I’m sitting on the patio of my favorite coffee shop after having a great conversation with three strangers who were sitting next to me. It was hilarious. This weekend I’ve gotten very woo-woo and kind of meta as I move towards the next chapter in my life.
The Blog
It’s kind of funny, but, I’ve been blogging for almost 6 years (since 2012). For the past year or so I have to admit that my original love of blogging kind of wavered. And, it was a good thing. I explored other topics, I experimented with some different ideas and I failed a lot as well. Success!!
I hate to admit this but I stopped commenting on other people’s blogs and basically became a bit insular in my focus. I just…lost interest.
My blog numbers plummeted (especially after the Great Pinterest Algorithm Change) and I found myself a bit demoralized and frustrated. I had no clear “why” that connected with my blog. Initially, it was a place for me to share my financial struggles, thoughts, and provided a safe space to share my story. I was left thinking…now what?
Then, weirdly enough…I fell back in love with the process and the possibilities that focused monetizing of my site(s) could create in my life.
Blogging ROI
Given how profoundly unhappy I was at the beginning of my blogging journey, you would think that there was nowhere to go but up. But, I’ve found that there are still a number of bloggers who are mentally in the same space as when they started their blogging journey. So, just because I was blogging didn’t mean that my life was guaranteed to change. But, it did.
While I haven’t completed my financial goals, I am A LOT closer than when I started. I can say that blogging has helped give me a certain degree of financial peace of mind because I have learned to control my financial behaviors.
I can say that blogging has helped give me a certain degree of financial peace of mind because I have learned to control my financial behaviors.
Some of the amazing things that have come from my blogging journey:
- Paid off almost all of my credit cards (I had a lot)
- I became an entrepreneur (it’s hard)
- Stopped accumulating debt.
- Switched to an all-cash budget
- Learned how to earn more money-with intention
- Meeting other amazing people at various stages of their financial journey.
- Became a professional speaker and have presented at different conferences the past couple of years.
- Became a podcaster!
- Recognized as a Financial Influencer
The ROI has been priceless for me. But, along the way, I changed and realized that my “why” was lost along the way-affecting the level of passion that I had for this project.
Currently, I’m of the mindset that as of this month (October 2017) my blogging journey has started again. And, that journey is very connected to my “why.”
What’s Your Why?
One of the things that I’ve realized recently is that your “why” changes. It can happen very subtly or abruptly as you achieve your goals or as you change and grow.
If you’re not sure what your “why” is spend some time doing whatever activity helps you connect with clarity. For me, the following activities help me connect with better clarity of vision:
- Walking
- Yoga
- Riding my bike
- Hiking
- Taking a shower
Basically, any activity that I can zone out in and am completely relaxed helps me find the way to the answers that I seek.
For me, my “why” is to earn life-changing passive income. Seriously. I do make passive income, but I don’t make consistent or life-changing passive income. The thing is….I know A LOT of people who do. So, I’ve reached out to those people to get some insight into what they are doing that is different from what I’ve been doing. This means that I’m working hard on growing my email list which has languished the ENTIRE time that I’ve blogged about money. Besides creating quality content that helps my readers-I’m 150% focused on growing my email list.
The people that I’ve reached out to have 1 thing in common: they are consistently focused on activities that help them reach their “why.” They have a lazer beam focus on their end goal and that is all that they work on. Yep, that’s it. But, I believe that consistency is the hardest skill for most people to master. Once they do-watch out!
Once you figure out what your “why” is focus on it for 1-year even if it’s a multi-year goal. A lot can happen in a year and as a result, how you approach your goals will change…just like you will change during the course of a year.
In fact, I think that a lot of people end up quitting their goals and losing focus on their “why” because they are focused on too long of a time-frame. Committing to a year of action is a heck of a lot easier than a 3-year plan. This shift was challenging for me because I have 1, 3, 5-year plans. But, when I looked back at goals that I’ve actually reached-the action (and the magic) really happened in that first year. That first year created the foundation for the results I was working towards.
Own the Emotion Your Why
Is connected to…what do I mean by that? it’s highly likely that you’ve connected to your why because of an emotional response to a situation happening in your life (good, bad, or ugly). Emotions that your “why” could be connected to include:
- Fear-I will admit that I am FREAKED out by what’s happening in the U.S. currently and feel an almost compulsive need to get debt-free. This feeling is the most intense that I’ve had since I started blogging. I don’t want to owe money to anyone.Ever.Again.In.Life.
- Exasperation-I’m tired of this chapter of my life. I’m ready to move the heck on. I don’t want to continue allocating brain space and energy to anything that is associated with debt. Seriously, am f#cking done.
- Excitement-I want to prove to myself that I can achieve the blog related goals that I’ve set for myself. It’s not rocket science-it’s implementation and consistency.
- Boredom-OMG, am so bored with debt as a part of my story. It’s gets so old.
- Frustration-Umm…it’s so annoying not achieving my goals. AND, before you point out that I traveled, etc. Yes, I did. And, I am a grown a@@ woman. I understand that by making that choice I was slowing down my progress on the debt. And, I was ok with that decision at the time. Now, it’s time to get it done.
- Competition-I’m typically not very competitive with other people. I’m kind of weirdly competitive with myself. I will set lofty goals and then I achieve them. So, in the spirit of competing with myself…I want to do this. And, it doesn’t hurt to be recognized for achieving your goals (financial and any other goals you may have).
What Outcome Is Your “Why” Connected To?
I have a number of friends making thousands of dollars blogging. So many friends, in fact, that it’s basically ridiculous that I’ve dragged my feet on this. But, I realized that it was hard to commit to monetizing my projects until I was very clear on my “why.”
Let me share what they are….because I have more than one (all tied to making more money).
- Paying off both my mom and my’s mortgages. We both have VERY small mortgages. Imagine, the amount of a rich person’s credit card bill. I’m over those mortgages and want them paid off.
- Finish paying off my remaining debt. Am done with that too. I’ve slowly paid down my debt. Slow and steady. As my financial situation has stabilized I’m able to focus more on what I need to do to finish the journey. **It’s not surprising that a lot of people quit their financial journeys if they are dealing with a number of debts.** The stress of dealing with numerous creditors makes it very difficult to focus and remove emotion from the decisions that you need to make in order to manage financial situations. When I started my journey I was dealing with way too many creditors. I no longer accumulate debt and won’t ever use credit cards again (they are like heroin to me) the gateway financial drug to bad money decisions. Anyhoo, now that I’m dealing with fewer creditors-I’m able to focus and work on a much more aggressive debt repayment strategy.
Your “Why” Fuels Your Passion
Recently I shared a live stream on my FB page about passion. What I didn’t say clearly enough is that your “why” really fuels that passion. When you have clear outcomes (goals or results )that you’re working towards it’s hard to get passionate about the process.
The process is really painful. If it were easy-then everyone would be achieving their goals. When you connect with your “why” it’s much easier to dig in deep to do the painful tasks that you have to do in order to achieve the goal. The passion is the fuel.
If you’re struggling with what your “why” is check out my guide “Stuck” you can request it below.
Stuck?
Next Girl Gone Frugal (again) Podcast Episode
This week I speak to my dear friends Michelle and Shawn Poe. They are killing it in a Multi-Level Marketing Business (network marketing) and making 6 figures a month (nope-not bloggers, but…this is why I’m focusing on monetizing!).
If you are working in business model you must listen to this episode. By the way, for people who aren’t familiar with the term MLM think of the following types of business:
- Arbonne
- Stella and Dot
- Avon
- Mary Kay
- Lularoe
When? This Friday, October 13, 2017- I will share their episode.
Subscribe to the podcast so you don’t miss it!
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You sound a lot like me! I often have times of self-doubt when I wonder why I do something… but a walk/run, yoga or a quick shower can help me to reset and remember what I’m doing and why. Thank you for the boost today 🙂
I’m working hard on addressing those moments of self-doubt pretty quickly so that I stay focused. Sometimes it’s hard because it feels like those moments can sneaky up on you.
I was almost going to sign up for this travel/mountain survival course just to do something different. And although it sounds great, it takes me a way a little from my big picture goals. Sometimes you have to make those difficult sacrifices for what you REALLY want.
I’m going to be honest-that course sounds awesome! BUT, those types of courses are always around. So, you will have another chance when things settle down. And, I’m so happy to see your comment 🙂 Thanks to constantly alerting me to the fact that the blog was eating your comments.
So encouraging! In a time when being debt free is “weird” it is always refreshing to hear success stories!! Thank you for sharing in a way that only you can do!! Love that you’re my friend!! And one of these days I want to talk blogging with you!!😉
Carolyn! Thanks for stopping by. I am obsessed with debt-freedom. It’s the “only way to fly LOL!” Would love to talk blogging, now you have me wondering what you’re up to…