I’ve been blogging for over 12 years!
We’ve come so far in this time as an industry and I am forever grateful for all the amazing opportunities blogging has provided for our family.
When I started blogging I wasn’t 100% sure of what would come of it. Isn’t that the case for most home based careers? I knew I had a passion, was ready to take a risk, and I saw an area of the Internet that was missing exactly what I wanted to say.
Building and running that party site has been way more fun than going back to my previous career of investment banking (where they do not approve of confetti at all… Can you imagine?).
Starting out a little business from home making ZERO DOLLARS A MONTH for a long time with my mom and best friend reading, then a couple more readers came along, then more, and more, and here we are.
People often ask me how I’ve been able to make a career out of blogging. I normally respond with work really hard. 🙂 But really, there are 5 elements of our starting out story that will help anyone to launch a successful business at home.
1) Find a mentor
Did you know the entire reason I started this site was because I wanted to write a book? No one knew who I was, and I honestly wasn’t 100% sure of what I wanted to say. A seasoned blogging friend spoke up and suggested the best way to get what I wanted was to focus on building my blog first.
Jenn was so right!
When we finally did accept our first book deal last year, I knew exactly what I wanted to say. I am so happy I listened to her advice and countless other wise words from many of my first blogging friends.
Find a mentor you trust, who has done what you want to do. Find five if you can. Ask all the questions you have and act upon the wisdom they share with you.
2) Collaborate with talented people
From the beginning of my first site, A Subtle Revelry I wanted to showcase the talent of amazing friends, and I also was aware of the areas I wasn’t so great at. Collaborating with photographers, florists, bakers and even illustrators has allowed me to produce content that I could have never pulled off on my own. Styled. magazine is such great examples of this – I just adore the overwhelming showcase of talent we have been able to share through it.
Never stop collaborating! No matter what business you are running – there will always be someone who can add to what you are doing.
3) Hone in what you’re passionate about
When A Subtle Revelry started, I used to produce parties. As in full out parties… 50 kids with sticky hands, and food to feed all their parents parties. 50 sets of everything I crafted parties. It got really expensive and exhausting, quickly.
I noticed that my readers (although you still love the occasional blow out party) are way more interested in the actual projects I was producing. So fall 2012 we made a shift to produce project based shoots instead of hosting or staging full blown parties. This type of honing in has allowed me to continue a stream of content over the years that I am really passionate about, and not kill myself in the process.
When you are starting out you will want to do everything. Instead find the one thing, or couple things your readers really love – and make those things consistently awesome.
4) Be open to new ideas
Blogging is a fun career because it is always presenting new creative directions to work in. When I started out it was a post a day, that’s all I did (which seems crazy now!).
Then I got offered my first freelance crafting job. I had never considered producing freelance projects before but decided to try it out. I am so glad I did. Craft styling has been a huge part of my salary over the past few years. I absolutely adore it.
Saying, “YES” to new ideas like freelance, Pinterest, producing a magazine, and even crazy things like video advertising has allowed our brand to grow and develop over the years.
My goal in business is the same as in food: Say “yes” to anything once! You can always say, “no” next week. That’s the joy of running your own show.
5) Just keep working
Part of what has turned A Subtle Revelry from a hobby blog into a career for me has been the ability to press on unchanging. In our I lifestyle blogging course share my secret to blogging. It’s so simple.
Consistent quality content over time will equal success.
You’ve got to give any home based business time to take off, don’t stop after 6 months, or even a year. It takes many bloggers and business owners anywhere from 1-3 years before making a consistent profit. It was true for A Subtle Revelry and I’m so glad I stuck it out.
We still have good months and not-so awesome months, but no matter what is coming towards us, we will keep going, adjusting and shifting as we grow. This next season we are excited to be experimenting with honing in our niche even more in preparation for breaking ground on our second book.
No matter how the means may change over time, the end goal is and will always be continuing to produce a great product day in and day out. It is what makes the difference in any home business success.