There are those moments in your life when time stops and years later you can remember exactly where you were, what you were wearing and the adrenalin rush of feelings that welled up inside you.
Here are a few snippets of those magical moments that I recall:
- When I received the first box of maraschino chocolate-covered cherries from my gangly boyfriend in ninth grade
- When I heard that President Kennedy had been killed (oops, that’s dating me)
- When I delivered two beautiful children
- When I held my dad’s hand as he quietly passed away
- When I made my first dollar (no, it was $3.50) online.
That $3.50 could have been $3,500 and it would have felt the same. It was opening the floodgates to what I KNEW would be a healthy income that would support my dreams.
I received it through PayPal and I’ll never spend it. That PayPal account will forevermore have $3.50 in it, just so I can recall the tremendous pride I felt when I read the Service@paypal “Commissions from …” email message .
I was wearing a lavender cashmere sweater and black pants. I texted friends and danced to Bob Marley’s “Jammin”. It was the beginning of a dream. I had pushed the mountain aside …
So enough nostalgia, already. That was my simple first-ever dollar-on-line story.
Can you remember when you made your first online dollar? If so, please recapture your moment in the comments below.
I’ll enjoy it just ‘cuz you shared.
To Our Magical Moments,
Dar
February 5th, 2010 at 7:13 pm
Hi Darlene, wow you have some good memories there. How lovely it must be to reminisce. My first dollar came from a budget spreadsheet i sold on eBay for $12. I stayed up all night and watched the bidding, i was so excited! When the person won the auction i was so blown away that i made $12 that i immediately sent him the file before he even paid. Thankfully he was an honest bloke and deposited it into my Paypal account. I was so proud of my sale, its never sold so well since so i give it away to people now
Matt Jones´s last blog ..Sample Featured post 2
February 6th, 2010 at 8:48 am
Matt,
Glad you were dealing with an “honest bloke” when you made your first online money. A budget spreadsheet sounds like a really good idea. How can I get one?
February 5th, 2010 at 10:11 pm
Very cool memories Darlene. I can’t really say that I’ve made my first dollar online as far as being generated thru my blog goes, however I do relate to the emotion you’re referring to. The experience I can compare it to is when I received an email from MonaVie, telling me that I had earned my first commission. I remember squeeling with delight, jumping up out of my chair & dancing around the house going, ‘yes, yes yes’!
February 6th, 2010 at 8:50 am
Toni,
Did you ever spend that first MonaVie commission? I bet you still have that check (or at least a copy of it).
February 5th, 2010 at 10:25 pm
Darlene, like you my first dollar made online was an affiliate commission payment. Opening up the email that said “you’ve got funds” was exciting and it was the first $18 my paypal account had ever received. It’s still there! Too funny!
Jason´s last blog ..Website Banners
February 6th, 2010 at 8:52 am
Hey Jason,
Not surprising at all that you saved your first $18. I’m glad that you’re sentimental, too!
February 6th, 2010 at 2:32 am
Hi Darlene. Does earning my 1st ever commission of exactly half a dollar qualify? Was so excited I took a screenshot & saved it to disk! And quietly confident that to me it signaled what was to come for my online business. Good times.
BTW on my Mac I can’t at all distinguish the borders of these input fields from the center column’s pure white. Able to alter something in your theme?
Stew´s last blog ..SEO with Thesis Theme – How Google Ranked a Test Post
February 8th, 2010 at 4:14 am
You know Stew – I have the same challenge on my own blog – I’d better solve that for Darlene and me both, eh?
Thanks for the nudge!
Andrea
Andrea Goodsaid´s last blog ..WordPress – Categories, Pages and Posts – Oh My!
February 8th, 2010 at 1:32 pm
Stew, Of course the $.50 counts! Once you’ve gotten any money it is opening the floodgates …
Neat that you took a screen shot of it. Thanks for sharing!
February 7th, 2010 at 7:37 pm
Hi Darlene
Another great post
I can remember being on the bus (primary school)when just as it stopped at a particular stop, the new of Elvis’ death came on the radio. I still think of that every time the anniversary comes around.
Like Matt, my first dollar online was earned through eBay. I was so excited that I’d sold something! The other equally as exciting time for me was when I received my first cheque from my network marketing company. It was roughly $13.00, but it was proof to me that I could earn money through this network marketing company and online and that this was only the start.
I’m looking forward to your next post
~ Kylie ~
Kylie Doak´s last blog ..Feeling Overwhelmed Happens to Everyone – Not Just You
February 7th, 2010 at 8:22 pm
Hi Darlene, this is a fun post! It is so good to remember these unforgettable moments. I know there are many many more fabulous memories to come.
PS. I love Matt’s Post above. So sweet
Sally Bath´s last blog ..No Barriers
February 7th, 2010 at 11:26 pm
Hi Darlene,
Great post. It is amazing how we remember this significant moments in our lives. I refer to them as defining moments. One for me was when I made money in my network marketing company. The first check that I got created the belief in myself that I could do it and that it does work. Thanks again.
Make it a great day!
God Bless,
-ed
February 8th, 2010 at 4:12 am
Oh pooh – you know, I’m just not sentimental like that … saving ‘first’ anythings. Sometimes I wish I were.
My first online dollars were no doubt from Ebay – but I’m equally certain they were just as quickly spent as they were earned (needed every scrap we could get back then).
Totally agree that it’s not the amount that matters – it’s the validation and the ‘seeing is believing’ thing about it that feels so awesome.
GREAT post Dar!
Andrea
Andrea Goodsaid´s last blog ..WordPress – Categories, Pages and Posts – Oh My!
February 8th, 2010 at 10:23 am
Hey Darlene,
Yes you are right to be excited over that $3.50. That first little bit of money is where it all starts. As they say, a new beginning is another s beginnings end. The days of wishing for that first income online is over and you’ve done it once so you can do it again and again!
Thank you for sharing this wonderful story and how you felt during that moment. All of us found this to be just the beginning of great things to come!
Committed To Your Success!
Dave and Dawn
Dave and Dawn Cook´s last blog ..Family Relationships – Forgive and Forget the Little Things
February 8th, 2010 at 1:12 pm
Darlene! This is awesome that you remember all of the details about your first online “success”! I remember my first check was from clickbank when I was living alone in an apartment working and going to school in Binghamton NY… I had placed some advertisements around campus and hadn’t even bought my first domain yet.. I had used tinyurl to put the link on there and made a check for about $27 I was so happy that I realized this was what I wanted to do!
I wish I could have seen your face when you got the first transaction, I bet it was quite the shock as I know it was when I received the almighty “internet money” as some of my friends call it!
Keep it up,
Chris Hughes
Chris Hughes´s last blog ..By: Chris Hughes
February 8th, 2010 at 5:54 pm
Hi Darlene! Thanks for sharing your memories particularly your $3.50 game changer!! Your story made me think of the butterfly effect, one small flap of the wings and on the other side of the world, a hurricane.
Here’s to the strong wind at your back!!
Regards, Chip
Chip Wilson´s last blog ..Targeting Industry Prospects with Keyword Specific Campaigns
March 4th, 2010 at 9:08 am
It’s so funny to read many of the above comments Darlene. We all get so excited over such a small amount of money but that little bit means so much. My first money was made on a fabulous sale of shoes through commission junction. I told my son “I sold 3 pairs of shoes and made $6.44!) He thought I’d lost my mind because I was so overjoyed about this “lunch money” as he called it. My squeal factor was on overload much like Toni above, I was squealing so loud, I think I heard dogs howling. LOL
March 9th, 2010 at 1:49 pm
Hi Darlene, I’m still looking for that first dollar. I hope it has the look and feel of 3500
Thanks again.
Bill Cowan´s last blog ..Healthy Eating Habits
March 9th, 2010 at 3:28 pm
Hi Bill,
That will be my wish for you, too! Please let me know when it happens. Am sure it is right around the corner:)
March 20th, 2010 at 8:13 pm
I am still looking for my first dollar. I’m sure it really feels awesome when you do make it.