Blog Archives - Page 8 of 10 - the frugal millionaire

10 Reasons Why Everyone Needs a Blog

Our world is getting more and more technologically advanced. Many people work at companies and in industries that didn’t even exist 15 years ago. I work on the SEO team at my company, which is a perfect example of a whole new job genre that was created in the past two decades.

The internet and social media have evolved time and time again over the past few years. I personally believe that, eventually, the majority of jobs will be online. Even banks are going online and forgoing the traditional freestanding branches. It’s only a matter of time before nearly all jobs require some sort of tech knowledge.

Whether you’re a freelancer, a college student, a small business owner or a 9-5 employee, you need to start a blog or a website as soon as possible. Now is the time to learn the ins and outs of websites, to make yourself more marketable as an employee, and to start your own little business on your corner of the internet.

Big News: I’m Starting a New Blog

I’ve been blogging here at the frugal millionaire for more than a year! I absolutely love this blog and the opportunities that it has given me (See How Blogging Changed My Life), but…I also have a huge passion for blogging about topics beyond personal finance. Lately, between my blog, freelancing and my full-time job, it seems as though I live and breathe finance. That’s not a bad thing, but I want more.

I debated adding more categories to this blog, but the truth of the matter is I am just not feeling this blog name anymore and I want to start from scratch. I’ve learned so SO much this first year of blogging and I want to apply all that knowledge to a new, exciting small business/blog I’m creating.

My Book is Available for Pre-Order!!

Have you been contemplating starting a blog but aren’t sure you have the time and know-how it takes to get it running? Do you dream of bringing in an extra income for your family but don’t want to leave the home?

If so, my new book – The Beginner’s Guide to Blogging – is for you.

It’s full of quick, actionable, easy-to-follow instructions on getting your blog up and running. Once you purchase your hosting and domain name, you’ll be staring at a blank screen known as WordPress that will look confusing to new eyes. I remember my experience like it was yesterday.

“What do I do first?”

“How do I get my blog to look how I want it to?”

“How do I create an “About Me” page?”

“How do I even write a post?!”

All of these seemingly easy things can take hours and hours to figure out if you’re a newbie. That is why I created my book. Follow the directions and you’ll have a beautiful blog ready to go in no time.

And, in addition to getting your blog set up, I’m showing you how to start monetizing your blog from day 1, giving you 21 blog prompt ideas to get you going, sharing your “must have” pages and posts if you want to keep readers around and make money, and more!

And guess what?!

The Beginner’s Guide to Blogging is now available for pre-order! It will be released on January 12, 2016.

But…there is a way you can get my book FOR FREE.

If you haven’t yet purchased your domain name and hosting, and do so through my Bluehost link, I will give you a copy of my book completely for free! No strings attached! That’s right – if you’ve been wanting to start a blog but have been putting it off, perhaps this is the incentive you need to get going! And, as always, I am here to help you along the way and answer any questions.

If you want to purchase your blog through my Bluehost link but need help, head over to my “Start a Profitable Blog” page where I will walk you through it!

And, as always, thank you for your support! I truly believe that all of us bloggers are in this together. If you want to get in on blogging and start making money from home, not to mention form incredible relationships with other bloggers, you have to start a blog! The connections I’ve formed and the friends I’ve made are what have made this journey so incredible. I want the same for you, and I want to help you get there!

Confessions of a Work-from-Home Mama

I started my journey into motherhood and working from home at exactly the same time. Three years later, I’ve added another baby to the mix and more to my plate when it comes to working from home. While working from home is what many believe to be the best of both worlds, all is not what meets the eye.

These are my confessions of a work-from-home mama.

Side Hustles for Moms: The BEST Job for Stay-at-Home Moms

Are you a stay-at-home mom looking to make some extra money each month? While that’s great, what if I told you you could actually make thousands each month by doing something that you love. It might even get to the point where your husband could quit his job and stay at home, too. That is eventually my goal, and I just know I’m going to get there!

If you’ve researched work-from-home jobs and side hustles for moms before, you’ve probably found a variety of jobs you could do from home. But, realistically, how long could you keep some of those jobs up for? Phone jobs, for example, are very popular work-at-home jobs. But do you really want to talk on the phone all day? I don’t know about you, but that does not sound fun. Plus, one of the biggest advantages of working from home is setting your own hours. With many jobs, you can’t do that. If you have to be available M-F from 8-5, you may as well be in an office.

So then what are the ultimate side hustles for moms?!

Get Paid to Write From Home

Are you a stay-at-home mom looking to make some extra income for your family? Maybe you work full-time, but want to accelerate your debt payments. Or maybe you simply want extra money to save, spend or invest. Really, I can’t think of a single person who wouldn’t want to bring in extra income, regardless of their situation.

For me personally, I became a SAHM a little over three years ago right before the birth of my first daughter (I now have two daughters and another on the way!). I was working in finance prior to quitting so I could stay home with our baby. At the time, I remember wanting to just make a few hundred dollars per month. In my mind, I was thinking that could pay our electric bill plus give us some extra spending money.

I had always thought about writing from home, but didn’t really think it would ever happen. I made it known to a few close friends that I would love it if I could do a little bit of work from home. Turns out, one of my best friends at the time was working for a large online women’s website and offered to hire me on a very part-time basis to write for a few sections on the site. My first month, I made $300. By month five, I cleared over $900.

This is one of the biggest parts of becoming a freelancer — your network. Without my friend trusting me and getting my foot in the door, I would have had a harder time landing that first job (though of course, it’s totally possible to start freelancing without knowing anyone…in fact, nowadays it’s relatively easy).

If you are hoping to bring in some extra income each month, keep reading.

Three Simple Ways I Make Money Blogging

I’ve been very transparent around here lately regarding blogging and my hopes for the future (if you’re new, I have a goal to make $10K per month within one year, and I’d like most of that income to be through blogging). I’ve been at this blogging thing for a little over a year now, and it seems like I’m finally starting to make a little headway in this whole income thing.

A little background: I started my blog to make money; I did not start it just as a hobby. If you’re looking to do the same, I have an eBook coming out in January that will help you set up your own blog that you can use as a business to make money. I’m so excited about it, and I hope you are too!

I took my blog very seriously at first, and then I sort of fell off the bandwagon a few months in. I didn’t stop blogging, but I stopped trying to monetize, I didn’t have an editorial plan, and I just didn’t have a general direction at all. My book can help you make sure you don’t fall into the same rut.

So, I didn’t really begin taking my blog seriously again until September of this year. This month, I made $380 from my blog which will be reflected in my next income report. That’s not much, but it’s something. Today I wanted to share the three simple ways in which I’m monetizing my blog.

The Beginner’s Guide to Blogging

You guys, I have something special that I’m in the process of creating for you.

I am creating a guide for beginner bloggers that will help you navigate the world of blogging. This is the guide that I wish I had. And I’m not just going to “remember” what I did as far as getting my blog set up, I’m going to purchase another domain name and take detailed notes to share with you on what you need to do after purchasing your hosting and domain name. You know, the technical, nitty-gritty stuff. I can’t tell you how many times I stared at this screen when I first started my blog. I didn’t know what to do, yet at the same time I felt very overwhelmed on all that I could do. It’s confusing, and my book will show you what to do in an easy, step-by-step process.

The Beginner’s Guide to Blogging: What It Will Include

How to choose the right theme for your blog and get it up and running
The technical stuff when it comes to setting up your blog
How to monetize your blog from DAY ONE
What pages you need to create right off the bat, and how to create them
How to get your sidebar organized and what you should include on it
20+ blog prompts for your first month or two of posts so you never run out of ideas (including posts that you can make money on right away)
AND MORE!!!!

This guide is intended for those of you that started a blog within the past six months or have just purchased your domain name and hosting.

The guide is going to be released on Tuesday, January 12th, 2016. Mark your calendars!! Here’s how it’s going to work:

FREE for Brand New Bloggers: Purchase your blog domain and hosting through my Bluehost link (your domain is FREE and hosting is just $3.49 per month through my link!!) either now or in January, and you will receive my guide FOR FREE!!!!
FREE for Bloggers Who Purchased a Blog through My Link Already: If you’ve already purchased your domain and hosting through my link (either last week or last year), I will email you my guide on January 12th! So, if you want to get started with your blog before the holidays, feel free to purchase it now and you’ll get my guide on January 12th in your email.

A quick note: I am notified of new domain names when a blog is purchased through my Bluehost link. However, please send me an email with your domain name and email address directly so I have it on file.

For All Bloggers: If you already have a domain name and hosting, but would like to use my guide as a resource, you can purchase it from me starting on January 12th. Price TBD.

Since the guide is not yet completed, I would love it if you would comment and let me know what you would like to see in this guide! I’ve read a lot of “Beginning Blogging” books and articles and I want mine to be different. It’s going to include exclusive information that took me months to learn, it’s going to be easy-to-read and refer to, and best of all it’s going to get you set up on the right foot for blogging success!

If you’ve been wondering if you should take the leap and start your own blog, now is absolutely the time! I have a goal of making $10K per month within one year (October 2016) and I would love it if you hopped on this challenge with me! Even if you don’t want to be a professional blogger, you can create a blog and use it as your portfolio to land online jobs, such as writing, being a virtual assistant, designing and more. The world is online and it looks as though most jobs are headed in that direction. There is no better time than now to make your presence KNOWN in the online space!

So, to get in on this, determine what type of blog you want to create and sign up through Bluehost (you can read my tutorial on How to Start a Blog which will walk you through setting up Bluehost), then email me (sbrooks52111 @ yahoo.com) saying you signed up and what your blog domain is. I will then get you on the list for my blogging guide which will be released on January 12th, 2016!!

You can now PRE-ORDER my book here!

How to Stay Motivated When You First Start Blogging

When you first start out blogging, you probably have a few weeks or months worth of material that you want to write about. It’s hard to start out at first, but once you get into a groove, creating content becomes second-nature. However, it’s very normal after a few months of blogging to wonder, “Why did I start this blog again?” “I feel like no one is reading it except my mom,” and “I don’t know if this was worth it.”

I am here to tell you that it IS worth it!!!

As my regular readers know, I did not start my blog as a hobby. While I’ve made some wonderful friends and love the blogging community more than ever, my primary reason for starting a blog was to earn an income. (Do you want to do the same? Read my tutorial here on how to start a profitable blog. You’ll receive a discount by using my link!) And, I am happy to report (2 1/2 years in!), that I finally was able to quit my full-time job to focus more on my blog! Woot! If I can do this, so you can!! Just give it time! 🙂

Here are five ways you can keep up the momentum when you first start blogging.

The Two Ways I Doubled My Pageviews in One Month

One of the ways I plan on reaching $10K per month in one year is through my blog. That means I need to get serious about it and view it as a business. While I’ve said on here before that my blog has been a business from the start and that I didn’t start this blog just as a “hobby” blog, my actions were saying otherwise. I prioritized freelance work over blogging and was never consistent in how often I was posting. I would get burnt out and post a few times a month, regain steam and post a few times a week, and then get burnt out again. I’m sure anyone who blogs can relate.

I started really getting serious about my blog again in September 2015. Since then, my pageviews have doubled.

As of September 2016, I am consistently bringing in $1000+ per month through my blog only! No more freelancing for this gal!

You can view my latest income report here!

If you’re interested in starting a blog of your own, head over to my tutorial on How to Start a Profitable Blog. With it, you’ll receive a special discount through Bluehost, a FREE domain name, and a copy of my book – The Beginner’s Guide to Blogging – for free!