The current state of retirement today is getting pretty daunting, with non-stop stories of those retiring without any savings, extended life expectancy, and the Social Security downfall, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be casting light to wins that remind us we can make it through.
This June, Forbes released insight into a couple they’ve been following for some time now. In fact this couple, Kelan and Brittany Kline, were previously featured on Forbes when they quit their jobs in 2019 (at just 28 years old) and started making $100k a year from home.
And they haven’t just kept that standard … they’ve raised it. Here’s how this 32-year-old couple has gone on to make $100k per month, semi-passively!
Kelan and Brittany Kline: the 28-year-old couple that quit their jobs and made $100k a year
Kelan and Brittany Kline were of the belief that you can “get out of the rat race, create a successful online business, work from home, have complete control of your time, and live lives of greater freedom and adventure”.
And so they did.
They began their blog, The Savvy Couple, in July of 2016. Which, if you do the math right, means they went from zero to $100k annually, in barely three years.
Neither had any experience running an online business, let alone generating a six-figure income. The blog initially started out as a way for them to show others how to manage their finances, based on their own experience of providing for their family on a limited income.
But, as time went on, the income increased steadily. They quit their jobs, and turned their blog into their primary source of income, which gave them more flexibility, more freedom, and the prospect of unlimited income.
How did they reduce the risks and actually make this happen, securely?
The couple removed most of the risk involved in their decision to step away from their jobs in 2019 by:
While the up-and-down nature of income is a situation all successful bloggers are familiar with, the general trend line started moving consistently higher. The blog may not have earned $10k each month, but the higher earning months easily offset the lower ones.
It meant that, in 2019, the couple made well in excess of $100k over the twelve month period, which enabled them to pay off their student loan debt of $25k in just 5 months, as well as growing their net worth to over $100k before turning 30!
How they’ve moved on to making $100k per month (semi-passively) in 2023
The family has expanded to four since 2019, and their business success has enabled them a healthy balance of business and parenting time. As a result, they’re living their dream lives. They’ve been intentional about setting up their lives with as much freedom as possible – including plenty of days off and multiple vacations a year.
But how did they grow their business to reach such great heights over the past four years?
Outside of adjusting to the changes in blogging since 2019, they’ve used four specific strategies that have helped them grow steadily toward passive income:
- Leveraging talent by building a dedicated staff
As a solo entrepreneur, there’s a high likelihood that, eventually, you’ll run against the limit of time. There are only so many hours in the day, compared to the responsibilities involved in a small business.
But, as many small businesses discover, the way to overcome this is by hiring talented individuals to perform an increasing number of tasks.
So, the couple added staff while staying within their budget, by employing part-time contractors.
It started with a Virtual Assistant (VA), and they started to work with an editor, monetization expert and tying it together with an operations manager to oversee the big picture.
These four specialists have enabled them to work only 10 – 20 hours a week and to concentrate on expanding their business.
- Expanding within a very specific niche
The Klines have been very careful to stay within their chosen market niche. For their blog, that includes topics like money management, budgeting, saving money, and investing. But the primary emphasis remains on waiting to make money – through profitable side hustles – and, in the age of inflation, it’s easy to understand why this is such a popular topic.
Brittany has also got to work on developing digital planners, organizers, and printables for their other brand, The Savvy Mama. These products help moms organize, simplify, and generally better control the chaos of their lives. There’s now even a membership to help moms stay accountable. Which, in turn, has helped their business thrive more.
White Brittany acknowledged that branching out was terrifying, it was also very exciting, and helped them develop another related site, The Savvy Kitchen, which provides recipes, meal planning, cooking, and more.
They’ve even gone on to create The Savvy Couple YouTube Channel, which has more than 10k subscribers. It helps generate additional revenue, but also builds the brand name and provides visitors with many additional (free) resources!
- Staying focused and tracking time
By outsourcing multiple responsibilities to staffers, the Klines have the time to get better control of their time and the income they generate with it.
Unlike when they first started, they now pay close attention to the time they spend in the business, as well as where exactly that time is concentrated. They track their hours, as well as how much they’re making on that hourly basis. At the time of this Forbes article, this was $1k an hour for Brittany.
So, she makes sure that she focuses on activities that are $1k per hour tasks.
“I’ve learned that everything I outsource is going to free up my time to focus on growing the business,” she says.
- Harnessing Artificial Intelligence to grow their business
While we assume that AI is mostly used by those ultra big organizations, the Klines are an example of why a small business should employ AI to help grow.
They came across these tools back in 2020. It started with Jasper AI and Surfer, to create article outlines, write first drafts, expand on their topics and more.
Their entire team now uses Chat GPT in the content creation process, including their YouTube scripts, email marketing, social media and more. They’ve added Koala and Surfer AI to the list of AI tools they’re using today too.
AI has become integrated in their business in almost every process they have, and they find that the tools continue to get steadily better, allowing them to create more and better serve their audience as they go.
The long term goal: reaching financial freedom by 35
Now that this 32-year-old couple has reached their goal of making The Savvy Couple into a seven-figure business, their new goal is to reach financial freedom by age 35. Which is a pretty big goal, but when looking at the data of their previous years, it’s highly likely!
Income rose each year for this couple – except in 2020 when the height of the pandemic and economic shutdown were in effect. But even in 2019, after Forbes interviewed them in July of that year, they ended up finishing the year at over $250k of income.
It then resumed its growth in 2021, then topped to $500k in 2022. Based on this current pace, the Klines expect that their three brands will earn nearly $1.2 million in 2023, averaging at $100k per month, on a semi-passive income!
But they don’t plan to retire ultimately once they reach their dream goal of financial freedom. In fact, the plan is to continue to build web traffic and revenue, to increase passive income, and put more money into the stock market.
A big part of their ultimate goal of reaching financial freedom, at least partially from the passive income generated from this investment.
Despite the increasing challenges of the current state of the United States as well as the blogging space, the Klines still believe the niche has potential for new entrants. After all, when they launched their blog in 2016 the field was already crowded. But they still hit goals beyond their belief.
Their advice to individuals?
They’re living proof that you can live out your dreams, reach financial freedom, and exceed your expectations. Even if you’re not sure. Even if it feels like a big risk.
If you’re looking for ways to secure your own financial freedom, prepare for retirement, or discover your own retirement hustle, we recommend taking a glance at our full list of blog posts. They include useful how-to’s, guides on earning money, as well as breakdowns on the current state of retirement in the United States and how to rise above scary odds.
