Eight months ago, I halted my full-time blogging “experiment” to take a “real job”. For those of you interested in the “business of blogging” and my personal story, (I know, for one, Sam was curious why I would ever give up full-time blogging), here’s an update.
The job I took is great. It’s a mile from home in offices on the Portland, Maine waterfront. I’m doing something I enjoy (marketing and technical writing) and work with a great small team. There’s been a learning curve, but I’m enjoying the challenge.
As it turns out, taking a job when I did was fortuitous. That’s because we now have a little girl on the way! Come the end of August, I’ll be a worker, a blogger, and a father. I’m tired just thinking about it. But oh, so excited.
Blogging continues to rock. Money Under 30 still surpasses my expectations. Traffic has grown to new heights, reaching nearly 100k unique visitors in March. (There’s been a slight drop as interest in articles related to taxes and the home buyer tax credits dries up, but the trend is still good.)
Revenue is also better than it’s ever been. If the site’s net revenues were a “livable” wage a year ago, they’re a “comfortable” full-time salary now.
(Still, there are good reasons for the job: security, live human interaction, and the opportunity to get new skills outside of blogging. Part of me also questions the long-term viability of ad-supported blogging as a business, although it doesn’t seem to be going away anytime soon.)
As you know, I’ve also hired some writers to help me manage the pressure of running what could easily be a full-time business while doing my best at my full-time job. I think Carrie, Emily, Mark, and Sarah are doing an awesome job; I hope you do, too!
Finally, there’s this: Seven months from now, I face a conundrum that most of my friends already joke about.
In January 2011, I turn 30.
The question, of course, is how does a 30-year old run “Money Under 30”?
I’m still working on that one. Perhaps by publishing younger writers. Perhaps by taking on a younger partner. Perhaps by rebranding. (I’m open to suggestions).
Until then, I’m going to be using my limited time to work hard on my mission: To build not just another financial blog, but a resource providing simple, sound, and enduring financial education for twenty somethings.
In that vein, I created a quick survey asking for suggestions that I’ll be fully promoting next week. (Interested in helping? Take my survey here.) I’m also going to launch a Money Under 30 Facebook page soon, which is long, long, long overdue. Finally, I’m quietly working on a new site. Whether it will one day compliment Money Under 30 or become Money Under 30 “2.0”, I’m not sure yet. That’s all I can say for now, but I will keep you posted.
If you have other suggestions for steering Money Under 30’s course, questions about blogging, or just thoughts, I’d love to hear them!
Thanks, as always, for reading.
David
About David E. Weliver
WOW!!! Congrats, dad-to-be! That is just awesome! You’ve got lots of good stuff to look forward to.
Thanks, Carrie! Yup, definitely exciting times
Congrats, I religiously check your blogs on here to motivate me to improve my life. You have inspired me to open an ING account, contribute in lending club, and cut back on my spendings, maintain a standard way of living without utelizing my full paycheck, transfer money to savings before anything else when I get paid. I owe alot of credit to this site. Even though I have always been a saver, this site deffinately gave me some input and new ideas daily. I am now 24 and look forward to your posts. I actually emailed you once and got a live response from you which was good to know that you took time to respond. Congrats on your success throughout and especially on the baby on the way. Happy blogging friend, I will keep reading.
Thanks so much, Bishnu. I’m so happy you’ve found the site so helpful and appreciate the loyalty!
Congratulations, David!
And I’m happy to hear the FT job is going well. I agree that it’s largely just a lifestyle choice. Some people like being a part of a team/office environment; some don’t.
Oh good! I’m 33 and rss your blog to educate myself. You could say at my age I’m where you were in your 20s, just learning and getting to a place where I can actually implement the knowledge. Good luck in the future and I look forward to reading.
Congrats David on the expected birth of your daughter. My wife and I are also expecting our first child, a little girl, in August. I also have a job and own my own business as a financial planner for young couples who are too busy or don’t know where to start. So I completely relate to your current situation. Really enjoyed this post!
Congratulations on all the exciting opportunties. If you are like me, you’ll love being a dad!
It’s good to hear that your blog is doing so well too. Sounds like the sky is the limit for you
Congrats mate and thanks for the heads up!
You’re validating my suspicion that to be a full time blogger isn’t a whole lot of fun if that’s all one does.
I blog for fun, and for some reason, money is being generated. But, I blog entirely for fun. I don’t have a set schedule, and there’s no pressure to write brilliantly or agonize over details.
Thanks for the insight!
Best,
Sam
I am a newbie to the site but so far I like. As of May 2011 I will be 30 as well so maybe you can branch off to “Money Under 40″ or “Money with Child”! LOL… just an idea. But keep up the great work!