Blogging is … to writing what extreme sports are to athletics; more free-form, more accident-prone, less formal, more alive. It is in many ways, writing out loud. -Andrew Sullivan, The Atlantic
I’ve been a bona-fide “blogger” for about 2 weeks now. There comes a time, early on, when every good blogger begins to ponder some serious issues with regard to this “blogging business.” Throughout the course of any given day, you might find your mind wandering to one of the following random notions:
1. Blog Goals: What in tarnation am I trying to accomplish with this thing?
2. Blog Content: What on God’s green earth could I possibly write about, today?
3. Investment of Time: How in the world, am I going to find one hour to create yet another blog post?
4. SEO Strategy: “What? Did you say SEO strategy?”…”Wait, a minute. What do you mean, “SEO strategy!?”
5. Blog Traffic: Five readers, today? How insulting…How do I “herd” people to this little hidden gem?
Questions will inevitably surface with regard to investment of time; traffic; results; content; readership; marketing; etc. It’s only natural. At a point, an undeniable “gut instinct” will tell you if you have the potential to be a successful, widely read blogger. What follows are some sure signs that will confirm if you have what it takes to do “alright” in the blogging business.
5 Signs You’re Destined to Be a Successful Blogger:
1. Blogging With a Big Picture Goal: If you are serious about blogging, you will steadily begin to develop an entire “platform” for your blog. If you are just blogging for “fun” and amusement, great. But, if you take the blogging thing remotely serious, you will begin to see and develop a “bigger picture” game plan. Ask yourself: What is your long-term blog “mission?” Case in point: Arianna Huffington started this little news website called The Huffington Post. (A major component of that site was a news blog with commentary). Today, it’s grown into a massive, Pulitzer-prize winning media enterprise. It doesn’t hurt to dream big.
2. Blog Content Isn’t an Issue: Content will never be an issue for me. NEVER. EVER. (And that is 80% of the battle). After all, if you don’t have the product to put on the page, what’s the use in the blog? Your mind is your product. Your creativity is your only limit. In the midst of writing one blog post, on average it’s possible to create 2-3 new post ideas within the writing process. Here’s how that works: My mind works fast as I type. So, as I create my blog post I will come across anywhere from three-to-ten “tangent-oriented” relative talking points for future blog posts. Long story short, as your writing mind races, odds are good it will uncover different angles, stories, quotes and analogies to use for future blog entries.
3. Bloggers Make the Time to Write: Initially, many bloggers don’t have the luxury of simply blogging for a living (although, that is something to aspire to). The fact is, many of us have other jobs, responsibilities, activities, and obligations to work around. But, the key is simply this: You make it a priority. If you want to make it work, you will find the time for it. It will become a “no excuses” sort of thing. It’s a lot like being in a relationship or going to the gym: If it’s important to you and you’re serious about it–you’ll be motivated to make it work.
4. Bloggers aren’t “intimidated” by SEO Strategies: Quite frankly, I still don’t have the slightest idea about all the various SEO strategies; key word density; on-page SEO; H1, H2, H3 tags, Google “Panda” ranking algorithms; back-links; Latent Semantic Indexing (LSI), etc. Due to my experience in technology and the start-up business arena, I have a “relative” understanding of on-line marketing. But, for the most part, all this SEO “stuff” is fs a foreign language. The good news? I’m eager to dig in and master it. If there’s a will–there’s a way.
5. Bloggers are Interested in Developing Traffic: Regardless of whether you have 500 views a day or 5, you have to be interested in developing traffic, constantly. “If you build it, they will come” only goes so far with this blogging business. If you are serious, pay some due diligence and figure out how to wrangle some new readers. There will be a learning curve. And, it might take some time. Keep an open mind. But, again, it’s all about the attitude and the goals. Figure out what sort of audience you’re trying to get–and then go after it.
All said and done, I’m certainly not, yet, a successful blogger. Still, it’s only day 16 and this is blog post #15. Taking this into consideration, I’d like to think I’ll be at least an “alright” blogger… At any rate, I’m going with my gut, and right now my gut’s telling me: “You’ve got what it takes.”
Yes, go with your gut…and your Blog! Since learning of your blog I’ve read all of your posts and I look forward to them each day! I particularly found your thoughts on the Bengazi hearings refreshing, as if someone else “gets it”. Loved the post about “you being you” and your motivation to be the best we can be! I, for one, am inspired, interested and intend to continue following ChezRepublic! Go with your gut! “You’ve got what it takes.”!!!