Blogging is tough and a lot of hard work but it can be an incredible source of additional income for your family. Even though money wasn’t the reason behind me starting The Budget Mama, the income that I now earn from TBM is quickly helping us meet our 2015 financial goal of having my students loans paid for by the end of this year.
It’s no secret on here that I was once broke and that I had sunk myself into financial hell and that I spent a long time pulling myself out of the darkness, but I’ve never mentioned the moment that I knew I wanted to help pull others up with me on this journey.
It was about a year after I had started pulling myself from the trenches of financial hell, my hubs (who was my then boyfriend) and I were having dinner with our best friends, a couple with a little girl. Way back when I was avoiding dealing with “the writing on the wall” of my financial mistakes, I was extremely jealous of this particular friend because in my world she had it all.
Negativity does that to you – blinds you and makes you think ugly, jealous laden thoughts of others. She had an amazing job while I work a crappy retail job. She had a soon-to-be husband while my ex-boyfriend was not exactly the type of guy I belonged with. She had nicer clothes than I had and just seemed to have it all while I felt empty.
However, during this particular dinner conversation, my friend and I headed to the bathroom for ya know, one of those “group potty breaks” that girls are so notorious for. While in the bathroom, she confessed to me with tears in her eyes that her and her husband were broke. I had noticed during dinner that she was wearing a different ring on her wedding finger and she told me in the bathroom it was because they had to pawn her wedding set.
I started crying with her and even though I wasn’t far enough along the road to financial freedom to help her out as much as I wanted to, I realized in that moment that she had confided in me because she knew I wouldn’t judge her. Not because I’m some super awesome, never judge anyone person, but because she knew that I had been there. She was right and she was right that as she told me her story, I wasn’t judging her in my mind, I was praying for her and figuring out what advice I could give her to help her. Judging was never even on my radar.
That was the moment that I knew I wanted to help others become financially free, I just didn’t know how to do it. Flash forward about six years and here we are. Starting my blog was a way for me to do what I had always wanted to do but didn’t know how to do. However, starting a blog, growing a blog, and maintaining a blog isn’t exactly easy. This July it will be three years since I start TBM and TBM didn’t start really growing nor did it start earning an income until late last year.
Part of my mistake when starting TBM was that I didn’t do any research into building an incredible blog. I just Googled “how to start a blog” and read the first post that appeared that told me to set up a free blog on Blogger and to start blogging. “Wow, I can do that!” I thought and yes, that’s exactly what I did and it definitely was easy. The only problem was that I didn’t know what I was supposed to do after that. I didn’t even know if anyone would read it and at first, no one did.
It wasn’t until 2013 that I started taking TBM seriously and started ingesting all the information I could about building a blog. However, that was even a slow and tedious process. Something that I wish I would have had all that time ago, was a comprehensive blogging book written by bloggers that have “made it”. Thankfully, now there are dozens of amazing books out there about blogging (my resources pages has several of my favorites here) and Breakthrough * by Addi Ganley is another amazing one to add to list of must-read blogging resources.
In Breakthrough, Addi shares in simple, easy-to-follow format how to start a blog, build a blog, monetize a blog, and even how to network with other bloggers. If you’re looking for a summer read to help you grow your blog, Addi’s book is amazing, quick read to add to your list!
What are your favorite blogging resources and why did you start your blog?
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Very inspiring story! Thanks for sharing! I started my blog for the same reason – to help people break from their limiting mindset. I ultimately wanted make the distinction between intelligence (knowing how to do it) and fitness (actually doing it). How to you take common sense and make it common action.
Thank you for sharing your resources! I can’t wait to dive in! I wish I had something to offer you 🙁 Hopefully I can once I get past my newbie status!
I love your tagline – “take common sense and make it common action”! 🙂
I love your story and these are awesome reasons. You are right, it takes a lot to run a blog. I used to think the same way “I can do it,” but it only becomes successful and beneficial to others through our hard work. I launched my blog less than 6 months ago and I have big plans with it, but it takes much more hard work than I ever imagined. However, no matter how successful a blog is, it has already reached its goal when has helped at least one reader. Thanks so much for sharing your story and thoughts 🙂
So true Reelika – a blog has definitely reached its goal when it helps at least one person! 🙂
Amy Lynn Andrews has been a great resource, and of course, EBA! I started my blog (gasp!) 5 years ago with the idea to share frugal living ideas…and make an income from it when I was ready to stay home. It wasn’t until this past year, when we were finally pregnant, that I started really working hard at making this goal a reality. I am thankful for the guidance Ruth has given me in making that dream a reality. Congrats to you on continuing to grow your blog!
Thank you so much Kristen and EBA is amazing! I have loved learning so much from Ruth! 🙂
What you describe here is precisely why I started blogging. My husband and I had $60K in credit card debt (!!), and I didn’t see a way out of it. I started reading PF blogs like yours, and was amazed at how supportive the community was/is, and that people shared their debt totals, savings, etc., for accountability. I decided I needed both the accountability and the support, and DebtGal was born!
Love your “why” (and your blog) Amy! And I have been utterly amazed at how supportive the community in the PF world is – I truly didn’t expect that! 🙂
ok, so I think i stumbled on your site through a google search, but i’m probably now going to spend all night reading every article. i LOVE writing about budgeting & getting out of debt (we are going crazy “gazelle intense” to pay down our student loans too). AND i’m a SAHM where you were probably a couple years ago in terms of blogging… I have actually blogged for 5 years but 3 months ago, I decided to get serious and make a go of it. I felt like the Lord wouldn’t let it go! Haha 🙂 Anyway, your blogging resources are already helpful…working my way through your posts right now and just wanted to take a break to say 1.)I’m glad I found your site 2.) Thanks for writing – you have a gift! and 3.) I will probably have a zillion questions. I’ll try to remain calm and not explode your comments!
Renee you are too sweet! 🙂 You just made my day! I would love to answer any questions you have — feel free to ask away and I can’t wait to hear more about your debt-payoff success!
This was a great read! I just recently started a blog andv am realizing how much work it is! Thanks for the advice!
You are very welcome Amanda and congrats on starting a blog! 🙂
Great read! After I finished grad school with $75,000 of student loan debt and poor job prospects, I realized that everything I had believed for a long time was not accurate. Student loans weren’t worth it. I also realized that many millennials were making the same bad choices that I made. I started my blog as a way to help fellow millennials to make better financial choices and to encourage younger generations not to take out student loans.
Heck yes Jen! I hate that student loans – kudos to you and your amazing mission!
Thank you for this honest post. I enjoy reading your blog.
Loved reading your story and getting to know you better from this. I started a blog because I used to have a snail mail newsletter I sent on a semi-regular basis. When I got into deal shopping, I wanted to expand on my section “Tales From the Coupon Crypt” and took it online. I’ve been blogging for about six years now, and am just now really taking it super seriously. I am enrolled in Elite Bloggging Academy, and although it is advised against listening to others, I signed up for Kindle Unlimited so I could download tons of ebooks about blogging. Some have been more helpful than others, but most of them at least give me encouragement and ideas on how to improve my blog. Probably it is most helpful on the encouragement because I see I can do what others are doing. I also write a number of posts about frugality, and I’ve read a number of ebooks off Kindle Unlimited on saving money. I am ready to implement some of the ideas and see how they work for me. I just used the last of an Amazon gift card we got for Christmas to order a low-flow shower head. I’m excited to see how some of my tweaks in life can help me save money. (Of course I’ll have to report to my readers as well!)