Hey Everyone! I decided to share a double income report this time since I didn’t share one for June. I’ve still been tracking my income, but I’ve gotten a little side tracked this summer and didn’t make time to organize everything and produce a thoughtful and helpful post about my freelancing progress.
Table of Contents
If You Are New Here
Last year I started publishing the income I earn outside of my full-time job through online side hustles as a way to motivate myself and others to earn more to meet financial goals and work toward financial freedom.
I officially landed my first freelance writing client in March 2015. At first, I attempted to start earning an extra income as a way to help me pay off my debt and got hooked. I paid off more than $11,000 of debt last year and wouldn’t have been able to do so without earning an extra income.
I also publish these income reports to demonstrate a true and transparent way that people can earn an honest income working online. I probably never would have gotten to this point and made so much progress with paying off my debt if I hadn’t started a blog.
If you’d like to start a blog as well to help you earn extra income on the side, there’s never been a better time to do it. Check out my tutorial guide to starting a professional self-hosted blog with Bluehost in just minutes. My hosting company has a great sale going on today only!
Some Updates
In terms of debt, my husband and I have paid off $4,100 in debt since May. His credit card debt is gone and we are chipping away at our other accounts. You can check out our progress here. For now, we’re focused on getting rid of his car loan and then our student loans. We will save the balance for our bed for last since it won’t be collecting any interest for another 3 years.
A lot has been going on lately so you might have noticed I’ve been posting less around here. That’s because I’m trying to focus on quality and not quantity. I’m also working on a huge re-brand and redesign of my site so things should be looking very different around here these next few months.
Aside from that, I’ve just been trying to enjoy the summer with my family and friends and keep my head afloat with freelancing, work, and blogging. Most importantly, I shared a big announcement on Facebook last week…..
I’m Finally Leaving My Job!! 🙂
I’ve talked about wanting to freelance full time for a while now and I know last month I was on the fence between just making the leap and waiting it out a little while. I knew I wanted to quit before winter, but I’m a huge worrier and I love to be over prepared. There’s nothing wrong with that, but sometimes I feel like my own insecurities act as my worst enemy and hold me back.
I’ve never made a big life decision I wasn’t proud of and with work starting to pick up at my full-time job over the next few months, I know I would have less and less time to dedicate to freelancing if I stick around.
The last week of July was so busy at work, I barely had any time to freelance and I’m happy (lucky) most of my work was already completed for the month. Yet and still, since I’m trying to grow my online income, I knew I needed more time and energy to dedicate to freelancing and growing my blog.
As a result, I decided to take a gamble and leave my job at the end of August. September 1 will be my first official day of self-employment. Whoohoo!
I’m a little nervous but mostly excited. I haven’t reached my income goal of $5,000 per month yet, but it doesn’t really matter because I can live off what I’m earning from freelancing right now and I already reached my savings goal for the year.
Plus, like I said before, I’m excited to see what I can do with 40 hours per week since I’ve only been freelancing for 15-20 hours per week. I still need to invest some more time into my online business before I can focus on cutting back hours so I’m hoping I’ll be able to boost my income by giving my blog some much needed TLC.
Anywho, In June and July, I Earned $6091.17
Here’s how that Income breaks down:
June Income – $2,658
Freelancing: $2018
Virtual Assistant: $410
Blog Income (ads, sponsored posts, affiliate income, podcasting) $230
July Income – $3,433.17
Freelancing: $2808
Virtual Assistant: $410
Blog Income (ads, sponsored posts, affiliate income, podcasting) $215.17
As you can see, my income has fluctuated quite a bit this summer. The summer is usually pretty slow and this is just another example of how unpredictable freelance income can be. It’s super important to have a sustainable emergency fund and/or a buffer in your checking account and I plan on having both.
Expenses (for Both Months)
I try to keep my expenses low for the most part since I’d like to pay off as much debt as I can with my extra income. Hosting and domain fees for my site are not included in my monthly expenses because they’re been paid for through 2018 already.
Blog Help and VA: $342
Education and Training: $147
Total: $518.98
Goals for My Blog and Income:
Get My New Site Up: I still have to do a few more things, but I’m planning on putting my new site up before the end of the month.
Continue to Work on Social Media Presence: Progress for this goal is going well but I am pretty much just growing my followers organically. I’m focusing heavily on Facebook and Instagram right now.
Maintain, Grow, Rinse, and Repeat: Wish I could be more specific! I see a lot of things I want to keep doing, and I always have a massive to-do list of projects, ideas and strategies I’d like to implement so I’ll be getting more organized during my first month of self-employment and trying to work out a system that’s best for me that I can repeat.
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Tonya@Budget and the Beach says
I’m so seriously impressed you’ve kept up your schedule as long as you have. I haven’t been freelancing at all with work and even though my blog is now a hobby I barely want to keep up with that since it zaps time too. I’m sure with the income you are bringing in for only those many hours, you’ll do some serious damage as a full time freelancer!
Choncé says
Yes, I’m excited about that! And I hear you, that’s why I haven’t been posting as much. If I’m going to share something, I want it to be valuable and interesting plus, a mini break is always nice.
Jason Butler (@Butler_Journal) says
Congrats on taking the leap! I know that you will do well.
Choncé says
Thanks Jason!
colinashby says
It’s been really nice getting to see on your previous income reports how many hours you put in writing every week/month! Really impressive the income you’ve been able to bring in working only part-time on it. Have you done a post on how you maximize time/systems/productivity while having a full-time job?
Congratulations!
Choncé says
Thanks Colin! I have done a post about finding the energy to do it all since to me that is the hardest, but sharing how I stay productive and manage time would be great to cover.
hollyatclubthrifty says
Great job! Being able to leave your job is such a great feeling. Congratulations!!!
Choncé says
Thanks Holly! Hopefully I’m able to take on a lot more work now.
Kate @ Cashville Skyline says
Very impressed, Chonce! I was recently laid off from my full-time job, so I’m ramping up my freelancing work, as well. Keep up the amazing work. It’s inspiring!
Choncé says
Thanks Kate! Sorry to hear you got laid off, but I’m sure there are much better things in store for you!
Ashli @ The Million Dollar Mama says
Really exciting news – congratulations! That’s also the dream for me, to make a good income from home – I’m working on it! You mentioned you spent $147 on education/training. Would you be willing to share what this was? (I’m all about learning!)
Choncé says
Thanks Ashli! I purchase a course about affiliate marketing.
Francesca - From Pennies to Pounds says
How exciting! Where are good places to look for decent freelancing work? 🙂
Choncé says
I used to do quite a bit of cold pitching but it got too time consuming so I focused on building up my network. I’m in a few Facebook groups for freelancers where they share leads and I basically reach out to people I know to see if they are hiring or know anyone who is.
Josh says
Being able to leave your job must be an AMAZING feeling! I’m motivated by your progress and I look forward to seeing your future success!
Curious, but do you think that sharing your income has motivated you to push harder and faster to grow?
Thanks for sharing
Choncé says
Thanks Josh! Sharing my income reports definitely has motivated me. Unfortunately, I’m thinking about cutting down on them and only doing quarterly income updates now that I focus on my blog and freelancing from more of a business standpoint but it has helped push me to reach my goals!
lovetteorleavette says
I’ve read this post twice and just realized you are starting another site. Congrats! This is exciting!
Choncé says
Hey Shirra, nope not starting another site. I am redesigning this one. Sorry if I confused you. By saying ‘new site’ I just mean a new design because I’m still planning it out and everything will look so different. So excited!
lovetteorleavette says
That’s great! I’m planning on doing the same thing for my birthday in October! I’m just as excited!