In contrast to what a lot of people believe, it’s still possible to start blogging in 2021 and grow that into a full-time income.

Every day, I hear stories about bloggers getting their first substantial payday. The key to succeeding in 2021 in my opinion is knowing what has changed and adopting the right mindset.

This is why below I have summarised the most substantial changes that have taken place in the blogging scene and what mindset has helped other bloggers succeed.

What has changed in the blogging scene

There is more Competition
Roughly 77 million blog posts are uploaded every day. This wasn’t always the case, 10 years ago the number of bloggers was just a fraction of how many active bloggers there are today.

This has made it harder to get eyes on your content. There was a time where you could rank thin content with 200 words and actually make a living by just doing that.

The bar has been raised gradually because of everyone trying to outdo each other to get the top spot on search engines such as Google, Yahoo, and Bing.

Google's Algoritme changes
Google wants to provide its users with the best content on the internet which means they’re actively trying to push the highest quality content to the forefront.

The factors they have used over the years to decide what quality content is getting more sophisticated. Where a few years ago with the right knowledge you could “game” search engines now that isn’t possible anymore.

Content, user experience, and keeping up with SEO Trends will determine your success.

Maturation of the audience
Not only what search engines consider as quality has changed but also what people, in general, deem as quality content.

An example can be night shows with 5-minute interviews.
They’re losing viewers while podcast listeners are starting to increase because they go more in-depth.

People want hour-long interviews, ultimate how-to guides, etc.

Your mindset
To succeed in making money as a blogger, you’re going to have to adopt a mindset that sadly isn't common nowadays.

Process over results
You're going to be patient. Most bloggers don’t see a lot of progress in their first year of blogging because they need to gain trust.

A lot of SEO’s call this situation being in the “sandbox”. This is why in your first year I’d advise you to be process-oriented instead of results-oriented.

Examples of results-oriented goals could be:

How many posts you’re going to create
How many backlinks you’re going to gather
How many of your peers are you going to work with learning more about SEO
etc.

The problem is that a lot of people focus on making money instead of becoming better bloggers.

This means learning from other bloggers and getting better at your craft every day.

Mistakes are necessary
The right training can eliminate a lot of mistakes and save you time but some mistakes are necessary to learn from.

I rarely meet someone that has had a linear path when it comes to becoming a full-time blogger.

This is why it’s important not to judge yourself when you’re making them and not to compare your beginnings to some else end-results.

Author's Bio: 

Blogger, Podcaster, and Affiliate marketer that talks about what it takes to make money online.