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Home » The Famous Blog » Want to Become a Full-Time Blogger Easier? Then Appreciate Your Day Job!

Want to Become a Full-Time Blogger Easier? Then Appreciate Your Day Job!

December 25, 2012 - Last Modified: March 29, 2014 by Timo Kiander

You don’t like your day job. Every day, you have to find an excuse to go to your job and it shows in the quality of your work: You are procrastinating on your tasks and your productivity is very low.

At the same time, you have a dream to become a full-time blogger. Now that’s a completely different story than your day job, since you’re actually very excited and passionate about the blogging dream.

It’s easy to see the reasons why you are so excited: If you become a very successful blogger, you can earn much more than in your day job – just by doing what you are passionate about.

Sadly, it’s these two different worlds that are colliding and you find it more and more difficult to do your work at your day job.

In fact, you have decided that in just a matter of days, you’ll be resigning from your job so that you can focus solely on blogging – no matter if you aren’t making any money out of it yet.

Hating your day job is too easy

The reasons related to your day job frustrations are numerous.

Maybe you just took the job, because you wanted or needed the money. Or, maybe the job was fun in the beginning, but later on your interests changed and your motivation faded away. Still, you stayed on the job.

Whatever the reason is, the conclusion is the same: You are not giving 100% to the job, which is exactly what your employee expects from you.

Hating your day job becomes even easier, if there are other like-minded people in the workplace. It’s easy to gather around the coffee machine and start complaining about how bad things are and why your job sucks big time.

To make things even more difficult, having a dream (being a full-time blogger) and doing the boring work are two extremes you have to deal with.

And when you know that you have something very compelling on the horizon, it’s almost like pouring gasoline into the fire when it comes to your day job: You dislike it even more.

The dream that you bought

Yes, your dream about blogging full-time.

That dream was sold to you by successful bloggers and entrepreneurs. And all of a sudden you realized that there was another, more compelling way to earn a living by doing something that you loved.

Then you fell in love with the dream, I don’t blame you: You could be doing what you are passionate about, get a good paycheck out of it and work much less than in your day job. Now, who wouldn’t like to have a life like that?

However, as soon as the dream hit you, you realized that you had a problem: Your day job. You also figured that the only way to get rid of your job was to resign from it.

But before you make any quick decisions, hold on for a second because I have another strategy for you. Promise to at least consider it and then if it’s not a good fit, do whatever you wish.

Switch your attitude and make things easier for yourself

OK, let me list some things that you may (or may not) have heard of and then I’ll ask a question.

The list goes like this:

  • Blue Host (website hosting)
  • Fiverr/Elance (outsourcing)
  • Coaching
  • AdRoll (remarketing service)
  • Visual Website Optimizer (landing page split testing)
  • Aweber (e-mail list management)
  • Education (physical books/Amazon Kindle books/e-books, MP3s, videos)
  • Nozbe (task management software)
  • HootSuite (social media management suite)
  • Miscellaneous software

Now the question goes: What do these ten things have in common?

I’ll admit that the question is difficult to answer, so I’ll help you out: They are the things that I spend my money on every month. And the money to pay these things comes from (drumroll) …. my day job!

You see, without my day job, it wouldn’t be possible to have these things, thus I am able to build  my online business quicker on the side.

There are necessities in what I do and it wouldn’t make sense to cut off the feeding arm (my day job). Otherwise things would get very challenging and slow down too much.

That’s what I want you to do as well: switch your mindset from hating your day job to feeling grateful about it!

Even if the job isn’t your dream one, learn to appreciate how it enables you to do things outside the working hours – like paying your blogging bills.

When I realized this myself (thanks to my wife who reminded me), my view towards my day job changed completely.

Sure, I’m not in a dream job, but at least I can appreciate it much more than before. And when I appreciate it, going to work isn’t such a drag anymore.

Be a better worker, make the transition smoother

It’s important to understand, that the more you enjoy your day job, the easier it is to make the transition from it to your blogging career. And when you follow the next steps, that transition is much easier than it would be with a negative attitude.

1. Stop hating – start appreciating. Remember the good things in your job and what it can provide for you, for instance the money or that you might have nice colleagues that you wouldn’t have otherwise met.

Appreciation comes from small things. You feel much happier and content when you appreciate something – like your current day job.

2. Remember your responsibility. It took me a while to accept the responsibility part, but eventually I got it: I was the one who signed my job contract – and no one else!

Therefore, I understood that I was responsible for my actions and if I started to blame the work, then I was the one who should look in the mirror.

3. Don’t pour it on your boss. It’s very easy to yell at your boss and tell him that your job sucks. Once again, remember your responsibilities and why you are in your job in the first place.

Besides, since you are building your blog/online business on the side, there is always the possibility that your boss could be your potential client in the future.

That’s why it’s important to settle things down, avoid burning your bridges and see that it’s not necessarily your boss’s fault that your job sucks.

4. Take advantage of your job – ethically. Especially if you work in an office, you can ethically take advantage of your working premises. For instance, I have been recording videos for my blog in the meeting rooms, because it would have been difficult to do so at home.

In general, meeting rooms are great places to focus on your writing as well – outside the office hours of course. Since I’m most likely guaranteed to get 100% focus when working there, I tend to take advantage of those premises if possible.

5. Things are only temporary. It’s only temporary to have these two common worlds in your life at the same time: Your day job and working towards your lucrative blogging career.

If you continue to work on your blog on a daily basis, then at some point you can resign from your day job and devote yourself full time to blogging.

And as the days are passing by, the shorter the amount of time you have to stay at your day job before becoming a full-time blogger.

6. Give 100%. Although this may sound a bit difficult to do, give it a try anyway: Do your work as well as you can.

For instance, I’m studying for a demanding work-related certificate right now and I have decided to pass the exam – no matter what!

At the same time, decide to do something similar in your work: Find new ways to do your work, help others, go the extra mile with your customers and give constructive feedback to your employees if needed.

This way, people are happy to work with you and you can feel proud of yourself too.

Conclusion

It’s easy to hate your day job and forget your responsibility at the same time.

Even though your job is not a dream one, it’s still paying your blogging bills and that’s something that you shouldn’t forget.

At the same time, working on your day job becomes more pleasant, when you give it the appreciation it deserves.

Over to you: How do you deal with a day job that you find boring?

Image © Kirill Kedrinski – Fotolia.com

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Filed Under: Blogging

About Timo Kiander

Follow @ProductiveSd

Timo Kiander, a.k.a. Productive Superdad, helps entrepreneurs improve their online business productivity. With 18 co-authors (like Pat Flynn and Corbett Barr), he wrote a book about how to build an online business and get stuff done – even when working from 9-5 (available as a free download or through Amazon).

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{ 26 Responses }

  1. pritam says:
    Great writing !!! Really the best article I have ever ..:) I have been thinking about making blogging full time but now your writing has really helped me to think again on my decision..
    • Timo Kiander says:
      Hi Pritam! Thank you :) Yes, it makes things much easier when you appreciate your day job. Cheers, Timo
  2. Christian says:
    Eventually everything can become boring, even blogging. So don'r rush into doing changes if you don't earn already some substantial deal of money from blogging. I don't see any reason quitting your day job where you have experience and probably a lot of schooling done on that specific domain for the dream of making money out of a blog. Just saying, start being profitable with the little free time you have available, test stuff out and if you feel you can do it, only then make the change.
    • Timo Kiander says:
      Hi Christian! Sure, that is a good plan. Cheers, Timo
  3. Taimoor says:
    I think its not that much easy to be a full-time blogger. But those who are successful, they are doing great! :) Well, thank you for your suggestions, Timo.. :)
    • Timo Kiander says:
      Hi Taimoor! Sure, you are welcome! Yes, I would assume that it requires a lot of work. Cheers, Timo
  4. Suresh Khanal says:
    Great post! I too fall in similar dilemma quite often. In case of somebody who has not yet started online business may find it harder to switch over. In my case even when the online earning started to be more than my day time salary, I'm still confused if I should really leave the daytime job. Because the office runs only for 10-4 and the job is not that hard, I guess I still need to handle both for some time till I make decision. Thanks for this thought provoking post.
    • Timo Kiander says:
      Hi Suresh! Great to hear you liked it! Sure, you are in a good position to figure out when to make the move from your day job to your business full time. Just take your time :) Cheers, Timo
    • Timo Kiander says:
      Hi Suresh! You are in a great spot - just take your time and decide when to hop on to your online business full time. Cheers, Timo
  5. Jason says:
    Wow, thanks for the kick in the butt, I needed that! I'm there, and the sad thing is, my job is actually great. I get paid well, the work is easy and enjoyable, and I have tons of free time to blog most days. But, I'm so passionate about being financially independent off my own sweat. It's time to change my mindset, be grateful, patient, and continue working towards my dream!
  6. Earnest says:
    I think over the years I've found that a lot of people have tried out becoming full-time bloggers when their other jobs are simply not suited for them because they think blogging is an "easy out". Making sure you're doing ANYTHING for the right reasons - whatever those reasons may be - is truly the key to happiness in life, and I think you have some great advice Timo.
  7. vicky says:
    I have had this mindset too but I realized that cramming over my job won't help me. I have been working sincerely since then and dream of becoming a full time blogger soon. Till that time, I will appreciate my work.
    • Timo Kiander says:
      Hi Vicky! Yes, that's a correct attitude. It doesn't help to hate it - it makes things only more complex. Cheers, Timo
  8. Jeet says:
    Timo, this is an awesome post. I also switched from a day job to online business a few years ago but I know that my last employer would be glad to hire me back. I recently wrote a guest post about why blogging is a full-time job and how to find time for blogging while you are in a day job. I assumed that people would still give 100% to their day job because that's what is allowing them to pursue their dream.
    • Timo Kiander says:
      Hi Jeet! That's great to hear! Yeah, I think that one form of appreciation is also to have a good relationships with your bosses and other employees. When you resign and you are not "burning the bridges" behind you, everyone can be happy. Cheers, Timo
      • Jeet says:
        Timo, I tell my employees that they should try to give their best because the contacts you make now will help them get another job in future (or clients).
  9. Rajandran R says:
    Whether it is a day job or dream blog one should learn to create multiple revenue streams. That's what the highly skilled entrepreneurs will do. May your Blog a Dream Blog with your Day Job.
    • Timo Kiander says:
      Hi Rajandran! Sure, creating multiple streams of income is beneficial. Cheers, Timo
    • Leon says:
      I agree. You should never depend on only one way to earn income. If you do, I personally think it will cloud your judgment and you neglect other things. Good post!
      • Timo Kiander says:
        Thank you Leon :) Cheers, Timo
  10. Lea says:
    Hating your day job can be so tiring that it sucks the life out of you. By the time you get home to work on your dream your spent and don't have the energy to put in the quality of work necessary. Its so important to be appreciative and stay motivated so your dream can become a reality.
    • Timo Kiander says:
      Hi Lea! So true! You shouldn't waste your energy to hating your job. Instead, put that energy to your passion. Cheers, Timo
  11. Servando Silva says:
    I'd say this is the other side of the coin many people don't see. Love what you do, and make the transition easier and smoother instead of just cutting things off and then cry because you weren't prepared for it. Even though I basically worked all the way around (from blog to a work), I still think about this many times. If you think your job is like a ladder that helps you get what you want to achieve, you'll feel definitely better than just hating it.
    • Timo Kiander says:
      Hi Servando! Yep, why make things harder than what they are? Besides, most of a time it's your day job that pays your blogging bills. Cheers, Timo
  12. Ryan Biddulph says:
    Beyond awesome advice Timo! Why? Where your attention and energy goes, grows. It matters not where you are, if you are working your day job, part time job, whatever. You will block success in all areas of your life if you hate any aspect of it, and dwell on that hate for a sustained period. I bless each and every 9-5 I worked. I am a full time online entrepreneur for many years but had I not worked a day job I would have lacked the money to get started with my current ventures. I would have missed out on valuable experiences, learning how to interact with individuals from different backgrounds and all that good stuff. Be grateful for your job and the blessings it affords you with and get to work on your blogging job, working intelligently and persistently, and gradually you will transition into being a full time blogger. Thanks!
    • Timo Kiander says:
      Hi Ryan! I agree - appreciation is very important. Without it, things get too complicated and managing your day job comes difficult. With a change of mindset things get so much easier. Cheers, Timo

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