What a start to 2020. COVID-19 has certainly uprooted many plans, and you may be one of those temporarily laid off while your workplace has to shut its doors. This means you’re looking for ways to make money online, and you’ve heard that you could start your own blog for profit. Is this really the right time to start your blog, though?

I’m going to be honest and say that it may not be the right time. At the same time, it could be perfect! It really is going to depend on a few factors.

I got into blogging because I lost my job. It was during the 2008 recession and I couldn’t find work afterward, so I looked for ways to make money online. And I found out that I could write for cash. Great, right! Well, what I will say is that it was such easier then. Google hadn’t brought in all of its rules for search engines and social media wasn’t as diverse. I sometimes find it hard to keep up with things now than I did back then.

Would I start blogging now if I was in the same position? Probably. But this is because I’m willing to give things time and I’m able to see things through the bad as well as the good.

Are you?

This is my genuine question. Are you ready to see things through the bad right now, because there is a lot more coming. I can promise you that.

The Conquer Kit: A Creative Business Planner for Women Entrepreneurs (The Conquer Series)

You’re not going to make money overnight

When you start your own blog, you may have dreams of financial security immediately. You can offer suggestions of items for the current pandemic or to help parents who are homeschooling. Build it and they’ll come, right?

That’s not the way blogging works. It takes a lot of time and effort to get your blog up and running. It can take months or years to see a good amount of income; to replace your full-time job. I’m more than 10 years into blogging and most of my blogs still don’t make a full-time income. Yes, really! I blog to grow them, but my money comes from revenue share sites.

And I’m willing to put the effort in. Granted, the blogs that I started 10 years ago aren’t running today for the most part. There are a lot of reasons for that. This blog is just a year old; not even that! Blogs take a lot of work and you need to treat them like a business. Are you willing to do that?

MORE: How much time should you give a writing site?

It does cost money to start your own blog

One thing people don’t think about is the money it costs to start blogging. You need to get a domain name, some web hosting, and you may need to consider paying for ads. Do you have this money available right now?

You also need to consider the time it will take. This is a form of money in a way. Do you have the time to help nurture your new business right now with everything going on?

It’s okay to say no. Instead of starting your own blog, you could opt for revenue share sites instead. I recommended starting with the FanSided brands if you’re interested in sports or entertainment. If you want a bit more control, you can start with HubPages or Wizzley. These are the revenue share sites that are making me money.

Don’t rush in as a panic

Please, don’t rush into anything right now. Don’t suddenly buy a course or a domain name just because you think it’s now or never. I have unsubscribed to every single email list that has used scare tactics to get people to buy their courses. It’s sleezy sales marketing like that that gives us all the bad name.

Don’t panic. This might not be the right time for you and your family to start your own blog. This could be the perfect time to gain experience writing with revenue share sites instead. It could be the time to grab a book and learn more about getting private clients.

The last thing I’m doing right now is signing up to courses that I’m on the fence about. I’m not investing in membership sites. The money I have needs to remain with me for the time being. There’s nothing wrong with admitting that!

When it’s the perfect time to start blogging

But this could be the perfect time to start your own blog. As I said, if I was starting out now, I’d jump in with both feet.

If you’re willing to give your blog time to grow, this is perfect. You have time to do a little research. You can find the right web host (I highly recommend SiteGround) and you can get the right domain name. This is the time to find out more about ways to make money on your blog.

Those who aren’t immediately worried about making money will have time to build the content on the blog. You can work on building your audience to get ready to apply to the likes of MediaVine, or whatever ad platform you want to apply to.

MORE: Why you need to treat revenue share sites like a business

If you are going to start your own blog, don’t forget to sign up to my email list. I’ll help you every step of the way.