I left my 9 to 5 job today, and I'm going to Hawaii (34)
Ok ok ok , so I’m not going to Hawaii forever. Its only for a week and a half Vacation/ Honeymoon since I got married at the end of last summer. But I in fact did leave my full-time job today to become a full-time online marketer. The following is a short summary of my experiences over the last few years. My story isn’t a “success” per se, but it’s more like an “on the road to success” story and I am writing it here sitting at my 9-5 desk before they finally shut down the internet to my cubicle and take my ID before literally kicking me out with a cardboard box full of my junk. Ha! Here's how it came to this...
In 2012 I decided to hit AM hard after a few years of screwing around on clickbank for a few thousand dollars here and there through SEO and some small bits of paid search traffic.
In 2013 I decided that I needed to hit even harder because I wanted nice things and my student loan debt was crawling up my ass even though I was employed at a cushy office job albeit low-paying. I joined a Skype mastermind (<-most important part) run by a friend whom I had met through another forum. I began testing things all over the place with multiple offers and multiple traffic sources across multiple networks. I even began working on potential legit SEO projects. I had the shiny objects disease.
I decided to try TV and LI for pop traffic and some display through TV’s display/banner platform. It was here that I was able to do ~500$/day in profit somewhat consistently. You may want to ask ‘which vertical’ but I was running many different ones and I never really stopped to consider my “vertical”. To me, an offer was just another offer and I had to figure out how to run it. Ill admit though that I always stick to the 'evergreens'. At this point it wasn’t just about making money, because I was already employed at an easy office job and I had enough to cover my expenses.
Well, over the course of the year I decided to settle on search traffic and to sprinkle in some PPV. I ended up making more than my full-time job from my campaigns. It was at this point that I began considering the potential for leaving my full-time job.
In 2014 after having given social traffic(facebook) a try in 2013 with massive fails and some minor victories I decided to hit it hard. This was extremely difficult because I was working full-time, in my final semester of my master's degree, and also planning our wedding. Well, a few of the gents in the MM I mentioned earlier a few different things I should test and I was able to immediately start kicking major FB ass. You see, it wasn't that I was completely lost with FB or anything. I simply wasn't testing enough. While you are doing too many different things in life while also working a job as well as attempting to get your marketing business rolling, it becomes easy to live a life of insanity..you know..doing the same thing over and over again while expecting different results? I had fell into a bad habit of just wondering "what would happen if I tried this.." instead of just doing it for the sake of science!!
So, in 2014 I was able to profit in the low 6 figures and I made around 3x the income of my full-time job. I was doing well enough over the past summer that I even taught my wife how to get in on it and she has her own affiliate network accounts now, and she wants to eventually quit her job as well. As you can probably imagine, it was tough to even consider it as a possibility. I was raised in a home with parents who had always thought of a long-term stable income in an office as the best possible option in life. So because I had been raised to think a certain way, there was a constant battle in my head between what I knew was possible through working for myself versus working for someone else. Heck, even now as I write this I can tell you I still have lingering bouts with my own doubt even though I know it's completely ridiculous.
So anyhow, that's how I ended up here. I am someone who began this thing while not only working full-time but also pursuing a graduate degree and doing a few others things all at the same time. I'm making it a point to mention all of that because this year, I am going to be entirely self employed and affiliate marketing will be my 9-5 now. No more coming home at night after a full day of work just to work on campaigns for a few hours before going to bed. No more letting certain keywords/publishers spend up all of my budget in a few hours because I didn't login to check my stats from my phone in a bathroom stall at work haha! You know what I'm talking about!
This year, I am putting all of my effort into this and focusing on it while also using the extra time to work on my health. You wouldn't believe how bad it is for you to sit on your butt from 9 to 5pm, 5 days a week in perpetuity!
================================================== =======
UPDATE After Nearly a Year(Dec 8 2015)
Hey guys!!! I'm doing well! Yes, it has almost been a year and I have also been thinking about the past year quite a bit. I have been assessing how I feel about being entirely self-employed. To sum it all up? I LOVE this lifestyle!
There’s good days, bad days, and everything in-between! If you can learn to manage the stress of losing money as well as gaining it (yes profiting can cause stress as well, it just manifests itself differently) then you will also find it all to be very rewarding!
Here’s a very elementary list of reasons I love this lifestyle. Yes, it’s all very simple and seemingly obvious but I think it’s important to remind ourselves of what we lose when we commit to working for someone else, especially in a corporate office setting from 9-5 in perpetuity:
-Being able to wake-up and get out of bed at whatever time I want. Not to be misunderstood, I still wake up early every morning to work on campaigns because I find that I am the most creative in the morning.
-Go wherever I want any time of the day or night completely regardless of the day of the week
-Have the time to eat a little better and workout more whenever I want.
-Pickup hobbies (like scenic bike riding, and quadcopter flying for me ) or take classes at the local recreation center in whatever interests me. Yes, I know I’m a nerd But hey, if you want to squander it all on coke, hookers, and parties I’m not judging you but to each his own right? haha!
-Take as many vacations as I want throughout the year without having to ask anyone for permission or check my “Paid Time-Off” hours. I don’t even call it “vacation” anymore. Now it’s an “excursion”! Do you see the difference in terminology? One has a rigid connotation; vacation, and the other is more open-ended and potentially adventurous; excursion. It has a beginning but the end is yet to be written. This idea parallels the lifestyle in some ways especially if we juxtapose this against the general ‘get rich slow’ scheme of our parent’s generation.
-Spend more time with friends and family. I’ve spent more time with my loved ones this year than I did in the entire last decade of my life, not to mention rekindled long lost friendships. I’m not even exaggerating here!
-Speaking of relationships, my wife and I have spent more time together in the past year than we did in all of the last several years of our relationship while dating before marriage and it’s amazing! Truly amazing!
I decided to list all of these things because I wanted to completely spell it out: this lifestyle has drastically increased my quality of life. Its liberation and freedom! Yes, you will likely work much much harder than you did at your 9 to 5, but you do it on your own terms! Personally, I work 7 days a week and ALL holidays without exception and I frikkin’ love it (it’s a wonderful addiction at this point!). Hell, I even snuck away during my own wedding reception to check my
OK so lifestyle stuff aside, the business is going well. I will admit though that I didn’t break any profit records this year versus last year because I spent some time during the summer just enjoying life and rejoicing in not being a corporate slave anymore honestly. I know this sounds melodramatic, but it’s truly how I feel! And yes, I know most "success stories" center around profits and numbers and more dollar signs, but in the end that's not what really drives us right? For me, its simply a better quality of life.
All-in-all, I’m doing great! If any of you guys want to shoot the proverbial shit, or anything else add me on skype. I’m always around in some capacity. Same username as my forum name. Also, anyone going to Vegas in Jan? I’ll be there!
Absolutely love reading stories like this!! Congratulations!
I am doing Affiliate Marketing with SEO since a few years but never hit that 6-figures-profit a year. Stories like yours are very motivating, as you reached this goal part time!!! Awesome, Congratulations and good luck!
I hope to be telling a similar story one day. Congratulations on your success!
congratulations and good motivation in the post. thank you,
farid
Loved your story, thanks for sharing/
dean
Thanks for sharing such an inspiring story. Very very happy for you!
Amy
Thanks for sharing - reminded me a lot about my life. Hopefully i'll reach that tipping point where i can go full time as well.
1 Question - How'd you get your wife involved? (im in a similar situation)
Have fun on your honeymoon!
The man who introduced me to AM and got me out of SEO peasantry. Great story! Congrats Trev and have fun in Hawaii!
Originally Posted by uzzz00
Awesome story that I can relate to, thanks for sharing!
∞
Incredible sharing, it is very similar to mine.
Big congrats!
And yeah, keep exercising as long as you can! I visit the gym one or two times per week and still participate in kickboxing (doing it for 15 years now i think), and i am 40 now. If i would not do this i could not sit in front of my computer anymore (did this more or less 10 hours a day for the last ten years), because everything will hurt after some years (back, ellbows, knees) because of foreshortening of tendons etc. and the unnatural position.
Wish you all the best!
Erich
I didn't login to check my stats from my phone in a bathroom stall at work haha! You know what I'm talking about!
LOL. i' exactly know what you talking about!
congratulations!
Nice to read your story Trev, thanks for sharing that.
Good Luck in 2015!
wonderful story. 2015 is going to be your year of dreams coming true in the AM world.
Thats awesome man I'm very happy for you! Thanks for your story, and wishing you more and more success through 2015 and beyond my friend
2015 is your year mate! Kill it!
Thats a great story, man. I´ve been to Waikiki couple of years ago. Hope to join you there someday.
Trev, been 10 months since you posted this! How are you getting on? Let's see some Hawaii pics!
Originally Posted by bobliu
Ha, very good! Most likely 
Hey guys!!! I'm doing well! Yes, it has almost been a year and I have also been thinking about the past year quite a bit. I have been assessing how I feel about being entirely self-employed. To sum it all up? I LOVE this lifestyle!
There’s good days, bad days, and everything in-between! If you can learn to manage the stress of losing money as well as gaining it (yes profiting can cause stress as well, it just manifests itself differently) then you will also find it all to be very rewarding!
Here’s a very elementary list of reasons I love this lifestyle. Yes, it’s all very simple and seemingly obvious but I think it’s important to remind ourselves of what we lose when we commit to working for someone else, especially in a corporate office setting from 9-5 in perpetuity:
-Being able to wake-up and get out of bed at whatever time I want. Not to be misunderstood, I still wake up early every morning to work on campaigns because I find that I am the most creative in the morning.
-Go wherever I want any time of the day or night completely regardless of the day of the week
-Have the time to eat a little better and workout more whenever I want.
-Pickup hobbies (like scenic bike riding, and quadcopter flying for me ) or take classes at the local recreation center in whatever interests me. Yes, I know I’m a nerd But hey, if you want to squander it all on coke, hookers, and parties I’m not judging you but to each his own right? haha!
-Take as many vacations as I want throughout the year without having to ask anyone for permission or check my “Paid Time-Off” hours. I don’t even call it “vacation” anymore. Now it’s an “excursion”! Do you see the difference in terminology? One has a rigid connotation; vacation, and the other is more open-ended and potentially adventurous; excursion. It has a beginning but the end is yet to be written. This idea parallels the lifestyle in some ways especially if we juxtapose this against the general ‘get rich slow’ scheme of our parent’s generation.
-Spend more time with friends and family. I’ve spent more time with my loved ones this year than I did in the entire last decade of my life, not to mention rekindled long lost friendships. I’m not even exaggerating here!
-Speaking of relationships, my wife and I have spent more time together in the past year than we did in all of the last several years of our relationship while dating before marriage and it’s amazing! Truly amazing!
I decided to list all of these things because I wanted to completely spell it out: this lifestyle has drastically increased my quality of life. Its liberation and freedom! Yes, you will likely work much much harder than you did at your 9 to 5, but you do it on your own terms! Personally, I work 7 days a week and ALL holidays without exception and I frikkin’ love it (it’s a wonderful addiction at this point!). Hell, I even snuck away during my own wedding reception to check my
OK so lifestyle stuff aside, the business is going well. I will admit though that I didn’t break any profit records this year versus last year because I spent some time during the summer just enjoying life and rejoicing in not being a corporate slave anymore honestly. I know this sounds melodramatic, but it’s truly how I feel! And yes, I know most "success stories" center around profits and numbers and more dollar signs, but in the end that's not what really drives us right? For me, its simply a better quality of life.
All-in-all, I’m doing great! If any of you guys want to shoot the proverbial shit, or anything else add me on skype. I’m always around in some capacity. Same username as my forum name. Also, anyone going to Vegas in Jan? I’ll be there!
Amazing Trev. I've dreamt of this since I was 19. I'm almost there, only a few months left until I'm out of my office job and literally online ONLY.
Great post and keep it up
Uh ha. one of the best stories i have had in stm forum to motivate myself again. since I am new in Am career. thank you trev for your awesome story.
This:
-Go wherever I want any time of the day or night completely regardless of the day of the week
Trev, inspirational! That last post of yours needs moved to a new thread. So happy for you 
How do you deal with the bad days?
Congrats Quadcopters builder/flyer/crasher here too FPV!
Originally Posted by bobliu
How do you deal with the bad days?
Originally Posted by mykeyfocus
Quadcopters builder/flyer/crasher here too FPV!What an inspirational post. Thank you.
Happy for you man, AM changed my lifestyle as well, sometimes it's hard to manage it, but hell...there is no perfection
So insprational!!!
Aloha old friend, let's catch up man, glad to hear you're doing well!
Amazing story to read - this makes it all worth it. Keep on going!
Home > Success, Wins, Achievements > Success Stories