Time for a little life update! One of my goals for the new year is to start sharing more about my personal life on the blog. I feel like I have done a bit of that by sharing how I quit my job to travel the world and started a business at 24, but there is so much I don’t share.
Sometimes I feel like people are more interested in personal finance that I forget to share about the Kat behind the blog! So that is what we will be talking about today!
The Biggest Life Update: Our Wedding in Cambodia
I announced my wedding and engagement on Twitter… but only mentioned my engagement on the blog when I posted about how much you should spend on an engagement ring.
So here is the official announcement: I’m married!
My husband, Omar, and I got married on July 9th, 2022 at the Balé Resort in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. It was a two-day event and we rented the whole venue so that friends/family could stay with us. As you can see from the picture, we did a western ceremony!
What you may not know is that my husband is from Pakistan (shocker, I know!) and he is Muslim. So we also got to do a traditional Nikah ceremony as well! My mother-in-law brought absolutely everything I’m wearing in the photo below from Pakistan. Thanks, Mom!
My husband made me promise not to do a breakdown of what we spent on the wedding BUT I’m allowed to tell you that everything cost under $15k and we paid in cash, splitting the cost 50/50.
Also, our outfits for the western wedding were both custom-made and cost around $500 each… and it only took 2 weeks for them to be made!
Another Big Life Update: Moving to Singapore by 2023!
Around the same time that we were having our wedding, my husband received a job offer that would have us moving to Singapore at the end of the year. I’m still a bit hush-hush on this topic when it comes to the blog, but I tend to share a bit more on Twitter and will also be discussing it on some upcoming podcasts… so stay tuned!
If things continue to go according to plan, we will be in Singapore at some point in December. So if you are a personal finance blogger out that way or are visiting there soon… Please say hi!
Missing our cat, Puppy (for just a few months)
On a bit of a sad note, we will be temporarily separating from our beloved cat, Puppy, because of the move. We miss him so much already, even though we still have him for the next month or so.
Singapore has super strict regulations on importing animals. All pets must receive a rabies vaccination 6 months prior to entering the country. They also must quarantine for 30-days on arrival! Beyond that, there are additional costs such as: import/export permits, other vaccinations, flight bookings, etc. When all is said and done, we will have spent around $2,000 to move the cat… and I don’t regret it one bit!
Luckily, two of our friends have volunteered to watch our cat Puppy until we can get him imported. Despite starting the process in early September, it is not likely that he will be able to join us until at least March. We are anticipating closer to May. There is a backlog of people trying to get their pets into the country due to COVID travel restrictions.
Third Big Life Update: Business name change (RSC is now KRCG)!
As some of you may know, from May of 2021-2022, I was working on a one-year contract with HEINEKEN Cambodia. I found the project related to external communications through my business, Rucker Sales Consulting, and thought it was interesting to pursue.
I continued running my business in the background in 2022. When my contract was completed, it was the perfect time to return back to full-time entrepreneurship. This was particularly true with our wedding and a move to Singapore around the corner!
Kat Rucker Consulting
While I’ve been running my business for the last few years, it has been mainly me doing the work and so, for taxes, I would be considered an independent contractor. This year, I took the plunge and finally created an LLC!
Additionally, as the business has now grown to include both sales and marketing, I have rebranded the business to Kat Rucker Consulting LLC.
A lot is still to be determined about my business when it comes to the Singapore move. Singapore is quite an expensive place to live, with apartments costing around $4,000 a month. So I may return to the 9-to-5 or will have to grow my business significantly (which I’ve been working on!).
Blog: Income, Publishing Schedule, and Goals!
In January of this year, I started using Ezoic on the blog. It has been a great change in terms of revenue! I now get paid for blog traffic from both Ezoic and Adsense.
The blog has also grown to the point where I make money every day. I usually make only .20 to .30 cents, but that’s money I didn’t have before!
I’ve even had some paid sponsorship and affiliate opportunities come my way. I’ve turned most down though, because they were sketchy. One was worth $150, so that was really hard to do but you can’t put a price on integrity.
All in all, the blog has generated an income of around $150 so far this year. Most of was earned from August onwards. That being said, I have seen the value enough that I’ve been reinvesting the earnings. I’ve also been investing some of my own money into the blog too!
My primary goal for the next month or two is to start a more consistent publishing schedule and bring back the monthly newsletter before the new year.
My other big goal is to do a lot more collaborations, from link exchanges to guest posting and more. I’ve had a lot of success in this area already, but finally have the free time to put more energy into finding these opportunities! If you are interested in collaborating, please message me at kat@katrucker.com.
Final Thoughts
This year has been super busy, both personally and professionally. I feel like every New Year, my life changes in a dramatic way, and usually for the better. So I’m super nervous to be starting such a big new chapter in my life but really excited to see what it brings. I’ve never had so many big life updates before!
I hope you enjoyed this update and please feel free to ask me any questions or share some thoughts in the comments section. I do read and respond to every one I get!
Kathryn Rucker is a sales consultant and content writer. With 7+ years of sales experience, she is passionate about helping businesses and individuals grow their sales pipelines by improving their online presence.
She has been traveling full-time since 2018 thanks to the location and financial independence she has gained from her business, Kat Rucker Consulting Group. You can connect with her on LinkedIn.
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