Leaving the 9am-5pm?
I read really often that people are trying to escape the nine-to-five mentality that working in a regular job has. In their profile, in chat, in discussions on the getting started course, etc. But is that really your goal?
Becoming Independent
Surely you are trying to become independent. Trying to work from home and spend more time with friends and family. Or get out of your house and home country more.
Rather soon after starting here, we find out that you often need to work harder than at the nine-to-five job we had before. You are now entirely responsible for your own income.
When you get ill, there is nobody going to pay for your lost hours behind your machine. While traveling the world or spending the time with your friends and family, you are not doing the writing job or the promotion job that your website needs.
I know that a lot of WA affiliate sites advertise with that to gain referrals, but it isn't much of a reality. As with any independent company or form of freelancing, you need to often work harder than you ever did when you were in regular jobs.
I hear more often of company startups where people have to put over 55 hours a week into their firms to get things afloat or to get to prime break-even. Days are no longer a meager 8 hour shifts, but can easily become 12 - 16 hour shifts.
If you cannot do this full time yet, because you are just starting up, it means you are going to do this outside your 8 hour day shifts for the coming time.
What Is Your Goal?
So if you need to work harder than those 8 petty hours at your previous job, try to figure out what your real goals are. Realise that when you are ill, you have nothing to fall back upon. The only advantage of affiliate marketing is that, when it is up and running and you are making actual sales, you might just be able to generate passive sales while sleeping or being ill.
But you cannot sit still entirely for too long. Rankings change, online marketing changes, people's buying patterns change - everything changes all the time. As soon as you are healthy enough or are done with your travel, visits of friends and family it is time to return back to the work on your site(s).
The Real Goals
- To do what you want
- To be in control over your own life
- To do things when you want to do them
- To do the things at home
- To do the things from wherever you are, with friends, family, holiday location
- ....? (fill in below in the comments)
- Steven
Recent Comments
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I think most people realize this will involve a lot of time. The plus is that time can be whenever you want....not necessarily between 9 and 5. Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Debbie
Your progress becomes going from passionate event to passionate event rather than hour to hour!
There's actually something to help with that if you're going to be away from your business for awhile and your budget allows it. It is freelancing and there is great demand for it. If I were going on a long vacation because my business is finally thriving, I would make sure to budget some of that money to freelance so that my business can continue to be worked on while I'm gone with little worry.
Very good point, Brian! I haven't gotten that far yet, but definitely something to take into consideration by the time that my site actually is doing something more productive than just being read by WA commenters and family.
Steven
When I say I want to leave the 9-5 I'm referring to the inflexibility of having to work those hours Mon-Fri no matter what.
Yes I will put in more hours than ever doing this. I already am, as I have to juggle both for now. But affiliate marketing will give me the flexibility to work while my child naps and after her bedtime. It will allow me to work from my parents house, or the plane or the beach. It will allow me to take two hours off in the middle of the afternoon and work them after 7pm instead.
It will give be the ability to schedule my work and my life to best suit me. That's what I mean by breaking out of the 9-5. :)
Yeah it's true, but you can always write your posts before your vacation so they will pop out on that day what you wanted and also if you put videos to your website then you can do them where ever you are with your phone and post that then to people...of course it depends what about your website is ...
Hi Ilona,
Yes, that I am aware of. And that is certainly a good tip for anyone. So thanks.
But it struck me that people often write - I am going to leave the 9-17 mentality, while they will roll into something way worse, where they have to work even harder than they have ever done before to make the same money basically.
The real goal is: To do what you want to do.
I just added something to the blog Ilona, if you want please check out that last part and comment here ;)
Steven
I agree...this is life. We have to do something that helps others, just to earn money for our life. But anyway I think it is hard in the beginning and then when you have done your website to work night and day so that you don't have to be there evèry minute or even every day...that is better than you always have to ask from your boss....oh I have to go somewhere ...can I go? It can be hard work but you are your own boss :)
So Steven, I still think it is better version of life!
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Well said, Steven.
Thanks Jason!