How Hard Do Bloggers Work?
I had an interesting (and frustrating) conversation (aka argument) with my wife last night. To anybody with kids, this will probably sound all too familiar.
My wife is a stay-at-home mom and that means she is pretty much with our 4 month old daughter all the time. This is a necessary and downright invaluable job. The fact that we don’t have to put our daughter into a daycare is simple awesome. But, from mom’s viewpoint, the job can seem claustrophobic. And that leads to arguments that I’m not helping her enough.
For my part, I am a professional blogger and I make my entire living by running a blog site. This is HARD WORK. My wife would prefer that I work a “normal” 9-5 schedule. That isn’t very workable as a blogger. I’m trying to GROW my business and I simply can’t do that working 9-5. So, I am a blogger trying desperately to balance our my family life with my business life. I really enjoy what I do for a living. I also, of course, like spending time with my family.
My typical day is that I start work around 9 AM. I work all day (with a break for lunch) until around 6 - 6:30. I then hang out until around 8 - 8:30, at which time I will usually do a little work at night out on my laptop with my family. At night, it is a bit of an integrated life. I try to spend time with the family and work at the same time.
So, bloggers, how do you balance your business time with your family time? How long do you work per day?
Pro blogging isn’t a picnic. It can be rewarding, but it is a constant race to stay on top of what is happening, raise traffic, look for and develop new revenue models, keep your subscribers happy, answer emails, yada yada and more yada.
Oh, and don’t get me wrong. My wife and I are cool now. But, the problem is that she has essentially NO reality with what I do for a living. To her, I just sit there and pound on keys and stare at my screen. She has no idea what I’m doing. So, I guess another portion of my question would be this: How do pro bloggers deal with their significant others who know nothing about blogging?
Feel free to post a comment and DO TELL! 
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Comments
Yes David. This is indeed a problem.
At present, I cannot be called a proBlogger as I am still in my school (infact, the last year in school!).
Even then, I’ve had experiences like the one you wrote above. It was my mom, who didn’t understand what I was doing. All she saw was, me sitting infront of my computer for hours.
You Asked:
“How do pro bloggers deal with their significant others who know nothing about blogging?”
I tried to convince others about what I’m doing and I somehow managed to make them understand that I’m not doing nothing Stupid, atleast.
In my opinion, these problems could be solved through talks. But, the problems must be solved at the earliest.
And, I LOVE MY MOM, My Dear MOM
First of all…
Congratulations on being able to allow your wife the opportunity to stay home and raise your child. I think that is wonderful!!
Second…
I’m not a blogger, pro or otherwise, but I was a stay at home mom and often found it frustrating when my husband would come home from work and then retreat to the basement and do more work! It wasn’t until I found something I was crazy about (making jewelry) that I could actually appreciate spending copious amounts of time engrossed in my work.
What if you were to help your wife start a blog of her own? It could be on a subject she feels passionate about. Obviously, she wouldn’t be able to devote as much time as you do to yours, but she would get an appreciation for what you do. At the same time, maybe you could do a role reversal for a day. (the internet world will not collapse without you for a day) Let her blog all day or go to a spa or do something she would like to do ALL THE TIME and you take care of the baby. And no running to her when the baby needs something you aren’t sure of, just deal with it. Get an appreciation of each others job.
There is no right answer that anyone can give you. Every marriage/partnership is different.
Try being more available. Cut the evening integrated work/family time to an absolute minimum. We women all know our men are not multi-taskers, so even though you want us to think you are spending time with us, we know better and want better.
Lastly…
Blogging is undoubtedly hard work, but so is raising a family.
Your work is not your life… it may be what you do for a living, but your life is your family. Which one are you more prepared to lose?
While I am nowhere close to being a problogger, I still put alot of work into my blog in hopes of one day going pro. I schedule time that is absolutely blog-free. I may have an idea or see a product I wish to review during my downtime but I make a small note to myself to research it later. It’s great to be passionate about the your blog but having a well rounded family life will pay off more in the end.
Full time teacher, just completed my course work for a masters, have two blogs, and the Mr. Ford’s Guide to the A+ Certification Exam podcasts on iTunes.
Husband, father of two young boys (3yrs and 1yr). Time is definitely a precious commodity.
One day a week it is family time, and only family time. The other days of the week we try but if I get to spend more then 1 hour of quality time per day I am lucky.