How is the Wealthy Affiliate Experience?
Yesterday I received my 1st year anniversary badge from Wealthy Affiliate.
I had previously thought about my time here and I knew it was close to my anniversary, but forgot about it again until I saw the pop up.
So I started to reflect over the past year and wondered.
How is the wealthy affiliate experience?
What have I accomplished?
Where do I go from here?
Back to School
Like most members here when I started I knew absolutely nothing about websites let alone how to build one.
I wanted to find a sustainable business, one which would afford me the luxury to work from the comfort of my home or wherever I was traveling but I really wasn't sure what to do.
Finding Wealthy Affiliate after months of searching was like a gift, and I soon realised it was exactly what I had been looking for.
I started the Online Entrepreneur Certificate course with great enthusiasm and gusto, so much so that I finished it in a short space of time and set up my website, feeling very proud of myself.
I then began to investigate other members sites and suddenly became very despondent as I thought how basic mine looked in comparison.
Self doubt and procrastination.
It was then that I was offered a JOB with a very prestigious company as their Training Manager with an enticing salary.
Managing the training department meant that I needed to pass facilitation and skills development courses, so I set about my training and submitting my assessments which took my focus away from WA.
At this point, feeling doubtful and suffering from writers' block, I considered canceling my membership as I just didn't have the time to dedicate to make this a success.
But thankfully I procrastinated about that too!
So I didn't cancel and decided after reading some inspirations posts from other members that I should give it another shot.
Here are the posts that helped me, and if you are feeling the same, hopfully they will help you too.
https://my.wealthyaffiliate.com/nathaniell/blog/your-first-w...
https://my.wealthyaffiliate.com/zarina/blog/how-to-overcome-...
Bootcamp
Having read these posts I soon realised quite a few members had niches in MMO.
I decided to change my focus and put myself through Bootcamp.
This time around I took my time and reminded myself that this was a business, one that I will be able to do for years to come and one that with the right focus and work ethic, will provide me with passive income in the future.
I found the training to be similar to the OEC training but with the attention on promoting WA.
It did, however, remind me of points I had learned in OEC but was maybe now not doing on my site, or just didn't understand the first time around.
I learnt that Jaaxy was a lot more than just a keyword research tool, so much so I have just written my first review on it on my MMO website.
Jay's webinar pop-ups we see when logging into WA was something I would just quickly close as they air at 02h00 my time (I live in South Africa), so I just couldn't stay up to watch them but I knew I was missing out.
However, when searching for training on a particular topic I found that I can watch them when I am ready, and when the training is relevant to my website.
My website has started to make money
A common comment or message I see often within this community is to keep going.
In the beginning, you learn how to create your website but then you are told to just write content, and write content, and write content, and you start to wonder if all this hard work is ever going to yield any results.
Well, guess what? It does!
When doubt is sitting on your shoulder whispering in your ear that all this hard work is in vain and that these successful members have something you just do not have, stop what you are doing flick him off your shoulder, and get back to work.
Because they know it is worth it!
I am so glad I paid attention to their wisdom as I received my first referral after months of writing content and sharing on social media and I am now due my first WA commission.
Yes, it's small in comparison to the thousands some members write about, but I am confident that as I progress, I will regularly be sharing news of my continued achievements.
So Where to from here
The best part about this business is that it is full of opportunities, with endless avenues to discover.
Year 2 will be a year of continued content writing at a quicker pace as the more I write, the easier I find the words flow.
After writing my first review I am now hooked and want to research and investigate many more companies and affiliate programs to add to my site.
Complete the Bootcamp training and learn more about email marketing and social media.
And maybe, if I am brave enough, to produce my first video.
One thing I know for sure, staying in this wonderful community will continue to provide me with inspiration and knowledge to make this successful.
Oh and something else I have just discovered, how writing blogs in WA can earn you money!
By just browsing the dashboard yesterday, I came across some training by Robert on how to make money from your WA Blog.
I previously thought members wrote here to share their experiences within the community, which I am sure some do, but they can also earn you money.
Whatever you write on your blog, or when you ask questions or through discussions, it is visible to everyone on the internet.
If you want to find out more about how this can help you to earn money here is a link to Robert's training.
https://my.wealthyaffiliate.com/training/how-to-make-money-w...
So I look forward to my 2nd year at WA and sharing more experiences with you so others who may be asking "How is the Wealthy affiliate experience?" may also learn and be inspired to work hard to achieve their goals.
If you have any stories or have read any WA blogs which have inspired your journey and motivated you to keep going when times were tough, I would love to hear from you in the comments below.
Wishing you all lots of success!
Debs
Recent Comments
2
Hi Debs, well done, you will be pleased that your efforts are paying off and best wishes for the coming year and congratulations on completing your first year here.
I really like reading posts like your one here they give testament to what WA is all about, folks can come here and create some new outcomes.
That is special. So pleased that I came across your post, thank you for sharing and all the best.
Alex
Hi Alex,
It's a pleasure, I am so happy you enjoyed my post, and thank you for your kind words.
I am so glad I found Wealthy Affiliate and I just want to let as many people as possible know about the community, and how being part of it has helped me.
Its awesome to know that people like yourself are always willing to help and offer advice and support.
Wishing you all the best too!
Debs