While I was walking the dog – Kevin the Collie – today, I had a reality check. I went to the gym this morning and I met a woman who always seems to be trying to put me down. You know how it is! She took a job last year that involves a tricky two-hour journey across London but she insists that she enjoys it. When I was laid off two years ago it seemed obvious to look for a similar job, which would probably have given me a longer journey. Trouble was, I felt less confident even though I knew I had the skills to get another job. I faced a tough choice and I decided to become self employed and make cash creation my target using online money making sources. I am now earning money through blog creation. Although I earn about half my former salary, I keep my own hours, do work that I enjoy, and I do not have to make a long and tiring journey to work.
My job was Training Manager in a local authority and at first I thought I would become a freelance trainer after I left work. I did a few days’ freelance work but yet again, this is an area where it’s not what you know but who you know. My old boss had clearly spoiled my chances with the other local councils. So I had to think laterally. I had good writing skills and marketing experience but no expertise in building websites. I could see that there was scope to make money online working from home, and I set about finding a way to get started with a website.
My first website is an affilliate marketing site and was based on an earlier template that I was given through the Plug In Profit Scheme – not a scheme that I can recommend. The plug in concept involves signing up for a ‘free’ website that is a clone of thousands of others and will be penalised for duplicate content. They require you to sign up for hosting through their affiliate link. The hosting was satisfactory but at $25 a month is cost more than twice as much as my current excellent web hosting company, Hostgator. My web hosting also has a wider range of facilities including free self-hosted WordPress software which I use for this site.