I ran across this post at Man vs. Debt entitled How NOT To Suck At Blogging. I must admit that the title itself is what pulled me into the post and the site. Suck is a word in my vocabulary that is rather common. My dad used to try to convince me that crap and suck were as bad as curse words as I used them quite a bit and he hated the sound of both. His tactic didn’t work and the two words still stand out in my vocabulary. Of course when said with a southern accent, they sound cute. Or at least I’d like to think so.
Back to the point.
There are some amazing ideas in this rather long post of his. As he says, he does not tell you how to be a great blogger. Only how not to suck at it. It is a no nonsense post full of links to other great bloggers, videos and tips. You must check it out.
What’s the biggest thing I pulled away from all of it?
To be genuine. Let people see the real you. As a people pleasing person, this is not always an easy task for me. But when I go back and read some of my previous posts (especially on some of my other blogs), I realize the best content was produced when I just wrote. I didn’t try to develop this inspiring post that would move people, I just wrote what was in my head and heart at the time. Those are the posts I go back to and think wow, did I really write that? They are also coincidentally the posts with the most comments from readers.
Surely, there’s a reason for that, right?
I know some bloggers who plan out their posts weeks or even months in advance. As much as I try to be that organized with my posting, it is just not when my work is at its best. It is not when I connect to readers and it is certainly not when they connect with me.
Check out the post and definitely watch the video of Gary Vaynerchuk that is included. Although be warned, due to language, it is not safe for a traditional work setting or with children in the room. It will, however, light a fire under you and I can certainly understand why he watches the video so often.
