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I'm Mara — I help creatives create and launch digital courses and profitable products. I love chatting about online marketing, design and goal setting!

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How I Made $9,109.98 Last Month (January Income Report)

Mara Kucirek

January was an exciting month for my business, and I’m thrilled to share the details with you!

My online business brought in $9,109.98, and as always, I’m peeling back the curtain to give you a behind-the-scenes look at what worked, what didn’t, and the strategies I’m refining as I grow. Whether you’re curious about running an online business, looking for inspiration, or just are really nosy and LOVE when people share money stuff, this report is for you. Let’s dive into the numbers, lessons, and wins from January!

A Quick Recap

January was a fantastic start to the year! I took the first week of the year off to fully enjoy the holidays and ease into 2025, then I hit the ground running! January is always a busy month in my business, packed with exciting new client launches and laying the groundwork for the year ahead.

My parents were also in town for a week this month which gave me some extra childcare support and a few extra date nights with my husband!

How Much Money I Made:

Total Income for January: $9,109.98

Where that money came from:

  • Client Work: $9,011.48
  • Affiliate Income: $98.50

My Expenses:

Contractors $557.00

This is for one virtual assistant who does some admin work in my business, a website designer who helps me update pages on my own website and a deposit to my secure a spot with my accountant to do my 2024 taxes.

Credit Card Processing Fees: $298.73

This is the cut Paypal and Stripe take out when I’m paid.

Software: $12.20

You can see the full list of tools and software I use to run my business below. For most softwares I pay for the full year at once, but these payments were for my podcast hosting through Libsyn and my Gsuite account.

Eating Out: $18.38

When my parents were in town I spent some time at a coffee shop so that I was had some extra work time without extra people around.

Office Supplies: $35.13

I needed new printer ink.

Travel: $72.17

I adjusted a flight for a business trip I’m taking later this year.

Total Expenses: $993.61

What was good in January?

  • Having the first week of the year off! I loved the slower start to the year.
  • My parents visiting. Having some extra childcare help is always really nice.
  • My husband went out of town with our daughter for a couple of days to visit his parents and I got a bunch of extra quiet time.
  • I put a huge dent in my 25 in 2025 list.

What was hard in January?

  • The month felt really busy. I think it was a combination of coming back from break and every project starting up all at once.
  • Having company – I loved that my parents visited, but having extra people in our house always throws off my schedule. Working at a coffee shop was good. In the future I’ll try to do that more when we have company in town
  • While I loved my parents visit it totally threw off my work schedule and I should have spent more time getting out of the house to work undistracted
  • My toddler has learned to climb up onto our dinning room chairs and then climbs on top of the table so now we have to hide all of our chairs from her.

How did my January goals go?

1. Record a new podcast episode – Not Done!

Technically while I’m writing this I still have a couple of days to go so we’ll see but this one probably won’t get done before the month is over. I did write out a new intro though so that has to count for something!

2. Go look at houses – Done!

I’m maybe – possibly buying a house in 2025! My husband and I spent a weekend this month looking at a bunch of houses and trying to narrow down the exact area we want to live.

3. Write out a list of changes to make and software to add to my tools and resources page – NOPE!

I didn’t get to this one, but I did make a new page for one of my favorite tools ShowIt so really this gets partial credit too as I completed a similar task.

 February Goals

1. Unplug and enjoy my trips.

I have TWO trips in February. A cruise with my best friend and a business retreat with a couple of business friends. I’m giving myself permission to just enjoy them and focus on doing less this month.

2. Submit tax documents to our accountant.

I want to get our taxes done as early as possible this year which means I need to get everything submitted and over to my accountant.

3. Read a physical book just for fun.

I’ve really been enjoying reading more actual books lately. I’m an avid audiobooks listener but lately I’ve also been making sure to read a couple pages each morning of a REAL BOOK and it’s been really soothing and fun.

Current List of the Software and Tools I Use to Run My Business:

A quick note – Some of the links below are affiliate links which means I may get a small kickback if you use them. There’s no additional cost to you and all of these products are things I actually use in my own business.

Business Money Tools:

Personal Money Tools:

  • Ally BankFor checking and savings
  • WealthfrontA high yield savings account where I keep our long-term savings (emergency fund, house down payment fund, travel funds) 
  • Alliant Visa Signature – The main credit card we use in our personal lives. This one pays 2.5% cashback.
  • You Need a Budget – The budgeting software I use to keep track of our personal finances. It’s been a game changer and saved us thousands of dollars each year but knowing exactly what is coming in and going out.

Productivity and Goal-Setting Tools:

  • Asana – For project management and staying on top of my to-dos
  • Timer Cube – To stay focused on your work
  • Full Focus Planner – For planning my week and daily to-do list 
  • Bullet Journaling – For planning out my long-term goals and to-do lists (I use this inexpensive notebook as my bullet journal) 
  • Dynalist – To create lists and organize my thoughts

Social Media:

  • Your Template Club – Canva templates for Instagram and Facebook that you can easily customize 
  • ManyChat – For sending automated messages on Instagram and Facebook
  • Metricool – To schedule posts on Instagram and Facebook  
  • Tailwind – For scheduling Pinterest pins 
  • Canva – To create graphics
  • Ring Light – The ring light and tripod I use to film content

Podcasting:

  • Riverside – Recording podcast episodes and interviews 
  • Libsyn – Where I host my podcast episodes 
  • Microphone – For recording podcasts, events and videos 
  • Calendly – To schedule guest interviews

Email Marketing:

Website:

I also have loads more tools and resources here if you want more ideas and recommendations.

Other disclosures:

Relay Bank: Relay is a financial technology company, not a bank. Banking services and FDIC insurance are provided through Thread Bank, Member FDIC. The Relay Visa® Debit Card is issued by Thread Bank pursuant to a license from Visa U.S.A. Inc. and may be used everywhere Visa® debit cards are accepted.

*This post may contain affiliate links.