I heard Suze Orman say that we’re all supposed to learn to live on half the money that we normally earn. Her thinking is that if we do this now, we can protect ourselves in the event of catastrophes like losing our jobs or losing our retirement.
I think Suze is onto something. ‘Specially since Tom lost his job and it’s looking like…unless Jesus comes back or I surprise the crap out of everyone almost that much and get a real job…we’re going to spend 2010 living on about half the income we’ve been living on for the past few years.
Yesterday, I spent a couple of hours cruising the internet and reading the newspaper ads, looking for entry level jobs. Most everybody wants their new, underpaid employee to have a butt load of experience. Boy, this is bringing back memories…I remember why I always hated looking for work. Sheesh. No wonder I don’t have a job.
I’m also narrowing my own availability by trying to avoid any job that requires the wearing of blue or orange vests (or hairnets) and/or bartending. As you probably can imagine, I’m not having much luck.
My most favorite blogger (besides me), Magnolia, has passed on some good information on how to earn money on the internet. The ideas seem pretty good, the ones that I understand. I think it’s something about having websites and/or blogs in special niches that are venues for vendors to sell products. The trick, I understand, is to find something you’re passionate about, become an expert, and then try to get a ton of good information that will help and inform people…and subliminally cause them to become addicted to your site AND any products that might be presented for their shopping pleasure.
Which is a giant step or two away from me just trying blog out a few hundred words every few days to amuse me and you.
One of my biggest obstacles is that I’m such a techno-tard that even reading about all this internet blab is like trying to teach myself a foreign language by reading a book about that foreign language in that foreign language.
I usually think of myself as pretty smart…but I’m wondering if I’m smart enough to write AND use that writing to help people AND earn an income. It’s being done…according to the Greek internet marketing book I’m reading. BUT…if I’m personally going to do it, it’s pretty clear that I’m going to have to change the way I think about earning for writing and myself as a writer.
Change does not come easy to Cherie Baby.
Anyway, today I gave it a little more thought (while I was perusing my hospital bills) and decided…What the HEY? People WAY dumber than I am started out not knowing anything about this crap and managed to figure it out. I can figure this out.
So, that’s why I haven’t written for a couple of days. I’ve been trying to think like a grownup…which is no small task, especially when it comes to thinking about myself as a business woman…not to mention all the raging neuroses and self esteem issues such subjects engender in me.
Round Two of shakin’ it up…Livin’ on Half…in the second half.
August 26, 2009 at 5:25 am
And *you* are my fav-o-wit bwogger too Che-wee. Hugs Hugs Kissy Kissy
And boy do I hear ya about trying to learn this stuff. It’s seriously brain twisting sometimes and I’m right there with ya in being a “techno-tard”
But, people really do make money doing this thing. Just don’t pimp yourself to the point of becoming a Sham-Wow chick, okay?
I couldn’t take that and would feel totally responsible.
Oh, and I can send you some links to some great blogs that I hang around that teach about other methods to drive traffic to your blog. And they work. I’ve seen an increase in my blog traffic without a doubt.
Here’s my dilemma though…….I have this deep-seated, sub-conscious fear of success I think. At least, that’s what all the “success gurus” suggest. So, while you’re trying to up your “techno-tardless-quotient” I’m dealing with some serious Freudian issues.
In the meantime, I’m seriously considering going back to school to get an English degree. Why? I have no clue. But, it sounds fun and it’s probably another one of the Freudian ‘work-avoidance’ psychological issues I have.
August 26, 2009 at 5:26 am
P.S. You never cease to make me laugh.
August 26, 2009 at 9:14 am
Mags –
I went back to school and got my English degree a few (like 10?? HOLY CRAP) years ago. I LOVED it and I’m still paying off school loans.
I’ve been thinking about paralegal or medical transcriptionist school, probably for exactly the same reasons.
Yes, please. Send me those links.
Also, I need to figure out how to do a blog w/my own domain name (is that the right word?!)like yours…you know, not necessarily connected to wordpress. The blog stats on this thing drive me nuts…NOTHING adds up. Did you have to learn HTML to set things up? Is there a book like Blogging for Dummies you could recommend?
August 26, 2009 at 9:41 am
I blog with Bluehost. Yes, it gets pretty scary technical sometimes, but here’s the good thing. They have 24/7 (really – 24/7) tech support with toll free numbers. (I know, cause I’ve burned up the phone lines for months now)
They are super nice and one of their claims are they have technical support in ENGLISH in the US!
If you want, I can walk you through the process on the phone. I don’t remember how much it cost me to set up my first domain name, but it was worth it. After that it costs me about $7/month. Plus, if I get a wild hair, I can start other blogs too for $10/for each domain name. (One time fee)
I use WordPress open source code. Meaning, I’ve downloaded the code for WordPress and I blog using the WordPress platform, but I use Bluehost to “host” it. Make sense?
Listen, if *I* can figure this thing out, so can you. Besides, look at it like this, “it’s like working cross-word puzzles. Good for the brain. Staves off dementia and alzheimers”
After over a year, it makes a lot of sense to me and I’m able to do a lot of stuff. Though, I have been known, (I dunno, you may have heard) to blow up a couple of blogs. But, you know. Other than that? I’m pretty swift with this stuff.
You don’t need to know HTML. though a lot of people do, cause, get this – they think it’s interesting.
But, I use a theme for my blog called Thesis that I purchased. It’s so freakin’ smart that you don’t need to know much at all. Just cut and paste stuff and learn how to click this button or that button.
But, if you REALLY want to blow some code, you can go to some of the cool forums and learn how to “screw up your blog in under 1 hour” I’m a master at that.
I kill myself.
I really should get off of here. If you want to do the email thing to get started, I can help you with that. Or you can just call bluehost and they can walk you through everything. Just tell them you’re clueless. They are gentle. I promise.
Oh, and just as a recommendation. If you do go through Bluehost and set up a WordPress blog through them, use “Simplescripts”
Again. They will know what that is. It’s so easy, even a caveman can do it.