International Journal of Psychology and Counseling. ISSN 2278-5833 Volume 12, Number 1 (2022), pp. 59-105 © Research India Publications http://www.ripublication.com Online Sellers’ Lived Experiences and Challenges: A Qualitative Study Amidst COVID-19 Pandemic Rhoyet Cruz 1 Eden Joy Frontuna 2 Lauren Grace Tabieros 3 Janz Glenn Lanozo 4 Ernest John Deato 5 1-5 Research Students, Jesus Is Lord Colleges Foundation, Inc., Bulacan, Philippines 1 cruzrhoyet@jilcf.edu.ph Jhoselle Tus 6 6 Professor, Jesus Is Lord Colleges Foundation, Inc., Bulacan, Philippines 6 tusjoselle@jilcf.edu.ph Abstract With the surge of the COVID-19 pandemic, online sellers faced challenges in managing their online business daily. Aside from it, their work-life balance has been negatively affected as well, considering that they work from home and are responsible for household responsibilities. Thus, this study is conducted during the pandemic and gathered data using a semi-structured interview through Messenger call. It is conducted to explore the lived experiences of online sellers and how they managed their online business and personal life. It also determines the specific challenges they’ve encountered and how they coped with them. Lastly, this study aims to map out how these experiences will benefit online sellers and consumers and explain that online selling can be both sustainable and convenient in terms of earning a good living and meeting their daily needs. Moreover, three major conclusions emerged from this study’s findings: (1) online sellers faced psychological and physical difficulties in managing their online business during the pandemic, (2) online sellers discovered ways on how to cope with the struggles they are facing, and (3) online sellers reflected on their experience to be more effective in the online selling industry. Keywords: Online sellers, Online Business, Lived Experiences, Challenges, COVID-19 pandemic 1. INTRODUCTION Due to the massive restrictions imposed by the pandemic, online shopping has grown, and entrepreneurs have embraced the internet trend even more (Arreola, 2020). Since this platform was created before the pandemic, restrictions such as travel bans have made it easier for consumers to use online shopping platforms, leading to a rapid surge in demand for online selling. Indeed, the online selling sector is expected to grow from a 10% contribution to the Philippines' gross domestic product (GDP) in 2015 to a 25% contribution in 2018 (Ladesma, 2020). The accelerated growth of the convenience of the online shopping movement boosts economic activity, and an increase in GDP is interpreted as concrete evidence that the economy is still thriving. Moreover, Lorenciana (2021) elaborated that, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many businesses are shifting to online sales. Furthermore, the article mentioned the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) promotion and the intention to assist small businesses that use e-commerce to sell social media platforms. Whereas traditional businesses are still present and internationally known, online selling is instantly becoming prevalent, forcing traditional businesses to go online. The DTI's promotion and intention to assist small businesses in selling products on these platforms is intended to facilitate online sellers in surviving the pandemic. According to Barriero (2020), Filipinos were forced to turn to e-commerce activities such as online purchasing and selling to fulfill their necessities. As shown in the article, online sellers find that their money from online selling allows them to meet their daily needs. Seeing as online shopping is accessible and provides a convenient