You have to keep plugging away. We are all growing. There is no shortcut. You have to put time into it to build an audience.
- John Gruber How to Blog for Money by Learning from Comics, SXSW 2006
Eric Hamm has kick started a great discussion over on the Blogopolis Blueprint asking Are You Wasting Your Time Blogging?
Essentially he’s feeling despondent about blogging and he’s not alone. Like Eric and his blogs, I too take notice of others in the freelance writer niche and I often wonder why I’m not making as much progress as some of them, what am I doing wrong, when will I succeed?
Don’t get me wrong neither Eric or I are considering throwing in the towel. I’ve been to that place, it’s dank, desolate and extremely depressing. I advice anyone to stay the hell away from it.
Easier said than done though. Again, I’m wearing the t-shirt on that one. So what can I tell you that will comfort and console you?
Well first up is to take a leaf out of Eric’s book and turn your frustration into a blog post. Eric puts himself on the line by admitting his frustrations but then turns that introspectively to figure out why he is feeling this way and how he can solve it. He then pops onto the computer and records a video in order to ask everyone else a very hard hitting question.
That’s a brilliant move by Eric, here’s why.
It gives him that human “touch”, as others have quite correctly pointed out in the replies. More than that however, it gives him credibility and in the blogosphere credibility is like gold dust. It doesn’t hurt that he’s recording the video in his Superman pyjamas having just returned from an emergency MRI either!
Note, I’ll be the first one to say that this was not Eric’s intention for posting what he did, which really just further adds to his credibility!
The second bit of advice is a bit harder to give, mainly because I’m in no position to tell you that it works. I’m yet to get the t-shirt for this one. Maybe it’s better said in the words of Napolean Bonaparte himself:
Victory belongs to the most persevering.
That really is the long and the short of it. Keep doing what you’re doing, admit your mistakes, learn from them but ultimately just keep plugging at it to build an audience. Just as Gruber said on the SXSW panel back in ‘06.
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Hey Marc, you summed it up well. Thanks for adding to the perspectives on this topic and sharing your insight. There’s no doubt that perseverance is the key to ANY success, but as you mentioned at the end, we must also make the proper adjustments along the way. Eric
Eric Hamm’s last blog post..9 Terrific Blogs about Blogging, Because 10 is 1 too Many
Eric, thanks for asking the question in the first place. It was very thought provoking and has actually spawned a couple of ideas for me to follow up with.
This is the real essence and strength of the blogosphere or as you noobs call it, the blogopolis
There were moments back in the beginning, when I first started blogging, that I felt it was just a big waste of time. Looking back, I think that it had more to do with the fact that my vision for my blog needed a little work. This is one of the reasons that it’s essential to blog about a topic you have passion for – that’ll keep it interesting!
Melissa Donovan’s last blog post..How to Create a Believable Character
Yupp, I just keep plugging away because I love what I’m doing. Oh, don’t get me wrong, I also love the traffic, comments, and the writing blog posts, but for me, it’s the pictures that tell the story.
So, persevering is what I’m all about……………….:)
@ Melissa – Good advice. Having a vision and even writing it down is an excellent way to stay focused. In many ways blogging can be compared to a small business and the businesses most likely to succeed are those that have a clear plan.
@ Lisa I’ve just been to your site. I can see why you are passionate about your blogging. Amazing photography! Thank you for sharing with us.
And thanks to both of you for taking the time to comment on my blog
Very interesting. Sometimes it seems like we find good and useful information if we just search a bit. I’ll be checking out Eric’s post based on your recommendation – thanks!
Mark Dykeman’s last blog post..Gone commenting
No problem Mark. As I mentioned, Eric was the one that started the whole discussion so it’s a good idea to stop by and read his post.
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