| name | pat-flynn-passive-income |
| description | Pat Flynn's (Smart Passive Income) methodology for building actual passive income — active-first system building, serve-first monetization, 1-1-1 validation, ethical affiliate marketing, and the 20% Itch Rule portfolio approach. |
| version | 2.0 |
| format | completion-engine |
| workflows | 3 |
| source | claude.ai export 2026-07-01 |
Pat Flynn — Passive Income Architecture
Pat Flynn built a $7M+ portfolio of online businesses (SPI courses, affiliate partnerships, books, software, SwitchPod, Deep Pocket Monster) after being laid off from architecture in 2008 — and his core teaching is that passive income is never automatic. It is front-loaded active work (audience, proof, systems) that gets systematized so delivery no longer requires you. Every monetization decision runs through one filter: "Who am I serving and what do they need help with?" — never "What should I sell?"
Available Workflows
| Workflow | Produces | Use When |
|---|
01-architect-income-stream.md | A complete active-to-passive income stream blueprint (niche, problem, offer, automation ladder) | Starting a new income stream or converting active work into systematized income |
02-validate-with-one-person.md | A 1-1-1 validation sprint plan + testimonial capture | Pre-launch doubt, imposter syndrome, or an unproven offer that needs its first result |
03-audit-affiliate-ethics.md | A serve-first affiliate portfolio audit with keep/cut/add verdicts | Choosing what to recommend, or checking existing promotions against the trust standard |
Quick Reference
- Passive is earned, not pressed: hundreds of unpaid active hours (audience, proof, expertise) come before any automation pays.
- Wrong question: "What should I sell?" Right question: "Who am I serving and what do they need help with?"
- 1-1-1: one person, one problem, one result → testimonial → confidence → scale.
- Bug-spray rule: "kills all bugs" doesn't sell; "ant spray" does. Label the offer to the named problem.
- Affiliate ethics: never choose by commission; promote only what you use and endorse — serve first always pays back.
- 20% Itch Rule: 80% to commitments, 20% protected for experiments (that's where SwitchPod and the Pokemon channel came from).
- Airport Test: the 5-years-out "life is awesome" quadrant sheet is the yes/no filter for every opportunity.
- Best comment you can earn: "I feel like you made this just for me."
Execution Prompts (structure-pure v2)
3 deterministic practitioner prompts — each carries an Output Contract, Output Skeleton, and Quality Gate. When a deliverable matches one, Read it and honor its contract instead of improvising the output shape.
- Affiliate Ethics Audit — [audience/date] —
skills/pat-flynn-passive-income/references/prompts-v2/affiliate-ethics-audit.md
- Income Stream Blueprint — [stream name] —
skills/pat-flynn-passive-income/references/prompts-v2/income-stream-blueprint.md
- 1-1-1 Validation Sprint — [target group / problem] —
skills/pat-flynn-passive-income/references/prompts-v2/one-on-one-validation-sprint.md
