7 Pieces of Advice Before Quitting the 9-to-5 for Blogging

1. Deepen Your Self-Awareness

It was only after three years of blogging that I fully realized how important self-awareness is.

I wish I had known myself better before starting blogging; I’m sure I’d be in a better place now.

With more self-awareness, I could have avoided unnecessary mistakes and taken advantage of the big opportunities brought by authenticity and the values I stand for…

… I know that people who want to quit their job for blogging usually have some level of self-awareness. They understand what they want for their future, whether it’s:

• freedom,
• control over their time,
• pursuing their passions,
• spending more time with family,
• traveling the world, or other else.

However, I’m referring to a deeper level of self-awareness that will sustain them in the long run as bloggers. In my view, it’s about being aware of their:

• strengths,
• weaknesses,
• motivation,
• and values

From my observations of other bloggers and my own experiences, understanding these factors can give you an edge and help you avoid costly mistakes.

Of the four, the most important is being aware of your strengths, especially your uniqueness and authenticity.

Understanding your uniqueness and showing your authenticity will help you stand out in a crowded industry, especially now that AI makes it easier to enter content creation.

Fundamentally, you also need to find out what value you can bring to the world. To me, that’s where everything should begin.

We need to view blogging as a business, which is all about exchanging value.

If aspiring bloggers can’t educate, inform, entertain, inspire, or guide their audience, they might struggle to make money and keep their blog going. I’m saying this because it’s what I’ve experienced.

To develop deeper self-awareness, you might want to try any of these:

1. ask your friends what you’re good at,
2. take a personality test,
3. or spend some time reflecting on your own.

I personally prefer the third option—I go to the mountains or nature where I can be alone. It helps me clear my mind and is perfect for introspection.

If you can’t get to nature right now, try going to a library or anywhere quiet instead.

While you’re there, write a letter to your younger self. Include details about:

1. how you’ve been over the past year,
2. your major accomplishments,
3. what you’ve enjoyed recently,
4. the challenges you faced,
5. the mistakes you wish you could avoid

or any other reflections on your past actions.

2. Have Patience with the Basics

Since I found that I learn better by practicing rather than just reading theories or watching tutorials, I’ve become the type of person who jumps right into work and learns as I go.

Yep, I’m that experiential person!

When I started blogging, I jumped right in by writing content and designing the website. I learned a lot of what I know now, including the basics, as I went along.

Then, months after I started, I realized I had begun blogging the wrong way. I was already facing several issues caused by mistakes I had made without knowing.

From choosing a heavy WordPress theme to installing unnecessary plugins that conflicted with each other (like caching and image optimization plugins), not paying enough attention to the basics slowed my progress overall.

I don’t want you to go through the same issues, so I suggest learning the basics thoroughly before you start creating content.

If you’re using WordPress, spend a few days getting to know its basics, like:

• setting up your blog properly,
• choosing an optimal design,
• adding a layer of security, and more.

Then, If you’re like me and didn’t have any writing experience before you started blogging,

• spend a few days reading other blogs
• or watching tutorials on how to write engaging content.

Learn the basics of writing to ensure that first-time readers have a positive impression of your blog when they visit.

Here’s something really important: understand how to plan your content effectively—it’s a basic but vital step. With a good content plan, you give readers a reason to return to your blog, and it also helps with search engine optimization.

3. Don’t Immediately Buy Courses

Even though I’m the type who learns by doing, I won’t deny that I sometimes looked to other content creators for guidance on growing my blog.

I didn’t reach out to them personally, but I read their blogs and watched their videos to learn how they grew their own blogs.

(Proud to say that I’m not that stupid enough to learn by myself about something I’m completely new to. LOL)

For the most part, the information I needed was already available in their blogs and videos. This includes things like:

• using the correct heading format (H2 above H3, H3 above H4, etc.) and
• adjusting WordPress Discussion settings to filter out spam without using a plug-in.

Yes—the basics that bloggers need to know are freely available online—you just need to find a good, comprehensive resource.

When you search for learning resources, though, you’ll often find ones that include advanced topics and terms that might be too difficult for beginners.

And for sure, these resources will also encourage you to learn more about advanced topics by explaining how important they are for quickly growing your blog.

In my experience, topics like link building and search engine optimizaztion (SEO) are some of the most common ones I came across.

Often, these blogging resources let you learn advanced topics for free. However, some content creators charge for this information.

Depending on how they present it and your interest in the topic, you might be persuaded to buy the course.

Guess what, I’m one of those people who bought their course… and kinda regret it. It’s about link building, one of the techniques to perform well in search engines.

I regret buying the course because, after a few months (nearly a year), I realized I don’t need link building at all. Techniques like the Skyscraper method, broken link building, and email outreach—do they even work today? Google is moving away from using links to decide which site ranks #1.

What I’m trying to say is that blogging changes quickly. Courses about blogging can become outdated just 6 months after they’re made.

In fact, if I create a course today and Google updates their algorithm next week, that course could become useless right away.

If you’re planning to take a course, make sure it focuses on fundamental skills that are useful no matter how technology changes. For example:

• learn how to improve your writing
• take amazing photos
• or do affiliate marketing.

4. Find a Community First

Starting my blogging journey alone is one reason I made unnecessary mistakes early on.

Learning by myself, I lacked the guidance and support to avoid common pitfalls, like the link building course I mentioned earlier. If I had a community to ask for honest opinions, I might have avoided that mistake.

Actually, it’s my fault for not doing some quick research before buying that course. But I was still naive back then.

Even if I had searched the internet to see if the link building course was worth it, I probably would have still bought it. Most likely, I would have seen results on the first page of Google that favor link building.

(There’s a lot to explain about why this happens, but you’ll understand once you start learning about SEO.)

The important takeaway is that having a community is a big advantage for beginners.

The combined experiences of other newbies and the expertise of those who have been in the field for a long time can be really helpful when you need it. The best part? You don’t have to pay anything for their opinions.

For instance, (again) when I was confused about whether to buy that link building course.

In addition, a community not only provides opinions and different perspectives on topics you’re interested in, but it’s also a source of support, encouragement, and industry news and updates.

I personally experienced these perks from a community when Google launched updates that UNFAIRLY affected many blogs. The overwhelming support from other publishers was truly inspiring.

Another advantage of a community is networking. The people in your community give you opportunities to reach a larger audience through collaboration and partnerships.

You can also ask for feedback to improve your blog’s quality. Some people might be blunt or candid with their comments, but don’t take it personally.

Now, where can you find a community? 

Most social media platforms have blogging communities, but I suggest looking on Reddit and X (formerly Twitter),

Based on my experience, people interested in blogging on these platforms are the most critical and engaged. On Reddit, in particular, people passionately share their insights and experiences on various topics.

Facebook and LinkedIn could also be good places to find blogging communities, but I haven’t tried them, so I can’t recommend them.

5. Reach Out to Personal Relationships

While a blogging community is vital for a blogger’s success, having the support of your family, partner, and friends is irreplaceable for your survival in this game.

You know, blogging is a self-driven and often solitary journey.

Most of the time, you’ll be working alone or collaborating online with people far away.

Your personal relationships will play a big role in providing you the emotional support and motivation needed to navigate the ups and downs of blogging.

So, my advice is if you’re living alone while working your 9 to 5 job, consider moving in with your partner or closer to your relatives, family, and friends when you start blogging.

Of course, this doesn’t apply if you plan to travel!

I just want to share that in my 3+ years of blogging, my personal relationships—my sister, mother, father, and best friend—have really kept me going.

They’re not just my support system in many ways; they’re also my inspiration for blogging.

The time I spend with them encourages and motivates me to keep blogging. I value every moment we spend together, and if I succeed in blogging, I’ll have more time to be with them. This means creating more special memories, which bring me true happiness.

Honestly, my parents and I had a little misunderstanding when I quit my engineering job to blog full-time…

I knew it would happen because it’s understandable from their perspective: they funded my college education, helping me get a secure job.

But after some explanations and heartfelt conversations in the car, in their bedroom, and in our dining room, I managed to convince them that blogging is the right path for me.

I’m grateful they still support me.

6. Check Your Motivations for Blogging

If there’s one big mistake I made in over three years of blogging, it’s this: I didn’t treat my blog like a REAL business.

I treated them like just a side hustle that could generate passive income so I could do whatever I wanted.

My motivation for creating my old blogs was to make money first, rather than give value first, which I must emphasize is wrong.

Even though I think I’ve posted good content on my blogs and that it’s helpful, I have to admit that I’ve also added too many aggressive ads and affiliate links (that don’t add any extra value and just look like regular text ads).

I’ve also used display ads aggressively, which is like sure income for me, even if my blog did not provide the exact information that users were looking for. This contradicts the basic logic of a business, which is an ‘exchange of value.’

I believe this is one reason why my previous blogs didn’t do well in the long run.

Unfortunately, the impact of that mistake only became clear when Google started using user behavior to rank helpful sites, which happened 2.5 years after I began blogging.

This makes me want to give you some advice: when you create blog posts, make sure your main goal is to help people. Adopt the mindset that you will only earn income from your blog posts if your visitors find them helpful.

Putting yourself in the users’ shoes helps you understand if what you created is helpful or not.

Try this: Give value to users as soon as your site loads — instead of showing them big, ugly ads! Answer their questions right away and share reliable information, your stories, context, or insights about the topic they want to learn about.

Sharing your experiences also adds value and creates a human connection with your readers.

Remember, users visit your site because they want to see your content—your hard work, smart answers to their questions, and your brilliant ideas!

Ads aren’t completely bad, though, but if they cover the entire screen, that’s a problem.

You can treat your blog like a service that solves people’s problems, meets their need for learning, or provides entertainment. Will your visitors be satisfied if they mostly see distractions? Of course not!

In my opinion, ads should cover no more than 25% of the screen (my preference) and shouldn’t appear at the top of your main content (above the fold).

By the way, while I’ve used ads as an example, as a user, my satisfaction with a site is also affected by promoted content and affiliate links.

I hate it, and everyone hates it, when it feels like the site’s main goal is to get my credit card number. Be careful with commercial elements so your blog doesn’t end up looking like a newspaper’s classified ads.

7. Prepare for a Mindset Change

When I quit engineering to pursue blogging, a lot changed in my life.

From how I communicate with people to how I consume media and use my phone, I didn’t realize that switching from being an engineer to a blogger would bring not only professional but also holistic changes in life.

This huge change is one of the first things I mention to my friends when they ask what it’s like to leave a corporate job for blogging.

It’s also one of the most important things I would tell anyone considering blogging full-time.

Out of all the changes I went through, changing my mindset took the most mental effort. Shifting from an employee mindset to a growth mindset — the mindset one needs to develop or already have to succeed in blogging or any business — is challenging.

Growth mindset — do I mean the mindset of wealthy people? Yes. And it’s all about embracing challenges and continuous growth.

(During your blogging journey, you’ll naturally discover a growth mindset, even if I don’t tell you about it.)

I might not be successful yet to show how effective a growth mindset is, but if we look at successful people like Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos, they all have a growth mindset in common.

I can’t say I’ve fully developed a growth mindset yet, but I know I’m getting there.

You’ll know you’re developing a growth mindset when you change the questions you ask yourself after failing. For example, instead of asking ‘Why is this happening to me?’ you’ll ask ‘What is this teaching me?’

After Google hammered the organic traffic (blog traffic from search engines) of my two blogs, I often asked myself the second question, especially when going to bed.

My answer to that question? This blog — Explore to Thrive.

Thinking long-term — avoiding instant gratification — is another part of a growth mindset that I’ve developed through years of blogging. It’s a very important mindset to develop, especially since blogging is a long game to play.

You can use SEO tools to look at the traffic graphs of the most successful blogs. You’ll see how long they stayed low before they took off to millions of views.

As an employee used to getting a monthly salary, this long wait between work and reward is one of the hardest things to internalize.

If I didn’t love mountains and know the saying, ‘the best views come after the hardest climb,’ I would struggle to wait for the amazing life blogging promises.

With that in mind, you should avoid any get-rich-quick schemes in blogging.

Stay away from them because they often have negative side effects that can harm your blog later. For example, using SEO tricks might cause Google or other search engines to stop trusting your site.