Hands up if you’ve ever seen headlines like these:
“Why I Quit My Job to Travel the World”
“Man Who Quit 9-to-5 Job Makes $1 Million While Traveling the World”
“3 Ways to Quit Your Job and Travel the World Without Going Broke”
My guess is that you have, because I see these headlines around everywhere. I’ve even written a few of them (hint: the last one).
And let me guess …
When you see a headline like that, you’re a bit skeptical. You check Google Analytics and with your meager traffic, you can’t imagine ever being able to quit your day job to go on an epic adventure, let alone make money while doing it.
But I have news for you.
It’s possible.
Not only that, but more bloggers than ever are doing it.
They’re doing it without having to pinch pennies, without having to stay in cheap, bed-bug-ridden hostels, and without going broke.
In this article, we’ll meet 16 bloggers who are doing this exact thing. We’ll take a look at how their blogs make money, where they’re choosing to spend their time, and even the downsides of building a location-independent lifestyle.
Let’s jump in.
If your bank account balance makes you shudder every time you look at it, you might not agree, but …
You can afford anything. Just not everything.
At least, that’s what Paula Pant thinks.
Paula went from an office job in Colorado, earning $25,000 per year, to a personal finance blogger earning a 6-figure income.
Her blog is focused on financial independence, and has helped her take 14 trips last year alone — 5 international and 7 within the US.
On a typical travel day, Paula spends about half of it working (maintaining hardcore focus), and the other half exploring with her partner, Will. At the end of the day, she typically clocks almost 8 hours of productive work (and just to be clear, while the average office worker is at work for 8.8 hours per day, they’re only productive for 3), proving that bloggers don’t get a free pass to do nothing even when they’re traveling.
Let’s look at a few awesome-to-sucky ratios from the day:
You may have heard rumors that the “riches are in the niches”, and that may be true … for some bloggers.
But not for Nat Eliason.
Nat runs the popular blog NatEliason.com, and his claim to fame is a lack of an overarching theme. He’s proving that you don’t have to be Tim Ferriss to blog about what you’re interested in, as long as you put in the work.
Nat moved to Argentina after a stint of digital nomading across the world: Paris, Austin, New York, Colombia, Florence, and even the Antarctic.
But it’s not all pretty.
There’s what he calls “the void.”
After he took his blog full-time and built his own four-hour work week, he found that he just wasn’t happy.
“As soon as you get that freedom, you realize that a fundamental part of being human is doing things, and once you have no things you need to do you can get listless and depressed.”
So while freedom is a worthwhile goal, keep in mind that you’ll need to fill that void somehow.
We’ve
seen one example of a personal finance blogger already, but this
personal finance blogger does things just a little differently.
Michelle Schroeder from Making Sense of Cents started her blog in 2011 and since then has grown it to become a massive success. She blogs with her husband and two dogs from the road, putting a whole new meaning to the term “location independent.”
Michelle and her husband travel from place to place in their RV, taking their dogs on adventures and exploring national parks.
That means that they explore in the daylight and work in the evening as much as possible.
Michelle is in it for the long-term game. She knows blogging isn’t a get-rich-quick scheme. It took her years to earn the income she does from her blog.
She inspires her readers to persevere and stick with their own goals so they can reach the success she has.
Think that most bloggers who are able to travel the world have the privilege of little responsibility?
This next blogger might change your mind.
Amber Fillerup Clark is the blogger behind the massively popular lifestyle blog, Barefoot Blonde.
She lives in Hawaii when she’s not traveling to places like Paris, Australia, and Japan, and she runs her blog and social media accounts from wherever she happens to be at the time.
And also takes care of her one- and two-year-old children, Rosie and Atticus.
She started her blog with a very different focus: to document a service trip to Fiji. When she returned to the US, she continued updating her blog from school, having to borrow her dad’s digital camera to take pictures.
After getting a couple of brand sponsorships, she decided to take her blog more seriously and focus on it full-time.
Now, her husband works with her on their blog business, managing photography logistics, and they spend much of their days taking photos for Barefoot Blonde’s Instagram and Pinterest accounts.
“Why I Quit My Job to Travel the World”
“Man Who Quit 9-to-5 Job Makes $1 Million While Traveling the World”
“3 Ways to Quit Your Job and Travel the World Without Going Broke”
My guess is that you have, because I see these headlines around everywhere. I’ve even written a few of them (hint: the last one).
And let me guess …
When you see a headline like that, you’re a bit skeptical. You check Google Analytics and with your meager traffic, you can’t imagine ever being able to quit your day job to go on an epic adventure, let alone make money while doing it.
But I have news for you.
It’s possible.
Not only that, but more bloggers than ever are doing it.
They’re doing it without having to pinch pennies, without having to stay in cheap, bed-bug-ridden hostels, and without going broke.
In this article, we’ll meet 16 bloggers who are doing this exact thing. We’ll take a look at how their blogs make money, where they’re choosing to spend their time, and even the downsides of building a location-independent lifestyle.
Let’s jump in.
Blogger #1: Paula Pant from Afford Anything
If your bank account balance makes you shudder every time you look at it, you might not agree, but …You can afford anything. Just not everything.
At least, that’s what Paula Pant thinks.
Paula went from an office job in Colorado, earning $25,000 per year, to a personal finance blogger earning a 6-figure income.
Her blog is focused on financial independence, and has helped her take 14 trips last year alone — 5 international and 7 within the US.
On a typical travel day, Paula spends about half of it working (maintaining hardcore focus), and the other half exploring with her partner, Will. At the end of the day, she typically clocks almost 8 hours of productive work (and just to be clear, while the average office worker is at work for 8.8 hours per day, they’re only productive for 3), proving that bloggers don’t get a free pass to do nothing even when they’re traveling.
Let’s look at a few awesome-to-sucky ratios from the day:
- Time Gawking at Gorgeous Mountains: 80 minutes
- Time Cursing the Crappiness of Powerpoint: Constant
- Time Spent in Hot Springs/Hiking: 1 hour, 30 minutes
- Time Spent in Transit: 8 hours, 45 minutes (includes work overlap)”
How she makes money: Paula allows her readers to book consulting sessions with her for $5/minute, takes on clients, and earns money through affiliate income and podcast sponsorships.
Her special blogging power: Paula’s special power is
simple: producing less crap, and more massively useful content,
publishing only when she has something amazing to put out.
Blogger #2: Nat Eliason from NatEliason.com
You may have heard rumors that the “riches are in the niches”, and that may be true … for some bloggers.But not for Nat Eliason.
Nat runs the popular blog NatEliason.com, and his claim to fame is a lack of an overarching theme. He’s proving that you don’t have to be Tim Ferriss to blog about what you’re interested in, as long as you put in the work.
Nat moved to Argentina after a stint of digital nomading across the world: Paris, Austin, New York, Colombia, Florence, and even the Antarctic.
But it’s not all pretty.
There’s what he calls “the void.”
After he took his blog full-time and built his own four-hour work week, he found that he just wasn’t happy.
“As soon as you get that freedom, you realize that a fundamental part of being human is doing things, and once you have no things you need to do you can get listless and depressed.”
So while freedom is a worthwhile goal, keep in mind that you’ll need to fill that void somehow.
How he makes money:
Nat monetized his blog through creating products: books, courses, even
an app. He’s taken on consulting clients and works somewhere around 20
hours per week.
His special blogging power: Nat’s special power is
his understanding of marketing. Without it, his blog wouldn’t have been
successful and neither would his products.
Blogger #3: Michelle Schroeder from Making Sense of Cents
We’ve
seen one example of a personal finance blogger already, but this
personal finance blogger does things just a little differently.Michelle Schroeder from Making Sense of Cents started her blog in 2011 and since then has grown it to become a massive success. She blogs with her husband and two dogs from the road, putting a whole new meaning to the term “location independent.”
Michelle and her husband travel from place to place in their RV, taking their dogs on adventures and exploring national parks.
That means that they explore in the daylight and work in the evening as much as possible.
Michelle is in it for the long-term game. She knows blogging isn’t a get-rich-quick scheme. It took her years to earn the income she does from her blog.
She inspires her readers to persevere and stick with their own goals so they can reach the success she has.
How she makes money: Michelle earns money from her blog through sources like affiliate income, courses, and advertising.
Her special blogging power: Consistency and
transparency. She’s been writing on her blog for six years and has
maintained massive consistency. Since she’s publishing regularly, she’s
developed a massive audience.
Blogger #4: Amber Fillerup from Barefoot Blonde
Think that most bloggers who are able to travel the world have the privilege of little responsibility?This next blogger might change your mind.
Amber Fillerup Clark is the blogger behind the massively popular lifestyle blog, Barefoot Blonde.
She lives in Hawaii when she’s not traveling to places like Paris, Australia, and Japan, and she runs her blog and social media accounts from wherever she happens to be at the time.
And also takes care of her one- and two-year-old children, Rosie and Atticus.
She started her blog with a very different focus: to document a service trip to Fiji. When she returned to the US, she continued updating her blog from school, having to borrow her dad’s digital camera to take pictures.
After getting a couple of brand sponsorships, she decided to take her blog more seriously and focus on it full-time.
Now, her husband works with her on their blog business, managing photography logistics, and they spend much of their days taking photos for Barefoot Blonde’s Instagram and Pinterest accounts.
How she makes money: She turned her blog into a business with her own hair extensions line and also engages in brand sponsorships on social media.
Her special blogging power: Amber’s special power is
visual content and social media. She and her husband pour their energy
into creating a visually appealing brand to inspire readers through
photography.
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