Some may see these fellow bloggers as competition, whereas others see the similarity as motivation to be better. To be different.

Sadly, some will be discouraged and not start blogging because they think they don’t have a chance.

Today’s Lesson

Blogs are like books.

We find dozens, if not hundreds of books on the same topic.

Each one appeals to a different audience.

In a lot of cases, the popular books are written by well-known authors or someone who’s well-positioned, such as the daughter of a prominent business man or maybe a politician.

Sometimes….a new author is discovered and becomes an overnight sensation based on their skills alone.

Starting a blog isn’t much different than writing a book.

We can find hundreds of blogs on the same topic. Some more popular than others and like books, some are authored by well known individuals, too.

For the blogger, this can be intimidating. It takes confidence to compete.

But, like books, each blog will appeal to a different audience.

Think about the books and blogs you currently read. A book and/or blog can resonate with one person, but doesn’t for the next, even though the information is basically the same.

It’s not necessarily one author writes better than the next; it’s how it’s presented. How it’s worded. And how the reader and author identify with each other.

Due to the massive amount of blogs online, some hesitate to start and may be thinking, “Do we REALLY need another blog about blogging? Writing? Poetry? Photography? Parenting?”

Truth be told, yes we do.

Considering how many blogs won’t appeal to everyone, a new blogger has as good a chance as any to succeed.

It’s all up to you.

Today’s Assignment

Even though there are many blogs similar to yours, written on the same topic as yours, why did you decide to jump into the blogging pool?

Care to share?

it’s time we stop believing it does.

~Barbara Swafford

Before our first post is published, we’ve usually done enough homework to educate ourselves on blogging; from choosing our blogging platform (WordPress, Blogger, or other) to what we’re going to write about.

In the process, we’ve probably learned a little about what blogging is, what to expect and what not to do.

Today’s Lesson

Depending on from where or whom we learn about blogging, often determines how often we blog, the theme we use, how we build our blog, plus much more.

Some bloggers believe the magic bullet is to follow the rules of “abc”, whereas others proclaim it’s “XYZ”.

So, who’s right?

Neither.

What’s happening is bloggers are sharing what works for THEM. Since we’re not THEM, there’s no guarantee what they do will work for us, no matter how hard we try.

Granted, we can learn the basics of blogging and tips from others, however to stand out from the crowd and to feel authentic, we need to be creative, step out of the blogging box and ask ourselves questions such as:

1. Do I really need to publish a post every day? Week? Month?
2. Does my theme reflect who I am, or am I copying someone else?
3. Is guest posting all it’s cracked up to be? Or am I better off showing my writing talents or knowledge in a different venue?
4. Is it really necessary to market myself and my blog on Facebook and/or Twitter, or is there a better way to promote my work? Or, do I want to (self-promote)?
5. Is commenting on other blogs helping to drive traffic to my blog? If not, does commenting have any benefit?
6. Does it matter if what I post might go against what others believe? Do I care?
7. Instead of just looking at my blog as a place to share, can I use it as a vehicle to propel me further? If so, how?
8. Is the time I spend socializing with my online friends helping me to advance? Or is it just a distraction which keeps me from my fulfilling my dreams?
9. Are affiliate links the best way to monetize my blog? What about Google AdSense? Or do I even want to monetize my blog?

How we blog and why we blog is up to us. Let’s remember that and learn to enjoy the journey.

Happy Blogging! 8)

Today’s Assignment

What “rule(s)” of blogging have you found to be false?

Have any “rules” you’ve followed proved to be true or beneficial?

Care to share?

Some of us have a topic picked out, whereas others know they want a blog but have no topic in mind.

Today’s Lesson

Like magazines, some blogs contain a variety of information about a broad subject.

Other blogs are very succinct and only include articles about one specific topic.

When setting us a blog, some experts say a blog should be topic specific and named appropriately by including the “topic” in the name of the blog.

That sounds all well and good, however if the name of our blog is overly descriptive, we could limit ourselves with regard to what we feel we can blog about.

So, what’s a blogger to do?

1. Use one blog, regardless of the name and share whatever we want?
2. Set up a new blog for each topic we want to discuss?
3. Create a blog with a name that could encompass any topic?

What do you think?

Today’s Assignment

Should a blogger post whatever they want on one blog, create a new blog to encompass new topics, or chose a name for their blog which allows them to be more versatile?

Care to share?

We get one visitor, then we want two.

One comment, sale or ad click leads to wanting more.

Soon, more is never enough.

Today’s Lesson

There’s a lot of talk in the blogosphere about visitor counts, page rank, subscriber counts, followers, blog revenues, SERPS (search engine result pages) and much more.

For some bloggers, these numbers matter.

However, if we get caught up in the numbers, blogging can begin to feel like a race; a competition.

Sometimes we’re competing with other bloggers, but oftentimes it’s an imaginary competition where we think if we don’t have big numbers, we’ve failed.

But what about the blogger who doesn’t want to be a star in the blogging world? Who doesn’t care about “the numbers” or making a name for themselves?

What about the blogger who just likes to write? To share? To publish their work online?

In some circles they might be labeled as a failure.

But, who cares?

If a blogger enjoys the process of blogging and isn’t interested in making money or gaining notoriety, that’s okay, too.

In the blogosphere, there’s room for everyone.

Today’s Assignment

Are you concerned with getting more traffic? More subscribers? Making money?

Or, are you blogging for the pleasure of it?

Care to share?

If we wanted candy or toys, we were taught we had to work for them, so we babysat, helped friends and relatives in their hay fields or gardens and little by little saved up for what we wanted. With coins burning a hole in our pocket, we patiently waited for the next trip to town so we could carefully chose how we’d spend our hard earned money.

Upon returning home we’d empty our paper sacks, touch and admire each thing we bought and if it was candy, slowly savor the taste.

Knowing we had worked for it, that sugar-laden candy tasted scrumptious and the toys became something we treasured.

Today’s Lesson

Nowadays, most of what we find online is free.

We find free ideas, jokes, pictures, recipes, instructions and in some cases, the entire content of books.

Like everyone else, I enjoy the freebies, but in most cases that which is online for free holds very little measurable value.

If I lose the link to something, I just do search and find it again.

If I find a good idea, I might leave a thank you comment, but after thinking about or using what I learned, the information is tossed, so to speak.

Nowadays, with the exception of the time we spend searching, we don’t have to “work” for what we get online nor do we have to save money for it.

Since it’s not something we can physically touch, what we find online becomes “throw away” information.

Because it’s free, short of disagreeing with what the blog author stated, we can’t complain about what we receive, nor can we return it.

On the flip side, if we purchase a book, we don’t throw it away when we’re done with it. Instead, we keep it on our book shelf, reread it, pass it on to someone else, or sell it.

Bloggers are taught “content is king” and we learn how our blog posts should have value.

But is the value we provide thrown away and forgotten about after it’s read?

Except for that which increases our knowledge base, in most cases, the answer is “probably so”.

So, what’s a blogger to do?

Today’s Assignment

If a blogger has valuable information to share, do you think it would be better for them to sell it, rather than offering it for free?

Would you pay for information knowing you could probably find it somewhere else online?

Care to share?