This is my Story

My name is Ivan Block, I am a digital entrepreneur and the creator of this blog.

I started this blog with the sole purpose of helping others start, scale and monetize their online project using the latest strategies and tactics. It’s a free resource platform dedicated to online business and digital entrepreneurship.

If you want to start a side hustle, create another stream of income, replace your 9-5 job or have the freedom to work from anywhere in the world, you can learn how to starting a blog, how to make money blogging, or how to start an online business and how to monetize it by checking my in-depth guides.

You can also find my reviews on the latest and best performing software and tools that you need to launch, build, scale, monetize, and automate your online business, so you can turn it into a well oiled machine that generates recurring, passive income. I also share with you the best deals and how to save the most on the software that you need.

Before I go any further, let me take you back to where it all started from.

The Beginning

I was born in the summer of 1986 in the small provincial town Silistra in Bulgaria. It’s located on the southern bank of the lower Danube river with a population of around 30,000 people.

Although, it’s a cultural center with many historical landmarks, including a richly-decorated Roman tomb, remains of a medieval fortress, and an Ottoman fort, there weren’t many opportunities for growth and development when I was growing up.

Journey Down the Memory Lane

I spent my first 18 years in my home town where I went to primary school and later on I attended high school.

As children, we all get asked in school, “what do you aspire to become when you grow up?” Most kids in my class would say: policeman, fireman, mechanic or scientist. When it was my turn to answer, the words “bank owner” came out.

Little did I know how much importance these two words carried and the role they’ll play later in my adult life. Subconsciously I knew what my destiny is without even realizing it. In hindsight, the bank is a symbol of finance, investment and financial education, with the latter being non-existent within the school system. If I wanted to be successful in life, I had to proactively seek it.

On the other hand, the owner highlighted that I wanted to be an owner, not an employee. There’s nothing wrong with being an employee, just my mind was wired differently. Only through ownership we can achieve complete freedom, but I didn’t realize any of it at that age. These were just words to me that sounded good.

That was the case up until the year 2000 when I went to high school and I started thinking and planning for my future – further education, goals and aspirations. Then these words started turning into thoughts, the thoughts turned into ideas and the ideas got clearer and more refined in my head, forming a plan and direction.

I was noticing that I wanted more from life that a regular 9-5 job in a town where everybody knew each other. I knew that I deserve better, but at the same time I was becoming a product of my environment as my tiny home town was shaping me and as a person.

With time, I discovered that limited exposure to information creates small minded individuals.
And as harsh as it sounds, it was the truth, so I had to make adjustments if I wanted to live the life I desired.

The Digital Age

Around the same time 1999-2000, I was introduced for the first time to the PC and the Internet. It was like a spaceship, we didn’t know what it was or what it did, but I can tell you it was new and exciting.

Initially, I was using computers only for gaming. Because of it, I started to entertain the idea of creating a computer gaming hub, the predecessor of today’s e-sports hubs.

Unfortunately, the high school life was starting to take a toll on me. I was going out more often and eventually I got into some bad habits. I was having a great time hanging out with my friends, partying hard and drinking excessively, all at the expense of my vision and ideas. I was telling myself that little fun never hurt anybody, but the joke was on me because my 5 years in high school passed in a blink of an eye.

It was time to decide what university I want to go to and what I’m going to major in. I was at a crossroads, but I didn’t have a clue what I wanted to do with my life.

I was accepted in a couple of universities, which I didn’t have any real interest in. Dedicating 3 years of my life to a course I didn’t want to do wasn’t a smart move.

In the fall of 2005, all of my friends left and scattered across the country to embark on a new journey. And I decided to take the year off and apply again the following year.

I felt like a failure, the kid with the big dreams was falling behind.

Dreams are great, but if you don’t act on them you aren’t going to achieve anything in life. From that moment onward, instead of having dreams I started setting goals for myself…

So, I went back to the drawing board.

Change of Location

In the meantime, an opportunity presented itself for me to go to Athens, Greece. I was accepted in the American College of Greece on an International Tourism & Hospitality Management course.

It wasn’t a business degree but that’s what you study in a country like Greece. At least this was my train of thoughts was at the time.

I’d been to Athens several times prior, so moving from a small town to a big city should’ve had a positive impact, and it would help broadened my horizon.

I was enjoying it too, the weather was great and the food was amazing. However, after failing to develop any real friendships, I noticed that I was spending more of my time in front of the computer screen.

I was studying about hospitality management and using my free time to learn about coding, web design and web development by finding information and building knowledge on my own. This is when I started my first travel blog, well back then it was more like a diary, documenting my journey, transition and travel experiences.

Everything was going well, but something inside was telling me that I’m not on the right track. I wanted to study business and Greece wasn’t the place for it.

Taking a Leap of Faith

And just like that, in June 2007 I boarded a plane to London, UK.

My friends from back home were about to graduate in a year and here I am changing countries and universities again. The feeling of self-doubt and failure resurfaced again. I had to condition my mind that this is the life I chose and I must run with it.

Later on I realized that leaving Greece behind was the right choice. In 2009, around the time when I was supposed to graduate, the country ran through a serious financial and economical turbulence. Business and employment prospects were negatively impacted, with new graduates straggling to find opportunities for many years.

In England, I attended a short 3 months course to improve and refine my English and I was ready to proceed with my Business Management & Finance degree.

Many of you may ask why I didn’t go for an Information Technology or a Web Design degree since I had interest in computers and blogging. The answer is simple; I already had a fair knowledge in the field and I wanted to broaden my business and financial acumen, so I can combine to the two at a later stage.

The Boy that Never Gave Up

In my first year of university studies, I also got my first job – low paid and unfulfilling. It didn’t take long to conclude that this isn’t how people get rich, so I had to change the tactic.

I started researching business ideas that don’t require a lot of start up capital. Eventually a friend of mine and I set up a cleaning services company. It was a failure, but I didn’t give up trying.

I knew that I need to be right only once.

During my university life I had other failed business attempts – airport transfers service, clothing brand and even dropshipping. Although, these ideas didn’t take off, I learned everything about setting up companies, building websites, designing marketing campaigns, working with clients and so on.

In the midst of all this, my main source of income was from working on blogs and websites, providing web design, copywriting and marketing services. It all transitioned into digital marketing consultancy as technology developed and I completed some extra curriculum digital marketing courses.

After my graduation, I landed a sales position at one of the biggest financial institution in the UK – National Westminster Bank. I got promoted 3 times in 2 years, before I decided to move from banking to insurance.

As an insurance broker and later compliance manager I learned every aspect of the business: client acquisition, sales processes, quality control, retention, etc.

Few years went by and I was ready to make a bold move by starting my own insurance brokerage, offering life and general insurance. My goal was to digitalize the sales of insurance policies, using a website, reducing the client acquisition and marketing costs.

It took me 11 long months to obtain the necessary licences (tedious process), set up an office and hire staff, but we were ready to start trading.

I leveraged my personal connections by approaching several of my former associates, some of who came to work with me.

The business was taking off, the company was growing and the revenue was increasing for a number of years. But March of 2020 brought unprecedented challenges for individuals and businesses alike.

This is when I got approached by a person who wanted to acquire 100% of the shares in the company, assuming full control. I was sceptical at first; however the worsening situation made me reconsider the offer.

After selling the company I was enjoying my free time which lasted about two weeks and the urge to start a new project was knocking on my door.

But what should I get involved in?

Reinventing Myself

I sat down and considered my options, based on my experience, knowledge and revenue potential. After several days of researching and analyzing different business models, I came to a conclusion. I was going to start a blog, but not a personal blog where I share my daily routine, a real online business that offers value and new perspective.

My decision was based on some key business and personal indicators:

It must be easy to setup and the start-up cost must be low. Nowadays, you can start a blog for less than a $100 with little to no technical knowledge.
It must be flexible; you can start it as a side hustle along your 9-5 job and turn it into your main source of income.
It must be all online, so no big overheads compared to a brick and mortar business model. You can also work from anywhere in the world.

It must be service based, so there is no need to hold any inventory.

A blog can create multiple streams of revenue: affiliate marketing, ads, promotions, digital products, and consultancy services, meaning that there is no ceiling to your earning potential.

I also remembered how I struggled to find quality information when I started my first blog and subsequently when I was looking to start other online ventures. I had to go through months of research and tones of websites, blogs, journals, books, interviews and podcasts. It was a never ending process just to find small pieces of valuable information from different outlets.

This is why MonetizingOnline.com was born, for less than a $100 from my knowledge and expertise in digital marketing, business and finance.

The goal is to provide value and guidance through high-quality, free content to anyone looking to start a successful online business, using the latest strategies.

We live in an era where you no longer need to go to a fancy university or take an expensive course if you want to be successful. The information is readily available.

All you need is desire to learn and discipline to execute your ideas.

If you want to join my blogging journey, consider subscribing to my newsletter, so you’re notified every time a new article is published. Or subscribe to my blog, and contact me if you want me to become part of your journey and help you launch, scale and monetize your online business idea.

Wish you all heath, wealth and prosperity.

Now let’s go and get it!

– Ivan