Sunday 30 July 2017

Income Report: July

Yep, focus (or lack thereof) is still a big issue for me. Admittedly, I have had the small matter of a wedding to arrange so my enterprises haven't been front and centre for me, but I'm looking at different ways in which to stay connected with my ultimate goals.

That has been in part through conversations with other like-minded people: fellow entrepreneurs/solopreneurs, my brother, and basically anyone that will listen. It's important to voice it so that a) it continues to be part of my narrative, b) it gets so ingrained in my lifestyle that it's actually part of me.

I've taken my foot off the pedal on the resume writing element this month, but I have a very busy August to manage in terms of the one-off sizable contract I have to complete that month.

What I'm most proud of is the momentum I've started to build up with me eBook sales. It's still not anything to get excited about (eight sales over the month), but it's the fact that I'm starting to see a pick up in purchases. I'm guessing that that's had something to do with increased promoting on Twitter, which has attracted more individuals to its page on Amazon.

I need to keep testing what works and measure the effectiveness but it's all looking very encouraging ahead of my next book launch, which is planned for August.

So, as a snapshot for the month:

Resume Writing: $1,000 (early guesstimate). Lower than normal months but I'm working on bigger and better gigs at the moment.
Dividends: $0
eBook sales: $16 - My challenge is to beat myself month to month. And the best thing is the book (Craft a Winning Resume ) is something I actually know something about, so when I complete the follow up I hope to see loyal buyers get that as well.


Prolific Academic: $4

Total: $1,020 - I'm probably underplaying the figure but in the bigger scheme of things I'm genuinely excited at the prospects of my businesses. 

Saturday 1 July 2017

Income Report: June

I almost find myself dreading my monthly check-in here. Over the months and years I read a ton of income reports that are all singing, all dancing, espousing "financial freedom" and a laptop lifestyle. They make it seem so easy. Their efforts so linear in success. Well, it's safe to say I haven't seen that version of the story as yet.

But the important thing is for every one step back I'm seeing one-and-a-half steps forward. It's not the narrative that the online entrepreneurial masters would like to sell, but it's the real world. There's always a need to be intentional.

It's a tough slog. Tough in terms of focus, tough in terms of execution, and of course tough in terms of getting results.

We're in the midst of the quieter July months and I should be taking this time to re-evaluate what I'm currently doing and how I can be more effective, more impactful in coming months. The trouble is the TV and the fridge are such attractive distractions when you working from home...

So, how did my month look?

Although this report is meant to be all about online related income, I did have a big win offline that will keep me busy in August. It's resume writing for students at a local university. It's a decent sized contract as well. So there's been some progress on my consulting side.

But back to my online element. On top of my normal online resume writing, I've sold a few more ebooks, which is great - it's all about momentum. It's not going to help me retire any time soon. Still, I've started on the follow up and I'm hoping to sort out 10+ ebooks over time.

Elsewhere, I've also had another dividend payment from my investments. I keep forgetting this element of passive income, and it's something I'm going to build upon as I invest a bit more in dividend-yielding stocks.

Resume Writing: $1,730 -Better than a lot of months and it's helped me get the university gig, so I'm still happy
Dividends: $40
eBook sales: $6 - Get Craft a Winning Resume to improve your job hunting opportunities.
Prolific Academic: $7



Total: $1,783