Building While Waiting: When One Door Closes, Keep Building

Today marks the end of the five-day period Amazon KDP Support gave me to look into my identity verification issue.

I have been checking the KDP page, hoping that perhaps South Sudan would miraculously appear in the list of supported countries.

No miracle yet.

Since today is Saturday, August 29, 2026, I will give them another day or two. If I still receive no response, I will follow up around August 30–31.

But interestingly, KDP is no longer what occupies most of my thoughts.

While waiting for Amazon, I have been working.

I researched keywords and published several new articles on my website. 96 in total so far. My Google Site Kit dashboard appears to have grown from around 1.7K to 3.0K. I am still watching the numbers carefully because traffic does not automatically translate into AdSense revenue. Nevertheless, seeing the website gain more search visibility is encouraging.

I have also been looking at my books on Draft2Digital. My Smashwords account was transferred there after Smashwords ran into the same payment problem I have experienced elsewhere. PayPal does not support South Sudan for the payments I need.

Amazon.

Payoneer.

Smashwords/Draft2Digital.

Different companies, but a familiar problem.

It has made me realize something important: I cannot build my entire future around one platform deciding whether my country fits into its system.

So I am looking in other directions.

One of those directions is China.

If I eventually make it to Renmin University of China, I would like to explore the possibility of connecting my writing with academic publishing, translation, printing, and international distribution through Chinese publishing institutions. I am not assuming that it will happen automatically. It will require academic work, relationships, strong manuscripts, and opportunities.

But the possibility is worth pursuing.

At the same time, I have continued receiving legal interpretation assignments online, with more work potentially coming. I am also still supporting Yo' Care South Sudan virtually by writing and publishing project updates and helping manage its online presence.

I am doing similar work for FEBAC South Sudan and RACBO South Sudan.

I am also continuing to pursue my SAQA certification by getting the necessary affidavit so that my degree can be properly certified.

And, if everything aligns, I still want to see whether I can make it to Beijing before the end of 2026.

None of these things solves the KDP problem today.

But that is exactly the point.

I have learned that when one system stops you, you don't necessarily have to stop.

You can build something else.

You can learn something else.

You can serve someone else.

You can open another door.

You can prepare yourself for an opportunity that does not even exist yet.

Sometimes we become so focused on the door that refuses to open that we forget there is an entire building around us.

I am still waiting for Amazon.

But I am not waiting for my life.

I am writing.

I am publishing.

I am learning.

I am working.

I am serving.

I am building.

And I am preparing for what comes next.

Maybe that is one of the most important lessons in online entrepreneurship:

Never let one platform become the measure of your possibility.

Build the website.

Write the book.

Learn the skill.

Serve the client.

Build the audience.

Develop the relationship.

Prepare the credentials.

Explore the next country.

Create the next opportunity.

And keep moving.

Because sometimes the door you are waiting for is not the door you will eventually walk through.

Keep building.

I'd love to hear your thoughts on this below in the comments.

John