Picking And Choosing Guest Posting Opportunities
Not all guest posts were created equal. Guests posts offer a variety of different advantages for your blog – one that isn’t summed up with just one Internet marketing strategy like providing your web site with more “link juice” or getting a trickle of traffic because of your opportunities. No – guest blogging is more than just that.
There are many blogs out there that are strictly dedicated to the idea of guest blogging and what it can do for your website. It is something of a huge phenomina in which whole websites were created for (like MyBlogGuest.com and BloggersLinkUp.com) to help people find better and more guest blogging opportunities. It is a marketing strategy that has taken hold of the SEO and it seems as if it might be here to stay for a while because of all the benefits it provides, not only the people that are doing the guest posting, but websites that are created from guest posting. [Read more]
Blogging Pitfalls: How to Avoid Lazy Writing and Editing
At the end of the day, the most basic activity a blogger must do is write.
While it is true that bloggers are, with good reason, expanding more and more into video and audio, at some point every blogger is going to have to write something. It might be a description, a bio or even just an advertisement but, at some point, a every blogger is going to have to put words onto paper.
But not every writer has the heart of a poet or the writing skills of a hard-hitting journalists. Bloggers come from all different backgrounds and styles and many have had little training or experience with writing prior to starting up their blog.
The good news is that you don’t need to be the next Shakespeare to be an effective and popular blogger, in many ways it helps not to be, but you do have to be able to write clearly and in a way that is engaging to your reader. It may not require a Ph.D in literature, but it does require that you work on honing your craft and make your writing as good as possible.
Failure to do so can sink an otherwise great blog and make your previous hard work a complete waste of time.
5 Ways to Drive Visitors Away from your Blog
Writing great content is essential to attracting visitors to your blog and keeping them on your blog for more than a few seconds. The last thing you want to do is drive them away before they even have a chance to read that great content.
If you want to drive people away from your blog quickly, do the five things listed below. If you want people to stay on your blog long enough to read what you painstakingly wrote, avoid the five things listed below at all costs.
6 Tips to Make the Most of Your Blog Writing Time
Blogging can be an enjoyable experience or it can be a draining time-suck. Which would you prefer? Whether you’re blogging for your own reasons, freelancing, or doing it for your business, finding the time to write can be difficult if you’re juggling it amongst other work. Here are a few tips to leverage the time that you do have.
[Read more]
Lacking Inspiration? Read A Blog to Write A Blog!
This is a guest post by Cori Padgett, the creative brains and dubious brawn behind the blog Big Girl Branding.
Alright, sometimes blogging isn’t easy. One day you get stuck and at a loss as to what to write about. Another day you feel like what you’re blogging about is just dull, dry and boring. Still another day rolls along and you feel you wrote something spectacular, but the rest of the world doesn’t happen to see it that way.
Wind meet sails. Sails… meet deflation.
It happens.
But it doesn’t spell doomsday for your blogging career. It just means you need a little inspiration. You need a little sumpin’ sumpin’ to get your creative juices flowing, to unblock those clogged neuro-pathways and unleash your inner blogger rockstar. [Read more]
Productivity Tips For Bloggers From a Bestselling Author
Steven Pressfield is great example of perseverance for anyone in the creative field including bloggers. His first couple novels never saw print. But he kept at it and 17 years after his college graduation, he finally got a book published and received a paycheck. His later books became bestsellers.
In this podcast interview, he gives a couple productivity tips that have really helped me in my blogging.
The Writer Life is a Battle
At 1:41 of the podcast, Pressfield talks about the writing process as a war. To succeed, you have to have similar qualities of a good warrior; qualities like courage, patience, and long-suffering. He brings up the image of an infantryman that’s gaining ground on the enemy slowly but surely. In the day to day struggle, writing is like that.
This principle has helped me realize that blogging is hard work. Sure, there are days when the words come easily and I knock out a quality post in a couple of minutes. But those days are few and far between. Usually, it takes me awhile to get going. My first few sentences are pretty bad and I have to struggle to stay focused on finishing the post. By the time the post is done, I’m satisfied but I’m mentally tired.
Resistance is the Enemy
At 14:25, the interviewer quotes Pressfield’s book The War of Art:
There’s a secret that real writers know that wannabe writers don’t and the secret is this: it’s not the writing part that’s hard. What’s hard is sitting down to write. What keeps us from sitting down is Resistance.
Pressfield goes on to talk about Resistance as the negative force that rises up whenever we want to start a creative task. Resistance shows up in many forms: procrastination, self-sabotage, excuses we make up, reasons we give ourselves that we’re not good enough, self doubt, etc. The most important thing for a writer to do is overcome Resistance.
Pressfield says that Resistance comes to us in negative voices. Our task is to ignore the voices and realize that they are bulls**t. They are keeping us from making progress.
I found this principle very helpful because it showed me that I’m not alone in the creative struggle. If a bestselling author has to deal with Resistance, then I will have to deal with it too.
Also, by identifying the enemy, Pressfield helped me not to be surprised by Resistance. I am prepared to deal with it because I know it’s there.
Turn Pro and Stop Being an Amateur
At 25:00, Pressfield gives a great metaphor for overcoming Resistance. He says we have to “turn pro.” When we see ourselves as amateurs, we will yield to Resistance when our circumstances become tough or distractions come up.
But if we think of ourselves as pros, we’ll have the mindset to carve out daily time to pursue our creative endeavors. As pros, we won’t give in to external influences.
Pressfield brings up Kobe Bryant. During the season, his knees may hurt and his back may be sore, but he still suits up and plays in the game. Pros like him don’t make excuses. They see their task as a job instead of a hobby.
Pressfield says a mysterious thing begins to happen when we turn pro. Inspiration starts to flow regularly as we persevere and make it a habit to work on our craft daily.
Further Information
Make sure to listen to the whole interview where Pressfield has more advice for writers. Check out his book The War of Art for an in-depth treatment about productivity and overcoming procrastination in the creative process. Also, he started a new blog, which includes writing tips.
Performancing offers blog management services.
How to Sustain Inspiration in Blogging
Jason Fried from 37signals talks about sustaining inspiration in this speech at around the 19:40 mark.
He suggests that inspiration is perishable. He contrasts the lifespan between the actual idea and the inspiration for the idea. The idea lasts forever but the inspiration can go away.
He likens inspiration to a perishable good like milk or fruit. Like these goods, inspiration has an expiration date and it doesn’t stay fresh very long.
He advises that if you’re inspired about something, if you motivated to do something, you need to take action as soon as possible. If you wait to do it later, you won’t be as motivated. Every day you don’t take action, your inspiration starts to rot and go away.
Also, you’ll have the most creative energy during that initial spark of inspiration.
Blogging and Inspiration
In blogging, I’ve found Jason’s theory to be true. I have many ideas for blog posts that I came up with in the past. At the time of idea conception, I was excited about the ideas. However, a couple weeks went by and I still hadn’t turned those ideas into blog posts. Now when I think of the ideas, I’m not excited about them and I wonder what ever happened to my inspiration.
On the other hand, if I come up with a good idea and then work on the post right away, writing is much easier and I have a good amount of creative energy and motivation to complete the post. This is why it’s a good idea to read only when you have time to act on it.
You’ll be more productive and your content will be better quality if you’re inspired and motivated rather than trying to “force out” a post after the inspiration has gone away.
Over to You
How do you sustain inspiration? Have you ever experienced “rotting inspiration”?
Performancing offers blog management services.
Why Being Self-Centered Can Actually Help Your Blog
Brian Clark from Copyblogger recently released a free report entitled The Lateral Action Guide to Becoming a Creative Entrepreneur. I just finished reading it and like most of Brian’s stuff, it was very good.
I was surprised though at one of his recommendations. He advised aspiring entrepreneurs to be self-centered.
He pointed to 37signals, a popular software company that’s become very successful by only creating products that they themselves would find useful. On page 14, he quoted the CEO, Jason Fried:
We just build stuff we want to use. If we need it, they need it.
It was surprising to see this principle from Brian because one of his main tenets is focusing on the needs of your audience. I was a little confused but as I read on, Brian demonstrated that self-centeredness and focusing on your audience doesn’t necessarily contradict each other.
If you’re like many bloggers, you’re in a niche that you’re passionate about. Therefore, you are part of the audience you aim to serve. If you can create something that will help you, it will probably help your audience too.
Consider one of Brian’s products, the popular Thesis theme for WordPress. As a writer that’s not skilled in tech or design, he could sympathize with the barriers writers face when publishing online. Therefore, he partnered with a designer to create an easy-to-use, attractive theme.
Here’s another example. Pat Flynn setup a blog as a reference tool to record his notes for an upcoming architecture test. He was not looking to make money. But because of his notes, his blog attracted traffic and multiple readers told him he should write an ebook. He wrote an ebook based on his notes, did some research about online marketing, and then started selling his book. Soon, his blog was earning him a full-time income. You can listen to his story here.
I read somewhere in an interview that Perez Hilton, the popular celeb gossip blogger, blogs for himself and doesn’t really focus on traffic. He said he would blog even if no one was reading his site. That’s how much he enjoys writing and following celebrities. And there must be many other celeb gossip fans since his blog is one of the most trafficked sites on the planet.
I looked back at my best posts on various blogs and found that I wrote many of them as warnings to myself. For example, I reread this post when I’m tempted to overextend myself and manage too many blogs. And I wrote this post to increase my patience and to remind myself that successful blogging is a long-term project.
It can often be hard to figure out what your audience wants. But if you consider your own needs, you might just find that they are similar to your audience’s needs.
What do you think about the self-centered principle?
Performancing offers blog management services.
5 More Common Distractions to Bloggers and How To Deal With Them
Last year, James Mowery posted about five common distractions that bloggers face in the course of a writing/blogging workday. James cited TV, games, mobile phones, social networks and even the web as top distractions. There are a host of other things out there that can get your focus out of writing. Here are a few, and some tips on how to deal with them.
1. Chores
Most probloggers and writers I know work from their home offices or from their homes. While you get to save a lot on daily expenses when you work from home, one big challenge is managing your time between work and domestic life. Face it–there are just a lot of tasks and chores that one might need to take care of while at home. You might have to do some cleaning and organizing. You might need to prepare food for lunch or dinner. You would inevitably find some pressing task to do. Even when you’re not actually doing these, the mere fact that these are on your mind can take your focus off blogging and writing work.
One way to deal with this is to finish quick tasks as soon as you can, so they don’t accumulate and overwhelm you. As for the bigger ones–like cooking–you can perhaps schedule a thirty-minute break. Hey, you need to eat, too! Then, perhaps, you can relegate the big, time-intensive things to the weekends, like grocery shopping, washing the car, and the like.
2. Kids
One of the reasons I chose to run my work and business from home is so I can keep tabs on my kids. I bring them to school in the mornings, and fetch them before lunch–that way, I’m assured of their safety, the paranoid dad that I am. But as my kids are only starting to learn independence (they’re in their early primary grades), I find myself being asked to do this and do that every so often. Kids need snacks, after all. Kids need their bath. Kids need their afternoon nap.
A good way to deal with this is by blocking off a few minutes of your workday to spend quality time with your kids. This way, they don’t feel left out, and you get to do things together without distractions (yes, they need your focus, too). But make sure they understand that you need to work for a living, and that you shouldn’t be disturbed while on the job. Another good way to deal is by giving them activities to do while you’re at work. Let them play. Let them do their homework. Or how about assigning chores to them, if they’re big enough (distraction #1 and #2 solved!)?
3. Problems
Everyone has problems. These could be money problems, family problems, health problems, or such. Thinking about these big things can take your mind off your concentration. How could you write great blog posts, after all, if you’re constantly thinking of how to pay off a big debt, or if you’re coughing and sneezing all the time.
Why not focus on solutions, instead of the problems? This way, you might be more inspired to work. Money problems? Then being more productive would probably help solve that in the long run. Health problems? Do something about it–rather than worry, why not be proactive? Family problems? Talk!
I can classify problems as those that can be set aside for a later time, and those that need to be addressed urgently. If you have some serious illness, then you have to take care of it as soon as you can, especially if it’s debilitating and if it can sap you of energy you need to be productive. Some problems can be set aside for later. If you need money, why not just focus finishing your work now, so you can get to bill your client earlier, for instance?
4. The temptation to slack or sleep
Another big problem faced by home-based professionals and entrepreneurs is the allure of the bed. And I don’t mean this in a naughty way. When you feel sleepy and tired (and unfocused and uninspired, as well) there’s always the temptation to just sack it out. It’s not just the bed. There’s also the couch, the recliner, and even your desk.
Here lies the importance of dedicating a certain room–or at least a space–just for work. Don’t work in the bedroom. Keep it sacred: just for sleep, rest, and those other private things. Set your environment such that it’s conducive to work, and that it’s not too relaxing. Avoid dim lights, very soft furniture and boring environs. I sometimes find my office chair too comfortable, that I move to a less comfortable seat, so I don’t fall asleep.
However, sometimes, you just have to succumb to your tiredness. If you feel you’re too tired to be productive, then why not take a nap? After fifteen to thirty minutes, you’d feel refreshed and full of ideas to work on. If you’ve spent all day working, then you do deserve a good night’s (or day’s) sleep. When you wake up, take note of dreams or ideas you might have had, as these might be valuable later on. Early mornings are conducive to writing, in my opinion.
5. Work
Many multitaskers would agree with me that work can also be a big distraction. When you juggle a lot of tasks, every other ongoing task can take your mind off the important thing you want to focus at the moment. If you’re a freelancer, you might be working on more than one client or project, and you just can’t give 100% to just one at any given time. If you work for someone, then you might find yourself working on an ever-growing task list, that you’re confused with which item to address first.
This can be best addressed with GTD solutions, or at least by organizing your workflow. Keep a task list, and keep it prioritized. More importantly, try to keep it short. Why not get the small things out of the way early on? Those things that can be done in two minutes or less should only take two minutes or less. And once these are out of the way, you can spend big chunks of your time on the bigger stuff.
Dealing with other distractions
Sometimes, distractions are not all that unproductive, though. For instance, online discussions, forums and social networks can be great breeding grounds for great ideas and for connecting with the right people. Even downtime can be productive if you know how to make the most of it. For a writer, you can use this time to observe your environment, and take stock of current events–things that can help give you ideas on what to write about later on.
The best way to deal with distractions is identifying these, and knowing the best way to deal with them. It’s a matter of managing your time and resources such that you are productive in those things that matter.
How to Maintain Focus When Writing
As a blogger and writer, I must admit that there are days when I’m just on a roll. I’m able to achieve significant output. I’m able to manage my time wisely, and I’m generally productive. But then there are also those days when I uselessly stare at the computer screen for hours on end, never able to come up with anything sensible enough to publish.
The difference between these two scenarios is focus. I’m that kind of person who needs to really concentrate in order to accomplish what I start.
Most of the time, I can best focus when there are no outside distractions. This is mostly attainable very late at night or in the wee hours of the morning when everyone else is asleep. However, just being alone in silence is not an assurance that one can focus. I, for one, often have a lot going on in my head. Sometimes it’s the internal distractions that are the bigger deterrents to focus, and not the external ones.
When producing content, such as blog posts, articles, contributing to online discussions, and the like, here are a few things I like to do, which oftentimes make it easier to focus and concentrate on writing.
Research beforehand
I must admit that a lot of my blog posts have been based on information that I happen to have chanced upon. These are more difficult to write than content that I’ve been able to do prior research on, though. This is because I tend to open too many windows and links when I simultaneously write and look for information. I tend to navigate away from the main task at hand, and before I know it I’ve already forgotten to finish what I’ve started writing.
When one gets all the information ready before even starting the first word in an article or blog post, then all that’s needed is to refer to the source information every now and then, which will not take time because these are already available readily. So when you find something interesting to write about, you should already spend the next few minutes learning all about it, before even saying your own piece.
Have all your tools ready
Just like a soldier marching into battle without ammo, writing without the proper tools would require you to keep marching back to base for supplies. You would never accomplish anything this way, though. So it’s best to have your tools ready. And I mean anything that’s related to your writing, and anything that helps you along the way.
In my case, I like having a freshly brewed mug of coffee beside my keyboard while writing, so I can take sips while I compose thoughts and sentences in my head. It’s one of those habits that one cannot do without. If I find myself without a very hot (or very cold, depending on the weather) beverage beside me then I find myself rushing to the pantry to prepare something. Along the way, I would’ve already lost focus and the drive to finish my piece.
These tools could include your favorite word processing software, your favorite browser, and any other tool that you directly or indirectly use when writing. If you often write on a portable computer, make sure you have enough battery power for your writing session. If you need to publish a blog post, you’d better have a live Internet connection. It just isn’t the same saving a post offline and publishing only when you get the chance to connect.
Maximize
One of the more popular posts I’d written on in the years past is about maximizing windows. Some people prefer maximizing the current window so they can focus on the document or whatever application they are working on. This definitely helps reduce sources of distraction. Among other things you can do are turn off your IM client, switch your phone to silent mode, and generally try to reduce distractions in your periphery. Also, try to resist the urge to check your email inbox every two minutes or so.
Take a break
Sometimes, maintaining focus requires taking a break, too. Marathon writing sessions are great as long as you can keep the energy and focus up. But standing up and stretching every thirty minutes or so can surely help with circulation. Try to do breathing exercises, too. Or just walk around for a couple of minutes. These can help clear the cobwebs up in your head. If all else fails, sleep on it. You might be able to develop on your ideas better in the morning. Sometimes, you will realize it’s an idea not worth building upon at all.
Everyone has his own preferences, and his own notion of a productive environment that’s conducive to creativity. The common denominator here is that one often needs to be in the zone to be productive. For a writer, that’s where the magic happens.
