My “blogging success story” started during the year 2022 when we were forced to stay home due to the worldwide spread of the COVID-19 virus. I’m not going to lie, the pandemic was awful. But it was also the best time for our planet to heal and for people to discover themselves again. The much-needed reset for the whole population.
With all that time on my hands, I tried multiple new hobbies, one of which was my very first blog. Back then, I had no idea how WordPress (or any other platform) worked, and I was simply playing around. I always enjoyed reading and writing, and putting my thoughts on paper was therapeutic. But it was mostly part of my daily journaling, and I was keeping it very private.
I never thought I would be sharing my silly little life online through a personal blog. After the pandemic ended and we returned to work, I forgot about my new project for a while. Until I rediscovered it again in 2023, when my son was born and the adventure started again. This time, however, it turned into a successful business, and it changed my life for the better.
The Blogging Success Story Begins…
Everything slowed down for me once I stopped working and went on maternity leave. Suddenly, I had all the time in the world, and yet I could do nothing but think all day. Taking care of a newborn without any family or friends around while your partner is working a full-time job is tough. We lived in a two-bedroom flat in London – just me, my partner and our son. We had no help and, like most of the young families, had to figure things out on our own.
It was around spring 2023 when I realised that I don’t want to go back to my office job. I worked as an assistant manager and administrator in a busy and stressful environment. As a business and administrative specialist, I have hardly ever worked in a calm and fulfilling place. So all that peace and love I suddenly experienced while being home and taking care of a newborn…well, it was an eye-opener.
Those Awkward First Steps…
I knew that I wanted to find a better way, something that would allow me to stay at home and give my baby the best of me while making roughly the same (or more) money as I did before. In my previous post, “Top Remote Jobs for Moms in 2025 (Part 1)“, I mentioned how difficult finding such a flexible and well-paid job can be. Back then, I still had my successful Etsy business, though. I was selling handmade candles, but soon enough, I had absolutely no time to fulfil orders and run my small business from home.
I had to get creative. So, instead of selling actual physical products, I started to sell guides. And I also started a mini blog about candle making in general. It quickly became popular because I was not selling any overpriced courses. A few people asked me to start online classes or local workshops, but that was not possible for me at that time.
I carried on writing about candle-making techniques, what kind of wax you should use and so on. Because I’ve seen such success with this mini blog, I decided to dive deeper into the blogging business and scale things up.
Reviving Old Ideas and Dreams…
One summer evening, as I was sipping on a virgin colada and watching my son play happily, I wondered if I could start a new blog about my current life. Surely a lifestyle blog would be interesting to at least some people, right?
I opened my laptop and started to dig through YouTube, Reddit and Pinterest. I’ve read so many reviews and advisory posts about blogging, and filled with new motivation, I decided to give it a go.
But I knew very little about self-hosting and how to market myself, so I quickly got lazy. Not only was my first lifestyle blog a fiasco (and my domain got stolen!), but I also found myself using a lot of ChatGPT-written posts. I was not serious about it. My traffic went from 500 new visitors to 0 in less than a month. People were not interested in generic content with no soul and a robotic voice sounding in their head while they read my posts.
I lost what I had already spent on my old domain and running ads. Plus, I wanted to have everything for free: the blog, the hosting, the images… That is not a good look. I’ve learnt from the experience and decided to seek more information. That led to learning more about the importance of self-hosting, protecting my intellectual property and securing my website. But also about the business side of blogging.
Launching For the Third Time…
The third time is the charm, right? I’ve got everything necessary to prepare and relaunch my blog for the final time. Learning about SEO optimisation, Google ranking, Pinterest strategies, and keyword research helped a lot too. Empowered with fresh knowledge and inspiration, I worked hard to customise my new blog and resolve all the technical issues. I prepared my first 20 blog posts and launched my business in September 2024.
People are confused when I describe how I started my blog and made money because I explain starting in 2023, but the success did not come until now. They keep asking me if it takes that long or what the real secret is. The truth is, it takes roughly 6 months for any new website to build the integrity and presence online. To succeed in blogging, you need to think long-term.
How Things Took a Quick Turn…
Two months after launching my blog, I experienced a BOOM in traffic. Every spare moment I got, I worked on improving my posts, SEO, posting on Pinterest, social media and readers’ experience. I stopped using tools such as AI or even grammar checking tools (sometimes they flag your posts for AI-generated content!), and I wrote everything out of my head. My readers seem to enjoy the raw, personal content more. And Google seems to prefer it as well.
This was the state of my Google Analytics when I first started (and lost my first blog)…
And this is how my Google Search Console stats look today…
Now, I want to be very open and real with you; blogging can turn into a 6-figure business, but it won’t happen overnight. I still have another job (I work as an administrative specialist from home), and in the meantime, I work on my blogging business daily. It’s an investment in my future and my personal goal.
I’m not here to sell you a dream or a course. But I WOULD love to inspire you to start working on your own blog or turn your writing skills into a business idea. What I’m describing in this post serves an inspirational purpose. The goal here is to show you that it is possible for everyone willing to invest little money and a lot of time.
Perhaps my words will lead you to another path and help you discover your old hobbies. Or you will share my story further so it can land with someone who talks about the same dream. When people ask WHY I do this, the answer is simple. Even though it brings in little money right now, to me it’s about much more. I want to build a brand and go-to place where people can visit online and where they can soak up creativity, motivation and knowledge. Anything that THEY later turn into a profitable vision. Having people “coming over”, building a community based on trust and helping others is worth more than just selling a fake hope.
How Much I Actually Make Blogging…
Understandably, some people will scroll right to this section, and don’t blame them. Knowing how much a blogger with a specific niche makes should not be a secret, and it certainly should not be sugar-coated. Let’s get real… I did not make ANY money in 2022. And I did not make any money in 2023 either. I only started to see an income from my blog in 2025.
So two years of blogging down the drain, right? Well, not exactly. When I started, I had no idea what I was doing or what the ultimate goal was. That alone set me way back from where I should be, but it was my own fault, and I take accountability for it. And on top of that, I tried to cheat the system! Of course, it was not working and producing the fruit. But I did not give up; I’ve learnt from my mistakes and tried again.
I’ve made exactly £1,217.55 from my blog in February 2025. Since then, the amount has changed slightly, but I have not reached my goal of making £2000 every month yet. With that being said, you must be asking, Okay, but HOW are you getting paid? What is the actual stream of income?
How Do You Get Paid As a Blogger?
There are many ways in which bloggers get paid. But most of us rely on these three sources:
- Advertising revenue
- Affiliate Income
- Digital Product Sales (Ebooks, courses)
Other bloggers also add YouTube revenue, dropshipping, TikTok or sponsorships. You need to understand that, as a blogger, you have the full freedom of choosing how you want to get paid. Your blog is your brand; you can choose to collaborate with other businesses, place ads on your homepage from companies that pay well, and the options are unlimited.
Most of my income comes from advertising revenue (Ezoic) and selling digital products for my old candle business (guides, secrets, formulas, etc.). I share some affiliate links every now and then, but I always let my readers know that I make a small commission from it. It’s mostly for products I love and recommend, but I’m not pushing it hard.
Nowadays, I receive lots of offers from other businesses, who either love what I do and want to be a part of it, or they simply want me to review their products or services. I’m very careful, I thought, choosing to collaborate with people and businesses whose story truly resonates with my inner values. It’s easy to get offers that will bring you money, but to deceive your readers for that, thank you! I value every single person coming to my blog, and I have no intention to lie and scam them.
I believe that taking it slowly, being careful to read contracts with other businesses, and accepting deals is more beneficial than just focusing on making big bucks.
What Is My Advice To The Beginner?
Think about…really. Stop for a moment, take a piece of paper and a pen and clear your mind. Then write down the top 10 reasons why you want to start a blog. What will you gain out of it (except money), what is your long-term goal, and what is the main motivation? Are you starting because it’s trendy? Or because you heard that you can make a bank with it?
That is my ultimate advice to you. Think. Before you spend your hard-earned money, before you jump in and throw random posts on your family and friends and force them to do the monthly clicks. Start with the right mindset – blogging is NOT instant money. You will need to put in the hard work and stay realistic and consistent. A good strategy is step number two. Ask yourself all these questions upfront. How many blog posts can you come up with every month? What are you going to focus on mostly? What is your plan for marketing, SEO and content?
Focus on the main content type you want to earn from. If you go for affiliates, perhaps writing reviews about products and local businesses is the right choice. Can you also write in a batch? Don’t forget to pick the right traffic strategy for you – do the keyword research, and aim for a platform that corresponds well to your content. Underestimating the growth of your email list is one of the top reasons why your blog struggles. Remember, you are building your own little community.
Be smart about initial investments as well; you don’t need a super fancy or expensive website. That upgrade will be your future reward. And lastly, don’t forget to set up your monthly content calendar and goals. How many visitors do you wish to reach next month, and why? To wrap this all up: consistency beats everything. Focus on ONE traffic source first; don’t ignore emails; celebrate small wins and expect a slow month (but don’t panic!).
Final Thoughts
Honestly, I hope that your blog, whatever it is about, will turn out exactly as you planned. And that it will bring you the financial and time freedom you have always prayed for! I would love to hear your blogging success story – leave a comment below, so we can all get inspired. 🙂
I will be posting updates on my progress every 3 months with proof of income attached to them, in hopes that someone finds them and starts working on their own goals.
In the meantime, I wish you all the luck in the world, and happy blogging!
