Here They Are: My 5 Thoughts on Financial Freedom 9 Months into Blogging
It's still early 9 months in. Relatively early for anyone in the blogging business anyway.
If it were up to me, I’d totally just be writing.
But the reality is this: if blogging is to be my income, I need to treat it like a business. So I am.
With business comes realities. I’ve spent the last few weeks sharing information and guest posts on here, all tagged as “budget,” to provide insight into the value of financial freedom, how to attain it and it’s because although I always knew the importance of it, I have truly learned the value of it.
Blogging is not an overnight money-maker.
Disclosure: As a blogger, I use affiliate links sometimes! I may receive commission from purchases I share, but it does not change your price.
Image by Gerhard G. from Pixabay
In fact, it might take many, many, many nights- even years to make money online.
I launched Free At 50 at the end of August 2020. This post is being written in May 2021. Know that in December, my partner in life got me The Essential Habits of 6-Figure Bloggers by Sally Miller.
Ok, I may have put it on the list I gave him, but the fact he bought it for me was huge. I felt supported by him in my efforts to ditch corporate life for professional freedom.
Then as I read the book, I was inspired, motivated, and also comforted to know that these amazingly successful online entrepreneurs were not instant blogging successes. In fact, real money seems to take at least 2 years to get to.
Photo by Maddi Bazzocco on Unsplash
1 Financial freedom is necessary if you decide to blog. Or be any kind of entrepreneur.
You always hear that you should have enough money to last you at least 6 months if you lose your job. I’m here to tell you that if you want to go all-in blogging, you should have at least 12 months or more on hand.
As I write this, I’m sitting at a table on Merchant’s Square in Colonial Williamsburg. My view is the entrance to the College of William and Mary, where many of our founding fathers studied and developed their passion for freedom that led to the U.S. Revolutionary War.
That kind of freedom which set us on the path of becoming a nation is intense. I would argue that true freedom of any kind is intense.
Photo by Ben Ashby on Unsplash
Sitting here is an inspirational and obvious place to write about feeling so liberated that you don’t have to rely on others for food on your table or shelter over your head. Knowing that you are ultimately responsible for your life, survival, happiness, and future is intense.
And guess what? You ARE in control. You can do it.
But you must ensure that you have everything in place financially to take the step out of your 9-5 and into entrepreneurship. Erin Edwards of Level Up Personal Finance offers up a step-by-step guideline in her guest post for FreeAt50.
Image by Markus Winkler from Pixabay
2 Moments of sheer terror are natural- you just have to move past them.
If I’m honest, it’s not uncommon for me to have moments of sheer terror. At 50, I’ve learned ways to combat that.
They happen all through life, right? As an entrepreneur, it’s completely natural to have those moments!
I mean, we are talking about financial stability and creating a lifestyle dependent on that. Of course you will question yourself. Your partner, friends and loved ones might question you as well.
Image by Dalomo from Pixabay
But you must believe in what your goal is- any or all of these included:
- the ability to own your time and spend more time with those you choose to than with those you are forced to
- not allowing other people’s bad decisions to steal your time
- creating a life of professional freedom a la 4-Hour Workweek
- setting yourself up to do what you love instead of relying on working to pay your bills instead of one that is about your passion- that is why I saw my layoff as a blessing
Image by Hier und jetzt endet leider meine Reise auf Pixabay aber from Pixabay
Ways to mitigate the terror:
- have an emergency fund- start now! Here is how from Sadie of QS Creative and also from Jordan at My Finance Diary. Both of these are worth the read.
- regularly assess your finances- I’m not saying obsessively, just regularly to ensure you have a handle on both your spending and the money you have accessible
- move forward with your plan- for me this means keeping momentum with the things my coach has guided me to do, in a customized way---currently: focusing on SEO through writing quality content and building a Facebook community to enhance my blog (the course I took as part of the Digital Acceleration Academy is vital for me to tackle this one effectively)
- declutter to realize where your money goes: start getting rid of physical clutter and you’ll realize all the things you spent money on that you didn’t use-- and then what follows: you will step back from spending unless you REALLY want or need something Emily McCord created a 10-Day e-course to help with this – use code: Daphne for a deal!
Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash
- use organization tools from planners to apps like Evernote, whatever works for you- some ideas are here in this post I wrote during a move from Michigan to Virginia, which could’ve easily been a trigger for overwhelm
- stay inspired by following the stories, struggles, and successes of others – the reason I started the FreeAt50 Interview Series
- make the decision to invest and then don’t look back- I invested in both a coach and in Groove with the knowledge they will benefit me at some level; backing myself on my decision by going all-in with the coaching sessions I have with Tegan and the education, training, and use of the Groove platform for my blog and other areas of my business is liberating- no second-guessing allowed
- celebrate all wins big and small because every win is a win
- embrace the concept of imperfect action and take action
Photo by Isabella and Zsa Fischer on Unsplash
3 Money still isn’t everything because owning my time is more valuable.
I’ll say that again and with an exclamation point. Money still isn’t everything because owning my time is more valuable!
And so is my health. Something I feel much better about now that I’m in this lifestyle where other people’s bad decisions don’t steal my time or suck my energy.
Photo by Debby Hudson on Unsplash
4 Money is necessary, but you control how much you need to live.
After my layoff, I was truly surprised at how little money I actually needed to live and I wrote about it 2 months into this blogging life.
Reading the 4-Hour Workweek got me focused on pushing everything aside and just listing out my expenses, assigning which were necessary and which were flexible and then acknowledging the amount of money I truly needed each month.
Knowing a few new ways to save money: Ana of the Faded Spring blog shares a common-sense approach on saving as an entrepreneur. She’s been blogging awhile and speaks from experience as a freelancer working to build her business.
Image by Nattanan Kanchanaprat from Pixabay
5 I’m not that "woo" but some manifestation added to passion is helpful.
I’ve met a lot of people on this journey, some define themselves as “woo” and while I do not, I’ve learned some amazing woo-ish techniques to get me on the path to professional freedom.
No doubt, I have incredible respect for any and all out there that are living their dream and working hard to help others do the same. That is my goal after all.
Photo by Alisa Anton on Unsplash
Here are some links and tips that might bring you into the right mindset or even just give you a tool you can use on your journey to get your finances where you want them to be:
- Create a vision board to reach your financial goals: Candace from the Daily Blots blog shares the steps to setting up a way to remind yourself consistently of where you’re headed and why. Visually. She explains a vision board in detail and helps you create one specific to manifesting financial security.
- Be grateful: it works. Gratitude is something that really grounds you. Take a break from any chaos, fear, and your everyday realities. If you need guidance on maximizing the impact, that’s ok. Joyce of Mosaic Starfish set up a valuable way for you to really focus on this through an online (and self-paced!) course.
- Get a coach and/or join a Facebook group where manifesting money is celebrated. OK, you can’t just manifest money (I don’t believe that anyway) without combining the right mindset with passion and EFFORT. Working with a coach can get you there and so can being part of a community like Hannah’s Empowered Entrepreneur, Nora’s Corporate to Calling or Anita’s “Champagne Universe.”
- Use affirmations. My personal favorite: “You Got This.” If you want a regular dose, join Jennifer Jayne’s Facebook group Marketing Confidence for Creative Entrepreneurs.
Photo by Kaylee Brayne on Unsplash
Call to action: take imperfect action using the tips in this post and share your success!
To recap, my 5 thoughts:
- Financial freedom is necessary if you decide to blog. Or be any kind of entrepreneur.
- Moments of sheer terror are natural- you just have to move past them.
- Money still isn’t everything because owning my time is more valuable.
- Money is necessary, but you control how much you need to live.
- I’m not that "woo" but some manifestation added to passion is helpful.
I hope this post and all of the articles in the “budget” tab, along with some of the links above, enhance your success, at the very least inspiring you to take imperfect action towards financial freedom.
What will you be working on to reach financial freedom?
Comment below or share in my Ditching the 9-5 Facebook group!
