Forum

[ElanaM100]

Hey everyone!

I'm relatively new to the scene- I just started my site about a month ago and I have a lot of work left to do. My problem is that I have a full-time job, and not just any full-time job, but a super time consuming one (part of the reason I want to find another income source).

It seems like a lot of the people posting are doing the affiliate marketing full-time, but I'm sure there are others out there who have other jobs too or at least did when they started out. How do you guys manage the balance between your day job and the IM stuff?

It's also frustrating because I know my progress is going to be super-slow given that I can't work on this everyday. Any unfortunately money is tight so I'm not at the point where I can do any major outsourcing.

Any advice or suggestions? Or any other people who are in the same boat and just want to commiserate??

 

[jcdean]

I get up real early in the morning to work an hour on IM before I go to the soul sucking day job. I get about 4 hours in the morning between Saturday and Sunday.

You just have to keep the dream alive and put as much time into as you can, without neglecting your familly. Build it into the schedule and keep the schedule.

I have just started out-sourceing recently; that makes things go very much faster. It's really great now that there is a forum section devoted to people who want to take on some work.

The biggest mistake I made when I started out was wasting my precious time by jumping around from one tactic. If I would have stuck to something years ago, I would be in tall cotten already.

Hope I helped a little.

 

[ElanaM100]

Hey thanks for your response. That's a good idea to get up early in the morning and get some IM work done before the day job starts... I used to make myself do that because I liked starting the day on *my* terms, but have since gotten a little lazy about it. I'll have to get back on the bandwagon.

I've jumped around in the past between different ideas too, but this time I'm committed to seeing it through until I've been successful and figured out how to do it right!

 

[whitestone]

I’m in the same boat ElanaM100… balancing a full time job as well as 2 young daughters at home is interesting. I’ve been building my 1st JetPack site for about 6 weeks and have pushed through by creating a JetPack project plan. I have a calendar which breaks down my REALISTIC goals into monthly , weekly and daily views. Not every day is created equal so I have 2 main days where I get my heavy lifting complete and then squeeze in other tasks throughout the week. This allows me prioritize what is most important on the path of creating a profitable niche site.
Jcdean has good suggestions. I have a few days in the week where I get up early and/or stay up late to get things done.
My biggest suggestion would be list out the top 3 to-do items for your JetPack site and be laser focused on getting them complete. Don’t get distracted.

Keep your head up and stay focused on the light at the end of the tunnel.

“Gotta make the doughnuts” That’s my mantra for grinding it out until success come.

Regards,

Josh

 

[ElanaM100]

That's a great idea to set three "big rocks" for the week... three things to get done no matter what.

That's amazing you're doing it with a day job AND kids... I can't imagine.

I did manage to get up early today and get 45 minutes in before work, so that's a start :-)

 

[carlmasure]

I work a full-time bricks and mortar job that I really enjoy, but I have very little freedom. It's a slog for sure, but I keep at it and have been at it for almost 2 years now with lots of stops and starts.

Right now I'm earning about $150-$200 per month with all my online income sources. If I could do this full time, I could really ramp things up.

Keep going.

 

[joshuas]

Hi, I'm right with the rest of you who work full-time jobs in addition to affiliate marketing. I think at end of the day you need to develop some sort of routine for yourself based on your schedule. For example, I usually leave the task of building new sites to weekends because I have a longer stretch of time available. Over the weekdays, I schedule my tasks based on the time I have. Most times it will be grunt work like SEO because it can be done relatively quickly without much brain power (which helps because I usually do work at night and my brain just refuses to work sometimes :)).

Hang in there and take one step at a time. Less time means slower progress but you can still make it work with consistency and focus. Plus, as you start getting the hang of it, the time it takes to do it decreases over time. I say this from experience. :)

Regards,
Joshua

 

[nbguy]

I'm glad you started that post even if it was a few months ago, because that is how I feel right now.

I still have a full time job too - and a night shift one at that, twelve hours in a row - so I know how tired you can get by trying to manage both. You want results now, but it's not exactly how it happens so it can be really frustrating.

And when I start it's like a drug I have no limit I just don't stop, I had to slow down a little bit. I used to get up around noon and finish after 4pm when it was time to go to work...and in the weekend it was worst...I had basically no life anymore.

So I really need to manage my time if I don't want to blow my top...

Keep the dream alive...but don't kill yourself in the process!

 

[shalisha42]

Hi. I outsource all of my work - well most of it. I would use the money I make from my full time job to pay others to set up the sites, write articles, etc. It pays off in the end.

 

[nbguy]

Yes shalisha, I think it's probably the best thing to do. I have started doing it too. I just ordered 5 articles for now for a website I'm just building, but I intend to do more later. It would be much easier on me.

 

[shalisha42]

Hi nbguy. I agree. It's the only way to get things done. I outsource all of my articles (I'm very fussy and particular too so I don't pick people who write for $2 an article and at the same time I won't go over a certain amount); I am outsourcing the set up of my jet packs so that all I have to do is insert the articles and links myself; I'm outsourcing my backlinking. All that outsourcing has now freed me to write my ebooks.

I simply factor in the cost of outsourcing as part of my ongoing business costs and set aside money for it each month. It's crucial to outsource. I am willing to sacrifice things like cable (at $160 a month) because I know I can put that money into outsourcing. It's worth it in the end to have a hands-free business. People say you can make money online without money but the truth is, if you want to succeed, at some point it will be crucial to outsource.

 

[nbguy]

Are you doing this affiliate marketing full time now Shalisha? Or still have to work outside? Because that's my goal to be able to actually do it full time without having to work for nobody else...So I was just curious if it was working for you...Like your dog site by the way...inspiring

 

[shalisha42]

Hi nbguy. I was working from home full time until 6 months ago. I had my own virtual legal assistant company. I was doing that while building my affiliate marketing business. Then I had to go back to corporate america - yuck! So now I'm working full time in corporate america and my goal is to quit my job in the next 6 months and earn a living solely through affiliate marketing. Thanks for my compliments on my dog site! If you outsource your work, you will get it done a lot faster.

 

[robynm]

I agree with most of the advise here

I started out working at the sites myself. Once I identified my strengths I then went to a day job so I could afford to outsource tasks I was weak in.
I spent a fair bit of money on training staff, so I recommend choosing contractors carefully.
I have a part time writer and a full time virtual assistant but I will be looking for more soon.

I generally work at my sites during the weekend and respond to staff emails and tasks during the week.

I use Affilorama to keep me informed as it is hard to keep up otherwise.

I did spend way to much time on my first site and although I make money, I could be making a lot more.
Keep at it even an hour a day...stay focused and try and budget for outsourcing
Good luck!!!

 

[pauls_pad2002]

hey Elana

you dont actually say what your building with are u using jetpack affilo blueprint or which one is it.
i started with affilo blueprint last october and have now 6 affiliate websites. i also run a business and have kids so time is challenging at the moment so i am outsourcing a ot of my article writing and SEO on and off page. i have also outsourced my backlinking . its very cheap to outsource at odesk and they have a great system for making contracts and organising the payment system its way better than elance. you can also filter your needs to find exactly what you want from a certain demographic.
you also dont seem to have a product on your site or am i mistaken. i would also get rid of the swear word as google may not find that very friendly. have u had it optimised on and off page have you done backlinking and blogging and article marketing at all to gain more traffic. is it keyword optimised ?
there are many aspects to building a website it isnt too simple really but it can be simplified.

i would recommend getting in as much work on your site as you can, outsource your writing and get them to do your keyword research to create them and then imput them and then have someone do you SEO work. from there doing some backlinking and bloggint o get buyer traffic to your pages would set you on your way. feel free to email me on utbnb2004@hotmail.com for any info or knowledge

 

[nbguy]

Thank you for your honest answer shalisha, and I really wish you do success in your goal 'cause it's my goal too...and yes outsourcing it's really something I'm planning to do more in the future. Have a nice weekend.

 

[shalisha42]

Hi nbguy. Just hang in there. Sometimes you'll need to take a break from it but always come back to it. Like I said, it took me 3 years before I made my first sale:) Contact me any time.