On a Tuesday in 2001, the date was January 9th of that year, I was working in a computer lab at Modesto Junior College for the Allied Health department.  There were not to many students in the lab that afternoon, and certainly those in there did not need my help. 

I had heard a lot about eBay, my Dad has purchased on eBay, and since I was in a room of computers and bored I opened my first eBay account.

I had visited eBay back in 1998 I believe, and was not impressed so I did not open an account at that time.  However this date I was more impressed and signed up.

The first item I purchased was an VHS of a Jack Benny TV program.  (I am a fan of the golden age of radio) and I was hooked. 

In the 1990's I was self employed as a computer software consultant/trainer before I returned to the work force in late 1999. 

I saw eBay as an opportunity to get back into business for myself - a side business when I was not working for the college.

A few weeks later, January 22nd to be exact, I was wrongfully terminated from my job at the college.  I decided to make my full time job selling on eBay. 

Like many I started by selling stuff around my one bedroom apartment, then for family members, stuff I found on clearance at stores, garage sales, etc.

Today is my 8 year anniversary on eBay.com and some of my favorite memories include:

• Selling a torn up, worn Mark and Brian mouse pad for over $23!

• Becoming an education specialist in 2004

• Returning to Modesto Junior College and teaching in their Community Education Department eBay classes for 2 years

• Being a guest on eBay Radio from eBay Live in 2005

• Fall 2005 I was featured in an article in Entrepreneur's eBay Startup Guide "Be An eBay Success"  September 2005

• Being featured on the Central Valley Report in 2005

• Being featured in a textbook in 2008

For me I would say my heydays on eBay, the best days I had on eBay, were 2004 and 2005.  Sales did really well in 2006 but I was happiest on eBay in 2004 and 2005.  I was proud to be a member of eBay and was proud to wear eBay attire (such as hats and shirts, sweat jackets, backpacks, anything with the eBay logo I wanted to have).  I was proud to tell anyone and everyone I am on eBay and how great eBay was.

Last year for me the eBay brand turned from being positive to negative.

Actually it started in the summer of 2007.  There was a tragic news event that occurred in a neighboring state, a young girl was abducted from a Target in Kansas and killed.  It was not in my community but since I live on the border of Kansas it got a lot of press here.  (FOX news story: www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,278054,00.html)

After her death a local bank set up a trust fund for the family.  The information was posted on websites for local TV stations and the bank itself.  I copied and pasted the info onto my eBay blog (hosted on eBay) including citing the source of the info and providing readers a link to the bank's page.  eBay removed the post citing it was a policy violation.  This did rub me the wrong way as I was trying to help someone out who had a tragedy.  I cited the source but still eBay pulled it.  It left a negative taste for eBay in my mouth and my pride of eBay started to go downhill.

Last year was not a good year, as many would agree, for eBay and it's members.  During the year eBay rolled out what I would consider a record and unprecedented number of changes to it's site and policies.  In retrospect I feel most of the changes that eBay rolled out will be for the better of the site, however, during the rollout I felt that eBay came across as unprofessional and disorganized. 

The changes were coming so fast that I felt overwhelmed by eBay and often from reading the announcement boards and discussion threads there was not a uniform voice for eBay, or any consistency from eBay when explaining the changes.

One instance sticks out in my mind occurred last August.  I was visiting a discussion thread about the new view item page.  At this time the new look took away the left column that currently appears on listings from members who have an eBay store and using the listing frame option.  This change was not being well received by eBay store owners. 

A member asked if eBay had done any research on how sellers felt about this change.  A pink (eBay employee who answered questions from members on this board) said yes they did.  They talked to about a dozen eBay store owners.  This was completely unacceptable to me.  I was so troubled by this I called in for the August Town Hall and stated that according the eBay's Q2 report there are about 552,000 eBay store owners and if you ask only 12 of them that is roughly 0.00002% of the eBay members who have an eBay store!  (IMHO anyone with any business sense would find this number an unacceptable portion of your customer base you consulted).  I was asked to send the link to the thread to eBay so they could post a correction to the thread.  They never posted a correction.  Listen to my call on the town hall at about 55 minutes into the broadcast: eBay Town Hall August

eBay last year started telling us sellers what we can and can not say in our listings, setting unrealistic deadlines to make sure all your listings were in compliance with new policies and on top of the unrealistic deadlines eBay had not built the infrastructure to support bulk editing of listings for sellers who have large inventories.

Last summer, early fall while trying to make sure all my listings were in compliance, (I was about half way done with changing mine) eBay announced another change that I would have to make sure my listings met as far as being complaint with new policies.  I threw my hands up in the air and said I give up.  I hate to admit it, but I lost the desire to care to make sure my listings were compliant - I figured eBay will let me know which ones were not compliant.

Late last fall eBay announced they were going to get rid of paper payments.  (I saw this coming last May when they did it on eBay.au so I got that out of my listings in the spring).   In what I believe was an effort by eBay to fend off lawsuits they allowed other electronic payment methods on the site besides their cash cow called PayPal.  One of which was ProPay, which will only work with high level of powersellers. 

I and others commented in the super secret chat room from Ask Griff why couldn't eBay tell ProPay if they were going to be a electronic payment option for the eBay community they would have to offer their service to all eBay members, not just high level powersellers. Griff responded with something to the tune of eBay can not tell a company how to run it's business.  My response to that is: "since when?"  All eBay seemed to do last year is tell us sellers how we can run our business on eBay.

As we enter 2009 and I start my 9th year on eBay my opinion of the eBay brand changed changed from primarily positive to more negative.  I find myself struggling with how I feel about eBay.  I am not sure I wish to continue in the Education Specialist Program: mainly because I am not sure in good conscious that I could recommend eBay to others who wish to sell on their site.

I also find myself not wanting to wear any eBay brand items, such as shirts, backpacks, sweat jackets, etc.  I am even getting a bit tired of looking at all the eBay memorabilia in my office.

I am also struggling with other issues in my life. 

I am 43, stroke survivor and newly diagnosed diabetic.  Maybe I am at the age of reflecting on my life, I do not know.  I do know that when I ask myself what makes me happy I always answer that question with "Helping others".  I can trace this back to my childhood.  I looked forward on Sundays to walking around the church and help collect attendance cards from outside the Sunday School rooms. 

When I was a kid I wanted to grow up and be a morning radio Deejay.  Why?  besides I have a good sense of humor, a quick wit and a unique sense of humor, I wanted to help people via the radio get off to work with a smile.

Do not get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with selling on eBay, but for me it is not fulfilling a need I feel I have.

I am happiest when a buyer e-mails me (or leaves feedback) that says the item they purchased made a relative happy or that it was just what their grandchild wanted. 

I know my attitude regarding eBay at times really stinks - for example when I mentioned "I threw my hands up in the air and said I give up.  I hate to admit it, but I lost the desire to care to make sure my listings were compliant - I figured eBay will let me know which ones were compliant."  This to me is similar to a work attitude I had at a job in early 2000 when I was a customer support rep for an small/local/regional ISP.  I loved the job but I did not care for management and it started to show when I interacted with their customers. 

So maybe it is time for me to re-evaluate my life, my priorities, my goals, my wants, my involvement with eBay. (okay it probably is).

So as we start a new year and I start my 9th year on eBay.  What do I see will happen?

I know this: I want to continue to put my relationship with God first above everything else.  (I also want to grow in that relationship including becoming more involved with my church).  Then comes my wife - she is more important than anything else in my life.  Following that is I want to take better care of my health.  I have, since finding out I am diabetic, cut down my consumption of Pepsi from abut 5 to 6 cans a day to about 2 a week.  I am watching what I eat and eating healthier.  I want to make time each day to exercise with either the Wii or some other method. 

Next, I want to find a way to help people.  I am not sure how yet but I want to make helping people a high priority in my life. 

Finally I plan to sell on eBay still, and launch another web business, but I will be sure not to miss out enjoying early retirement due to my stroke.  (this means I will no longer spend 8 to 10 hours a day in front of this computer working on my store or eBay, the stress is not good for my health nor is it worth it.)