As I sit down to write a (should be) simple post, I feel almost paralyzed in my writing.
So instead of writing nothing at all, I’m going to procrastinate my original post and write a whole new one.
 |
| Source |
{Oh, after I remind you to enter my giveaway that ends soon!}
I have been blogging regularly for at least a year, three years total, and I still have not figured it all out.
Can anyone relate to this?
You see, the simple task of writing a post for Monday brings up a number of thoughts for me. Thoughts that have been racing in my mind for quite some time.
 |
| Source |
I have heard that to be a successful blogger, one needs to be consistent.
The word consistent in this context usually means that the blogger should post at the same time, the same days each week. Often those so wrapped up in this concept will even apologize to readers that they missed a day or two…something that irks me to no end.
In my mind, the blogger is also required to have their themed posts for each day of the week such as Monday Moves, Marvelous in my Monday, Tuesday Training, What I Ate Wednesday, Thursday Thoughts, Friday Favorites, Faithful Fridays, Saturday Shares and Sunday Confessions.
That intimidates the crap out of me.
While having themed posts for each day of the week seems nice…sometimes it feels like my creativity is being strangled. I have days when I could probably sit down, write and publish three posts, then other days when I have no motivation at all but it’s Wednesday and I still “need” to do my WIAW post. I often have something in mind I want to post, but if it’s not the right day of the week or if I don’t have time on the correct day..it gets pushed back. Oftentimes it doesn’t get written.
I started the Monday Moves series a few weeks back because I wanted to do a fitness post each week, but my former Fitness Friday posts were taken over by SHN Favorites or sometimes Faithful Fridays.
Don’t even get me started on trying to create tabs on the blog for all of these things..when the blogging platform I use (Blogger) doesn’t have drop down links and I can only (only!) create 20 of them.
But *gasp* aren’t Mondays also Marvelous in my Monday days?
When will I share all of my positivity to start out the new week on the right foot? And what if I finally commit to doing Meal Plan Mondays. Should I just post three times on Mondays?? Or even just split up the post today into MIMM and Monday Moves? Cuz I’ve tried to combine the two and it just turns into a lonnnggg ramble of a post.
Ain’t nobody got time for that!
And publishing at the same time each day…how do you bloggers do it?
My days have varied so much in the past three years, I don’t even know where to begin with a consistent posting time.
I was doing pretty good at typing up posts the night before (for a couple of months) and having them automatically publish in the wee hours of the morning, then frantically opening up the blog to proofread (again!) upon waking up. But now that I am living with Dave, we only get a short couple of hours to hang out each evening before bedtime.
I keep telling myself I can just get up with Dave in the wee hours of the morning (like before 5am) and write my posts then, but my brain isn’t awake that early. Even with coffee the creative part of my brain needs time to focus and create.
I sure hope so. I also hope that you lovely readers don’t mind if you see inconsistent posting times, themes for the days of the week or that I post three times in one day and then bail for two days.
All I really want is to share with you all tips and tricks on how to live YOUR semi-healthy life through snippets of mine.
A life free of chronic dieting and self-loathing.
A life where you can bake sweet things AND eat your vegetables.
A life where fitness is actually FUN!
Is that too much to expect of myself?
This has been blogging anxiety 101.
So, um, I guess I will be back tomorrow with one or two or three posts. The anticipation is killing you isn’t it?
Please tell me, how do YOU balance your blogging consistency and your daily life? Is there something I’m missing?
Oh this is so interesting because I read a post the other day called “Stop the Me Too Blogging”. It basically said to be yourself on your blog and stop posting the same things other bloggers post about. No blogs ever become unique, special or gain a captive audience if they are ALL posting about Magical Mondays or Wunderlust Wednesdays. Be yourself on your blog and the readers will follow.
And to be honest, I’m over all the themed days of the week posts. They were fun at first, but now they are everywhere and seem to be so generic. I remember when I started doing Sunday Confessions. I hadn’t seen that type of post in any of the blogs I had read and then suddenly, they were everywhere. I wanted to be like “Hey, I’m trying to make MY blog unique, not give you ideas :)”
Remember, just be yourself and write about what you want, WHEN you want. Your readers will follow and the ones who don’t? Well, you don’t need them anyway. Focus on you and forget about success, it will follow in due time.
So of course I had to google that title and while I didn’t see that exact name…I did find a couple of rather disheartening articles. One literally said blogging was a “waste of time.” *sigh* I am a classic over-thinker and I am especially thinking hard about my blog, why I blog, what my niche is, etc since I just had my 3 year “blogiversary.”
I do know that I like blogging because it flexes my writing muscles. I don’t feel super confident or even qualified to write for other companies for money, so for now, this is where I write.
I also know that being far away from family (I’m sure you can relate!), I want to be able to share what’s going on in my life. I also like the fact that I can look back in my blog and see what I was going through at that particular time. AND keeping my recipes filed online is pretty sweet too! 😉
Thank you as always for your heartfelt comments, friend. If I hadn’t started blogging I wouldn’t have met YOU! <3
Oh I found it!: http://www.thesitsgirls.com/blogging/how-to-be-a-better-blogger/
It’s a great read and very encouraging as opposed to the articles you read which basically say blogging is a waste of time? If you are getting something out of writing you on blog even if you have ZERO readers, it is not a waste of time.
I remember writing posts a while back when I first started blogging and being so bummed if I’d receive no comments. It was something I had to get over and I’m happy to say that I did. Now I’m proud of whatever I write because I make sure it’s something I’d want to read about. And, for the mere fact that I am preserving memories. Don’t let anyone discourage you from doing something you love!
Amanda, Maria has to tell me these things a lot when I get down on myself about my blog. She is SO right and wise. 🙂
I absolutely love that line “I make sure it’s something I’d want to read about.” Good golly you ARE wise!!
I am sorry I stole your Sunday Confessions. I confess that it was too creative not to do, too. Does it help that I’m completely inconsistent about actually DOING them, and may never again? (I actually like my Instagram Truths better…)
And I when I say “my” Instagram Truths, let’s remind ourselves I’ve done it ONCE. 😉
Haha. I guess I phrased it wrong – and was being sarcastic about saying others were taking my ideas 😉 I think I started seeing the posts everywhere and I suddenly realized that *I* wasn’t being unique because so many others had written the exact same theme (and many before me). I guess my point is that we can try to be unique, but someone else has ultimately written a very similar post.
Oh this is so interesting because I read a post the other day called “Stop the Me Too Blogging”. It basically said to be yourself on your blog and stop posting the same things other bloggers post about. No blogs ever become unique, special or gain a captive audience if they are ALL posting about Magical Mondays or Wunderlust Wednesdays. Be yourself on your blog and the readers will follow.
And to be honest, I’m over all the themed days of the week posts. They were fun at first, but now they are everywhere and seem to be so generic. I remember when I started doing Sunday Confessions. I hadn’t seen that type of post in any of the blogs I had read and then suddenly, they were everywhere. I wanted to be like “Hey, I’m trying to make MY blog unique, not give you ideas :)”
Remember, just be yourself and write about what you want, WHEN you want. Your readers will follow and the ones who don’t? Well, you don’t need them anyway. Focus on you and forget about success, it will follow in due time.
So of course I had to google that title and while I didn’t see that exact name…I did find a couple of rather disheartening articles. One literally said blogging was a “waste of time.” *sigh* I am a classic over-thinker and I am especially thinking hard about my blog, why I blog, what my niche is, etc since I just had my 3 year “blogiversary.”
I do know that I like blogging because it flexes my writing muscles. I don’t feel super confident or even qualified to write for other companies for money, so for now, this is where I write.
I also know that being far away from family (I’m sure you can relate!), I want to be able to share what’s going on in my life. I also like the fact that I can look back in my blog and see what I was going through at that particular time. AND keeping my recipes filed online is pretty sweet too! 😉
Thank you as always for your heartfelt comments, friend. If I hadn’t started blogging I wouldn’t have met YOU! <3
Oh I found it!: http://www.thesitsgirls.com/blogging/how-to-be-a-better-blogger/
It’s a great read and very encouraging as opposed to the articles you read which basically say blogging is a waste of time? If you are getting something out of writing you on blog even if you have ZERO readers, it is not a waste of time.
I remember writing posts a while back when I first started blogging and being so bummed if I’d receive no comments. It was something I had to get over and I’m happy to say that I did. Now I’m proud of whatever I write because I make sure it’s something I’d want to read about. And, for the mere fact that I am preserving memories. Don’t let anyone discourage you from doing something you love!
To be honest I get bored with the meme type posts. I don’t like going through my feed to see the same thing on everyone’s page every day of the week. Don’t worry about what everyone else is doing. Make your own rules and do what feels good for you.
It’s true! I think sometimes it’s fun to be part of the community and then other times I just want to shake things up! 🙂
To be honest I get bored with the meme type posts. I don’t like going through my feed to see the same thing on everyone’s page every day of the week. Don’t worry about what everyone else is doing. Make your own rules and do what feels good for you.
Seriously girl, I could have written this post…and in a way, when I came back from my little blogging hiatus. I love blogging, but keeping to a schedule and keeping up with all the link ups is exhausting! And like you said, it totally stifles your creativity! I still participate in them every now and then, but only when I REALLY want to and only IF I feel that it isn’t taking away from what I feel like writing. I can’t even BEGIN to tell you what this has done for my stress level! I no longer feel obligated to post at all…I just go with the flow. Sometimes I’m consistent…sometimes I’m inconsistent…but you know what? Life is inconsistent! If we lived every day the exact same way, did the exact same things, at the exact same times, we would surely die of boredom after too long! I’ll take spontaneity and unpredictability over an early death ANY DAY! 😉
And for the record, I know I’m completely SUCKING in keeping up with blog reading, but I just want you to know that I love you and I will always be here to read your “ramblings”…consistent or not! 😀
What she said.
Yes it’s like I know all of these things but still fall into the trap! I really thought I had it down because I’ve never been that consistent, but I just keep hearing that is one of the keys to blogging “success” and it stresses me out!
Thanks so much for being my bloggy friend! I heart you!! <3
Seriously girl, I could have written this post…and in a way, when I came back from my little blogging hiatus. I love blogging, but keeping to a schedule and keeping up with all the link ups is exhausting! And like you said, it totally stifles your creativity! I still participate in them every now and then, but only when I REALLY want to and only IF I feel that it isn’t taking away from what I feel like writing. I can’t even BEGIN to tell you what this has done for my stress level! I no longer feel obligated to post at all…I just go with the flow. Sometimes I’m consistent…sometimes I’m inconsistent…but you know what? Life is inconsistent! If we lived every day the exact same way, did the exact same things, at the exact same times, we would surely die of boredom after too long! I’ll take spontaneity and unpredictability over an early death ANY DAY! 😉
And for the record, I know I’m completely SUCKING in keeping up with blog reading, but I just want you to know that I love you and I will always be here to read your “ramblings”…consistent or not! 😀
What she said.
I am sorry I stole your Sunday Confessions. I confess that it was too creative not to do, too. Does it help that I’m completely inconsistent about actually DOING them, and may never again? (I actually like my Instagram Truths better…)
And I when I say “my” Instagram Truths, let’s remind ourselves I’ve done it ONCE. 😉
I just can’t do it anymore. Not blogging in general, but blogging in the way that “everyone else does.” Especially now that I’ve been moving an studying and who knows WHAT will happen when I’m actually in Alabama. If I’m inspired to post a recipe, I write it up when I can, and schedule it to post whenever. I do Meatless Mondays A-Z each week because I honestly find it to be the most inspirational for me in terms of kitchen creativity, which I need/like/want….AND I still feel like it is small enough of a link-up to be effective in joining people together. I will still do WIAW every now and then, if I have a big theme to tie things together (like having my wisdom teeth out this week), but I don’t do it to try and get other people to read my blog through the link-up anymore, as it is TOO BIG to actually make that happen. ‘Ain’t nobody got time for’ going through all of those 5,000 ‘joiners.’ When it used to be 30 or so people, it was easier to ‘get to know; new bloggers.
Sorry to ramble, but I’m going to keep going.
I have NOT been reading many blogs lately AT ALL, but it’s life, and there are things to do that are more important at this moment than reading posts. DO I miss my true friends through blogging? Of course. But I also have needed time to get back to ME. I totally lost myself in HLB land and I needed to get back to normalcy and living and just BEING. Part of that is remembering why I blog…which is to make people smile, perhaps inspire, and generally just come away feeling like they had read something different than they saw on any other blog that day. I also just really need a place to put out all of my craziness in to the world. 🙂
I never check stats, have no idea how many people actually read, and still get a little upset if no one comments, but I also still get e-mails from people telling me they love to read, and have amazing, REAL, relationships with so many people that it is worth it.
Sorry for typing a whole blog post here. But just be YOU. I’ll always come back. Even if I take long breaks. 🙂
This comment is intriguing, makes me think and makes me laugh all at once! You really do have a gift with words! This is why even if I take a break from blog reading….I secretly come over to check out your word-smithing! 😉
I’ve been trying to get advertising on the site lately (to legitimize my time to mr Dave), and they all ask for stats so I have been checking them A LOT lately, which probably isn’t the greatest thing to obsess over!
Thank you so much for your heartfelt comment, friend! I am so thankful that I met you through blogging! <3
I just can’t do it anymore. Not blogging in general, but blogging in the way that “everyone else does.” Especially now that I’ve been moving an studying and who knows WHAT will happen when I’m actually in Alabama. If I’m inspired to post a recipe, I write it up when I can, and schedule it to post whenever. I do Meatless Mondays A-Z each week because I honestly find it to be the most inspirational for me in terms of kitchen creativity, which I need/like/want….AND I still feel like it is small enough of a link-up to be effective in joining people together. I will still do WIAW every now and then, if I have a big theme to tie things together (like having my wisdom teeth out this week), but I don’t do it to try and get other people to read my blog through the link-up anymore, as it is TOO BIG to actually make that happen. ‘Ain’t nobody got time for’ going through all of those 5,000 ‘joiners.’ When it used to be 30 or so people, it was easier to ‘get to know; new bloggers.
Sorry to ramble, but I’m going to keep going.
I have NOT been reading many blogs lately AT ALL, but it’s life, and there are things to do that are more important at this moment than reading posts. DO I miss my true friends through blogging? Of course. But I also have needed time to get back to ME. I totally lost myself in HLB land and I needed to get back to normalcy and living and just BEING. Part of that is remembering why I blog…which is to make people smile, perhaps inspire, and generally just come away feeling like they had read something different than they saw on any other blog that day. I also just really need a place to put out all of my craziness in to the world. 🙂
I never check stats, have no idea how many people actually read, and still get a little upset if no one comments, but I also still get e-mails from people telling me they love to read, and have amazing, REAL, relationships with so many people that it is worth it.
Sorry for typing a whole blog post here. But just be YOU. I’ll always come back. Even if I take long breaks. 🙂
Amanda, Maria has to tell me these things a lot when I get down on myself about my blog. She is SO right and wise. 🙂
Yes it’s like I know all of these things but still fall into the trap! I really thought I had it down because I’ve never been that consistent, but I just keep hearing that is one of the keys to blogging “success” and it stresses me out!
Thanks so much for being my bloggy friend! I heart you!! <3
This comment is intriguing, makes me think and makes me laugh all at once! You really do have a gift with words! This is why even if I take a break from blog reading….I secretly come over to check out your word-smithing! 😉
I’ve been trying to get advertising on the site lately (to legitimize my time to mr Dave), and they all ask for stats so I have been checking them A LOT lately, which probably isn’t the greatest thing to obsess over!
Thank you so much for your heartfelt comment, friend! I am so thankful that I met you through blogging! <3
It’s true! I think sometimes it’s fun to be part of the community and then other times I just want to shake things up! 🙂
I absolutely love that line “I make sure it’s something I’d want to read about.” Good golly you ARE wise!!
I completely hear ya on all these blogging “rules”. Personally, I don’t believe there should be “rules” on your blogging… I say, it’s your blog, do whatever the heck you want. People can either choose to follow you, or not. I don’t post at a certain time each day & sometimes I miss a day. I try to be consistent, but life just gets in the way, or I have a writer’s block & am not feelin’ it that day. I think you should just do your thang… after all, didn’t you start blogging because you like it and it’s a hobby and/or outlet for you? Too many rules take all of the enjoyment & creativity out of it.
I guess I’ve never heard them as “rules” but as guidelines to ensure success. All of the items I discussed are those that are supposed to make the reader happy. I think it’s true to a certain extent, but it’s super stressful to have people counting on me to post on a blog that is mostly a hobby! And yes I definitely want to have FUN with the blog at the end of the day!
I completely hear ya on all these blogging “rules”. Personally, I don’t believe there should be “rules” on your blogging… I say, it’s your blog, do whatever the heck you want. People can either choose to follow you, or not. I don’t post at a certain time each day & sometimes I miss a day. I try to be consistent, but life just gets in the way, or I have a writer’s block & am not feelin’ it that day. I think you should just do your thang… after all, didn’t you start blogging because you like it and it’s a hobby and/or outlet for you? Too many rules take all of the enjoyment & creativity out of it.
Haha. I guess I phrased it wrong – and was being sarcastic about saying others were taking my ideas 😉 I think I started seeing the posts everywhere and I suddenly realized that *I* wasn’t being unique because so many others had written the exact same theme (and many before me). I guess my point is that we can try to be unique, but someone else has ultimately written a very similar post.
I’ve just started blogging myself, and the only way I could get over the fear was by deciding it didn’t matter about the rules and to just do it. I find myself skipping over the ‘day theme’ posts more and more when I read blogs now, and am much more interested in hearing what people have to say when they’re writing something they feel inspired by. You could always watch how posting at more random times affects your stats and see how you feel about any changes?
Very true! I tried a post at midnight last night (a time a blogger suggested) and really didn’t see any better results than when I post at 10am (a time I have NEVER heard is good to post). There are so many factors that go into why a reader will read one post and not the next that I think the posting time is just ONE of those factors and not the MAIN one.
I’ve just started blogging myself, and the only way I could get over the fear was by deciding it didn’t matter about the rules and to just do it. I find myself skipping over the ‘day theme’ posts more and more when I read blogs now, and am much more interested in hearing what people have to say when they’re writing something they feel inspired by. You could always watch how posting at more random times affects your stats and see how you feel about any changes?
I guess I’ve never heard them as “rules” but as guidelines to ensure success. All of the items I discussed are those that are supposed to make the reader happy. I think it’s true to a certain extent, but it’s super stressful to have people counting on me to post on a blog that is mostly a hobby! And yes I definitely want to have FUN with the blog at the end of the day!
Very true! I tried a post at midnight last night (a time a blogger suggested) and really didn’t see any better results than when I post at 10am (a time I have NEVER heard is good to post). There are so many factors that go into why a reader will read one post and not the next that I think the posting time is just ONE of those factors and not the MAIN one.