It feels so good to be back. Back from where you ask? Around 2019 or maybe 2020 I closed this blog down but didn’t leave the internet. Just went off trying different things. Some worked and some didn’t, all while this blog sat collecting dust. Well, all that changes today. It’s a new day with a fresh beginning.
But first, how did I get here?
I believe I first purchased my name as a domain during the time I was working on my associate degree but didn’t use it at first. I did start a blog or online diary (as it was originally called) but this domain still sat dormant until 2008. This was during the Great Recession as well as the time I was laid off from my first real and favorite job to date.
The job search became so frustrating that I took to social media and started blogging for real this time. I switch from personal to blogging for business. This blog was mainly about personal projects and portfolio work from freelancing as a web designer. It was tough at times because I wasn’t getting consistent work and had to start adding filler content. So I started sharing my views on topics related to business and going to events and blogging about my experience.
Speaking of events, I had a light bulb moment after attending one.
*cue the violin* Down the comparison road I go
It was a meetup to learn about a WordPress plugin. The host, a fellow blogger, asked the group who had monetized their blog. I can’t remember if I was the only one who hadn’t but my reply was that I never thought about it. My focus was showcasing my portfolio to get more work.
From that moment on I went down the rabbit hole trying to figure out how to monetize my blog. Even though showcasing design work through blogging was helping me make money. I drew traffic to my blog by commenting on other people’s blogs, and heavily marketing on a social media platform whose original logo is a blue-colored bird (I will not give them any press).
Was I making a lot of money? No, but I wanted to be like everyone else. So I went to meetups, networking events, and blogging conferences. Racking up debt just so I could be in the room and learn from those that were doing all of the things I wanted to do.
The beginning of a dream deferred
I tried several ways to make money blogging from sponsored posts to selling ad space on my site. However, the only thing I wanted was to be a part of Google Adsense. Google Adsense was originally running ads on your site. After Google bought YouTube, they added the ability to run ads on YouTube.
Anyways, I applied and got accepted.
The big bucks shouldn’t have started rolling in once, right? I earned some money but not the big check I was expecting. Each month you have to earn 100 dollars to get a check. I did reach about fifty dollars before putting this blog on the back burner the first time. Starting a different blog under a new name was supposed to give me a fresh beginning. However, I ended up closing that one down too.
I even tried doing YouTube. Between that I got very close, reaching a little over seventy dollars. YouTube then changed its rules requiring a channel to have 1000 subscribers and 4,000 watch hours in order to be monetized. It was about that time, I think I started to give up on creating content. I even pulled back from social media.
However, the pandemic saw me get creative again but in a different way. When it came to this blog, I just let it sit.
It’s a new day with a fresh beginning.
Then in 2021, I started thinking about bringing this blog back. I wanted to launch in November. Do something new (for me at least) yet simple but it never happened. My other project got more of my focus, even with all of the technical difficulties that I kept running into.
Now that I feel like I’m in a different head space, my focus can turn back to the blog that gave me a fresh beginning in 2008 – artiatesiadeal.com.
I think it’s time to slowly start breathing some new life into this old blog. For 2024, I have hit the restart button on many things. I’m moving towards a different vibe from what I was doing before. This time around I won’t be talking about design work (I’m no longer in that space) or trying to make money online (you can get a little of that over on the other blog).
I want to share more of what interests me now. Topics like technology (not for business), organization, and planning with a little sprinkle of some lifestyle content. I’m still figuring things out. But if you’re down, hop in and let go for a ride.
