I Wish I Had Known was first Posted in: Blogger Voice, Featured by KLUDGYMOM on April 19, 2011 and although I couldn’t find Blogger Voice link, I give you Kludgymom the blog. There’s a lot of good reading there! She wrote The Perspective of Being an Older Mom which fits right in with my Mothering
But let’s get back to blogging tips.
Kludgy Mom wrote: A while back, I was reading an article on Daily Blog Tips called 5 Things You Need To Be Prepared For When Starting A Blog.
It’s a fantastic post because it kind of gives new bloggers a heads up on some things you might not expect to experience when you’re starting out. For example, I think many of us thought that we’d be able to make a lot of money on our blogs right away. It takes a bit of time blogging to realize that it is not as easy as putting an ad on your website and jetting off to the Bahamas while the money rolls in.
This got me thinking: what ELSE do I wish I had known when I started blogging? Here are a few of the things that came to mind.
■ It’s more than just writing. I had no idea when I started blogging how many other dimensions there are to it. Networking, promoting, marketing, editing, improving and time management are all necessary tasks that have to be done each week to keep growing.
■ It will consume more time than you have. If you’re blogging for more than just a hobby, it can easily snowball into a more than full-time job. There is always something more that you *could* be doing. Prioritizing is a must.
■ There are always surprises. I’m always delighted at the surprises I get out of blogging – a new friend, a comment full of praise for something I’ve written, an email that gets me thinking, a cool idea that I never thought of before.
■ You will make incredible connections. I’ve made some of my closest friends by blogging – and I’ve made wonderful business relationships too (like here at B2B!). I never, ever expected these connections and they truly enhance my life.
■ Persistence pays off. It took me nearly a year of grinding away very hard at blogging before I started to really see opportunities open up. But once one opportunity came, it led to more and more.
I could list another twenty of the things I wish I had known before I started blogging…but this is your chance to share. What do you wish you had known?
Truth!! It’s funny…it seems like people either think blogging is a complete waste of time, or they think everything just falls in your lap…they don’t see the work that goes into it! It IS very time consuming and I do consider it my job!
Amen to the time consuming! It’s not just the writing but the photos, the SEO, the promoting. Your blog is awesome and I appreciate the time I know you spend to make it so.
Truth!! It’s funny…it seems like people either think blogging is a complete waste of time, or they think everything just falls in your lap…they don’t see the work that goes into it! It IS very time consuming and I do consider it my job!
Amen to the time consuming! It’s not just the writing but the photos, the SEO, the promoting. Your blog is awesome and I appreciate the time I know you spend to make it so.
This is a great list!!
Blogging definitely can take over every waking minute. And maybe the non-waking ones as well (I can’t be the only one who has had a blogging dream, right?)! I’m still working on the prioritizing thing. But I am very thankful for the new friends blogging has brought to my life. We have a pretty amazing community, us bloggers.
This is a great list!!
Blogging definitely can take over every waking minute. And maybe the non-waking ones as well (I can’t be the only one who has had a blogging dream, right?)! I’m still working on the prioritizing thing. But I am very thankful for the new friends blogging has brought to my life. We have a pretty amazing community, us bloggers.
I totally agree, and I don’t remember many of my dreams but I probably have! I love the connections. 🙂
All of this is SO TRUE Laurie!! I had NO idea that i would be connecting with so many other women bloggers in the industry… and I certainly had no IDEA how much time it would consume! I am overwhelmed constantly with it all, and yet- the payoff is so beautiful. I have met such amazing people, I wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world!!!
So there’s that…
Relationships that come from blogging are fiercely powerful.
It is so time consuming, fun, hard, wonderful and yes, the people I’ve “met”. “Fiercely powerful”…good words.
All of this is SO TRUE Laurie!! I had NO idea that i would be connecting with so many other women bloggers in the industry… and I certainly had no IDEA how much time it would consume! I am overwhelmed constantly with it all, and yet- the payoff is so beautiful. I have met such amazing people, I wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world!!!
So there’s that…
Relationships that come from blogging are fiercely powerful.
It is so time consuming, fun, hard, wonderful and yes, the people I’ve “met”. “Fiercely powerful”…good words.