Last Updated on May 3, 2020 by ellduclos
Do you struggle when it comes to creating a money mindset? Especially when it comes to your blog and business? When I first started my blog in April 2017 I knew that one of my goals was to eventually be able to work from home through my blogging income. I took this goal and ran with it.
6 months later I was making $1,500 + a month and fast forward a year later, my income doubled! This was when I decided to go full time with my blog. It was a scary transition but I did it! Now almost two years later my income from blogging has tripled and some months quadrupled!
I’m not going to lie and say I make a 6 figure salary from blogging because right now I do not. BUT – I am able to support myself and more thanks to my blog, so for that I am grateful! I find that a huge part of this has to do with my money mindset!!!
SO today’s post is all about creating a money mindset and tips + tricks to help you bring more sales to your blog. This year will be the year you increase your blogging income!
Disclaimer: Affiliate links are used! If you purchase via my link I receive a small commission at no additional cost to you! You can read my disclosure here.
1st: Cut out negative money thoughts
If you want to make money you first have to eliminate any negative/limiting beliefs you have about money.
I used to be the person who looked at money in a negative way. Money was the root of all evil in my eyes. I mean, it’s easy to think money is evil when you look at it from a perspective of,
“If I don’t have money I can’t be happy.” OR “I will never be able to afford anything, no matter how hard I try, I can’t get ahead.”
Trust me, before blogging was bringing me income I was the most unstable person financially. I have debt and I was waitressing full time, struggling to get by. Bills and money to me were all evil and this was the mindset I USED to have.
It’s easy to think that your current situation is going to be your forever situation. I remember crying to my mom and boyfriend most nights about how I thought I was going to be a waitress the rest of my life. Having my bills paid and having spending money was never a reality for me. My reality was living paycheck to paycheck. I did a good job at hiding my financial struggles but I was definitely in over my head.
So here’s the thing:
When you shine a negative light on money, you will subconsciously block it from entering into your life.
I decided to stop the “I can’t do this because of money.” OR “I will never be able to afford this”mindset because that just blocks my money flow with negative vibes. When you say I will never be able to afford this, you are creating a negative energy that stops your motivation to go after what you want.
So what did I start to do instead???
I practiced money affirmations& a positive money mindset
I got into the law of attraction and I started taking the time to do daily affirmations. It sounds so silly and pointless but BELIEVE ME when I say, it helped me so much! Once you stop looking at money as the root of all evil and start focusing on what you want to attract into your life, it’s going to happen.
Whatever you put your focus on, you will obtain. Your mind is powerful (I always say this) if you believe, then you can achieve!
A huge part of attracting money into your life is through money affirmations. Since we are cutting out the “I can’t make money, I will never afford this” mindset, we must replace it with a “I can make money, I will afford this” mindset.
Some of my favorite money affirmations:
- I can make money
- Money flows to me easily
- I am ready to receive money
- Money comes to me in abundance frequently and easily
- My income is constantly increasing
- I am financially abundant
- There is no limit on the amount of money I can make
- I attract money
I find that often times people think it’s looked down upon to want more money or that it’s selfish. This is a limiting belief and it’s a thought you need to let go of. It’s okay to want more.
The key is to learn how to appreciate and love what you already have while you are working towards achieving more.
I like to call that BALANCE.When you stop appreciating what you already have, that’s what causes the issue!
If you like daily journaling like I do, then practice money affirmations daily! I like to write out exactly what I would buy if I had the money. BUT rather than write out like“I want to buy a house.” I replace it with “I will buy a house.”
Doing it this way let’s my mind know that it’s going to happen, which helps motivate me to be able to ACTUALLY accomplish it easier. It’s like tricking your brain.
You can also write your goals out as if they already happened too! Another great motivation + mindset trick!
What to do every week to help your money mindset:
- Write out your positive money affirmations (daily)
- Write out your money goals (daily,weekly,monthly goals) whether it be make an extra $200, or buy a new car
Now that you have your money mindset right, brainstorm ways to use your blog to bring income into your life.
What I love most about blogging is that there are so many different ways to add income! It’s easy to create something but the key is actually making the sales!
First let’s talk about different ways you can make money as a blogger.
1. Affiliate Marketing
I love affiliate marketing because you are basically getting paid for recommending products you use and love! If someone makes a purchase through your affiliate link, you get a small commission for the sale! I have a dedicated blog post on affiliate marketing that shares strategies too. You can read that here.
2. Sponsored Posts
This is when you can get paid from brands to talk about their products! It could be in exchange for an instagram post, blog post, facebook post etc. It’s a little bit harder to score paid brand collabs but it is possible to get to this point! (additional tips on this topic can be read here.)
3. Offering Services
If you are good at something and you are able to teach it or do it for someone else, then make it a service! For example, some of the services I offer are: Pinterest strategic management & Blog coaching/mentoring.
4. Create Products to Sell
You can also create products that you can sell! I love this because you can create a product and sell it on autopilot. I have a few courses that I created as well as launching some planning/goal printables!
5. ADs
If you have a larger audience you can sign up for Mediavine which is an ad program. You would add these ads to your blog posts and make a little bit of money every time someone comes across the ad and interacts with it!
These are a few ways to add income to your blog.
How to come up with a product or service to sell? Think: What problem can I solve for my audience?
This is a SUPER important question that you need to ask! If you can offer a solution to a problem, that will SELL like wildfire! What does your audience struggle with?
For example: The majority of my audience happens to be bloggers because that’s what I am constantly writing about. Therefore, I knew my Pinterest Strategies e-course would sell because it helps my audience with a problem they might have: Getting more blog traffic.
Maybe you are a lifestyle blogger, does your audience struggle with time management/planning?Create a planner that will help your audience stay on top of their schedules!
The thing is, creation is endless! Figure out the problem and offer a solution!
It’s important to keep this in mind when selling your product or service:
- Deliver what you advertise. Quality and value is so important
- Always be honest
- Create personal connections with your audience
- Have a few people try out your product/service in exchange for a review in the beginning
- Create an affiliate program for your product
Cut out these negative money mindsets:
- I can only make money blogging if I blog about blogging. (THIS IS SO FALSE. You can make money blogging in any niche!)
- I can’t make money blogging. (You can if you try!)
- It’s not possible to make money blogging in a year. (Yes, it most definitely is possible.)
- I have to make money first before I invest in my blog. (Investing in your blog is so important and can help you grow.)
- I need to have a ton of blog traffic to make money. (Nope! As long as you have an audience that trusts you, you can make money!)
These are all negative money mindsets you need to let go of if you want to start attracting blogging income into your life.
Once you start making money, how do you prepare to transition to full time?
I am not going to lie, going full time with my blog scared me to death, but at the same time it was so exciting! When you start seeing the income flow, it can be an awesome feeling. I remember saying to myself, “That’s it! I am quitting my job!” I was just so excited….BUT…don’t!
I say this because income with blogging fluctuates all the time during the first year or two! One month you can make $2,000 and the next maybe $1,000…you never know! It reminds me of being a waitress. Since as a waitress my income was based off of tips, I never knew exactly how much I was going to make.
What I tried to do for the first 6 months of making income is tracking how much I would make. THEN, I would put it aside unless I HAD to use it. After a complete year of making income from my blog I decided that it would be safe to cut back my hours at my waitressing job. I still work there on the weekends sometimes because it does get me out of the house.
I also made sure to have at least 2 months worth of my bills in my savings bank just in case something were to happen. It took a lot of stress off of me financially!
I always made sure to live below my means! I love this mindset because it keeps me feeling financially stable. If I have $100 I act as if I have only $60. A great way to save.
It’s also important to keep taxes in mind. I hate taxes but they have to be done. In order to make sure I have enough for taxes I always save 30% of what I make that month. 30% is usually more than enough to cover taxes so you might even get a tax refund! YAY! I am no financial supervisor though so definitely take the time to talk to one!!
Lastly, we all know if you want to make money you need to invest a little. INVEST IN YOUR BLOG
If I didn’t invest in my blog, I probably wouldn’t have been able to turn it into a full time job. As I continue to grow, I plan on investing even more. Maybe you are wondering, what should I invest in?
Here are some things that I am glad I invested in:
1.Self Hosting
I know there are bloggers out there who roll their eyes when someone mentions self hosting. They think it’s a scam and that you don’t need to be self hosted. Well, it depends on your blogging goals. If you are wanting to take your blog seriously (make some money), investing in self hosting can be a game changer!
When you are self hosted you have complete ownership over your blog which is something you don’t have when you are on a hosted platform like: wix, blogger, wordpress .com, squarespace etc.
Being self hosted also allows you unlimited customization! You can edit your blog however you’d like and you have access to coding. BUT just because you have access to coding doesn’t mean you need to know a ton of coding to be self hosted. In fact, I barely ever use coding except for when I needed to set up rich pins on Pinterest (which btw on wix you can’t do)and keep in mind there are a ton of tutorials on youtube!
You can also monetize however you’d like if you are self hosted. Some sites for examplewordpress .com, only lets you use their ad program…So mediavine, which is a higher paying ad company couldn’t be used on wordpress .com – You might have other limitations too depending on the hosted site’s terms and conditions.
SEO is the best on a self hosted blog especially because your site speed will be much faster…If you want to rank higher in searches, self hosting is helpful!
PLUS – you have access to thousands of plug-ins that help you take your blog up a notch – some of my favorites being: YOAST, Mailerlite, Instagram Feed, Social Warfare, Click to Tweet, etc.
All in all, self hosting is the ideal platform to have your blog on and is definitely worth investing in!
Which self host do I recommend? Why?
Easily, Siteground! I have been with them for over a year and my site was never down. Their server speeds are also fantastic! In my opinion they are #1 in customer service. They have a live 24/7 chat that answers any questions! PLUS they have free SSL certificates!
Their packages start at a discounted $3.95 a month. If you want to save the most money in the long run, I suggest signing up for longer than a year because renewal will go up a bit.
Another tip! If you are transferring from a different platform, get the $5.95 a month package that includes site transfers! It will save you so much headache!
Start self hosting today at a discounted price < —
2.Privacy & Disclosure Policy
Many bloggers wouldn’t think to invest in a privacy and disclosure policy but TRUST me, it will save you in the long run. I recently spoke with a lawyer who is also a blogger and she explained to me why having a “free generated” policy on your site wasn’t ideal. It really opened my eyes! If you want to save your butt in the long run from any legal issues, I suggest having a privacy and disclosure policy that is drafted by a lawyer who knows a thing or two about the laws!
You can purchase the legal bundle that I used that was drafted by a lawyer here.
3.Theme
Having a clean and organized website is pretty important. Of course content quality is the most important BUT if I go on to a website that looks thrown together and unprofessional, I may not take you as seriously. Take the time to invest in a quality theme that is appealing.
Some of my favorite places to purchase themes:
4. Tailwind
This is probably the best investment I made so far besides self hosting! You know I love Pinterest and rave about how it helps bring me blog traffic all the time! Well, Tailwind is an awesome pin scheduling tool that I use to help schedule pins. This helps keep me active on Pinterest even when I am sleeping!
When it comes to Pinterest it’s important that you are pinning actively everyday. Tailwind helps me to stay active even when I can’t physically be on the platform myself. I definitely suggest investing in it, especially if you have been wanting to but you aren’t sure if it’s worth it… If you use it properly and consistently, IT IS WORTH IT! Which brings me to this ….
5. Pinterest E-Course
If you have been wanting to UP your blog traffic, taking the time to learn Pinterest strategies and investing in a Pinterest e-course is so worth it! I know a lot of people stress over e-courses because they aren’t sure which ones are worth the $$$ .. Especially since a lot of e-courses can be pricey! That’s why I created an affordable Pinterest E-course that can help you grow!
Pinterest brings me thousands of page views a day! & I was able to bring my monthly Pinterest views to over 2 million! The power of Pinterest is real.
If you want to learn more about my Pinterest Strategies Course then check it out here!
6. E-Mail List Builder
I also recommend investing in an e-mail list builder! Social media is great and all but if it were to ever disappear, at least you would still have your e-mail list! Essentially your e-mail list is filled with subscribers who want to hear from you! The e-mail list builder I use and love is Mailerlite. They are actually free for up to 1,000 subscribers! I also love how easy to use Mailerlite is!
7. Stock Photos
If you aren’t the best at photography it’s okay to invest in stock photos to take your branding game up a notch! Especially for creating beautiful pins for your blog posts! I use stock photos for my Pinterest pins all the time and I find that it helps get me more clicks.
Some of my favorite places to purchase stock photos:
- IvoryMix(a membership and definitely worth it!)
- Creative Market
8. Vision Planner
I am a HUGE fan of writing things down and planning things out! I swear by my vision planner from bloomDailyPlanners! I even wrote a post about my monthly content schedule using my vision planner!
These are my favorite investments that I made to help me take my blog to the next level. As I continue to grow and add to my income, I will continue to invest. Whether it be Facebook ads, a business coach, virtual assistant, and more. Just take it day by day!
I hope this post inspired you or motivated you in some way! I know this year will be the year you add to your blogging income!
What are some of your blogging goals for this year?!
Maybe you will be interested in:
- 11 Tips to help you become a full time blogger
- How to grow an engaged blog audience
- 2019 Content marketing strategy to explode your blog traffic
- What every blog post should include
