In this blog post, I am speaking with Chris Kostopoulos of Golden Bloggerz, who I met online during a networking opportunity.

I was particularly interested in Chris, because not only does he make money freelancing, but also he gets paid to write articles at home, as a beginner with absolutely no experience.

If you’re looking for other ways to make money online with no experience, click this link to check out my make money online archive.

For those of you, who believe that you need some special skill to begin freelance writing, seek inspiration from Chris’ story to use as motivation to go out there and do the same for you.

Chris also has a blog and has come a long way, three years actually, from where he abandoned his career as a Merchant Navy Officer.

How does a Merchant Navy Officer turn into a blogger and freelance writer? Well this is what we are going to find out as Chris breaks down how he was able to replace his Navy Officer’s salary and earn a full time income, freelance article writing.

What You Will Learn:

• How to get started as a freelance writer
• The advantages of freelance writing
• Why you should focus on a specific niche as a freelance writer
• How to choose your niche as a freelance writer
• How to find clients as a freelance writer
• Advice for anyone who wants to transition from their day job to an online career

First of all, I want to thank Dawn-Marie for giving me this amazing opportunity. It’s my honor to be featured in her blog!

What book are you reading (or podcast you’re listening to) at the moment?

I’m always trying to improve my work, so I’m reading mostly other Digital Marketing blogs in order to stay up-to-date with the industry news.

Some of my favorites are Adam Connell’s “BloggingWizard” and Elna Cain’s “TwinsMommy”.

Where are you originally from?

I’m from Athens, Greece. I currently stay here and I’m really happy I can work from the comfort of my home.

Why did you pursue a career as a navy officer?

Since I was a kid, I wanted to travel around the world. This way, I thought it was a good idea to combine this desire along with a high salary.

The time I joined the Merchant Marine Academy there were not many job opportunities. Also, all available regular job positions were paying too low, almost the basic salary (I bet you’ve heard about the economic crisis in Greece).

Actually, this is the situation until today. I never wanted to work a 9-5 job to be paid the basic salary. This way, I was searching for alternative solutions and decided to enroll in the Merchant Marine Academy.

Although I never liked the job, I compromised until I find something better. The only part I loved was the opportunity to visit other countries and people from all over the world.

Lessons that you still hold on to as a navy officer?

Life at sea has many struggles and disadvantages. However, I learned so much during my voyages that I’ll never regret this decision. They helped me to become a better person!

Being “imprisoned” inside a ship for weeks, far away from my home & beloved ones, taught me to appreciate even the smallest things in life! I feel grateful just for having a meal that I like, spending time with my people and even using the internet (yes, there’s no internet in the middle of the ocean)!

Further, I learned to be more professional, hard-working, productive and patient.

How did you get started as a freelance writer?

Making money on the web (and especially freelance writing) was in the back of my mind for years. However, I didn’t believe it was possible to make a living online.

When I had to pause my Merchant Navy career to do my mandatory military service, I started researching how I can make freelance writing my main job.

I literally started by searching Google about it. I discovered other online writers who have managed to even raise their families through writing online. Then, I realised that was a serious business with a lot of potential! I couldn’t stop thinking about it!

I had no clue where to start, so a few weeks later I decided to purchase an online course, Write Your Way to Your First $1k by Elna Cain. I was practising and pitching every day. A month later I had already made my first $1000 online! I was so excited (not for the money) but because I had proven it was really possible to follow this career!

What motivated you to pursue freelance writing?

Freelance writing provides many advantages such as:

• Flexible working hours
• Work from wherever it’s convenient (who doesn’t hate to drive to work every morning)
• The possibility to scale your business, increase your rates or create other relevant projects like blogging. This is a big deal for me because it provides me with a strong motive, something that many regular jobs fail to do.
• The ability to write about your passion & things you’re interested in

Seriously, what’s not to love about it?

Being able to work from the comfort of my home is very appealing, especially after all these voyages and all these days away from home!

Moreover, I had a passion for computers and technology since I was a kid. This way the technical issues (e.g. WordPress, optimising-sourcing images) were not a problem for me. Instead, I’m really glad I can make a living leveraging my personal computer.

So, one thing that really motivated me was the chance to abandon a job I don’t like (even if it was a high-paying one) for a job that I was dreaming to do.

Another thing that played an important role in my decision is a love story. Oh yes, you read that right! As I mentioned earlier, the period before I join the military, I met and fell in love with my significant other!

This made me realise that I would never be happy as a seafarer. I could never had [have] a serious relationship if I was away for 8-9 months per year (yes, that’s how long our contracts last).

Then, I had to take a tough decision: Should I follow the Navy Officer career that I don’t like just to be financially safe? Or should I follow my dream even if I’m not sure at all how will it turn out?

You already know what I decided!

The reason I mention how my relationship affected my decisions is because I want to inspire all of you to chase your dreams and do what really makes you happy.

You never know what the next day brings. The point is, if you pursue what you really love, eventually you’ll find a way to make it work! Of course, this applies to whatever you want to do for a living as well.

Are there any specific niches you focus on and how did you choose your niche?

When I first started out as a freelance writer, I chose Gaming (my hobby) as my main niche. It’s a popular one and I know a lot about it, so I quickly landed my first gig.

My second one is Cryptocurrency. I wasn’t very picky as a beginner and a cryptocurrency-blog accepted my pitch to write for them, so I took the job. During my work there I learned a lot of things about cryptos, enough to land more gigs in relevant blogs.

A few years later I decided to start my own blog as well.

I’m reading almost daily about Online Marketing as a way to find out how I can improve my earnings online. For this reason, I decided to blog about Digital Marketing, Freelancing and Blogging Tips. My intention is to help the average person to create online income streams.

How did you get involved in working with some of your clients?

In order to land my first freelance writing job, I did what every beginner freelance writer should do:

• I created some really good samples and guest posts. There are many blogs online that accept guest posts even from beginners.
• Then, I started applying to freelance job boards and send cold emails to other blogs and websites. These techniques were enough to land my first gigs.
• I tried some content mills and freelance marketplaces, but they pay too low. They’re good only to gain some confidence as a beginner.

After you gain some experience and establish an online presence, it’s much easier to find jobs. However, they’re not always good or high-paying. For anyone interested, I have some in-depth articles regarding how to find clients on my blog.

The most important thing is to escape from the content mills that pay you $3-$5 per article. Instead, you should focus to get your name out there as an experienced writer and earn a lot more.

What is your biggest advice for anyone who wants to transition from their day job to an online career?

The short answer is “Research”.

All the information you need is out there (on the web) for free. First, you need to realise what it takes to replace your day job with an online career. Prepare for a lot of reading!

Then, you should ask yourself a few questions:

• Can you really commit all the time and effort to make it work?
• Will you be happy to do it daily, even for years to come?
• Are you ok with the fact that online jobs are volatile and not as secure as a regular job?

Of course, you should never leave your day job until you make at least the basic salary online (depending on your country). Yes, there would be a hard period that you’ll have to work online after your day job but it’s better to play it safe!

What is the best investment you have ever made in your business?

For my freelance writing business, it was the Write Your Way to Your First $1k course by Elna Cain. It saved me much time and helped to follow the right direction.

For my blogging business, it was a premium theme. Paid themes offer so many options and improve a lot the style of a website.

Recommended Resources

If you’re still looking for resources you can follow to transition to a paid freelance writer or even a freelancer, here are a few things that I love and recommend:

• Write Your Way To Your First $1k by Elna Cain – a freelance writing course and the one actually used by Chris to pursue his freelance writing career.
• How To Make Money With Fiverr – if you’re looking for practice before you actually go out for the big jobs, then check out my blog post that teaches you, how to get started with Fiverr so you can land your first practice client and get paid for it.