Reinvest Your Way to Success
April 18, 2008 Posted by Chris GuthrieReceiving your very first $100 Adsense check is a great feeling. I remember when I got that first check in the mail nearly three years ago while I was still back in college. It’s pretty cool to tell your friends that you made $100 off of a little forum you made in your spare time. But what’s even more satisfying is telling your friends you work when you want to and make a living off of money earned online. I want to outline the steps I’m taking towards achieving that success.
Living the Dream:
The primary focus of any part time webmaster should be to eventually earn enough money online to one day quit their job and work from home full time. I’m sure that you would agree that breaking free from a life tied to long traffic filled commutes, office politics and an annual 5% raise is the ultimate goal. Now if you’re already living the dream this post isn’t directed towards you. This post is directed towards the rest of us – the part time webmasters.
The Common Scenario:
I have a full time job and work forty hours a week like the bulk of you reading this post. The money I earn off of my websites is just extra cash that I don’t really need because I could always fall back on my full time job if the money stopped coming in. Because of this fact I believe it’s much easier for those of us that have full time jobs and run websites on the side to fall into the mindset that we can just spend the money earned from websites like it is disposable income.
Consistently making several hundred dollars a month online? Buy a new car. Had a record month with website earnings? Buy a new HDTV. Snagged your first $100 check from Adsense? Go out to dinner at a nice restaurant.
These all sound like fun things to do; however, I urge you to resist those temptations. Now I’m not telling you to avoid spending your website earnings, in fact that’s quite the opposite. I believe you should spend every last cent of the money you earn online but only on items that will further your business.
The Goal of a Part Time Webmaster:
In the course of the past three years I have spent thousands of dollars on scripts, licenses, designers, coders, redesigns, advertisements, domain names, computers and anything else related to running a business online that you can think of. I think we can all agree that the ultimate goal is the live the dream and earn a full time income online. Well, in order to get there as quickly as possible I have been reinvesting all of the money I earn off of my websites towards further building my web business. I believe if you truly want to earn a full time living off of website income it not only takes great website ideas, time and dedication, but the will power to reinvest the money you earn online.
That’s been my strategy. What’s yours?
This post was guest blogged by me – Chris Guthrie. I run a blog focused on providing practical ideas for success online.
It is indeed every webmaster’s dream to be successful and live off of his/her online earnings. This can be possible for anyone who puts in the effort and dedication that it takes to do so 🙂
Reading this post threw me off a little, because I thought that Tyler was already a full-time online entrepreneur. Then I saw the note at the end and it all made sense. I guess I should have read the byline.
I’ve only recently begun spending to improve my websites (no profits to speak of. . . ) but paying for better graphics, outside help etc. It was a tough call at first, but I’m very happy to the results.
I’m hoping it will lead to getting that 100 adsense check one day.
Very good point. I reinvest all the money earned from website revenue. The google adsensene check is used to pay down credit card debt from a store that went belly up. The rest of the revenue from the different companies is channeled into different wealth building programs. All money from one company goes straight into my IRA. All the other companies’ proceeds are deposited directly into mutual fund accounts. I try not to spend any of the money. I have wasted over the last 10 years more money than most people make. The economy changing was a wake up call for me. If I would have saved instead of spent I could be retired now.
I have done this since the start, I work full time as a webmaster but not for myself. I only get about 4 hrs per day in online and earn maybe 500.00 per month doing it. But things are looking good for the future!
That’s good to hear that so far most of you are already reinvesting your earnings.
The way I’ve always tried to look at it is that if I already have a full time job that can pay the bills why not reinvest every cent back into my business? Then I’ll be able to get to the full time web publisher status much faster.
Thanks again and if you liked the post please check out my blog:
http://www.chrisguthrie.net
Thanks 🙂
I never used to reinvest but have recently started as I have a couple of large projects I’m working on. They’re going well, thankfully so I’m not losing anything by doing so 🙂
I tried to reinvest some of my earnings and some to buy things for my fulfillment, I reward myself like buying mag wheels,new bumper, laptop and I also I gave my co-blogger a 32″ HDTV
This is a good post I am going to reinvest all the money I make off my site now back onto it and hopefully the profit will rise!
You are absolutely right Tyler. If you spend every penny you earn on plasma tv’s and and other wants, then you will never be able to quit your job and work from home from your site. You need to be recycling that money back into your website to further it’s growth. Pay for advertising, buy traffic, and save the extra money.
If you do spend it outside of your site, then use it to pay off bills. Imagine paying off your car payment, credit cards, and paying your bills through your website? You will have so much more money even if you quit working on your site! Now imagine pushing your site to the next level and paying off your house in just a few years? 30 year loan paid off in 3 years! You will be rich. Sure you may not make 300k a year, but you will have so much more money by paying off everything.
A lot of people hurt so much from debt, but yet we don’t do anything about it! Stop getting yourself further in debt, and work hard paying off everything. It should be your dream to have everything paid off, instead of getting that new Cadillac. You could drive a cavalier with your head up knowing you have money in the bank, and the skills to pay the bills.
Shudogg Dot Com – Make Money Online Blogging
I think everyone would like to quit there day job, but what if they enjoy working in a company rather than working along at home. Working for yourself can be great but you’re less prone to meeting others…
am following your step to kick off my full day job one day – Hey people says your animated character look more like me then you. What say. Have you seen any of my recent Pic BTW.
Thats “kick back” above -Sorry
I wholeheartedly agree. Screw the tv, the going out, the vacation. Reinvest in advertising your blog. Reinvest in a new blog design. Hire a graphic designer to design some cool graphics for your blog. Anything that improves the product and content you put out.
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