How I Made Money And Traveled Full-Time In February

Welcome to February’s business report where I show you how I made money online and traveled full-time last month. It’s time to look at this month’s update and see how I did. If you’re new to Making Sense of Cents, you may be wondering why I would want to publish my business report each month. This all…

Michelle Schroeder-Gardner

Written By:

Michelle Schroeder-Gardner

Last Updated: March 17, 2022

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, meaning if you decide to make a purchase via my links, I may earn a commission at no additional cost to you. See my disclosure for more info.

How I Made Money And Traveled Full-Time In February 2019 #howtomakemoney #travelWelcome to February’s business report where I show you how I made money online and traveled full-time last month. It’s time to look at this month’s update and see how I did.

If you’re new to Making Sense of Cents, you may be wondering why I would want to publish my business report each month.

This all started out as my extra income report because, in the beginning, it was all about the money I was earning from my side jobs. In my side income reports from the beginning, I included all of the income I made except for what I made at my day job.

However, I left my day job as a financial analyst in October of 2013 and now my monthly business reports consist of the many ways I earn a living with my business.

Many have asked why I would ever want to publicly talk about what I’m working on each month. Some think I’m crazy, whereas some are glad I’m open about what I’m doing. Whatever you think, I enjoy publishing my monthly business reports and I share them publicly for three main reasons:

  1. Before I started blogging, I knew nothing about side hustling and making money online. I didn’t think side jobs were worth the effort and I thought the only way to significantly increase your income was through raises at your full-time job. If it weren’t for others publishing their monthly income reports, I don’t know if I would have ever tried side hustling. I want to help show others the positives in side hustling and how it can change a person’s life. There are many different ways to make money online, and I like to share my story each month to help motivate others to improve their financial situation by making more money.
  2. Secondly, I like to publish my business blogging reports because it’s a way for me to look back, learn from my mistakes and actually see what areas need improvement. I use my monthly blogging reports as a way to track how I’ve done and it helps to keep me accountable.
  3. Lastly, I like to show others that making side money is possible and that there are many legitimate ways to make money from your home.

I know I say this every month, but it’s the truth. Life is great now that I’m my own boss and a full-time blogger. I look forward to each and every day and it’s a wonderful feeling. I truly love waking up every single morning.

Above are just a few of the reasons for why I enjoy publishing my monthly income reports. I like to show others that you don’t have to hate your job and hate your life. You can make changes to your life and make money in a way that allows you to truly enjoy the life you are living. I’m not saying that you have to LOVE your job, I’m just saying that your job should, at least, allow you to do what you like to do outside of work (whether that be spending time with loved ones, painting, hiking, etc.).

 

Quick reminder on last month’s announcement.

I want to repeat the announcement one more time – How I Made Over $1,500,000 In 2018 – Is This The End Of Income Reports? so that no one is confused. I’m sure I’ll receive many questions from readers who missed it.

As you all know, for quite some time I have been thinking about getting rid of my monthly income reports. However, whenever I would mention this in an income report, 99.9999999% of you asked me to continue on. Due to that, I want to find a happier way to continue with them.

Now, these will be “Business Reports” where I talk about how the business is doing, my goals, etc. Basically, everything will be the same, except there will be no more numbers.

If you’re looking for actual numbers, I did publish income reports for several years that talked about how much I earned from specific sources. You can find every single income report here.

I really don’t think too much will change. Instead, I want these monthly reports to be more helpful, instead of focused on just the numbers. I will still be answering reader questions, talking about what I’m working on, and so on, so I still think these will be extremely beneficial.

My monthly blogging reports will probably be a little different month-to-month for a little bit while I play around with this new direction.

If there’s anything new that you would like me to add to these monthly reports, please let me know in the comments below!

 

Income breakdown for February 2019

How was business income in February of 2019?

Instead of breaking my income apart down to the exact figure, I am including a pie chart. Many of you asked that I still do this so that you can see where income is coming from.

In case you are new, the main areas I earn a living from include:

Check out How I Successfully Built A $1,000,000+ Blog for all of the different ways you can make money through a blog.

Many of you have asked “Did your blogging income drop after getting rid of the numbers in your income reports?”

It’s only been a couple of months since I decided to stop publishing the exact numbers in each income report, and I also definitely do not know what direction I’m going with these still.

Many of you have wondered if my income has dropped because I’m now no longer showing readers exactly how much I am earning.

I was curious too to see if this would impact my earnings at all.

Well, after just a couple of months, traffic appears to be the same, and email subscriber growth is the exact same as well.

Most readers have completely understood me wanting to get rid of the numbers aspect of income reports, which has been nice!

So, it doesn’t look like it will change anything at all.

Anyway, February of 2019 was another great month for Making Sense of Cents and the whole blogging business. I earned a great income and enjoyed my month.

It was great on all fronts – blogging, course-wise, life, and everything else. The business is doing well and I’m very happy with it. My business is growing, I have a lot of ideas for this year, and I am very excited about everything. I really love my business and I don’t know where I would be without it.

Below are some of my monthly online income reports. I publish an online income update every month but only included some of them below as it would be a very long list. If you head on over to my income page you can find all of my monthly income reports from the past few years.

If you are interested in starting a blog of your own, I created a tutorial that will help you start a blog of your own for cheap, starting at only $2.75 per month (this low price is only through my link) for blog hosting. In addition to the low pricing, you will receive a free website domain (a $15 value) through my Bluehost link if you purchase, at least, 12 months of blog hosting. FYI, if you are asking yourself “can you make money blogging?” – my top tip is to be self-hosted. This is essential if you want to monetize your blog as you will appear more professional and this will help you monetize your blog tremendously. My blogging income did not take off until after I switched to self-hosted WordPress.

Exploring via dinghy (our small boat) in February.

Blog/life news

February was a fun month.

In February, we sailed from Bimini to Grand Bahama to the Berry Islands, and it was a glorious month. We’ll be spending the next few months continuing to explore the Bahamas as well. There are over 700 islands in the Bahamas, which means that we still have a lot of exploring to do!

I’ve taken a lot of time off from working since we left St. Pete, Florida a few months ago. I worked ahead a ton in order to do this, but the end of February for me meant that I needed to start working full-time on the blog again as a backlog of work was forming.

One question I’ve received a lot lately is how I’m working while in the Bahamas.

Surprisingly, I’ve found that internet is better in the Bahamas than anything we ever had in the U.S. while traveling full-time. We are using a new company called MyIslandWifi (this is not a sponsored mention). It is truly unlimited internet (you don’t even want to know how much data we’ve used in the past month, haha) for just $75 a month (and there’s no contract!). I can make phone calls, text, and hop online whenever I want, and it’s always a fast speed. For people in normal homes, this may seem expensive, but keep in mind that when traveling full-time you don’t have access to affordable wifi that is usually found in a home.

If you have any questions about our new sailing life, please ask them in the comments below. I’m hoping to turn it into a blog post.

Below are several other business and blog-related updates:

  • I’m currently a little over one month ahead in blog posts. I would like to be around 2-3 months ahead.
  • Traffic for the month was around 500,000 page views.
  • I am working on a series where I will help readers with specific financial questions, and tutorials to go along with them. Topics such as: How to open a bank account, How to write a check, Finding an online bank, Building and creating an investment account, etc. What other topics would you like to see me cover?
  • My community group for Making Sense of Cents is continuing to grow. This is a Facebook group in which you can seek advice from other readers on all sorts of topics such as finance, blogging, travel, running a business, and so on. There are already over 14,000 members!
  • I released my How To Start A Blog FREE Course. If you’ve been wanting to start a blog, then check this out. I created this email course for those who are interested in starting a blog, but haven’t done so yet. The course is free, and over 50,000 people have already signed up. Thank you, everyone, for the kind emails about how great the course is. Glad everyone is enjoying it!
  • Due to how well my first free course went, I also created the free Master Your Money email course. It’s full of great money management lessons and financial worksheets (such as a free budget template), and I’m loving the positive response from this email course as well.
  • Other freebies I have include 10 Easy Tips To Increase Your Affiliate Income and 8 Easy Tips To Make Money From Sponsored Posts On Your Blog.

 

Popular new posts on Making Sense of Cents last month:

 

Featured Question: If blogging is so great, why doesn’t everyone do it?

I feature one question from a reader in each monthly income report. Please leave a comment below if you have a question that you would like me to answer. 

This is a TOP question I receive. I always hear:

  • “If it’s so easy, why doesn’t everyone do it?”
  • “If it’s so great, why doesn’t everyone do it?”
  • “Why don’t you just start multiple blogs and make even more money?”

Blogging isn’t printing money.

It’s not a scam and it’s not a get rich quick scheme.

It is work, and just like with all jobs – not everyone wants to do the exact same thing in life.

It would be like saying that 100% of businesses that are started will see success. That is just never going to happen – businesses fail, business owners have a change of heart, and others don’t find it enjoyable.

I know I am always talking about all of the positives of blogging, but I always like to mention how it’s not the easiest as well.

After all, if blogging was easy, then everyone would do it and everyone would make thousands of dollars a month.

However, that’s not the case.

Not everyone is going to make money blogging because it is WORK! Most people quit just a few months in. A few months is not enough to see if your blog will see success. For me, it took me 6 months before I made my first $100 blogging. Now, I make over $100,000 a month.

It’s funny/weird to think about what life would be like if I would have quit back then.

I’m constantly learning something new when it comes to blogging and that is why I enjoy it.

Once you realize that blogging is hard, you will be ahead of 99% of everyone else in the game. Instead, so many people just assume that blogging is easy and that it is a get rich quick scheme.

Starting a blog can be difficult. But, everyone has been in that same place – blogging is new to everyone at one point.

I remember being so lost when I first started my blog. I had to learn everything the hard way – and it sure was difficult at times.

But, I also have always really enjoyed blogging and I think that is so important when it comes to this type of business – you either need to have passion in your blog and/or passion in what your blog allows you to do in your free time (such as travel or spending more time with your family).

Past featured questions:

 

My plans for my blog and my business.

Plans and goals can help you run a successful business. I believe that working towards a goal can help keep a person motivated too.

Below are some of the areas I am currently working on:

  • Get at least three months ahead on Making Sense of Cents posts. Being ahead in blog posts makes life much more enjoyable because I can focus on other things knowing that the majority of my writing work is already done. This is one of my major 2019 goals!
  • Work less than 30 hours per week. For the most part, I am working less than 30 hours per week. However, there are some weeks when I spend all day and night on my laptop, not even sure where the day went. Due to that, I would like to continue to work on a better work/life balance.
  • Be more present. My main goal in 2019 is to be more present, and I recently wrote about it here – My Quest To Be More Present And Enjoy Life More. I’m excited for the year of travel and sailing we have ahead of us, and I want to enjoy it as much as we can. I’ve been so focused on the business the last several years, that I want this year to be focused on life outside of business. Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely LOVE running Making Sense of Cents, and that’s what makes it so hard to break away and be more present outside of work.
  • Have fun. Okay, so this isn’t really a goal that is quantifiable or something that I’ll track, haha, but I am really looking forward to 2019!

 

Affiliate marketing results.

Affiliate income was at an average level in February. February was mainly me prepping for a big launch I take part in each year in March – so I spent most of the month getting ready for that.

March of each year is usually my best month for affiliate income, and I am looking forward to it!

Affiliate income is expected to continue to increase from March to June like it does each year. Those are the popular months for my blog, as people seem to be more focused and refreshed on reaching their financial goals.

Some of the things I am working on include:

  • Learning about SEO and applying techniques to my blog. This past guest post has me super interested in starting to take SEO seriously – The exact template that helped my site earn $95,000 in affiliate income last year.
  • Using Facebook ads to my affiliate marketing advantage. This past guest post also has me interested in growing in this way as well – How One Blogger Grew His Blog to Over 2 Million Visitors In A Year.
  • Creating a high-quality funnel. Funnels are something that I have never really spent any time on, but I would like to change that. I want to create a high-quality funnel where I continue to give valuable information to my readers, and keep them happy for the times when I may not have the greatest wifi.
  • Planning out 2019 for affiliate offers. I’m not really much of a huge planner, but I am changing that in 2019. I already have affiliate promotions planned out for the first 6 months of 2019. This will help to keep me organized and better prepared.
  • Continuing to grow the reach of Making Sense of Cents. Traffic has been a little stuck lately, and I want to change that! I want to see what I can do to grow the traffic, as that will help me to reach new readers.
  • Analyzing popular affiliate blog posts to see how they can be improved for the future.
  • Seeking out new affiliate products to promote, and seeing what my audience is interested in.

And more!

Earning affiliate income is something that I’m extremely grateful for, especially lately. We have been so busy lately and I haven’t spent as much time towards the business as I would normally like.

Even though I am spending less time on the business, I am still earning a great income each month and this allows me to focus on a better work-life balance.

I’m a very big fan of affiliate income, of course. It’s something that I enjoy due to how passive it can be. It makes full-time traveling much more enjoyable when I know I can bring in an income while having fun seeing new areas.

If you want to learn more about affiliate marketing, I recommend getting the free guide 10 Easy Tips To Increase Your Affiliate Income. With this time-saving cheat sheet, you’ll learn how to make affiliate income from your blog. These tips will help you to rapidly improve your results and increase your blogging income in no time.

I also have a course too!

In the course Making Sense of Affiliate Marketing, there are 6 modules, over 30 lessons, several worksheets, bonuses, an extremely helpful and exclusive Facebook group, and more. I go through everything that you need to know about affiliate marketing, such as:

  • A quick introduction to affiliate marketing and how it works
  • The exact steps I’ve taken to earn over $500,000 from a single blog post
  • How to correctly pick affiliate products to promote
  • The steps to increase your conversion rate
  • 80+ affiliate program ideas for different niches
  • How to build trust with your readers (this is a MUST!)
  • The required disclosures you need to know about
  • The many different strategies to promote your affiliate links

My course is anything and everything about affiliate marketing. This course is perfect for you whether you are a new blogger or if you’ve been blogging for years, no matter what topic your blog is about, what country you live in, and so on.

 

Sponsored partnership results.

February was a great month for sponsored partnerships. That is because the first quarter of each year is usually a popular one for financial blogs. Page views are up and readers are interested in improving their finances due to making new annual goals.

Due to this, I started new sponsored partnerships with a few financial companies in the first quarter of 2019.

For some reason, sponsored blog posts and sponsored social media ads seem to scare bloggers, whether they are brand new or have been blogging for years.

What do I charge? How do I find companies who will want to work with me? What are the rules?

There are SO MANY QUESTIONS when it comes to sponsored posts.

It makes sense – sponsored partnerships are something that probably 99.9% of bloggers want to pursue, but the problem is that they have no idea where to start.

I started Making Sense of Cents in August of 2011, at the age of 22, without any hopes of ever earning an income from it. It started as a hobby – just a way to journal my life and talk about my personal finance situation.

Then, around six months after I started my blog, a blogger friend of mine connected me with an advertiser and I earned $100 from that advertisement.

It wasn’t a lot of money, especially considering the amount of time and work I had already put towards my blog. However, it was very motivating to see that something I absolutely loved to do could actually make money. I honestly had no idea that blogs could even make money when I started mine!

After that first $100, my blogging income quickly grew.

I now charge, on average, around $5,000 per sponsored post.

You can learn more about sponsored partnerships in my free guide 8 Easy Tips To Make Money From Sponsored Posts On Your Blog.

Are you interested in earning blogging income?

How To Start A Blog Free Email Course

Want to see how I built a $5,000,000 blog?

In this free course, I show you how to create a blog easily, from the technical side all the way to earning your first income and attracting readers. Join now!

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Michelle Schroeder-Gardner

Author: Michelle Schroeder-Gardner

Hey! I’m Michelle Schroeder-Gardner and I am the founder of Making Sense of Cents. I’m passionate about all things personal finance, side hustles, making extra money, and online businesses. I have been featured in major publications such as Forbes, CNBC, Time, and Business Insider. Learn more here.

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  1. The Financial Tech

    Wow! seriously, you are an inspiration to continue blogging and trying to make money with it.

    Reply
    1. Michelle Schroeder-Gardner

      Thanks!

      Reply
  2. DNN

    I think I am going to apply for the Hilton credit card today and explore options how I can accrue travel rewards points for future travel endeavors.

    Reply
    1. Michelle Schroeder-Gardner

      Fun!

      Reply
      1. DNN

        I got approved and have the card now. Thankful! 🙂

        Reply
    2. Marla J Albertie

      I have one and I LOVE IT! I will blog about it in the near future. Points are our friends

      Reply
  3. Alexandra

    How do I get my boyfriend to start tracking his income, expenses, net worth and save more money? He wants to spend, spend, spend and not think about tomorrow. He doesn’t have any savings for an emergency. If he wants something? He buys it with no thought about the consequences.

    He makes six figures, but has nothing to show for it because he shops constantly. He’s 45 and I fear for his future.

    He’s saving 4% of his income in his 401k and refuses to contribute more because his employer only matches up to 4%. He’s stubborn and hard headed.

    He wanted to buy a huge 5 bedroom house in Southern California. He doesn’t have any children and can’t afford a million dollar house. He wants everything the biggest, the best, the top and doesn’t understand what that does to his future. He acts like his flashy Korean dad and won’t save a penny.

    How do I get through to him that he’s headed for a disaster?

    He believes because he buys things on sale or with a coupon that he’s frugal. He barely has any money saved. He spends it all. This is freaking me out.

    He tends to not throw anything away, ever. He’s overly emotional and attached to items. He considers himself sentimental. I consider him a hoarder, but he doesn’t see it. His constant spending means there’s no place to put anything.

    Ex: he has kept magazines from 2000 because he likes a single article inside the magazine

    Any ideas of how to get through to him? He doesn’t see himself as others see himself. I’m scared for his future.

    His father was incredibly successful, but spent every penny buying strangers drinks in the bar to be a showoff. He made lots of money and had no money to pay for his cancer treatment as he was dying. The son is headed in this same direction. They are irresponsible with money.

    Any ideas of how to get through to him? I asked him what he would do if he was in a car accident, disabled, unable to work and how he would survive. He looked at me in horror. He said, I never thought about that before. I said, this is exactly why I want you to build up an emergency savings account. He said, it’s impossible! I want to buy this and that. It’s impossible!!! It’s like dealing with Peter Pan. He’s a nice guy, but terrible with money.

    I can’t consider marrying him as long as he mismanages his money. It’s not something I can even consider. I’m frugal and how he handles money makes me uncomfortable. Money flows through his fingers like water.

    How do I get him to sober up and face reality? I sent him to a financial planner and that didn’t work. Any ideas?

    Reply
    1. Michelle Schroeder-Gardner

      Have you tried getting him to read financial blogs? For me, that completely changed my life.

      A money conference, Dave Ramsey event, or just anything that can get him excited about money sounds like something he may need.

      I do think that finding the root of his material possession obsession is important too.

      Reply
      1. Alexandra

        I’m attempting to get him to read finance blogs. I send them to him. He was resistant at first because he’s stubborn.

        Recently he admitted he’s thinking about the info. He’s not acting on it or doing anything differently, but he’s thinking it over. That’s a start. First step: get him mulling it over. He’s thinking about it and he wouldn’t even do that in the past, so it’s progress.

        He’s hardheaded, so it takes time. I’ve explained to him he can’t continue on like this because it only leads to disaster and I’m scared for his future. He understands I’m scared, but he’s not really concerned about my fears.

        I’ve blown up at him and vetoed purchases that I felt were a disaster. Luckily, my temper trumps his temper, but it’s not my preferred mode of communication. I only blew up because I didn’t want him to completely ruin his future. Once I started crying he realized how much he’s scaring me with his idea of buying a $700k house with no savings and no down payment. I completely freaked out about this idea.

        I’m attempting to get him to track his spending. I want him to face reality. He looked at his card statements and got scared, so he looked away. He’s now resistant because it scares him.

        He’s a very emotional person and that emotional response spills over to money. He wants everything and isn’t willing to go without or make sacrifices. I’m wondering if this is related to starting over as immigrants in America.

        He talks about how he was not happy about being uprooted from Germany and coming to America as a small child. He was born in Germany and his family moved to America when he was 5 years old. The move didn’t sit well with him. The move was rough for him. His parents were from Korea and in Germany working. He knew German and Korean. He was not happy about having to learn English! He was not happy about losing his home, school, friends, possessions as they packed up to move to America.

        Being stripped of nearly everything he owned in preparation for the move to America seems a root cause of the shopping and hoarding.

        His hoarding got much worse once his parents died. His mom was suddenly killed when hit by a car. He was not emotionally or mentally prepared to lose her. He spun out of control and I’m not convinced he’s recovered. He didn’t react well to losing his parents and doesn’t want to lose anything else.

        It’s common in people who experience loss and grief to get stuck in hoarding. They can’t get over their grief and let things go. They hold onto possessions like it can bring back the person they lost. It’s illogical because it’s emotional. Emotions don’t make any sense because they are emotions.

        He makes himself overly busy, over schedules his time to not think or deal with his emotions. I don’t think he’s fully processed the death of his parents and that’s a big problem for him.

        When people over schedule themselves they are often hiding from their emotions. If I stay excessively busy I don’t have to think about my emotions or feel them. I’ll just work myself to death and feel nothing.

        Bottling up our emotions means they just pop up somewhere else in a harmful manner (such as gambling, shopping, hoarding). They come out somewhere and don’t just disappear like magic.

        I’m thinking grief counseling could help in this situation. Then he can start to let go of his treasures that he holds onto. If he can process his grief I think that could help with the hoarding issue.

        I’ve sent him to a financial adviser and that didn’t work. I think regular therapy might work better to figure out what hole in his life he’s attempting to fill by shopping. Shopping is about filling a void in the life. The person feels some sort of void or hole in their life and they fill it with shopping.

        My sister is a shopping addict. She’s admitted she does it to cope with depression, anxiety, sadness, fear and whatever emotional state she’s running away from. She avoids her emotions and channels that avoidance into shopping. My sister being honest about her shopping addiction helped me understand where it comes from.

        After watching my sister ruin her life with a shopping addiction I find it alarming to see it in my boyfriend. It scares me!

        Consume, consume, consume makes me very uncomfortable. It’s not my comfort zone.

        Consumption is often what people do if they feel they lacked love growing up. They fill the void of “I wasn’t loved” or “I didn’t receive affection” with shopping. The brain gets the same hit of neurotransmitters as a gambling addict (per brain scans). That’s why they repeat the behavior. They want that neurotransmitter hit inside the brain. It feels good. It feels euphoric for a short time and must be repeated often to restore the euphoria.

        I’m going to broach the topic of therapy. I think if the underlying emotional issues are addressed and put to rest he can adjust his money habits. Once he gets over his grief he can stop hoarding. Once he gets over his emotions about being brought to America against his wishes he can learn to let go of shopping and consuming.

        I’ve been giving it a lot of thought, asking questions and digging around in his brain and everything goes back to emotional states. If the emotional state is addressed I think we can get somewhere.

        Emotional states cause us to behave irrationally, make poor decisions and self-sabotage. That’s what he’s doing.

        I’m going to have to find a way to broach this topic without him flying off the handle and rejecting it without even considering it. It’s going to take some finesse.

        In the past when I talked to him about therapy his response was, Koreans don’t go to therapy! End of topic. Subject closed.

        I’m going to have to soft sell it to get past his defenses.

        Childhood experiences can have far reaching consequences into adulthood. It’s unfortunate, but that’s how it is. It’s especially difficult for sensitive people.

        Reply
    2. Nat

      Dear Alexandra, if getting him to read financial posts etc doesn’t work, I would consider couples therapy focused on that issue. Should that not work either, then perhaps you better start thinking of yourself first. I’m with a guy who buys die cast toys. He thought it would be a great retirement investment. $250K later, he still has a mortgage and a large credit line on his tiny house. I challenged to see if he could sell one toy in any market he chose. Well they’re not even worth half of what he paid for them! He has a garage full, a large backyard shed full and a full basement that you can’t move around in full of these toys. His excuse is that it’s a hobby. And that’s why I’ll never move in with him. He’s a hoarder. It’s not the only thing he guards either, so just think of where you want to be in the future. Take care of you first.

      Reply
      1. Alexandra

        Thanks for the response. It’s frustrating that he wants to spend so much money and not save money.

        One thing that worked was when I painted him a visual picture of his future if he was injured and unemployed due to a car accident. I said, you have no savings. What then? He said, I never thought about that before. I’m planting seeds in his mind and hoping they grow.

        I’m sending him emails with finance blogs. He was resistant at first. Now he’s thinking about the info. He’s not doing anything just yet, but he’s thinking about it and that’s an improvement.

        He’s resistant to getting rid of anything or shopping less. He says getting rid of anything is “impossible” and not going to happen. He doesn’t see himself as a hoarder, but holds onto magazines from 20 years ago. He won’t let them go. It’s frustrating.

        I’m not sure if he hoards because he was an immigrant. Immigrants can feel fear of losing everything and hold onto things. He didn’t react well to being uprooted from Europe and brought to America as a kid. He was not allowed to bring toys with him because he was moving to a new country and this seems to have messed with his head. He lost his home, friends, school, neighborhood, toys and everything familiar to him. He was not thrilled to have to learn English in addition to German and Korean when he came to America as a child. That move was not something he adjusted to very well and seems to have set off hoarding.

        He felt like an outsider as the only Korean kid at school in Europe and then again in America. It kind of messed up his head to not feel like he fit in.

        Part of his hoarding is due to his parents deaths. He lost them and now doesn’t want to lose anything else. It’s an emotional issue. It’s his reaction to grief. This is pretty common when people don’t get over grief.

        Reply
        1. Emenike Emmanuel

          I feel your pain, Alexandra.

          I’m a guy.

          It’s actually a horrible experience.

          I used to be like your boyfriend. In fact, I’m just recovering from this very addiction. Haven’t fully recovered yet, anyway. But what helped is the fear of what will become of me if emergency fund is needed.

          I have aged parents and it’s my responsibility to take care of them. I had to advise myself by myself to never allow my account to be short of a certain amount. Money is a security, you know.

          Keep talking to him. Don’t relent.

          If I had a girlfriend like you, who would advise me on how to be more frugal with money, I’d be happier. He’s taking a bigger risk by trying to lose you.

          You can help him. Don’t stop. More than that, is there someone you know he listens to? A friend, business partner, an authority figure or family member? You can get the person to talk to him more on this.

          He can’t afford to continue like this. It’s risky.

          Reply
          1. Alexandra

            You and I understand he can’t continue, but he has magical thinking and thinks everything will be okay.

            I’ve been explaining to him how different his life would be if he spent the $100,000 that he spent on DVDs and used that money on paying off his $70,000 car loan instead of spending that money on DVDS. He could have bought a house or paid off his car. He’s actually spent more likely $250,000 on DVDs alone. That’s insane!

            Why buy DVDs when you can rent them? He wants to OWN them! Oh this irritates me!

            He has all the excuses in the world. If someone has lost an excuse? My boyfriend found it for you.

            I’m not the first girlfriend to get upset about his spending habits. His last girlfriend left him because of it. Now he’s in danger of losing me, too. It’s not stopping him or scaring him. Shopping and hoarding means more to him than a relationship and that’s now clear after a 4 hour argument and conversation.

            Tonight I cried and yelled at him about the state of the house and his spending. The house could be closed down by the fire department for being a fire hazard with floor to ceiling piles.

            I told him, I’m deeply unhappy and ready to go. He was shocked, but made no promises. All he did was give more excuses.

            I don’t think this is going to work. I’ve already got one foot out the door. I want a man. I don’t want a manbaby. I raised myself and my 3 siblings (plus my parents who never grew up). I’m done raising children. I’m worn out. I’m tired. I’m exhausted. I’m not interested in raising a manbaby.

            I’ve got serious health issues myself that leave me fighting to stay alive, I can’t handle anymore stress. It’s too hard on my fragile health. I can’t afford the distraction when I need to focus on how do I save myself and not die? It’s just too much. There’s no cure and no treatment for my medical condition. Doctors say I should be dead, so it’s serous.

            He’s stubborn, hardheaded, closed-minded and rigid. He’s not open to new ideas or ways of life.

            I asked him to go to therapy. He said, no!

            I’m done. He’s made his choice. His shopping and hoarding is more important than me. His shopping addiction is more important than me. That’s his choice. He has to live with his choice. I’m moving on.

            I’m finished. I must save myself. I’m not going down with his ship.

            If I throw him a liferope and he refuses to grab it that’s on him. I can’t save a drowning man who won’t grab the rope.

            I’m done. He made the comment that I’m his last opportunity for a girlfriend (because no one will put up with this nonsense), but that’s not enough to persuade him to change. That tells me the situation is hopeless.

            Apparently shopping is more important than a relationship and sex. Who knew! Crazy, right? That’s a powerful shopping addiction.

            Reply
  4. Akhilesh

    Its really a inspiration for those who start blogging and wants to earn some money. Thanks for sharing such a helpful article.

    Reply
  5. GIULIA

    really interesting there is something new to learn, thanks for sharing!!!

    Reply
    1. Michelle Schroeder-Gardner

      Thanks!

      Reply
  6. Marla J Albertie

    What a great post! You are so inspiring.Thank you. My blog is still new but I believe in myself therefore it will be successful. Thank you for sharing your tips and tricks!

    Reply
    1. Michelle Schroeder-Gardner

      Thank you!

      Reply
  7. Jennifer Jank

    Excellent article! It’s always interesting to see where all the money comes from when people are able to make a fulltime living from their blog.

    Reply
    1. Michelle Schroeder-Gardner

      Thanks!

      Reply
  8. Lisa

    I’m neglecting my blog no more! I really believe I can do it this time. You are so passionate about your blog and so helpful..I hope to do the same 🙂

    Reply
    1. Michelle Schroeder-Gardner

      You can do it!

      Reply
  9. Holly

    I appreciate your transparency about needing to work ahead in order to take time off. I feel like this aspect of blogging is not mentioned much. There is no one to cover while you are gone!

    Reply
    1. Michelle Schroeder-Gardner

      Thank you! It’s definitely hard to take a break as a blogger.

      Reply
  10. Greg

    What fantastic success, Michelle! I’m relatively new to the blogosphere but I’m really enjoying reading your incredibly well thought out posts. Surely that’s one of the many secrets to your success.

    Reply
    1. Michelle Schroeder-Gardner

      Thank you 🙂

      Reply
  11. Marco Baatjes

    Great post, was good to see a pie chart that represents where your income comes from. I’ve been trying my hand at affiliate marketing and I have been promoting Shopify and it’s been a challenge to get my first sale.

    Reply
  12. Jules

    Thanks for your openness in sharing your income reports, Michelle. It’s completely understandable that you are evolving their format, but even in the new format, these are so inspiring and helpful in seeing how your business in broken down!

    Congrats on another great month for you – I’m currently working on implementing the tactics from your MSOAM course. Thanks!

    Reply
  13. addy

    What a great inspiration especially for beginners!! Am starting out with affiliate marketing but my main challenge is on getting Pinterest traffic. That’s what am working on now.

    I have reviewed your income reports for previous years and it’s a testament that blogging pays!!
    Keep it up!! We are following your footsteps.

    Reply
  14. Jojo

    SO inspirational! My Etsy is great for main income but I’m working towards building up my website and blog, too. I have a dream of traveling full time in a year. Thanks for the tips and motivation!

    Reply