My Blog Doesn’t Make Money (And Why I’m Okay With That!!)

Posted on by Mindie

There are many reasons people get into blogging, but for most, it is about making money. Others get into blogging for other reasons and are quickly swept up in the “how to make money blogging” aspects that seem to be everywhere. Well I am here to tell you, my blog doesn’t make money AND I am okay with that!! No really, I am!

I shouldn’t say my blog doesn’t make any money, I do occasionally see some green and swag doing what I do, but I don’t make a living at blogging. The honest truth is, very few people really do make a career out of blogging when compared to the many that try. So relax about the whole “making money” thing and blog for YOU, not the almighty dollar.

When I first started THIS blog three years ago, it was not my first one. The other one sank like a rock. Why? Because I was blogging what I THOUGHT people wanted but it turns out, there were a million other blogs with the same topic, doing what I was doing, and so much better! After floundering for almost two years, I had my second son and thus took a break.

When it was time to get my creative juices flowing again, I decided to start a new blog, one that made ME smile even if no one else read it. I picked a topic important to ME. I shared not only what we were doing, be it crafts, recipes, or critters, I put US, our family, into the story that has become my blog. The (mis)Adventures of a “Born Again” Farm Girl is just that…. Our ups and downs, our success and failures, laid out in words and photos for the world to see.

But why would I dare share our downs and failures?!?! Because my motto is “It’s not the amount of land you live on, but what you do on that land that makes you a homesteader.” I believe that 100%, so why would I put lipstick on a pig and portray a perfect life, when homesteading is anything but! I wanted folks to know we face the same issues and maybe through some of our not so shining moments, others will see they are not alone. Homesteading can be trying at times and if all you see are the perfect pictures and shining successes, you wonder what is wrong with what you’re doing, when in truth, it is all about learning as much as you can and trial and error.

And while I don’t make a living at blogging right now, I know in the future I might. How do I know? Well because through being myself, open and honest, not glitz and staged photos, I have developed a hard core group of readers who truly value my opinion and honesty. And let me tell you, I value those readers too! Not because they like what I do, but because when the chips are down, they are there as well. They have comforted me when we have lost animals to predators. They have rallied around our family when our dog was ill. They champion my children and some have even sent them gifts. How amazing is that! That is worth more than money to me!

But if I could make a living blogging, why don’t I? Now is not the time. I have a 3 year old and a 9 year old with Asperger’s (an autism spectrum disorder.) Right now, this time in my life, family and their needs come first, which meant for the first time this past school year, I home schooled. Talk about a major undertaking! It means when I have a post I want to write, but I have boys who want to play, I go play, because while money may make the world go round, it will never replace those memories we are making every day. Someday they will be grown and not want to play with their old mama, and then, then I will focus on “making money.”

So if you blog, and you are flustered by a lack of “success” or “income” take a minute and really think why you do what you do? I do it for me and I hope it inspires others to try new things. If you’re just in it for the money, if blogging seems like an overwhelming job, get off the hamster wheel….. Step back, find what makes your heart sing, and trust me, you will find “your people.” And when you do, money will not matter. When you do, success will magically appear. When you enjoy what you do, people will sense it, opportunity will knock, but only answer the door if you have the time. Never let the silly cyber world seem more important than the real life moments you could be having.

Sure I could sit here for hours on end, making contacts, selling ad space, and developing business deals. I could write that book my readers keep suggesting I write. But there are worms to go play with in the garden, there are swings that need to be pushed, and memories to make. And that folks is why my blog doesn’t make money and I am okay with that!

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60 thoughts on “My Blog Doesn’t Make Money (And Why I’m Okay With That!!)”

  1. Same here. Zero funds generated from it, and that's ok. I also write about my real life too, warts and all. I do hope to pen a small book someday or sell crafts, but for now just writing and shooting lots of pics…

  2. Hang in there, I love your posts and look forward to them. You are honest, you don't candy coat it and I love you for that. No one has perfect children, husbands or the Brady Bunch version of a family…..(seriously? who has a housekeeper and did Carol Brady EVER have a hair out of place?) I was born and raised on a farm, still have a small one. I enjoy reading about your experiences, how your kids interact and you daily life on your little piece of heaven. Keep up the good work, it goes by too fast and next thing you know you will have time on your hands to "blog for money"! Then you can blog about teaching grandkids about homesteading and farm life!

  4. My thoughts exactly! Honestly, I prefer to read the blogs that don't have all of those ads! There are several blogs that I used to really enjoy, but have so many ads or solicited posts now, that I almost dread reading them. I much prefer honest opinions and experiences. Thank you for keeping it real! :o)

  5. I really love the honesty of this post. I like many of your posts, but this particular one has just so many truths for me.

    Might I like to make some money with my blog? Yes, that'd be nice. But, it's not as important as living my life. I take breaks from blogging because life is here and I'm neck deep in it and devoting time to doing More with the blog just isn't a necessity. Besides, I can really only write what and when I want. I don't like the chasing and the idea of adding more behind the scenes work to blogging just because I might make Money, isn't as appealing to me right now.

    Sometimes I want to do or be more of a Money making blogger, but at the end of the day I'm really and truly OK with not! 🙂

    1. I would love to make a living blogging, but I am not will to sell the quality time I have for my kids. My blog is a little bit of a necessity for my sanity and I sometime feel guilty when I don't post much, but I get over it. LOL Like I said, I am okay with it!

  6. Great post! I started my blog as a creative outlet for me. A journal of sorts about living in our farm and raising sheep. It really helps keeps me organized, if that makes sense. I also think it is important to put pro agricultural notions out there. I am not knocking anyone who does it for income, just not one of the reasons I do it.

  7. Me too. I started my two blogs because I wanted a positive outlet for myself because I was getting depressed and I worried it would get worse, since my mother has been battling it her whole life. I have two different blogs because my number one passion is photography so I have one blog for that. Then I enjoyed writing so much and had other things of interest, after I got sick & started simplifying my life & all that it entails, I wanted to journal my journey, which is what my 2nd blog is. A collection of things that make up my simple living. But a bonus I never counted on was people actually coming to visit, enjoying my posts, coming back. YAY. I'm like you and I'm ok my blog doesn't make money, since it isn't the right time for it. Found your blog through a party, now I'm a new followers 🙂
    Sarah-Ann @ Living Intentionally Simple

  8. Love it, Mindie. I've been part of the "gotta make money blogging" world, and got out of it last year when I knew we would move to our new place. Like you, the creative juices started flowing again and so I'm back at it. This time, I'm not pursuing making money, I'm just doing what I like to do, and having fun at it. I love the idea of incorporating the family into the blog, which is something I really hadn't done before (you know–all those internet fears we used to have about identifying ourselves too much). This time around, I'm sharing about our home life and family once a week. I've never been one to share the downs, but I can completely see the logic in doing so, especially in finding the people that my writing appeals to. Perhaps I'll learn to do that a bit more too, now that money isn't the goal anymore. Good post, Mindie.

    Kristi @Stone Family Farmstead

    1. I have never really had any fears about identifying myself. I don't use my children's names or give out birthdates or such, but I figure a crazy person will find a way no matter what LOL so why stress. We have felt nothing but love for our whole family since doing this blog.

  9. i have mine because i have a terrible memory and it helps a bit to write it down. i had a number of journals that i kept on various laptops but those journals couldn't be transferred back then. i lost a lot of records. this media is proving more reliable for me and if i want i can have a hard copy made someday.

  10. Hi Mindie, Here from Inspire Me Monday.
    I blog to try to make myself clean my house! No money, but that's okay for me too…
    AS long as people enjoy what I write, and I enjoy writing it, that's all I ask. Money would be super cool! But I'm not in it for the money, fer sure.

  11. Thank you for saying it is ok not to make money. I started my blog 4 months ago as an interest in retirement and a way to genuinely encourage others to lead a healthy and fit lifestyle. Thank you for reminding us that playing is sometimes more important. Thanks for linking with us at #WednesdaysWisdom

  12. I agree! I started my blog a few months ago because a lot of my friends were interested in how I save so much money on groceries, so I figured a blog would be a good medium for that. And if I can help other people on the internet, that's awesome! I'd like to make money eventually, but for now I'm happy just helping people.

  13. I had no idea so many people made ANY money from blogging, let alone a living! I imagined the only people making money from blogging were those who started maybe 5 years ago or more who were in it at the start and have therefore managed to get a decent following. There are so many zillions of blogs out there now and only so many hours in the day (how on earth do people manage to read more than a few other posts every day????) that I can't imagine who all these people are who are actually attracting enough readers to make money from it. And, err, how anyway? Advertising???? As you can see I don't do this for the money – I started my blog as an extention of the book I have written, which also won't exctly make me rich 🙂

    1. I have made money by working hard at it LOL I do a once a year giveaway extravaganza with 12 days of giveaways. It takes a lot of work to pull off! But through doing it and contacting companies to donate prizes I have made some business relationships that have turned into them advertising on my blog. It isn't a lot of money but enough to take my kids for ice cream now and then. LOL And for every yes I get, there were 10 no/didn't bother to reply to me. It takes work and time, which I have limited amount of right now and it's okay. If you want to make money, brand yourself, be professional in everything you do, start sending emails, make contacts, cross your fingers and just know, it can be done, if you want to sell your soul to every company out there. On the other hand, you can make a few bucks, working with companies you truly believe in and have followers that trust you.

  14. What I took away from this was an acknowledgment of just how much blogging for a living really is. Many people disregard it as just making a post and the money will start rolling in when the opposite is just the case. Many successful bloggers, at least in the beginning, work more hours than most employees.

    1. That is so true! If you want to make a living blogging, you have to really invest the time and effort. You don't just put every ad plug in on your site and get rich. It takes time, relationships and nurturing to see a fiscal reward.

  15. You story is similar to mine. I started blogging years ago. My first one grew pretty quickly, but like you, I wasn't being me. It stressed me out, and I had to quit. Now, I am back. I don't care what happens with it, I just want to be me. It's a lot easier that way 🙂

  16. I tried to make money with my blog, but it seemed to take all the fun out of it. I'm with you – blogging for the love of it is the way to go for me!

  18. Found this post on a blog hop and I have to say that it is refreshing to find someone who is candid about their blog and not all about making some cash… I read blogs so I can relate to others, learn, and not feel like I am trying to start this new life without any info. Glad I found your story 🙂

  19. I earn a teensy bit from the blog (but not enough to even cover the cost for hosting) but I still continue with it and even spend for it anyway. I find writing very relaxing especially after a long week at work, doing programming work. There are many times though that I prioritize life, family and sleep(!!) over the blog. When I don't feel like writing, I usually don't follow my editorial calendar. Haha.

    1. Sleep, oh, now there is something I need more of! LOL I usually end up writing late at night after my children are in bed. Though last night I did say "screw it" and didn't finish my post and went to bed, of course I was having writers block *wink*

  20. What a refreshing post…. all of the "make money" posts have become quite tiresome and seem to dole out tiny pieces of information to get a person to click on the next post to get tiny pieces of information so we can "make money"… not a lot of REAL help in the subject, but LOTS of posts on the subject so the authors get LOTS of views, which helps THEM make more money. sigh. I have stopped following many of the bloggers who got bigger and bigger and had more and more ads… especially the pop-ups… hate those. I value truth and being REAL and that's what my blogs reflect… yes, I would love to make some money from them and maybe someday I will, but I do not want to sacrifice the integrity of being a wife, mom, Christian, homemaker, blogger, etc, just to go to the "next level" like so many have done. There has to be a way to do it better than that, IF it is to be done at all. Thank you for a great post.

  21. Yes I love this post… it takes time to get known and then someday we might earn some money! I have even thought for awhile maybe my posts were boring. Sometimes they are I'm sure but like you say I have noticed that I have a few hardcore readers and the list is slowing growing. I love blogging it's fun and if I happen to help someone along the way (like you just did for me) that's great! Thanks for the encouragement!

    1. I don't know how I helped but I am glad you enjoyed it. I'm with you, if I can help/encourage just one person, then blogging is so worth it 🙂

  22. My blog doesn't make money either, its a hobby for me. I once worried that if I turned it into something that made money I would not enjoy making posts about random things. It makes me happy.

  23. Enjoyed reading this – I don't make money with mine either – after 2 years. I recently have even cut back to posting only a few times a month instead of once or twice a week. My kids are teenagers but still need my attention for certain things – also, I like to cook and bake, sew, crochet and knit and not worry about documenting it all just for a blog post. In the past two months I have also cut back on my social media time and find it is amazing how much more I get done. I also agree with what someone else said about having all those ads on your blog – I think it distracts the readers but I suppose that is what you need to make some extra money.

  24. Great post Mindie, and what beautiful boys, thanks for sharing at Good Morning Mondays. I think we would all like to make money from our blogs but I agree sometimes it isn't the right time. Blessings

  25. Mindie, so glad you posted I was actually going to do a post on this subject . I love your blog and the stories that come from your farm. You certainly made the right choice to blog about you and your wonderful family. Thanks for sharing each week on #wednesdayswisdom

  26. As a fellow Aspie mom, I get you! A lot of what I do as a homeschooling mom to a special-needs child is time consuming, exhausting and I wouldn't want it any other way. I blog because it gives me time for myself. If other folks get something good out of it, so much the better. We believe in keeping the good stuff moving. Blessings to you and yours.

  27. Amen. I do my blog as a stress relief and it is something I enjoy. People get on me for not trying to make money. The way I look at it is that if it I decide to make money from it then it becomes a job. I feel that I will lose the creative juices for it and I will be blogging for others instead of myself.

    1. I make a little money, but it is still fun. I don't actively search for revenue, it just kinds plops in my lap, so I take it LOL But I only work with folks I truly believe in so I don't feel like it takes away from my ability to just be me 🙂

  28. I blog just for the fun of it , it certainly hasn't turned out as I expected to, but then again over the last couple of years life hasn't been quite what we expected. I'm never going to make money , not a yummy mummy or an older fashion conscious type so who would want to be a sponsor ? I'm just an old biddy with a lot of life experience that I feel the urge to spread

    1. LOL Old Biddy! I love it! Trust me, you have "people" out there! If you really want to make money, approach company YOU use because you are their target and your readers will be their target too!

  29. I blog for fun. Since becoming a stay at home mom, I craft a lot, and I like to share my ideas and see other crafters' awesome creations. My blog makes a teeny tiny bit of money every now and then, which I use to buy more craft supplies. I've looking into ways to make more money, and that just didn't appeal to me. It seems like too much work and time, and as a mom of two little ones, I don't have the time to live online. Besides, this is a hobby, and I want to keep it fun.

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