Blog success stories - do they inspire or depress you?

There are so many success stories on the internet, some of them are published in in Business magazines, others in AdSense “success stories” section. Gone are the days when you had to be a super smart geek to make something on the internet, today, some bloggers with basic, if any, knowledge of HTML are making huge money, just thanks to their creative thinking, writing and publications.

If you have no clue what am I talking about, here are some people, who’s blogs I read on a daily basis, and who’s self build success I find tremendously inspiring.

Marcus Frind reports a mere 3,5 million dollar revenue a year from his blog (This I found on Paula Mooney’s blog). Steve Pavlina makes 365,000$ a year with his website / blog, and Matther Daimler is slightly falling behind with his 360,000$ annual income. Sharon Maguire with 270,000$ per year, the very inspiring success of Self Made Minds, with “only” 150,000$ a year, but still not too bad, not as bad as the founder of Digital Point forums who earns 120,000$, according to New York Times. Not forgetting the mogul John Chow, who is making no less than 140,000$ yearly and Darren Rowse with… I don’t even know how much. A lot.

My main “other significant” models are Steve Pavlina, Darren Rowse, Kumiko Suzuki and John Chow. I borrowed tons of tips from their blogs, and seeing their success, which they made with their own hands, brain and Internet connection is without a doubt inspiring. It’s always good to take a look at the blogs that make five figures a month. See what advertising networks they use, see how they present their content and themselves. They all make money in slightly different way, some rely on AdSense, while others implement every possible ads network and solution for publishers. Even in my mini report about how does TopTut.com make money, I said that this blogs generate revenue in a bit different structure, compared to most of my other sites. You have to try different networks, different ads placement, colours, layouts, etc. and see what works best of yourself.
What I don’t understand, however, is how some people get frustrated from reading these stories. Why? Well, mainly because they make significantly less, but will sitting in your computer corner, turning green from narrow-minded envy, make you rich? Will cursing those who make more than you double your income? Don’t hate those who make more than you, it’s your only chance to learn (free) from others’ examples, because these are real stories, real people. And you can be one of them some day, if you won’t let your negativity dominate over your creativity.