My Big Wins During the Quarantine

Before everything gets back to “the new normal”, let’s pause for a moment and look back on our wins during the last three months of lockdown when most of us were at home.

There’s nothing wrong with relaxing and feeling lazy sometimes, but I hope you did not spend the entire quarantine period watching Netflix or doing nothing.

I almost fell into that trap during the first few days of the lockdown, but I’m glad I was able to get back on track and I’m happy to share some of my wins during the ECQ.

31-Day Blogging Challenge

On May 1, 2020, I challenged myself to write and publish 1 blog post a day for the next 31 days or during the entire month of May.

I tried but I failed the challenge. 🙁

I only published 13 blog posts and I still have a few unfinished blog posts waiting in drafts.

But even if I failed my own challenge, I developed the habit of blogging again, I learned a lot along the way, and I am happy with what I’ve accomplished in May.

12 posts is not bad. I haven’t written that much posts in a month before. It’s an achievement unlocked. 🙂

Although I believe I could have done better.

Pinay Investor Blog Wins

I have three important wins for my Pinay Investor blog and here they are…

1. 30 New blog posts from March to May 2020

Since the ECQ started in March, I have already published 30 new blog posts in this blog.

Whaaat?? I can’t believe that either! 🙂

Akala ko puro Netflix lang ang magagawa ko nung lockdown.

Praise God for the overflowing ideas and motivation to blog.

2. $66 Revenue from March to May 2020

Waah! I didn’t even know I earned this much on this blog during the ECQ.

Like I mentioned in my previous blog posts, I have taken this blog for granted for the past 2-3 years because I focused on my other blogs.

In fact, my total revenue on the blog for January and February 2020 combined was only $2.84.

Let me show you the numbers here:

• January 2020 – $1.69
• February 2020 – $1.15
• March 2020 – $4.11
• April 2020 – $24.61
• May 2020 – $37.29

On May 25, I took down most of my ad codes on the blog because I got Win No. 3.

But even if I had fewer Google Ads showing on the blog, I’m thankful I still earned $37.29 in May.

3. Media.net Application Approved

I  accidentally opened an email newsletter from a foreign blogger whom I have subscribed to a few years ago, and he mentioned that Media.net is accepting new applications, and the process is now easier and faster than ever.

I got so excited with this news.

I’ve been hearing a lot of good reviews about this ad network from other bloggers. One of which is that they pay higher revenues compared to Google Adsense.

I remembered applying to Media.net multiple times in the past, but none of my blogs was ever accepted. They have high standards and their requirements are over the top. Only the most popular and highly viewed websites are usually approved.

Anyway, I gave it a try and hooray! 🙂 I was accepted!

I applied to Media.net for all of my blogs, but only this Pinay Investor blog was accepted.

I can’t believe it! I finally have a Media.net account.

And this is exactly the reason why I took down most of my Google Adsense codes on May 25.

I gave more placements for Media.net, but I have yet to see its performance in the coming days and months.

Hopefully, it performs better than Google Ads.

If you’re a fellow blogger, I suggest you try applying to Media.net too. Good luck! 🙂

Pinay Investor YouTube Channel

Do you know that aside from this Pinay Investor blog I also have Pinay Investor YouTube channel? 🙂

Well, yes… In fact, Pinay Investor has been on YouTube since March 2015.

But I’m not the typical Youtuber or Vlogger that you see these days. I don’t show up on screen or vlog about my personal life in this channel.

Pinay Investor YouTube channel is more on how-to tutorials about online banking, investing, and I’m planning to publish personal finance videos very very soon.

So what’s my win in this channel?

Not much. But I’m grateful for these milestones:

• Almost 30,000 subscribers as of May 2020
• Almost $300 revenue in May 2020 – the highest revenue in a month so far
• More than 2,000 new subscribers in May 2020 – the highest number of subs in a month so far

I admit I am not consistent in publishing videos in this channel and sometimes it takes months and even years for me to publish new videos, but I’m grateful that my old videos still continue to gain views, subscribers, and revenues.

My earnings from this channel has been my passive income for the past several months. It gives me revenues even if I don’t actively work on it. Not much, but it’s still an additional income and I’m happy about it.

That is why I am learning more about YouTube now and I am creating a plan to grow this channel not only to earn, but also to teach, help, and make a difference in other people’s lives through this platform. And I thank you. hehe…

More Wins on YouTube

1. My other channel, Maijan Garden, has finally reached the required number of subscribers and watched hours to monetize my videos. And this month, YouTube accepted my application for my channel’s Monetization and my gardening videos are now starting to earn revenues through ads. Wohoo! Thank you Google!
2. I created two new YouTube channels this month which I consider as passion projects.
   • Macey Reads – this is where my daughter shares her love for reading.
   • Maijan Meditation – this is where I share my recorded prayers and meditations.

Wins on Family, Faith, and Finances

Aside from my wins on blogging and YouTube, I am also grateful that God continues to provide for our needs and protect us against Covid-19 and other diseases.

Family

Macey has finally graduated from Kindergarten. They had their final online class on May 26.

We don’t know yet where to enroll her this school year, but we will try our informal/independent homeschooling in June. Our schedule will be Mondays to Fridays, from 1-2 PM. We’ll see how it will go and I hope we’ll be consistent.

Finances

I’m thankful we have successfully paid our pending bills for the months of March, April, and May including our utility bills (electric, water, and internet bills), our car payment, our car insurance from Moneymax, and our life insurance from Sun Life.

Faith

I’m grateful I’m consistent with my quite time with the Lord and my morning habits.

I’m also grateful that my family have been consistent in attending our church’s online teachings every Sunday. We have never missed a session even during the lockdown.

I’m also grateful that we have weekly bible studies and kwentuhan with my Worship team and Fellowship group.

Final Thoughts

In spite of the Covid-19 pandemic and the challenges and changes it has brought to our schedules and personal affairs, there are still so much to be grateful for.

I have been the most productive and disciplined during the three months of the Enhanced Community Quarantine. And I just hope I could follow through even when everything gets back to normal.

I don’t know what’s going to happen now that we’re already on GCQ, but let’s just trust God, follow the authorities, and continue with our personal lives.

Sabi nga, “Tuloy pa rin ang buhay”…

Do you have your wins too during the ECQ? Feel free to share it in the comments below and let’s talk soon. 🙂