided to continue — even when nothing seemed to work.
Expectation vs Reality
Expectation: I thought 2025 would be the year of travel, financial freedom, collaborations, and Instagram growth.
Reality: It became the year of failure, self-doubt, feeling lost, and wanting to quit many times.
How It All Started
So, let me tell my story from the start.
Early in 2025, I wanted to travel on my own with the money I earned. The first step I took toward financial independence was starting a blog. I thought if I posted regularly, I would get monetized and earn money.
But then I realised this might take time.
So next, I started making travel e-books. I made 5 travel e-books and told myself, “We will definitely earn from this. We will be able to travel.” But it didn’t happen the way I imagined. Even after one year of publishing them, I got zero sales.
Trying Something New Again… and Failing Again
Then I thought of starting personalized itinerary planning services — customizing trips based on people’s preferences. I felt confident this would work, because people do need help planning travel.
But again, I was wrong.
I didn’t get even one booking for this service.
Every single day, I used to open my email hoping to see a message from Razorpay saying “Your e-book is bought,” or a notification from Google Forms saying “Form submitted.” But neither happened.
Slowly, I started feeling useless — like maybe I was not capable of earning money.
The Lonely Feeling of Failing
There were days when I kept wondering,
“Is it only me? Or are there others in this world who feel the same way?”
There’s a kind of loneliness that comes when you’re chasing a dream quietly. You can’t really share it with anyone because you know you won’t get the encouragement you need. Instead, you hear things like:
“I already told you, these things won’t get you financial freedom.”
“It’s just a waste of time.”
And one more thing I don’t understand — when people on Instagram say earning money is like a cakewalk. Is it really that easy? If yes, why am I not able to do it? And if the answer is no, then why do they say it’s easy?
When Nothing Worked, I Still Tried More
I thought maybe I should talk about my services on Instagram so people would know I offer them. So I did that too.
But again — no sales.
At this point, I didn’t know what else to do… I just wanted one sale — at least to prove to myself that I did it.
I waited the whole year. But nothing happened.
So I thought, let me make travel reels using some old footage from past trips with my family. I began posting, hoping my reels would get at least 1,000 views.
But most of them didn’t even cross 150 views.
Maybe it’s because my reels are faceless.
Maybe because I use stock images.
Maybe… I don’t know.
At that point, it just felt like everything I touched was failing.
The Thoughts That Hurt the Most
I couldn’t get even one sale after doing everything I could. I didn’t even know where I was going wrong. At least if I knew that, I could search for solutions.
There were moments when I felt like stopping everything. Moments when I thought of letting go of my dream of travelling the world with the money I earn.
I thought about quitting many times.
But still… somewhere inside, a small voice kept saying:
👉 “Just continue. Even if you don’t see the results yet.”
Redefining What Success Means to Me
Slowly, I realised something.
Success for me is not only about sales or the money in my bank account. Success is also:
✨ the hard work I put in
✨ the consistency
✨ learning new things
✨ showing up every single day
✨ even when I don’t know where this journey is taking me
Even the 85 followers I have on Instagram — they are also success for me. Because they stayed. Because they care.
Why I’m Still Here
After all these so-called failures, here I am again — still trying. Still taking small steps toward the life I dream of.
I may have failed in everything I tried to become financially independent… but I still love myself for not calling them failures. I choose to see them as a part of my journey.
And I am proud of myself for not stopping — even when everything felt like it was falling apart.
❤️ My Gentle Conclusion
Maybe 2025 was not the year of success. Maybe it was the year of building strength quietly inside me.
A year of learning.
A year of patience.
A year of trusting that my time will come.
And until then… I’ll keep going. Softly. Slowly. Hopefully. 💫