I was reading a post over at my friend Bob Buskirk’s Blog about living the dot com lifestyle which got me thinking about my journey in this same area.
How It All Started
For me, the dot com lifestyle unofficially started January 7, 2007 at The Tech Zone CES Kickoff Party. This party was hosted by John Chow. At this party, I met several other site owners and continued to build on these relationships and develop more after the show.
Shortly after the show, I came into contact with Bob and started talking to him on AIM. Bob also runs a tech site, ThinkComputers.org which does the same thing as my site, review computer / consumer electronics products. The only difference was that Bob was making a full time living from his site, where as I had been running my site pretty much as a hobby since 2001. I was a total noob when it came to making money online and thought stuff like that was a scam. Boy was I wrong!
Bob was a great mentor to me (and still is). He helped me get set up with TTZ Media which was my first serious attempt at making money from the site and showed me that you actually can make money online (and good money). I also continued to develop a good friendship with John and a few other tech site owners / bloggers. In the online world, it really is all about who you know and what you can do to help each other out.
Once the dot com bug had bitten me, I was infected! I made the decision to drop out of school in February of 2007 to try my hand at doing this full time. My situation was a bit unique based on my disability and what I am limited at doing physically, which I based some of my decision on. The other factors included being sick and tired of school and student loan debt… all working for a degree that I wasn’t going to be using anyway. No, thanks.
The Lifestyle
As I have said before, this was one of the best decisions I have ever made. I was smart enough to keep detailed Excel records of everything when I first started this, so I have a clear view of how things are progressing. Besides the stray month or two, there has been a steady increase month after month.
As with any job, the most important aspect is that you must like your job. If not, it will be pure torture and nobody wants that. I was doing this for six years without pay simply because I loved it. Being able to do it and make money is just a perk.
Another great thing about the dot com lifestyle is being able to work on your own schedule. Me personally, I am NOT a morning person. I now have the freedom to get enough sleep and wake up at a time that I am comfortable with. No, this does not mean I sleep all day. I usually go to bed around 3-4 a.m and wake up around noon. This nets me about eight hours or so of sleep per night, which is average - I just shifted the sleep and wake times to my liking.
Not having a 9-5 traditional job also means I am free to go “have fun” at will. I am not trapped at “work” so I can go do things I enjoy like watching hockey games, going to Florida and just hanging out with friends. What makes things even better is that I can still do work using my laptop anywhere in the world that I have an internet connection. How many “real” jobs have that sort of flexibility?
So, What’s The Catch?
Honestly, there are no “catches”. You can be successful at making money online using several different outlets: tech sites, affiliate marketing, blogging, etc. But, the one misconception I think most people have is that it’s easy to do. Not true.
While I have never personally heard anyone say this to me, I do get the impression that some of my friends probably think I just sit around at home all day doing nothing and make money. Yeah, don’t we all wish it was that easy? The reality is, I do sit at home a lot, but I am constantly working. Whether it is testing products, writing reviews, answering emails, talking with sponsors, creating contests, updating the site layout / design… I am always thinking of ways to make the site better. I have worked my ass off since 2001 on the site and probably 10-fold since starting it full time. So the next time you think someone like John who makes 30 grand a month from blogging doesn’t work for it, think again!
What’s Next?
I have already accomplished a lot of goals since starting out full time, including a new design and custom CMS for OCIA.net and new software and layout for the forums.
Many things remain a constant, like continuing to try and find new ways to drive traffic to the site, toying with ad placement and different programs as well as attaining new and exciting products to review. Maintaining online friendships and also creating new ones is another priority for me.
Some of my goals for the immediate future include hiring a few additional reviewers to help with the workload and allow us to publish even more reviews. I’m also trying to help build up the forums and make them more active. Another idea I am working with is to start an entirely new venture here soon - more on that if / when it happens 
