Technically it’s been a little over a year, but who’s counting, maybe 13-14 months, but it’s been a year. I’ve come a long way since I started reading Yaro Staraks Blog, one of the biggest reasons I am still doing this. I was in his Blog Mastermind program after reading so much good content on his blog, and reading his reviews of products. I am finally starting to make a living from doing this blog business that I have built. The money from my efforts didn’t come right away, it took a while, it actually started coming in more recently, starting at about 6-9 months into it. It’s continued to grow monthly since. It’s taken basically about a year for me to realize that I can make a living from blogging. If you blog for less than a year and give up, you’re wasting your time.

It’s given me personal freedoms I have wanted for so long, such as being here everyday with my family as my two young daughters grow up. I no longer live the 9to5 life, I don’t drive in crappy morning traffic anymore, and I get to go push my daughter in a swing at the park, anytime I want to. Which, for most days, is everyday. Why? Because I can, and I really enjoy it.

We just had daughter number two, so we are settled down for a little bit to rest, and raise her(Hannah). After about 6 months to a year we hope to start hitting the road. Soon we will be traveling here in the US, while I prep my family for extended travel abroad. I personally have a health issue that I need medication for everyday, and I am working on how to get it over seas, with my insurance to still pay for it. Maybe I can have someone pick it up for me and ship it to me? or maybe I can get a couple months advance and take it with me? or maybe my insurance has a plan for overseas delivery. Who knows, I’ll make it work somehow. I always do.

I haven’t always blogged here at The Niche Think Tank, as I wasn’t really sure about what I should be blogging about(I have other projects too). I was thinking it would be the “Make Money Online” type blog, but there are so many of those, so I kept thinking. Then I became aware of a guy by the name of David Crandall, thanks to Srini over at BlogcastFM and The Skool of Life.

Srini and David made an audio Teleclass one day, I bought it and it moved me so much, that I decided to contact David  Crandall and talk to him about Fear. Fear of Podcasting, Fear of Blogging, Getting over my Fear, and a few other little topics that culminated in a spiritual awakening. David is a Christian, and while I often refer to myself as a recovering Catholic, I am a deeply spiritual man. I get my connection with my higher power when I am either surfing, hiking in the desert or in an empty church, with just me and him. Anyway, I digress.

I believe that birds of a feather flock together. If you surround yourself with like minded or positive people, they tend to rub off and have an influence on you. That Skype conversation I had with David Crandall had a very positive influence on me. He helped to open my eyes to something I have. My Story.

David showed to me, myself, in such a way it gave me the courage, strength and drive to take this to the next level. At least that’s what I am working towards. While I have two other blogs that I work on, www.rockabillylifestyle.com and my photography site, www.darkmansdarkroom.com, I am going to be starting at least one other blog, maybe two. These two other blogs will be where I open up and talk about how I’m doing life, on one hell of a roller coaster and how I was able to make it through the ride, to where I am today.

You see, I’m a recovering Addict, and on my travels through life, I’ve learned a lot about myself, about love, about life and other people. I’ve also had the (un?)fortunate experience of picking up a couple life threatening illness, which have helped to shape me into what I am today, the man I want to be and am becoming. It was through realizing my own mortality, and being given a death sentence in 1987, that I realized there is more to life than doing drugs and drinking. It was time to make a life change.

This isn’t just about making money, it’s about living life to the fullest, being present not only for my life, but for the lives of my wife, and my daughters. It’s about suiting up and showing up. Participating in life everyday, as if there’s no tomorrow. Because someday, there will be no tomorrow.

I got a second chance, I better not fuck Mess it up. I need to make it count.

So, to Yaro, Srini & Sid, David, Cody, Dan & Ian, Pat and a host of others which I have mentioned in the past, thank you. Thank You for the help, guidance and insight into myself and where I am going and possibly what I should be doing with my life.