Welcome to November’s online income report where I show you how to make money online (specifically, how I make money online). It’s time to look at my monthly income update and track my progress over the past month.
Background information on my monthly income reports.
This all started out as my extra income report because in the beginning it was all about the money I was earning from my side hustles. In those extra income reports, I included all of the income I made except for what I made at my day job.
However, in September of 2013, I turned in my notice and my last day at my day job was in October of 2013. Now, my monthly income reports consist of the many different ways I earn an income.
Many have asked why I would ever want to publicly post my income each month. Some say I’m crazy, some are glad that I’m so open, but whatever you think I actually enjoy publishing my monthly income reports. I publish these monthly online income reports for three main reasons:
- Before I started blogging, I knew nothing about side hustling and making money online. Before, I didn’t think side hustles were worth the effort, and I thought the only way to really increase your income was through raises and promotions at your full-time job. If it weren’t for others publishing their monthly income reports each month, I don’t know if I would have ever attempted side hustling. I want to help others see the positives in side hustling and how it can change a person’s life. There are many different ways to make money online, and I like to share my story each month.
- I like to publish my income reports because it’s a way for me to look back, learn from my mistakes and see what I need to change or improve on. It’s also entertaining to go back to older income posts and read about the funny things I did to make extra money. Everyone’s got to start somewhere, right?
- Also, I like to show others that making money online IS possible, and that everything is not a scam. If you are looking for information on the many ways to make money online, I recently published the article Monthly Income Report Roundup – My Favorite Income Bloggers.
I know I say this every month, but it is the truth. Life is great now that I am doing what I want to do. I look forward to each and every work day and it is a wonderful thing.
And THAT is why I enjoy publishing my monthly income reports. I like to show others that you don’t have to hate your job and hate your life. You can make changes to your life and make money in a way that allows you to enjoy life. This doesn’t mean that you have to love your job, it just means that your job at least allows you to do what you like to do outside of work.
Now onto my November income report!
How was my online income in November?
November was a fantastic month for my online freelancing business. I took advantage of my location independence and was able to travel for two weeks while still bringing in a great income.
This is why I am so happy that others shared their monthly income reports before me. If it weren’t for them, I would have never have thought to start my side hustles, which then transformed into my full-time business. I am now able to travel (with my dogs in tow, of course), find ways to make money online, and enjoy life.
November was also great because I worked hard towards getting ahead. Even with traveling, I was able to get a decent amount of work done. I have a long list of things I need to do, and it’s nice to be able to get ahead with my list as well as get ahead with the normal work I need to do.
Anyway, last month I made $15,634.43 in business income, before expenses.
Related articles:
- How To Make Money Blogging
- How To Become Financially Stable and Keep The Job You Love
- Becoming a Work-Life Balancing Master
This is for the month of November and before fees and expenses (most fees and expenses that lower the amount above total around $1,100, which includes VAs/staff writers for my other websites, technical assistance on my websites, PayPal fees, etc.) being taken out.
After expenses and fees, I made approximately $14,534. In the amount above, I do not include the amount I bring in to the websites I provide services to. I only include the amounts that are my actual earnings from my services.
Below are some of my other monthly extra income reports. I publish an update every month but have only included some of them below. If you head on over to my extra income page you can find all of my monthly income reports:
- $672 extra in May (2012)
- $1,425 extra in July
- $3,275 extra in September
- $6,523 in January Extra Income (2013)
- $11,927 in October Income – I Finally Left My Job
- $12,640 in January Income (2014)
- $14,136 in October Income – My Monthly Online Income Report
Blog news.
Nothing too big on MakingSenseofCents has happened recently.
I have been working on improving the website overall though. I added a Recommendations page in October that I am still working on. I am also going through all of my past articles (there are over 1,300!) and trying to make them more SEO friendly as well as improving the picture in each post so that they are more Pinterest worthy.
I am also working on my email list still as well. It has only been around one month since I added Aweber to my blog, and I have already added a few hundred email signups. This is almost entirely due to the plugin SumoMe, so I highly recommend you download this plugin as well.
Aweber is a MUST if you have a blog. It is a way for readers to subscribe to your blog posts and your newsletters. If you are currently using a free service such as Feedburner, then you should switch immediately because that is the number one mistake bloggers make (and I made that mistake myself as well). You can start using Aweber for just $1 for your first month to test it out.
If you are wanting to start a blog of your own, read my post How To Start a WordPress Blog. It gives step by step instructions on starting your own blog. You can also get a free domain by signing up through my link.
Wes’s website.
We haven’t done much with Wes’s website in the past month. Actually, nothing has happened. I need to stop forgetting about his website and put it at the top of my to-do list.
Our plan for the future is to dedicate one day each week to brainstorm and work on his blog. He recently admitted that blogging seemed like a lot more work than what he originally thought. Yup! It’s not all easy people… Even though he’s been behind the scenes helping me work, he’s never been in control of a whole blog on his own. Luckily he has me! 🙂
My plans for my website, online income, and making money online:
- Publish an ebook – I haven’t thought about my ebook at all for about one month. I keep going back and forth about what I should do, and if I should even do an ebook in the first place. I don’t think I’m ready for one yet, so this may be put on hold for the time being.
- Promote more – This is something that I think I’m been successful with so far. I am accepting interviews, the quality of my images are improving, I’m more active on all of my social media accounts, and more. One thing I need to eventually start doing is guest posting though. That is something I haven’t done in a very long time.
- Accept more interviews. – I think I only did one interview in November. It was a fairly busy month, and nothing really seemed to pop up either. November and December are usually fairly slower months in the blogging world because of the holidays, so I am not surprised.
Staff writing.
Staff writing is something that has slowed down for me. One of my bigger clients sold his website and got out of the blogging business, so my staff writing number is a little lower this month and will probably be even lower next month. Luckily, other areas picked up that made this more manageable. I think this was a positive thing to happen though, as I would like to focus on more passive income for the foreseeable future.
Update on my blog and social media management services.
In the month of November, I managed several different websites for other owners. I’m still loving it and it’s an area that I hope to continue to grow. I enjoy trying to find new ways to improve a website. It can be challenging at times, but it is a good type of challenging.
Reader question: How do you find blog and social media management clients?
This is a question I am often asked. Most of my clients have found me.
One found me through a comment I left on a website. Yes, a simple comment. They clicked on my name, checked out my blog, and they emailed me asking if website management was a service that I offered.
Another website management client found me through my blog as well. I am not sure the exact method, but they emailed me after finding my website.
One client I found myself. I answered a job posting on Facebook that the website owner posted. I then sent them an email explaining why I would be the perfect fit. Honestly, this has been the only website client who I reached out to. All the others reached out to me.
This is why having a website can help you in the online world. If you are interested in making money online, I highly recommend that you are doing something at least somewhat related to the jobs you are looking for. It provides a way for potential clients to find you, and it also gives you valuable experience. It wouldn’t make much sense for someone to manage a website if they have never managed a website before.
If you are wanting to start a blog of your own, read my post How To Start a Cheap WordPress Blog. It gives step by step instructions on starting your own blog. You can also get a free domain by signing up through my link.
Related articles:
Affiliate income – An improving area.
Affiliate income wasn’t really something I tried for in November, but I plan on changing that in December with possibly one or two reviews. Nothing crazy, but hopefully enough to pay off over time.
I’m still having trouble finding a good balance when it comes to affiliate-related posts. I don’t want anything to seem forced or like I’m trying to sell stuff 24/7, so I am only reviewing products that I know people might have questions about. I also try to keep them informative. And, as always, they are only products I have personally used and/or believe in.
Business and extra income in November ($14,534, after most expenses)
- Staff writing – $450
- Blog coaching, as well as managing websites and social media for clients – $6,074
- Website-Related (From the 6 websites I own – advertising, partnerships & Adsense) – $6,945
- Affiliate Income – $1,065
- Selling Items From Our Home – $0
- Miscellaneous (not related to blogging and online income) – $0
- Mystery Shopping – $0
- Rent – $0. We no longer rent a room in our house and won’t be adding roommates.
One question I am asked nearly every time I publish my monthly online income report is whether or not I can further break down my income. I have never fully broken everything down line by line, and I do this mainly to protect myself and those I provide services to.
Most bloggers who completely break apart their income have most of their income coming from affiliate links, while I do not. Keep in mind that a majority of my income comes from private clients that I work for so sharing their name and what they pay me wouldn’t be the correct way to run a business.
Also, please keep in mind that I work for myself. This means that I have to cover all taxes (which are around 30%), health insurance, and all other benefits/expenses that an employer would normally provide.
Comparisons and 2014 online income total (after expenses, but before taxes)
- Total extra income for November: $14,534
- Income in October: $14,136
- Difference: +398
- Total so far in 2014: $150,256
How did you do in November? What are your extra/business/online income goals?
Why do you work towards making extra money?
Do you have any questions about making money in any form?
Leave a Reply
Very impressive month, but the turnover around of month-end figures into your earnings update is maybe even more impressive!! 🙂
Its awesome that you have been able to produce such consistent income over the past 5-6 months, especially given that you are enjoying travelling at the same time.
Keep up the hard work Michelle – its definitely paying off!
Thank you! 🙂
Thanks for sharing it, is always nice read about it!!!
Welcome 🙂
Everyone seems to like getting into publishing ebooks. I am so excited for your ebook. By the way, who interviewed you? I might have missed your post on this. I hope you get more interviews this December! Congrats on you November income report!
Hey Jayson!
You can find my list of interviews and mentions here – https://fund-rise.live/about-me%3C/a%3E 🙂
As always, another great month for you and very inspiring 🙂 you are consistently making great numbers which shows it can be done. Here’s to a great December!
Thank you Nicola! I hope December is a great month for you.
Great job this month and a very thorough report! I’m also thinking pretty heavily about working on my first ebook. The more I read about it the more I’m finding people saying that the best way to really grow your business is to start making and promoting your own products.
Yes, you should definitely write your own ebook! What do you think it would be about?
It will be about money (of course), but I’m still torn between going with a more “introductory” style of book or something more advanced.
Awesome. Can’t wait to read it 🙂
Very impressive trend! I look forward to seeing you maintain that upward trajectory:)
Thank you Mark! Do you work towards extra income?
Good luck Mark! 🙂
Good job on your monthly income, Michelle!
I like how your fancy income chart inches up over the years.
Haha thanks Holly!
Michelle you are AMAZING!! Keep up the great work!! And thank you for all that you put into your blog and these monthly income reports! Very helpful 🙂
Question – I know you’ve done a day in the life post before, but how many hours would you say you work per week, on average??
Thanks!! Hope you have a great Monday!
Hey Sarah!
How many hours I work per week is hard to say. I am usually multi-tasking, I take a lot of breaks and so on. I can work anywhere from 50 hours a week to 80 hours usually. It fluctuates widely.
Awesome work as always! I’ve been hearing through various bloggers that staff writing as a whole seems to be done and people keep losing clients. I hope this isn’t the beginning of a trend. :/
I don’t think it’s going to be a trend. I think there are still many people hiring staff writers 🙂
Another great month Michelle!! You continue to inspire me with your hard work and work ethic. It is clearly paying off for you! I had a great November, but gave up a project to work on something else so my December is not going to be as good as I would hope, but I am taking a gamble so we will see how it pays off.
I’m sure it will pay off Shannon. Thanks for stopping by my blog today! 🙂
Another fantastic month! Well done. It’s great so see that you were able to squeeze a holiday in there too!!!
Thank you! Yes, it was nice to be able to travel.
Michelle,
Love the monthly income reports. They encourage me to do the work I need to do for my blogs. How many hours a week do you put in?
Thank you Paul! It’s really hard to say. I usually put in somewhere between 50 to 80 hours a week.
That’s a lot, but then, when you’re doing what you love, and working for yourself, it’s not bad at all. I’ve got to step up my game.
Yup, it’s not bad at all 🙂
Nice work, Michelle!! It looks like November was awesome for you. I really love how you can travel and keep the money flowing. I hope December is awesome for you, too! I have also been creating more pin-worthy images. If you haven’t read “How To Blog For Profit Without Selling Your Soul” by Ruth Soukup, I highly recommend it!
Thanks Natalie! Yes, I need to read her book!
Michelle,
Hope you had an enjoyable Thanks Giving? Always inspiring to read your income reports each month.
Yes, it was great. How was yours?
Your income numbers are so impressive!! After reading posts like this, I find ,myself pondering what I can do to improve my online presence in order to start earning some side income. My first step is going to be to increase our visibility and generate more traffic. I appreciate the ideas and tips you share for making all of this possible!!
Thanks! Do you currently earn any side income?
No side income yet. I plan to focus on generating a product worth selling for the time being. By increasing our quality, I hope to start including a way to monetize our blog efforts. I truly enjoy it, so the next obvious step is to devote more attention in an effort to make a little cash from it.
Sounds like a great plan. Good luck!