Disclaimer: There are 2,715 posts on my main blog, 609 on irevuo, and 223 on the Art of Blogging. Granted, some thousand or so of these posts are advertisements, reblogs, or sponsored posts.
This is quite a random threshold, the kind that doesn’t necessarily deserve to be celebrated, but I felt like feeling grateful, so yeah… three thousand posts on WordPress.
But this is not just about me bragging. No. The idea is to write about what I learned, which is somewhat synonymous with offering you the kind of advice I wish I knew about before I set out on this journey six and a half years ago.
I’d say that I did a decent amount of blogging. Could I have done more? Sure. More is always the answer when it comes to how much work one can do. I could have written better posts, developed my projects better…
But the truth is that my writing has developed a lot since I wrote my first post on this blog, back in April 2012. For those of you who do not know this, English is not my native language.
I’ve also learned a few other things that I’d like to share with you.
Inspiration is everywhere
If you’ve been blogging for some time, you must have faced this challenge. How do you get inspired? Where do you get ideas from?
The thing is that ideas come from connecting the dots. It’s that easy. Ideas come from past experiences , books I have read, conversations I have overheard. The obstacles I had to overcome.
Strong emotions inspire great ideas.
Did something happen yesterday that pissed you off? Good. Write about it. Explain why. Odds are that if you feel strong emotions about something, someone else will relate to you.
Maybe something about our society needs fixing. Maybe there’s something you wish more people understood about your job, your passion, or something important to you.
Sometimes, ideas just flow. It’s effortless. It’s wonderful. Other times, I’d much rather do nothing at all.
If you look in the dictionary under the word “procrastination,” you’ll likely find an old photo of me. But I do force myself to write quite often. I have to write something every day, unless I risk going mad or something.
Blogging is about living life
Blogging has also taught me that you need to do your best to find that spark that ignites your soul. To go out there and live. To get your heart broken, to try to fix yourself, to fall down, to try new things.
The more you step outside your comfort zone, the more creative you become.
Bad experiences tend to make for great stories, and some pretty amazing blog posts.
And, yes, yes, some of my best ideas come from me staring at a point on a wall until I can feel myself dissolving into it. Oh, I also think about ideas for posts. Sometimes. Other times, I just stumble upon a cute quote and that alone inspires an entire post.
Read, read, read
The idea is that you should read books, other blogs, magazines, and pretty much anything you can get your hands on.
In day to day life I’m kind of funny because I was this socially awkward (to be read inept) kid at school and all I knew to do was read a lot of jokes and then tell them to other kids at school.
So, yeah. Read everything you can get your hands on. Good books, bad books, great blogs, awful blogs.
Observe
I’m not just talking about what other bloggers are doing, even though it’s important to check the competition out, to see how they write their content, how they deliver it, what posts engage a certain audience enough to make them want to comment.
But I am talking about observing life. Like being in the back seat of a car. Just… witness. Everything around you. The people, the places you have seen maybe a thousand times before… I doesn’t matter.
The more you stare at something, the more you notice.
Experiment
Experiment. Not everything that works for other bloggers works for you or me. It’s okay if you write something new and different and your post only gets 16 views.
You can always recycle content. After all, if you have a few main themes, you’re bound to tackle them a few times. If it’s something you care deeply about, you’ll be writing about it more than once.
Have fun
This is one that most bloggers forget about. Heck, even beginners forget about it after about the sixth post.
Why do something if it doesn’t make you smile?
Oh, you’ll smile when you’ll have the kind of success you’re hoping for? Not really. You’re just training your mind to be happy some time in the future, but not now.
And guess what’s going to happen when that time will come?
You won’t be happy. You’ll come up with a new day, new goal to achieve, and then you’ll be happy.
So, yeah. Have fun. Enjoy writing just for the sake of it, for the opportunity to share your thoughts and ideas.
Having a schedule is important. Like really important.
Posting regularly matters a lot. Not often, maybe not as often as I do, but keeping to a strict schedule makes sure that your readers know what to expect from you.
It takes a lot of time, effort, and patience to build a community
This is the last thing I learned.
It takes more…
It just takes more to build a readership than you thought possible in your most pessimistic thoughts. It takes a lot more effort, a lot more interacting with folks, writing posts that barely get one or two comments, it takes more of everything…
Just like that cliche with building a wall. Brick by brick. Will Smith said something about building walls…
Yeah.
I guess what I am trying to say is that you can’t rush it.
Posts get written one word after another, and a successful blog is built one post at a time.
“The more you step outside your comfort zone, the more creative you become.”
Loved reading this post!
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Thank you, Khyati. Do you have any questions for me?
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I’m just getting started since November I think so any advice would be great
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“It’s okay if you write something new and different and your post only gets 16 views.” – I needed to hear this. Thanks for encouraging newbies like us, Cristian. 🙂
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Brilliant post, my friend. No questions though.
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Thanks, man.
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Very nice post
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How amazing this…
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Wonderful read for an upstart blogger like myself. The ‘procrastination’ bit is something I could relate to – the longer you dwell on something, the less likely you’re going to do anything about it.
So everytime I get an idea for a blog, I make sure to get started on it immediately before the drive fizzles out. It’s helped me so far. 🙂
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Loved reading your post. You are one of those writers who have experimented on various topics and have shared a lot of your experience with us.
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Thank you.
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Great reminders, and congratulations on the milestone!
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Thank you, Cristian. Great words. And congratulations! I thought long and hard before I started a blog. With a little research and reading some of your posts, it was quickly obvious to me that it’s a commitment for the long haul. That is, in your time, creativity, to yourself and to your readers. We don’t expect to make deep friendships overnight, so why think it will happen with our blogs? Good relationships take time to build.
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Hi Susan,
Thank you.
Also, yes, I agree. Blogging is (mostly) about building relationships with other people, and building (anything) takes time.
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🙂 Your English is fun, Cristian. More American than many Americans, if that’s possible. Blessings on the next 3,000 posts.
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Thank you so much.
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Thank you for sharing your advice! I am currently in a writing rut. My wife and I just had our fourth kid born and I have been running low on sleep. The one constant I have been making an effort is to read daily even if it only a few minutes.
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Yes, successful blogs are built one post at a time… and the issue of “success” is in the eye of the beholder, right? It’s not just about numbers!
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I needed this today. Thank you!
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Im new to blogging too, and I find inspiration when I travel which I do not so often so I also write less. I wish I could get more inspiration too.
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‘Have fun. Enjoy writing just for the sake of it….’ I love this part, but I am interested in what made you publish your first post? And what’s kept you going for the years after?
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I had to find an audience. I wanted to write. Simple as that. I kept going because I don’t see myself doing anything else.
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Reblogged this on ReBirth: The Pursuit of Porsha.
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Thank you!
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I am not getting even a single view, also i want to write anonymously…
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Wonderful and insightful posts. Can definitely relate on many points you’ve highlighted.
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Thank you!
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This post is just like a morning breakfast to me, it’s quite inspiring. Thank you for sharing, I have been on and off blogging for about three and a half years now, but fully back Gods willing’ and with articles like this, there’s no turning back. Thanks
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Thank you for taking time to read my content.
Well, the idea is that you must be consistent. Don’t focus on how many posts you publish, but on keeping a schedule. Post less frequently, but consistently.
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Thank you.
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Competition? No: Fellow writer, friend. Without competition, no community. And cute quotes are a great entrance to new writing.
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Beautiful illustration. For a growing blogger like me, it’s such an inspiration. Thanks for writing. And all the best all your future posts.
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Thank you so much, Joy! I appreciate the support.
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How do you manage your time? Do you recommend using Trello for example or any other app?
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I make a mental list of tasks each morning. And then I work on completing it. That’s about it. I never used any app for that.
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You’re awesome. You always motivate me to write something new. Big fan of your work.😀😁😃
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Thank you so much, Shraban. Much appreciate the support.
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Just what I needed to read today, thank you!
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Was able to relate to your post very well. I recently moved towns and settling in took time and it was time away from blogging. I only had personal experiences to put up and was hesitant putting them up. Thanks for giving me an insight and injecting a dose of inspiration. ☺️
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Thank you for sharing this. 😊 very inspiring to read!
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Thank you. It is great wrting. I ‘m really motivated
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No matter how you slice it, 3,000 posts are a lot of content. Kudos to you for your persistence and commitment. Thanks for sharing some of what you’ve learned along your journey.
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Thank you! Appreciate the support.
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Great post as usual. Also, as a Russian American whose first language was Russian, your English is very good. Especially since as far as I know you still love in Romania and have not had the benefit of immersion. Best wishes!
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lol! live* in Romania…though I sincerely hope you love there as well. I really hope the West stops stealing your publicly trained youth and leaving your hospitals short staffed. Apologies if my politics annoy you. And take care.
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Hi Alex,
Thank you for your compliments.
And politics are not annoying to me. They just are something difficult to explain, or talk about.
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No problem. It’s always great to see somebody really learn a language without actually being immersed. I’d love to learn German and Chinese but I’m thirty and it’s definitely going to take a lot of work. Your success gives me hope.
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It’s the result of your hard work and sweat. Kudos for you.
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