A question I get asked quite often is about how much money I made as a professional blogger. I used to like to avoid the answer because I was making enough to pay the bills, but not enough to be able to buy luxury items on a whim.
Simply put, blogging was my full time job and required much more than the forty hour work weeks that people put into their nine to five jobs. When I first start working as a full time blogger, I was bringing in around $1200 per month after taxes. Unfortunately, I was probably putting in around eighty hours a week doing various tasks, and realized I was actually earning around four dollars per hour.
By the time I had been working full time for three years, I was making $2500 per month blogging. All of this income was working on blogs owned by other people, and usually my responsibilities included more than just writing. My technical skills probably allowed me to make a premium over other bloggers of the same caliber.
Back when I first started, there was a lot less competition and the market hadn’t really figured out yet how valuable content would be in terms of search, advertising and conversions. Now, despite many posts about making money online, and the growth of the industry, I feel like it is harder to get into blogging as a full time career than it was back when I started in 2005.
If you really have a passion for blogging, then I still believe you can find or create opportunities to become a full time blogger, but until you prove your value, don’t expect to be paid what you are worth. It can be a humbling experience and it may test your resolve, but if you stick with it, the rewards and dividends can be truly amazing.
Malcolm's Ramblings 