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Can Blogging Be a Full Time Job?
Can blogging be a full time job? If you’ve ever dreamed or wondered about blogging full time, I’m here to tell that you that it is absolutely possible!
I started my first blog over five years ago when I was a broke college student just trying to find a way to make some extra money on the side.
Within six months, I was earning $1,000 a month from my blog. It was a nice part time income for sure, but I was still not earning a full time income from blogging. After a year and a half, I was making $3,000 a month from blogging, which is technically a full time income, but not enough in my high cost of living city.
So I also got a 9-to-5 corporate job after college while I continued to grow my blogging business on the side. Finally, after three full years of blogging, I was able to quit my job and pursue blogging full time. The following year I crossed six figures in profit from my blogging business, which was amazing!
As you can see, becoming a full time blogger didn’t happen overnight.
But with hard work and persistence, you can make blogging your full time job.
How Do Bloggers Make Money?
If you’re wondering how bloggers actually make money, I wrote an entire post about how bloggers make money explaining the top methods.
It comes down to the following methods mainly:
- Display advertising
- Affiliate marketing
- Sponsored content
- Digital products
- Selling services
Most bloggers have multiple streams of income, or even multiple blogs. (I personally run several other blogs in addition to this one!)
As a blogger, you are not an employee. You’re self-employed.
You may work with other companies (such as your ad network, affiliate network, or brands you work with on sponsored content) but it’s an independent contractor relationship. You do not have to answer to anyone, and you have complete control over your blog and how it’s monetized.
How Much Do Bloggers Earn?
Like with every career, the answer to this question is it depends.
Some bloggers make $300, $3,000, or $30,000 a month.
Not every blogger is going to publicize how much money they earn, but some bloggers do share income reports which are a great tool for getting an idea of how much money you can make from blogging, and how to get there.
Just remember that for every one blogger out there sharing income reports, there are 10 more who are making a full time income but just not publicizing it.
How Long Does It Take to Become a Full Time Blogger?
Once again, there’s no definitive answer to this question.
In my case, it took around a year and a half to earn $3,000 a month from blogging, which is what I would personally to be consider a full time income (although not nearly enough to live on in my city!)
But it took me a little over three years to be earning enough where I felt comfortable quitting my high-paying corporate job in order to blog full time.
For some bloggers, they may reach a full time income in just a year or two, while for others it could take five years or even longer.
It all depends on how seriously you take your blog, how much time you put into it, whether you know what you’re doing or not, and even some luck.
What Does a Full Time Blogger Do?
Every full time blogger’s schedule and routine looks a little different.
The beauty of being a full time blogger is that you can set your own hours, work from wherever you want, and work on whatever you want.
When I quit my corporate job to blog full time, I also started traveling full time. In one year I visited 20 countries across Central America and Europe, while working on my blog from destinations around the world!
As a blogger, you create your own schedule. I rarely ever work 40 hours a week on blogging. Most of the time, I work around 15 to 20 hours a week.
A typical day for me includes publishing a new blog post or updating old ones, writing email newsletters, promoting my content on social media, responding to emails from readers, and analyzing my performance to make tweaks and adjustments. Blogging requires adaptability a variety of skills.
Also, since you are working for yourself, it’s up to you to set your schedule and make sure that you accomplished everything that you need to do.
How to Make Blogging Your Full Time Job
So now that we’ve covered the basics of how blogging can be a full time job, let’s talk about how to actually make it happen for you!
Blogging has a low barrier to entry, but that still doesn’t mean it’s for everyone. You have to be willing to learn a new skillset and put in the work to succeed.
It’s true that you don’t need 8+ years of schooling to become a blogger like you need to become a doctor or a surgeon, for example. But does that mean just anyone can sit down and become a successful blogger overnight? Also no.
Check out these signs that starting a blog is right for you.
Starting Your Blog the Right Way
The first thing you will need in order to become a full time blogger is a blog that is actually set up to make money, and a blogging business plan.
You will need a self-hosted blog (as opposed to using a free blogging platform) if you want to make money blogging. I recommend using Bluehost because it’s only $2.95 a month and you get a free .com domain name for your blog.
I wrote a full guide on how to start a blog for beginners that covers detailed, step-by-step instructions for setting up your blog today!
I also recommend enrolling in my course 30 Days to Blogging Success.
This will give you a strong foundation for starting your blog, and it contains all the information I wish I had known when I started blogging!
Can Blogging Be a Full Time Job?
This post answered the question of can blogging be a full time job.
As you can see, the answer to this question is yes, it’s possible! It’s not always easy to become a full time blogger, but it’s absolutely worth it.
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