Is Blogging the Revenge of the Shy People?
Today on FWJ Radio we talked about blogging for a living. As we were talking, I noticed a certain phrase came up more than once, “I’m normally very shy…”. I hear this a lot from bloggers. In fact, for me blogging helped to overcome my shyness. There is no way ten years ago I’d be speaking at conferences or hosting weekly podcasts.
A decade ago, I would have sat in the back of the room trying not to draw too much attention to myself. Now I sit in front so I can be seen when I raise my hand to ask questions. In short, blogging has given me confidence.
What do you think, is blogging the revenge of the shy people? Has it given wallflowers an opportunity to to be heard?
Got issues?
It’s been one of those days when working for an unruly social service agency sounds like way more fun than freelancing. Still, this made me laugh.
Summer Break
You may have noticed I’ve been absent. Just a heads up, I’m moving states, have not found a house yet, need to pack, shop for a new car, and get my son set up with activities and programs in the new place; not to mention work. I’ve got about 20 days to get this all done, so I expect to be blog absent until some point in Sept.
Gayla and Deb should still be popping in, although it is summer, so maybe they should be relaxing more and blogging less. Maybe we all should. I’m sure once I get moved I’ll fit in some relaxation too. In any case, I’ll see you in Sept. Have an amazing end of summer - hope it’s not as hectic as mine.
Blogging? I love Blogging!
Well there you have it, folks. Blogging can get a girl back to your apartment. Who knew?
Relinquishing Your Network Blogs: It’s Not Easy
When I stepped down from network blogging to take on my full time gig, it was a very difficult decision. My blogs were so personal and I put my heart and soul into them. I knew someone else would take them over and I thought I would be prepared for watching them grow with someone else at the helm.
It’s not as easy as I thought.
In the case of my network blogs I do know the bloggers and I even know they’d let me guest blog on occasion. Still, it’s not easy watching someone else take over your favorite blog. I think my replacements are doing a wonderful job but I often think about how i would do things compared to how someone else is doing it
I’m going through something similar at the blog I own Freelance Writing Jobs. FWJ is the number one online community for freelance writers. I started it over three years ago and now it receives thousands of visitors every day. The advertising revenue is enough that I hired someone to run the joint in my absence. Plus I will be hiring someone else for a twice weekly blogging gig and even have a third blogger trading his work for the free advertising.
My traffic is through the roof.
It’s not easy for me to watch though. Even though I contribute, there’s someone else moderating and interacting with the community. There’s someone else’s name being equated with FWJ. I’m not a control freak, but it does feel like watching someone else raise my kids.
Someone once asked me what happens to network blogs when you step down. The answer is that someone else takes something that was so personal to you, and makes it their own. It’s not an easy thing to see.
5 Tips for Letting Go of Your Network Blogs
Blogs are so personal. They truly become a part of you. Many of us pour everything we are into our blogs. We give them personality and our voice. It’s not easy to let go and watch someone else take over our network blogs. I never had problems moving on from more traditional writing jobs or turning down one client in favor of a better gig. It’s different with blogs. I’m too territorial - these are MY blogs.
I find myself in a position where I have to let go and it’s not an easy decision. If you find yourself in the same situation, here are a few ways you can make the break easier to bear:
- Give advanced notice - Let your editor know a few weeks in advance. This will allow her to find someone to replace you, and it will also enable you to tidy up any unfinished blogging business. For example, you may have some product reviews to complete or a series you’d like to end.
- Find your own replacement - For my favorite network blog, I recommended my replacement. I’m hoping she gets the green light because we both see eye to eye on our vision for this blog and I know she’ll do it justice. I also know she’d let me come back and guest blog once in a while. Which brings me to tip number 3:
- Offer to guest blog once in a while - Even though it won’t be “your” blog anymore. You can still come back from time to time as a guest blogger.
- Remain a part of the community - Don’t make a clean break, remain part of the community. Visit and share comments. Don’t take over - it’s not YOUR blog anymore - but do visit and share your own thoughts.
- Don’t burn your bridges - I’m hoping one day I can have a network blog again. I have nothing but nice things to say about my experiences as a network blogger. I love the sense of community among the network and my editors and managers are top notch bloggers and people. Even if I didn’t want to come back one day, I’m happy to call my blogging associates “friend” and will continue to support them.
It’s tough letting go. I’m not going to gloss it over. I almost didn’t apply for a much better opportunity because I didn’t want to give up my network blogs. My decision is the best for all concerned, however and I have no regrets. It’s going to be tough to see my blogs fall into someone else’s hands, but I’m not going to be a stranger. I’m not going to be posting to these blogs, but that doesn’t mean I can’t participate.
Where I Work
At my network blog, Simply Thrifty, we’re having a Where I work promotion. Want to see where I work? Check it out…
10 Reasons Bloggers Need an Administrative Day
I woke up this morning to over 2,000 emails in my inbox. This is a few day’s worth, actually. I only answered the most pressing stuff from the past few days. I think it would take the better part of the day to go through all the mail coming in and handle other tasks. That’s why I’ve decided to implement a weekly administrative day.
I hear what you’re saying, I’m busy too. So busy, a monthly administrative day is no longer adequate. This week I’ve been working with a schedule that’s going so well, I can take Sunday and make it an administrative day. At this stage in my career it’s a necessity.
Let me explain…
- Email: My email is totally out of control. I know there are people waiting for me to respond to their emails just as I know there’s mail I haven’t gotten to yet. I need a few hours at a time to sort through it all and respond.
- Product Reviews: I receive products to review on a daily basis. These are all piling up in my office. On administrative day, I can at least go through some of the stuff and schedule the reviews on my editorial calendar. Which brings me to…
- Editorial Calendar - I already take one day each week to plan my blogging. I have a large wall calendar and once a week I write in daily topics for all my blogs. With over a dozen blogs, an editorial calendar helps to keep things flowing.
- Comments - I like to respond to the comments on my blogs. Administrative day is a good day to catch up.
- Accounting - We should all go through the books on a weekly basis to make sure we’re being paid in a timely manner, and send a gentle reminder to clients who strayed from the schedule.
- Feeds - I subscribe to over 300 RSS feeds. It would be nice to be able to take a day to catch up on them all.
- Bookmarks - I don’t even want to tell you about my bookmarks. It’s embarrassing really.
- Stats - I check my stats each day. Several times a day, in fact. What I’d really like to do is set aside some time each week to truly analyze my traffic.
- Revenue - The problem with being so busy is that I don’t have the time I need to really explore revenue possibilities for the blogs i own.
- Office Clean Up - My family would thank me if I worked a simple office organization into administrative day. By the end of the week press releases, product sheets and personal notes litter the area.
As you can see, I need at least one day each week to go through everything from email to bookmarks. To let it go is only asking for a bigger headache further down the line. Plus I want to look into other things. I want to learn more about the technical aspects of blogging and using video in my blogs, for instance. When else would I have time for this? Maybe I need a whole weekend…
Do you have an administrative day? What takes do you complete these days?
Who Do You Blog For?
Do you blog for a network such as b5Media or Creative Weblogging? Or do you work for a private client or corporation? Are you blogging for yourself to promote your business? Let us know in the Network Blogging Tips poll.
Need A Blog Break? I Do.
I was surfing, saw this, and it totally reminded me of Deb - in a good way. (Don’t hate me Deb).
If you haven’t already, check out the rest of bLaugh - it’s pretty fly.
