One of the most common misconceptions that I come across with bloggers hoping to make their fortune from blogging is that it is quick and easy.
As a result I quite often point PreBloggers to the following post in the hope that it will help give a bit of a reality check.
Do you have time to be a ProBlogger?
In a similar line of thought PreBloggers might also find my Public Service Announcement posts useful.
Hope it’s all not too much of a downer. While these posts don’t get the attention that some of my other posts get (like the one talking about how much I earn) they are important posts that I write in the hope ofgiving a realistic impression of ProBlogging as a strategy to earn an income.
Good advice.
I think, foremost, people forget that blogging is essentially a writing career. The most successful bloggers are the ones who have earned the skills of good writing through practice and hard work.
Ofcourse, there are other ways to make money on the internet (ecommerce, original startups, affiliate marketting etc.) but when we talk about pure blogging then that is writing straight for your audience (with out the hassles of getting publishers, and jumping through hoops that traditional writers have had to do since the invention of the printing press).
I found problogger.com via its first slashdotting and I’ve been practicing and learning about online (non-ecommerce) income streams since. I don’t have a lot of time because of my full time CS student and full time work status. I first started my first blog for fun back in the 90s when the term blogging wasn’t even invented. Only now have I started making decent (yet not enough to quit my job) earnings. And this too is from multiple income streams (blogs, forums, ecommerce, affiliate marketting).
This is by no means anything easy but I find it fun and interesting :) . So, pre-bloggers, if the internet, entrepreneurship, and writing are your passions, then by all means jump in and have fun :-D
If you can’t stand the idea of writing zillions of words, technology, and risk then I guess this is not for you :)
Good luck!
I must say that this is one of my most favorties entries. Many people enter into blogging with unrealistic expectations. Some of them do not do any research about the field before starting a blog.In the end they get frustrated. I have seen some decent amount of success in blogging in the last 7 months and I know that it needs a lot of dedication. It is not like a 9-5 job but it is like a 9AM-12AM job if you really want to shine in problogging.
I have been visiting this site for over a year now and I have to admit that hearing about how much money you can make by blogging is tantalizing. However, Darren does emphasize time and time again that this is not a get rich quick scheme. First and foremost, I think you have to enjoy what you’re doing and going into something purely for the money without covering your basis is a great way to set yourself up for diappointment. I think having realistic goals in the beginning is key.
I wanted to say thanks for responding to my email so quick the other day, I know you get flooded with em. Thanks for the tips and for bringing all of us down to earth. I think no matter how popular you are you can use a good reality check every once in a while. You won my viewership and I visit the site every day. Keep up the good work.
[…] Darren Rowse talks about having realisitic expectations when setting out to be a problogger. […]
[…] Well, for a more realistic (fair and balanced?) look at ProBlogging — in addition to the always-awesome Problogger.net — hit up this article in the Pasadena Star News which profiles a number of bloggers, including Steve Pavlina, the folks over at BoingBoing.net, and Kyle James of RatherBeShopping.net […]
I totally agree with you Darren. It’s foolish to jump into the problogging bandwagon without a clear expectation of what awaits you. I wrote about this in my site as well. :)