Someone else’s income

Nothing like seeing someone else’s income to make you feel like shit!

I’ve generally accepted that I chose a field that wasn’t one of the best paid. Honestly, if everyone was much more transparent about their salaries, I would’ve totally gone a different way. I knew on some standard that accountants and business people got paid quite a bit. I didn’t realise that they could be making double what I would make straight out the gate. I was actually set on becoming a lawyer until I went to a district court in Manukau for a job experience day and immediately was turned off at the dingy interior, unhappiness and crime. I didn’t even know there were other types of lawyers – if I did, I would’ve become a divorce lawyer LOL. That, or a psychologist.

However, I’ve accepted that I’m terrible at numbers so I could’ve never been in accounting or finance, didn’t do a law degree or become a doctor. But seeing someone else earn so much more than me in my own field and with the same skills shits me to tears. Just like I didn’t realise that lawyers weren’t just people who asked judges to cut down on jail time for 15 clients in a row, I didn’t realise that some people could make BANK on their blogs and websites. 

I was so naive, I thought they made an average income. It wasn’t until I saw this post from a tiktok foodie I follow, that they were making more than i have made in a year in some cases in a MONTH. In case you can’t be bothered to read it, this food blogger makes $40-55k a month, half of which are website ads on her blog: https://tiffycooks.com/how-much-money-do-i-make-as-a-food-blogger/

If I had known this, I would’ve tried a lot harder!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Fuck me. I can’t believe me. No wonder people quit their jobs to be a full time blogger. God damn it, god damn it. 

For the other professions, it wasn’t really something I could do. I could’ve done this, which is why it shits me off so much. MATE! Talk about wasted opportunity. Finally I understand how travel bloggers afforded their lifestyle.

It’s like if I had spent years half heartedly planting a garden as a hobby that I was generally good at but very lazy with, because I thought I was the only one enjoying it. Then I find out that I could’ve earnt MAJOR MONEY if I had thrown myself into my hobby??

In my defense, no one is really open with their income on the internet. Bloggers and social media “iNfluEnCerS” never talk about how much they earn. I understand – it normally leads to people criticising you if you earn heaps, and also believe that YouTube/Google don’t like it when you talk about how much you earn – I remember a blogger I used to follow took a photo of a cheque down because it was not allowed or something. 

But it also leads me to look inward – am I terrible at making money??? I think I’m good at SAVING money. But that’s because I’ve always earnt less or the same as the people around me. I’ve never been the one who’s been climbing the corporate ladder to make $$. I did at one point have 2 jobs for years, but even combined my income was not very good. I KNOW I was being paid way under market value for both of them, but never by how much. 

This is why I believe mentoring is so important, because I had no one in my life that could tell me that I was worth more, about how to navigate my career or what the working environment was like. I could’ve earnt so much more elsewhere for the same amount of stress – I had skills, and I was selling them to the cheapest bidder. 

This is a major segway, but also a point of errr… white and upper class privilege. If I had parents, colleagues that actually were working for a career or family that held professional jobs they probably could’ve advised me a bit.  

It would’ve been much easier for someone to have told me, rather than having to spend years learning it myself. It’s how I judge the success of someone now – if they want to be a mentor or teach others, it means they have the capacity and the comfort in their own position to lift someone else up. Luckily now we have Google and social media to tell us too!

I’ve had colleagues in my previous job be surprised at how little I was being paid despite being in the same company as them, but in different departments.  and also friends who don’t work in marketing have a squiz at what the hourly rate for is – it’s peanuts to what they’re used to. I’ve never made a decision that has benefited me greatly.

Now that I’m a small business owner, obviously my main goal is to make money. We’re not talking about becoming a millionaire which is a dream, but money to break even, expand the business, pay myself. I would love for this to be what I do for the next 10 years, knock on wood. I obviously would love other streams of income: who doesn’t? And I could’ve done it from a BLOG?? This BLOG??? Literally screeching in my mind palace right now. 

I guess no time like the present, although I do feel a bit deflated. Feeling the ‘best time to plant a tree was yesterday’ HARD right now (oh and also links to my gardening metaphor). Let’s see if with age I get better at making money….