Blogger Confessions #5: J from Time In The Market

Happy Saturday and welcome to the fifth episode of the 'Blogger Confessions' interview series on the blog. Today, I'm bringing in J from Time In The Market to talk about blogging and how he's managed to keep everything straight as a personal finance blogger.

J, take it away.

Blogger Confessions with J from Time In The Market

1: In at least 100 words, describe the target audience of your blog.

Time in the market is a long-term investing blog written by a lazy man.

I’m all about the 80/20 rule (Pareto principle) in life and this blog is an example of that. One of the things I try to do with this blog is not to take this whole process too seriously and enjoy life while I’m at it.

The eventual goal is early retirement but I’m not starving myself of enjoyment while I get there. It’s a more casual approach to financial independence and one I think that resonates with some of my readers.

The target audience is beginner investors, lazy people like myself and people who are interested in early retirement but think it requires too much sacrifice to get there. I’m here to show that you can live a good life and still retire early. It might not be at 28, but retiring around 45 (which is the goal) isn’t bad, either.

2: What makes your blog different from other blogs in the PF blogosphere?

I think I’m a bit more humorous than some of the other PF bloggers. I come from Poland, the land of post-communist comedy and that sort of style of humor is rare.

3: What’s the thing that you’ve struggled with the most since starting your blog?

As I mentioned above, I am a lazy man so consistency in writing has been my struggle. I want to write a lot of content but then I don’t. It’s a real problem that I’ll eventually get over. I’ve recently taken on a new job too so I have less time for all of my hobbies..

4: Do you publish your net worth on your blog? Why or why not?

I do publish my portfolio totals and I do so because I think it gives people an indication of where I am in my journey and how I’m doing. I plan to be more open with that as the blog grows, especially around what sort of income it took to get there.

5: Have you monetized your blog (ads, affiliate marketing, etc)? Why or why not?

I have a few ads and some affiliate links here and there but nothing crazy. I do it because it costs money to run the blog and I’d rather the blog pay for itself. I also plan to donate 50% of any profits if any are ever made to charities I support.

6: Would you rather be loved, hated or controversial? Explain, please!

I think controversial.

Hated seems like a no-go because who wants to be hated and if I’m universally loved then I’m just pandering to the readers.

The reality is that people have different opinions and likes and if I’m either hated or loved universally then I’m either a troll or pandering and that’s no good either way.

I want to connect with readers that don’t necessarily buy what I’m selling and people who like what I’m talking about. The goal is to spark a conversation over just saying something that people already agree with.

7: Who would you be horrified to know read your blog?

I think people at work. I sometimes write about how boring my job is so I’d rather people at work not see that. That’s why, for the most part, I remain anonymous on my blog so that I can write things without having to be censored.

8: What’s your most favorite, least favorite and most embarrassing post on your blog?

I think my favorite is the frugal man post because it’s HILARIOUS (maybe).

I don’t know if I have a least favorite although I think my savings rate posts were boring, so I stopped doing them.

Most embarrassing is maybe my career related posts or my about series since they reveal more about me as a person.

I’m not really embarrassed about them but some of the things might be embarrassing. On a side note, I have to continue my about series sometime soon!

In general, if I don’t like a series of posts, I’ll just stop doing them like my savings rate posts.

9: Explain your writing process

I'm the type of person that can sit down an write a 1000 word post in one sitting once I have a good idea. Generally, I’ll start a new post when I have a good idea and write the introduction then lay out the outline for another day. When I have time, I’ll finish the whole thing based on the outline.

My review process is to go back and re-read it and edit as I go along. I usually do things pretty quickly and don’t spend a ton of time editing and re-editing each post. It’s usually a write, re-read and edit and post type of thing.

As I said, I’m pretty lazy and like to do things following the 80/20 rule. 20% of the effort for 80% of the results, guys!

10: What is your favorite blog in the PF blogosphere (other than your own!)?

I find myself reading Tom at Dividends Diversity all the time. Dude’s just a nice guy and you can tell he’s writing because he enjoys doing it.

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