Patreon?
Have you heard of Patreon? I hadn’t until recently, but the more I learn about it, the more I like it.
It is based on the centuries-old tradition of being a ‘patron of the arts’, where people (usually well-off financially) contributed large amounts of money to artists – writers, painters, sculptures, musicians, script-writers, film makers and other creators – in order for these people to continue to create their body of work.
This is done in an acknowledgment that these artists have creative talents that these patrons want to see brought to fruition for the benefit of all who experience these creations.
Without such patrons many of the great art of the world would not be here today.
Patreon is an online, scaled-down, access-for-everyone version of this ancient tradition.
Many of you would have heard of KickStarter and other similar crowd-funding platforms, where the general public can ‘kick in’ and donate small or large amounts of money to help fund a project they see as worthwhile.
Well, Patreon is kind of like KickStarter, but it allows fans of creators – musicians, writers, podcasters, YouTubers, online coaches etc – to make a monthly (or per-content) contribution to people whose work they enjoy and want to see more of.
It means that any of us have the ability to become a ‘patron of the arts’ for as little as $1 a month.
When I first heard about this platform via Pat Flynn’s Smart Passive Income podcast (my fave!), it got me very excited.
Over the past 3 years of writing this blog, I have been upfront about the fact I have a goal to create an income out of my online endeavours so that I can achieve financial independence and no longer need to rely on a government pension to support my daughter and I.
I have not achieved this so far, despite working almost non-strop for 2 years since taking the first of a number of loans out against the equity on my home. Most of this has gone towards hiring virtual assistants to reduce the time I need to spend on the computer (due to the electrosensitivity headaches I get from such).
I have tried going down other avenues of earning online income, outside of the spoonie niche (see 15MinutePowerPlaysWithYourKids.com, ChristmasDecorationsHQ.com and TheVATeam.com.au) but I could not focus my attention on these long enough because my passion still lies in the spoonie empowerment and wellness enhancement areas.
Frankly I’ve recently felt so jaded – mentally and spiritually sapped of energy – and have seriously considered giving up this blog and all my other online endeavours and dreams.
But the fact is, I can’t.
Without my writing, empowerment coaching and other creative pursuits, I would be miserable. I love being a Mum, but it is not my whole purpose in life – and with my daughter about to start high school there would be a lot of empty hours in my day if I stopped my other passions.
Wanna Be My Patron?
This is the long way round to telling you I have created a Patreon account and am inviting you to become a patron of mine, so that I can continue to create empowering written work, audios, videos and coaching programs for you.
From now on the majority of my coaching programs and other work will be free or at a much lower price than the norm.
I want to run these programs and create this work for you and also non-Spoonies, and I see that with a little help from my readers/fans I can do this without charging any individual a large amount of money.
It makes my coaching programs, eBooks and other works accessible to all, which is what I’ve always wanted, but I couldn’t see how I could do that without sending myself broke.
I can now see a way.
With your support, in 2016 I will be running a number of group coaching programs and other wellness-based ventures (more info in later blog posts).
I will also be following through on my long-planned membership site – The Wellness Quest – and also start a podcast by the same name.
You will have access to the group coaching programs regardless of whether you decide to be a patron of mine via Patreon.
BUT if you do decide to pledge even $1 a month to my coaching and creative endeavours, it will enable me to expand on what I’m already doing in my quest for physical, mental and spiritual wellness for all.
PLUS there will be bonuses for my patrons.
“What Bonuses” You Ask?
- You get to play a role in creating my products and services by being part of my Patreon community – ie you get to give me feedback on what YOU want me to create for your consumption!
- Each pledge level has a different bonus
- Each milestone reached will include another bonus for every patron, regardless of their pledge amount
- You get to benefit from all the coaching programs and other products and services I can create when I am able to use my time solely for creating and coaching, rather than my current situation of diverting my focus to other projects in an attempt to stay afloat financially.
- Your patronage will allow others to benefit from my coaching, products and services, who for one reason or another are unable to fit it in their budget right now.
It’s your choice!
It’s totally up to you whether you continue to enjoy the free content on this blog, my FB pages, iTunes (my audio blog & new podcasts), videos on YouTube etc or whether you decide to become a patron. I’ll still be doing many of these things regardless, but much of it will be scaled back if I continue to be unable to cover my costs.
And if I don’t start to at least cover my costs I won’t be able to run the coaching programs in an economical way for all to consume.
That’s just the facts of life for me, but I’ve chosen to take this new direction and to blog about it because I want to give you a chance to support me if you choose to do so.
It’s been surprisingly hard for me to write this post because I think I have been caught up in a quiet societal message that it’s not right to ask for money, especially when many are on very low incomes.
But I’m realising that that is just a story I have bought into, and that people choose to spend their money on many things that are not strictly ‘necessary’. I certainly know I do.
And if I don’t at least put the opportunity out there for people to support me in a financial way, then I’m doing both you and myself a disservice – you because you won’t get my content and coaching, and me because I won’t get to do what I love and get paid for it (potentially blazing a trail for others to follow – which has always been my aim!).
So there it is.
If you love my content and want to keep seeing more, and also have access to coaching programs that are either free or extremely affordable, you have to opportunity to pledge a monthly amount via Patreon to support me in creating those things.
I want to do great things for the world, especially the world of Spoonies and wellness-seekers. Become my patron and help me do that. I promise you won’t be disappointed!!
Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas, Happy “Whatever you do or don’t celebrate at this time of year” AND Happy New Year!!
Keep smiling
Louise 🙂