I'm sure you have heard of people who have made blogging their business. I always think of them as extra special people, who got lucky somehow. I am realizing now that no, they were people willing to put in the work, and that's why we gladly giving forms providing proof of income if they need it.
Just like in regular business, consistent hard work pays off.
I have always wanted to have my own business. I started when I was about nine, going door to door selling handmade hair scrunchies to get enough money to pay for my ballet lessons. I moved on from that to drawing and writing cookbooks and then picking peaches and making pies and then selling the pies back to the guy who had the peach tree (added value!). This was all before I was 13 years old.
Back in 2008, I started a food blog to keep me entertained in the evenings while the kids were asleep and Aaron was at school. I loved my little blog and I learned so much through the development of it. I was making a little money from sponsored posts and getting invited to special media only events. It was great. I built up my little site by myself and carried it forward for five years. It was such a special time in our lives with the kids being young, supportive and helpful.
In 2012, Aaron suggested that we start a paddleboard/surf company. At the time, I thought I would be able to run Forty Cakes and our new business but I soon realized that starting and running a brand new business, takes a lot of time. I realized that I wasn't spending as much time on Forty Cakes as I needed to and decided at a certain point, it was time to move on.
Now, the paddleboard/surf business is going strong and it has been so much fun to build it and move it forward.
I have realized one of my biggest hobbies is working on the business or dreaming up new business ideas. This is what I love to do.
Fast forward to 2015 and I feel the pull of the kitchen again. I want to cook, photograph and write. But, what I really want to is to build another business.
I had this idea that if I start a new website with the importance and energy that I put behind my paddleboard business, would it be just as successful? Would I be able to find a devoted audience? Would I be able to have a bit of an income from the website? Would I be able to make enough money from the website to do some good in the world? Can I finally achieve location independence with my career? I realize that with Forty Cakes, it was a hobby. I wasn't consistent and I didn't give it the full time love that a baby business needs.
The Surfer's Kitchen is my new business.
And, I am starting it off so differently than I started with Forty Cakes. For one, I know a whole lot more about WordPress, plugins, social media, and SEO. I feel that I learned so much during my five years of blogging previous to The Surfers Kitchen and can start with all of the knowledge on day one. Also, I am more devoted to quality content than random stories about my kids (although those might be there too, on occasion).
We are a family of water people and we have the typical surfers kitchen...sand covered, kids running in and out, trying to eat healthy and always heading off to somewhere fun. It feels natural to link SURFit USA and The Surfer's Kitchen...I mean, this really is our life.
I have decided to follow the example of The Pinch of Yum and publish monthly reports on how the business is going, financially and emotionally. As well as including a few tips on what I have learned or how the site has grown. I want you to be able to read my monthly posts and follow along and be able to create your very own business as a blogger.
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