10 Bloggers Who Turned Their Blog Into A Full Time Business (And How You Can Too!)
Being a full-time blogger may seem like the dream job for some people. And while it's exhilarating, exciting, amazing, and awesome, it can also be scary, intimidating, overwhelming, and well...stressful.Yes, being a full-time blogger has its perks but it's also a lot of hard work. Probably more than you think, to be honest.I know I used to read posts from full-time bloggers and was envious of how easy their job must be. Now that blogging is a major part of my business, I realize that it is not as easy as you think.The road to becoming a full-time blogger ain't for the faint of heart either. That's why I wanted to share the stories of these 10 bloggers who turned their blog into a full-time business and how you can too!
10 Bloggers Who Turned Their Blog Into A Full-Time Business (And How You Can Too!)
Sarah Morgan - XOSarah
Sarah Morgan started planning her escape from her dreadful 9-5 a year in advance. She detailed an 8-month escape plan on a giant whiteboard, featuring goals for her design business, online shop, blog stats, and aerial classes and how she was going to get there.Website | Instagram | TwitterTip: Write out a plan for how you are going to earn enough money to start blogging full-time. Make sure you also write down all of your current and expected expenses so you know how much you need to be bringing in to support yourself.
Melyssa Griffin - Melyssa Griffin
Melyssa went from being an English teacher in Japan to running a full-time graphic design and blog business in three months, but it wasn't easy.Melyssa worked days, nights, weekends, and essentially any free moment she had working on her blog. She started up her graphic design business on the side of her full-time job and after three short months was making enough to quit her job and pursue blogging full-time.Melyssa now has a booming community of creative entrepreneurs and bloggers that follow her blog, take her courses (I can't wait to enroll in Pinifite Growth someday!), and all-around support everything that she does because she's amazing at building a community.Website | Instagram | TwitterTip: Start building a community of followers now before starting a business, so you have an audience to write to before leaving your full-time job. Be yourself, show your unique talents, and be helpful to your community and watch it continue to grow.
Regina Anaejionu - ByRegina
Regina is a woman of many hats and she has worn all of them very well. From designing t-shirts, to graphic design, to blogging, she's done it all.Her tips for growing traffic and making more income aren't the common ones, but ones I whole-heartedly agree with.1. Get rid of stuff you don't need. This can help you focus in on building your business while not be distracted by extraneous costs like cable, furniture, and entertainment.2. Stop making excuses. Everyone is busy. Everyone. If you want to blog full-time you need to stop throwing out every excuse under the sun and just do the work.3. The past is the past, but it can be useful. Everything you've done so far in life can help lead you to your full-time blogging business. You're gaining valuable knowledge. Put it to use.Website | Instagram | TwitterTip: Think of unique ways you can start either 1) cutting down living costs or 2) making more money to help you get closer to the point of blogging full-time.
Related: How I Stay Organized and Productive As A Small Business Owner
Cassie Johnson - Wholefully
I've been reading Cassie's blog for years (gotta support my fellow Hoosiers!) and her amazing food blog didn't just fall in her lap.She worked for six years in a job that wasn't a perfect fit for her, all the while building up a gorgeous food blog that makes her an income.She and her husband took a huge leap of faith, essentially cutting their monthly income in half, but they were determined to make it work...and make it work they did!Website | Instagram | TwitterTip: Becoming a full-time blogger often takes a leap of faith into the unknown to see if it will truly work out and be the job that you want it to be.[bctt tweet="Check out these 10 #bloggers who turned their blog into a full-time business via @BrittneyLLynn" via="no"]
Julia Dzafic - Lemon Stripes
Julia is the fashionable, green juice drinking blogger behind the Lemon Stripes lifestyle blog.Julia actually first started running an online boutique in 2014 before going back to a 9-5 job (which, no job is actually 9-5, is it?). She realized running an online boutique wasn't for her, so she went back to work for a few years before taking her fashion and lifestyle blog, Lemon Stripes, full-time.I admire Julia for going out on her own and then realizing that the path she chose wasn't right for her. I think many people think once you make a decision you have to stick it out and that's certainly not the case.Website | Instagram | TwitterTip: Sometimes the first try at going out on your own isn't the one that works out and that's okay. Let things happen and be patient.
Krista Rae - Krista Rae
Krista is one of my blogging buddies who thankfully gave me a chance and did my first webinar with me! :)Krista started her blog while working a typical 9-5 desk job, and eventually got to a point where she was not as passionate about her day job as she was her blog.She wanted to try to slowly transition into being her own boss by working part-time at her desk job, but when they said no, she quickly had to decide what her next move was.She decided to throw herself into her own business whole-heartedly and now, looking back, wouldn't change a thing about her journey.Website | Instagram | TwitterTip: The path to becoming a full-time blogger may not be what you expect it to be. Listen to your gut and be open to new ways to get to where you want to go.
Ali Ebright - Gimme Some Oven
Some people start full-time blogging simply because they need to quit their "real job" and that's exactly what Ali Ebright from Gimme Some Oven did.She needed to take her health and well-being into her own hands after some changes at her job had occurred that were not favorable.Ali didn't necessarily intend to make blogging her full-time career but now after several years she's still finding herself loving blogging.Website | Instagram | TwitterTip: Depending on your circumstances, full-time blogging may be your way out of a frustrating job situation. Talk with your friends and family about what you can start doing to make moves to leave your dud job behind.
Related post: 10 Tools I Use Every Day To Keep My Small Business Booming
Davida Kugelmass - The Healthy Maven
Davida also never planned on becoming a full-time blogger but sometimes life takes you down an unexpected path. I think something important to notice is that most people (scratch that...make that 99.9%) don't get into blogging for the money.Blogging is hard work. Though it may look simple and that it took only seconds to put together, great bloggers spend a lot of time crafting their blog posts. And if you worked out the hours spent on all tasks related to the blog, well, you'd be making less than minimum wage per hour.This is especially true for beginner bloggers. You most likely won't make a ton of money straight out the gate. Blogging is very saturated and you need to stand out from the rest.Website | Instagram | TwitterTip: Make sure you are blogging about a topic that you love because it may take awhile before the money starts rolling in.
Lee Harsh - Fit Foodie Finds
Lee is another favorite food blogger of mine and she made the leap three years ago into full-time blogging.Many times, people think you have to be a "professional" in your industry to make a decent income but that's so not the case. Lee realized during her two years of blogging that she could make a career out of her healthy living blog without becoming an expert in the field.Website | Instagram | TwitterTip: Take a look at the things you do in your free time and how those could potentially become a business. Not every activity you do in your free time needs to become a business, but some could turn out to be the perfect next step!
Kiersten Rich - The Blonde Abroad
Kiersten Rich from the Blonde Abroad decided to take some time off from her finance job to find out if there was something else out there that she was more passionate about. Turns out, travel was that thing!Sometimes, you need to get out of your usual environment to find the thing that excites you the most.Website | Instagram | TwitterTip: If you have the means, take some time off to truly figure out what it is that you want to get out of blogging full-time and what are the things that you love doing. If you don't have the means to take a true vacation, take a weekend or an afternoon to just be by yourself and reflect on what you love doing the most.
Final Thoughts
As you can see, there is no one path to becoming a full-time blogger. Maybe your path will be similar to one of these listed, or maybe you will forge your own path. There's no right or wrong way and that's one of the beauties of blogging!
