This little blog turns one this month. How did I make it through year one of blogging? When I launched Abandoned Cubicle last September, my endlessly patient wife cheered me on.
A year later I’m still here, more motivated than ever to write useful stuff for anyone who wanders into this early-retirement corner of the web.
Most of us writing about early retirement want something other than a life spent consuming and sitting under fluorescent lights. We all bring our own stories, and that’s what makes reading these blogs fun. How many times can you read about the Safe Withdrawal Rate or the Marginal Utility of Money? Plenty—there are at least fifteen posts by fifteen bloggers on each topic. But every post carries personal experiences and little anecdotes that might click with your situation or at least give you a laugh.
It’s getting harder to create original, lasting content. The biggest challenge for me has been writing things that feel fresh and actually matter. There’s so much great work from talented bloggers every day. Few of us have an over-the-top origin story like Pete (Mr. Money Mustache), who retired at 30 with Mrs. Money Mustache and has gone from blogging to trying to save the planet, complete with a physical headquarters. Aim high—and have a good story. You never know where it will lead.
“That guy in Colorado has nothing on me. Stay frugal, my friends.”
Looking back, my posts were a mixed bag. I’m not overly critical, but yes—I put up stuff that could’ve used a rewrite. That’s the trade-off when work, family, and college football season compete for your time. I also took a three-month break this spring, which didn’t help readership. Part of that break was boredom: what more could I say that hadn’t been said fifteen different ways? I wondered whether my time was better spent on family, exercise, and basketball.
I’d love my readership to keep growing because I want blogging to be a big part of life after early retirement. With more time and practice I expect my writing to get better. And with the kids in school, I’ll actually be able to finish a thought without pausing to hand out time-outs or kiss a scraped knee.
Do I want to make money from this blog? Sure. Am I fully serious about it? Both yes and no. I’ve got a few AdSense ads and some affiliate links in the works. My hope is that good content will bring steady traffic so I can add monetization that feels natural—stuff I can promote without sounding like a sell-out.
One change that helped the most was getting up at 5:00 AM instead of the usual 6:15. That extra hour became dedicated to blogging and my new interest in Pinterest. For two months I did 5 AM every day, and the routine boosted my productivity and put me in sync with Mrs. Cubert’s schedule. Win-win.
There are still limits. I thought I could post three times a week, but quality takes rewrites. Going forward I’ll stick to two posts a week—Tuesdays and Fridays—so readers have time to comment and share.
The past year had a few highlights. A month after I launched, J. Money ran my guest post “How to Lose a Million Dollars,” which got the blog noticed and maybe set some unrealistic expectations. That post is basically a diary of my money mistakes—failures that people seem to connect with. After my hiatus, J. featured my “Landlord’s Ten Commandments” on Rockstar Finance, which drove another traffic spike and earned me a banner on my homepage (nerd alert). J. Money has been like a godfather figure—really supportive of newbie bloggers, even when I tease him about his love of Net Worth.
Now that early retirement feels close, expect more practical posts about planning: making sure health insurance is sorted, cash flow is steady, and kids’ college funds are on track. I’m also thinking about a travel series—lots of trips, lots of money wins and fails, and some amateur photos. And there might be an Airbnb in the future: we’re negotiating a condo in northern Michigan. If it happens, we’ll be busy getting it ready for seasonal rentals—more lessons to share.
Thank you for stopping by and being part of this journey. We’ve got a long way to go.
P.S. Extra thanks to a couple of established personal finance bloggers who added this site to their blogrolls and helped drive new readers: Millennial Boss and Physician on Fire. Much appreciated!