Adventures In Frugal Land

Simply Frugal. Simply Natural.

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What You’ve Always Wanted To Know About Blogging For The Huffington Post

I’ve recently began blogging for The Huffington Post. It has been a learning process for me. I had SO many questions starting out. When people hear that I am blogging for The Huffington Post, I ALWAYS get asked a ton of questions. I decided to write a short post with the most common questions and answers. If you have any other ones that I didn’t think of, just leave them in the comments and I’ll add them to the list!
What You Always Wanted To Know About Blogging For The Huffington Post

Do the articles have to be original?

No, they state they want your best, not your latest work. Sometimes, there might be something that is not a good fit for your blog but would be for The Huffington Post or vice versa. Use your best judgement.

How much exposure can I get?

It depends on the popularity of your article. I’ve personally haven’t had too much traffic from my articles on The Huffington Post (maybe a handful a day) but there are some bloggers who have had a ton of traffic.

How do I begin?

See my other post to learn how to start.

Do I have to publish often?

You can publish as often as you want. Not every post is accepted (yes, it still goes through the editing process!).

Can you link to your own site?

Yes! As long as it doesn’t come across spammy and actually ads something to the article.

Do I need an image?

You don’t have to have your own image but I’ve found it to be an asset. It’s really easy to create a graphic if you are not handy with a camera.

What else should I know?

You should make sure you really edit your post before submitting. The editors go through tons of posts every day, make their lives a little easier by putting your best foot forward before hitting submit.

Will I get paid?

No, you will not receive any monetary compensation.

Do you have any other questions about blogging for The Huffington Post? Let me know and I will answer what I can!

 

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I Didn’t Dream Of Being A WAHM

I want to apologize. I haven’t been posting here as often as I wanted to. I’ve been busy. Busy thinking. Busy planning. Busy reading. Busy with life. Just busy.

One of the things I’ve been busy with is thinking about my journey to being a work at home mom (wahm).

On a snowy winter night in December of 2010, I gave birth to my daughter. Up until that point, I had pretty big plans for my life. I wanted to go to law school and be an attorney. I figured that after I gave birth, I would go back to school and continue with my plans. I always thought I would be a working mom. Children were always in my future plans as was a career. Never once did I consider the thought of being a stay at home mom. It sounded like torture to me.

Then, I looked into my daughter’s eyes. And that’s when my big plans turned into bigger plans. I wanted. No, I needed to stay with her. But there was just one problem.

My husband had left me months prior to her being born. I was dealing with a divorce, a new baby and having no income. I did briefly have a job when she was a few months old. It was horrible. I hated being away from her. After eventually leaving that job due to transportation issues. In that moment in desperation, I opened my computer while nursing my daughter and searched for ways to make money from home.

Many, many scams and years of research and experience later, I now know it is possible to earn an income from home. I lucked out in my first year of being a work at home mom (wahm) and I secured a number of freelance writing clients. I made enough money during that year to get by and even have a little extra. Then, my daughter fell seriously ill and I had to let those clients go after an extended hospital stay. Thankfully, my daughter got better but my client prospects did not.

I started this blog a little over a year ago. I’ve experimented with different posts, SEO techniques and social media networks. I had dreams of turning this blog into a lucrative business but now, I don’t think that is going to happen. Not because the potential isn’t there, it is.

It’s that I changed my mind. I’m not going to officially announce my next venture for a while but I think it’s going to be good. I’ve thought about shutting down this blog but decided to keep it up as a place to record my thoughts.

You may be wondering what made me switch business ideas. It’s because of the advice I received by a very wise person who’s traveled this road before me.

I had to learn what I was passionate about it. And how to turn that passion into a lucrative opportunity that realistic. I wish that I had this advice years ago.

Who’s advice would you take when trying to start a home business? You would seek out the advice of successful people who accomplished what they set out to do, correct? The only problem is advice from these types of people isn’t always affordable.

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Crystal Paine of Money Saving Mom has found a way to bless woman with her advice for an extremely affordable price. I recently finished reading a review copy of her latest book, Money Making Mom. I amazed at the content in the pages.

Crystal wasn’t always successful. It’s easy to look at her today and only see the success. In Money Making Mom, she talks candidly about her past failures.-If you don't life with purposeful intention, aimlessness will be the default.-- Crystal Pain

Can you imagine what would have happened if she gave up after the first failure? She wouldn’t have been able to buy her first house in cash, to make a difference in South Africa or inspire woman across the world to start their day right. And that’s only at the first level. The trickle down effect of her giving up would have affected thousands and thousands of people.

The fear of failure is the main reason I hear people give for not following their dream or passion or idea. What future success or future inspiration to others are you giving up by letting fear keep you from trying?


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I can’t wait to see what great ideas spring from mothers reading this book. Money Making Mom is being released on November 3. When you pre-order Money Making Mom, you have access to several bonuses including:

  • Make Over Your Calendar: A 7 Day Online Course – a comprehensive course to teach you how to simplify, streamline and organize your daily schedule & to-do’s.
  • Crystal’s Top 10 Productivity Tools Tip Sheet – a printable PDF with links and information on Crystal’s favorite tools for better time management.
  • An Exclusive Live Q&A Call – an invitation to join Crystal for a special Q&A call to ask any your Money Making Mom questions.

Crystal has also released a free 5 day course about making money from home!

Have you pre-ordered Money Making Mom? What do you hope to learn from it?

 

There are affiliate links included in this post. These help me maintain this website. Please see my Disclosure Policy for additional information

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Common Questions about WAH Jobs

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Are WAH Jobs Legitimate?

Yes, WAH jobs are legitimate. Be wary of scams. WAH jobs are JOBS not a “Get Rich Quick Scheme”.

How Do I Find One?

Check out this post.

Do I Need Experience?

For most positions, yes. Some places will hire beginners though.

Do I Have To Pay Taxes?

Absolutely. Any income you make from a WAH job is earned income and must be reported.

What Do I Need To Get Started?

Different positions require different tools. At minimum, you’ll need a decent computer with virus protection, headphones and a microphone.

Can I Work When I Want?

Sometimes. Many positions will require you to be working during set hours. Some will allow you make your own schedule.

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Where Can I Find WAH Jobs?

WAH (Work at home) jobs can be extremely lucrative if you know where to look. Many time, people think that WAH jobs involve sitting at the computer in your pajamas and entering mindless data. Of course, this pays a six figure salary.

Trust me, if that job existed, I’d be doing it.

The truth is, WAH jobs are no different than any other job. You have to have skills. You have to have discipline. And you must WORK.

Working in your pajamas usually can be arranged. 😀

There are many different resources where you can find WAH jobs. Some resources should only be used for supplemental income and others can help you find steady, full time work.

Forums:

Forums are a great source of information. You get the chance to talk to other workers about the company (Providing there’s no NDA). Job leads are frequently posted. But the biggest bonus of forums is the “water cooler effect”.

WAH jobs can be lonely without anyone to talk with. Forums help alleviate that.

WAHM

Work Place Like Home

Blogs:

All the listed blogs are written by people who have found success working from home. They graciously provide leads and tips for their readers.

Real Ways to Earn Money Online

Wahadventures

The Work At Home Woman

The Penny Hoarder

Other Ways:

Job boards sometimes advertise WAH positions

Company websites will also list WAH positions

Craigslist is NOT recommended. Craigslist is full of WAH scams. Avoid this.