Is there a good thing about being laid off? Yes there is I believe. The
Bible says; we should give thanks in all circumstances, good or bad. When we
stay positive we will find more things to be thankful for. There are blessings
always hidden in every situation we face, we just have to open our eyes and
heart to see it.
I started blogging when I was laid off from my first employer. The
recession was so severe that our company doesn’t have any projects, leading to
a decision to release people and the remaining people to do multi-tasking. In
our company, there are a series of lay-offs, I wasn’t laid off on the first
batch but I did other tasks that other people left. Then after a year, I was one
of the people that the company has to let go.
All things work together for good as the Holy Bible says and there is a
reason for everything. When I was laid off, I want to find other means on how
to earn as I have loans and expenses to pay every month. As I was browsing the
internet for employment opportunities, I was also looking for ways on how to
earn passive income. Until I stumble on ways on how to earn money online. From
then on, I tried to read information in the internet on how to earn money
online, and blogging is one of them.
Blogging
is like a diary that you write anything that you enjoy doing. It is sharing
your passion to the world. But you have to be cautious not to become personal
as it might bore your readers. The blog for me should inspire, teach, rebuke or
bless others not only ourselves.
I am not a writer and don’t even have an experience in writing anything
aside from essays or book reports or thesis during my college years. But I
tried it anyway. Since I am very new in blogging, I used the free blogging
platform, blogger.com. It is a free
platform that guides you on how to start blogging even if you don’t have an
idea. They have a template that you can customize according to your preference.
It is easy to use and it’s free. Since I don’t have the money to pay a site,
blogger.com provided the solution for me and of course, I don’t have any
experience in blogging so I have to test the water first if I have the gift of
writing or my money will go to waste.
Since it was my first time, I thought of putting a site related to music
as it was something that interest me and enjoy doing it. In our church, we have
a collection of music chords and lyrics that we played every Friday. So I put
all the lyrics & chords of all our praise & worship songs in this blog.
It also served as my database of lyrics & chords, so when we need something
I could easily refer to my blog. Actually I am not that happy or proud of my
blog site before, since majority of the songs can be searched in the internet,
they are not unique or original composition from me. That is the reason why I
didn’t tell it to my family and friends. But by God’s grace, I put some of my
original compositions/documentaries in this site little by little.
I also put some other things on this site such as my trips, lessons,
reflections etc. as I go along, but somehow I don’t think that they fit in. So
I am looking for avenues that will be proper for them to be posted. Finally, I
believe this new blog site is the proper platform in order to put blog posts
related to other things aside from music.
Sometime in May 2014, I received an email from Google AdSense informing me that they have issued a payment for me.
I reached their threshold for releasing payment and gave me detailed
instruction on how to claim the payment based on my payment instruction. I was
happy that after 3 long years (that is quite a bit long, I supposed compared to
other blogs); I was able to earn my passive income through blogging. It was
also a sort of fulfillment for me because I feel that my effort has been paid
off.
In 2014, I also expand myself and created a new blog, regarding food
that never spoils, that is the food for our soul. Somehow, I feel guilty that I
didn’t have enough time to post regularly on this site. I became busy and it
really needs enough time to post something unlike my music blog.
Here’s what I’ve learned in my blogging journey:
First, blog about something you enjoy
doing. When you are sharing what
you enjoy, you will never run out of ideas or words on how to describe that
interest. Because eventually, it is the things that will enjoy that will
motivate us to continue. So we have to be very clear on why we want to blog
(our why/ motivation).
Second, blog regularly. You have to be consistent on putting content of
your blog. Since it is a free platform, sometimes I tend to take it for
granted, especially if I see little changes on my page views or earnings, I
feel demotivated to continue. I wonder if my blog is being appreciated or not. But
then, I just continue doing what I am doing as I believe that I am doing this
not only for monetary rewards but on how music could touch the people who will
read and hear it.
Third, blog about topics that will never
be outdated. I mean focus on
contents that targets the common problems/needs of people or society, not
focusing on what is seasonal/trending/popular today; blog about something that will
still be helpful in the near future.
Fourth, explore other possibilities
using your blog. You can monetize
by sending application to Google Ads or be an affiliate member of products or
services that you are also using and would recommend to readers. I am a
satisfied customer and an affiliate of Booking.com that is why I am recommending
it to my readers who wants the best deals in hotels around the world. So far, I
didn’t encounter any problem with them or the hotels where we stayed.
When I was laid off, I don’t understand
why it happens to me, but as I reflected later, God has great plans for me, plans
that did good things to me.
Right now, I am waiting for my fourth
payment. The three years that I took to earn the threshold was shortened to a
year, then months. I feel that is an improvement for a neophyte like me.
By God’s will, I am planning to put up my own site in the near future
that would cater the needs of most of the people. A site that will bless the
world and people who visit it will experience the goodness of God in their
lives. Such a big dreams, but I know that it will come true for the glory of
God.
Just a quick note, blogging can really earn you passive income and can
be a means to share your passion and lessons learned to as many people as
possible. But be aware that it will take long before you can see monetary
rewards. It took me 3 years to receive my first payment. There is a tendency to
be demotivated when you see your little earnings monthly, but don’t fret, it
will eventually add up.
If you want to put up a blog, here are some guidelines/questions that
would help you jumpstart your gift in writing:
§ Determine if you would like to start a blog.
§ Determine your motivation in putting up a blog.
§ Identify you blogging goals.
§ Create a blog account.
§ Define your blogs topic. Main topic and possible
sub-topics.
§ Decide how much time you will commit in this blog.
How many times you will post per week?
§ Decide how much personal information you would
share. Will you use your real name or not, where you live, your job and will it
link to social media such as twitter or Facebook?
§ Personalize the appearance of your blog based on
your personality and preference.
“And we know that in all things God works for the
good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” - Romans 8:28 (NIV)
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