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You and a full time blogger are separated by just one important thing. Not time. Not motivation. Not passion. Not discipline.
Of 22 people I asked, 64% of them said “posting consistency due to lack of time” was their single, biggest problem when it came to building a successful blog. Finding the time to write. The time to comment. The time to email. The time to Tweet. The time to Stumble. The time to research. Most of us struggle to find the time to blog.
In my time as a blogger, I’ve watched and grown with several authors who all worked as a full time writer from day one. All those bloggers now have a base of more than 1,000 readers. They had no choice but to succeed, because they had no job to fall back on. And they had the time to build their blog.
As I write this, at a time when I’m a full time blogger, I find myself walking around the office in that stereotypical sensei walk. Head looking up in to the sky as though to find the words. Hands occasionally finding themselves clasped behind my back. I’m pondering what to write next.
Then I realize that what I’m doing is something only a full time blogger can. For most bloggers, at 6:50pm, your kids will be hungry. The dog may need walking. You may even still be commuting home from the day job. It’s these times, as a full time blogger, where you and I are different. And I respect you for that.
But Time Isn’t What Matters.
What matters is how you manage the time that you do have.
You and a full time blogger are separated by just one important thing. Not time. Not motivation. Not passion. Not discipline. But a plan!
A Plan of Action!
Full time bloggers have a plan. Their plan is adapted to fit their circumstances. If they can fit just one post a week in to their schedule, then that’s what their plan allows. If they want one day a week away from writing but rather focusing on commenting on blogs to find new readers, their plan allows for this.
There’s nothing I struggle with more than self discipline. That’s why I’m not in that 1,000 plus subscriber category. But I recently wrote a plan.
Before I had a plan I was struggling to find time to write and I was sat on a plateau. A steady flow of visitors were coming in to my blog, but I didn’t seem to be building on any of the statistical numbers that we as bloggers look at.
“By having a plan, I’ve increased my subscriber count by 13%, increased my average visitors per day by 130%, increased my post frequency to six a week, and doubled the amount of comments an average post receives.”
By having a plan, we’re able to become much more organized. We’re able to set clear goals. We’re able to record our progress. And we’re able to plan for as much as our schedule will allow. So rather than writing nothing at all and worry endlessly about our lack of time, we can make the decision to write only when we have the time.
What’s your plan? Is your plan to write as much as you can until you burn out? Or is it more calculated and specific? What is your goal? Your exit plan?
Without a blogging plan, you’re just writing with nothing but hope on your side. It’s time to schedule your hours, plan your posts, and set your goals!
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Comments
11.28.08
Excellent post, Jamie. Hope you talk more about this and flesh out the concept. I'm betting you top 1,000 in no time.
11.28.08
Hey Jaime,
I am new to blogging and take a lot of time to write something so I can only post a few times a week. Your post has been very helpful to me. Thanks for writing it.
Angel
12.02.08
I agree, great insight. As someone who's never kept an active blog, I'm finding sites such as these to be extremely helpful in bridging the gap between a full-timer and a leisurely blogger.
03.08.09
Great post! The whole having-a-plan thing translates to other parts of life as well, especially ones you're not terribly excited about. I think I'll implement a laundry plan next.
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