You will agree with me when I say it’s not possible to be at our blog all the time. However, you will find it little difficult to concur when I declare that not being at our blog doesn’t mean we can’t improve the blog. We definitely can, that is, if we want to.

And you probably wouldn’t believe if I say that being away from your blog is actually the best you could do to improve it.

If you are among those who are always thinking about their blog, its performance, its traffic, etc. then probably these tips a re tailor-made to suit your needs. Sometimes, I just sit against my computer and stare at the blank word document because I don’t know what to write. My mind is as blank as the word document. Perhaps, it might have happened to you as well.

That’s the time you need to be away from your blog. Here is how it helps:

1. Coming up with Fresh Ideas
   This is something that even the best blogger of the world might not be consistent in. It requires a calm and clear mind to generate new ideas. And do you really think sitting in front of your computer for hours would help? It wouldn’t.One possible option is to get away from your PC and relax for a while. Then, take a pen and paper and start jotting down all the topics that you have written about. Select any topic among them and try to look at it from a very different perspective, from all the possible angles.

   Ask yourself: have you covered all the sub-topics that could possibly be created from this topic? What else people would need to know about this topic? For instance, ‘Blogging Content’ is a topic or an idea. However, there can be numerous sub-topics or sub-ideas created from this topic like ‘How to write good content?’, ‘What is bad content?’, and so on.

   This is a very good exercise that promises consistent flow of ideas. You would never have to stare at the blank screen and keep thinking for hours.

2. Relate with the real world
   The real, refreshing outside world probably has much to offer. It can help you to come up with something that the internet wouldn’t. How do you think a new idea is generated? It is generated when we look at various things and think about it differently. Look at everything around you, everything in the outside world, each or any of them could be your next topic, or a new blog.Let’s look at something concrete for now. Pick up any magazine and you will find hundreds of article, which is no different from a blog. Magazine itself is a big blog.

   Next, a business. Any business. My father owns a departmental store. His business, in many ways, can help me to improve my blog. No, I cannot start writing about shopping habits or prices of groceries, if my blog is about improving the way your blog. But I definitely can learn  lot from the smart business models, new ideas applied in the store, how advertising affects the business, or just the way people act, and apply it in my blog someway or the other.

   If I can’t apply it, at least I would know how to operate a business. However, that’s not what we are focusing on right now. According to me, you will get something out of it. Remember, it all depends on how we look at something.

3. Use the technology
   If it’s really urgent to update something on your blog, or replying a comment, and your are traveling, or just far from accessing a computer, don’t fret. Just relax and enjoy the benefits of the improvement in technology. You can access your blog or edit it through your mobile, iPod, blackberry, PSP, or many other devices.An application called WordPress for iPhones can allow you to type and post your article on your blog. You can also edit blog pages, upload images, or reply to a comment. So, you aren’t actually away from your blog, are you?
4. Offline Advertising
   It is the most effective way to utilize your time improving your blog while you are away from it. Unfortunately, very less percentage of the bloggers today use offline advertising as a source of promotion. This can be very effective if your blog discusses something about the real outside world. Offline blogging can be done by distributing t-shirts, car stickers, posters etc. I will be soon writing about the various ways to advertise offline because I rally think it’s quite effective and least used.
5. Just Relax
   Here is another point on which you won’t agree with me, but relaxing does help to improve your blog.
   I have seen many bloggers face something known as ‘Blogger’s Block’ i.e. a time when they are not able to write, not even a word. Relaxing, then, is the best solution. Even if you are a bit overworked, relaxing will help you to soothe you mind and body, which is quite important to come up with new ideas regularly.Being relaxed is a way to calm your mind.
   Being relaxed is a way to be creative.
   Being relaxed is a way to be in a proper state of mind.
   Being relaxed is a way to improve your blog.

Okay. These were my suggestions on how can you make optimum utilization of the time you are away from your blog. Some people have the habit of carrying a pen and paper along with them, wherever they go. I do believe it’s a great idea because it helps you to jot down every idea you come up with.

I would really appreciate if you can discuss how you can utilize you “non-blogging” time. Would love to read your inputs.

Suggestions Please!

Posting great blogs regularly is difficult and quite exhausting sometimes. I guess it perfectly okay to say that some days we don’t feel quite motivated to post an article. And if we do, it turns out to be bad post. It happens with everyone. It has happened with me many times. There are days when I don’t feel like opening my blog site.

Now, it isn’t that I don’t love my blogs. I love them as much as you do. And you know what, I have a secret that helps me to keep going and love my blogs, always. This secret can be used by you as well, when you feel low or uninterested.

Happiness

No, I am not a psychologist or a spiritual teacher. But I have learned one thing for sure that if you are happy, you are a good blogger. Don’t believe me? Try this. Write an article when you are very happy and post it. Keep writing and keep a note of which articles you wrote while you were happy. There will come a time when you aren’t quite happy or simply sad due to some reasons. Write an article and post it. You don’t really have to keep of note of this article because you will be reminded constantly by your readers through comments about the awfulness.

Yippee! It’s work time

In my opinion, blogging is a pretty cool work to do. Actually, I wouldn’t term it as ‘work’. It’s all about sharing, interacting, appreciating, and learning. And these things are best done when you are happy. Generally, except those sad days, I am quite excited to blog even before I switch on my desktop. It’s not work, it’s fun.

Future Envision

I left my job to take up blogging as my career. I hate the idea of working in an office or anywhere else to earn money. I didn’t want to sit a glass cabin and tally the balance sheet for the rest of my life. It was possible for me to quit because I saw the future. I asked myself how I would like to see my blog six months from now. I smiled. What about a year? I smiled again. That was my goal. And since that day, I haven’t stopped thinking about my aim and targets.

Everyday, before switching on my PC, I think about my goal, I think about my career. And guess what? I don’t need any other motivation to keep myself going. I work harder and happier.

However, I am talking about times, when you don’t feel like working because you aren’t happy. Here are some tips you can apply then. Or may be everyday.

Get ready to work

1. Pumping Music:
   For me, this is the best motivator, especially when I am a bit low. I listen to a couple of numbers that helps me get pumped up. Without this daily dose of music, I don’t feel quite ready to get started.
2. Boost your ego:
   I am not asking you to be very egoist one. However, you need to boost your ego when things aren’t going in the right direction. When I need it, I read the emails sent by readers or some very good comments that make me feel better about my work. This is necessary when you are down.
3. Celebrate every small success:
   The best way to keep going is celebrate and enjoy everything. If 4 readers subscribed for your blog overnight, rejoice and congratulate yourself. If your post receives 19 comments, jump and dance. Make a big deal about every small pleasure. If you won’t do it, slowly but surely, you become greedy. After some months, even 100 comments won’t satisfy you. Be content, be happy.
4. A Daily To-Do List:
   Make a to-do list for each day. Put down all the things that needs to be done, on paper. Include every small detail. I make a list every night for the coming day. And trust me, nothing is as motivating as check off something as done in your list. This will ensure that you are going in the right direction and working toward achieving your goal.
5. Your Role Model:
   Sometimes, when a pumping track or an ego boost doesn’t seem to work, I think about the person whom I admire. There are numerous such people in the world who are known for their success achievement. Pick any one of them and strive to be as successful as him.

What if you aren’t still happy?

How do you feel when you start working? Are you happy? Do you fell excited about your work or feel frustrated? If you don’t feel much good about your work, try these tips which I just mentioned.

Even after trying these things you can’t get interested, try a comprehensive self analysis and find out whether it’s blogging that you like or something else. It’s better to quit rather than doing something uninterestingly. In most of the cases, blogging isn’t the problem. It’s just the wrong topic.

What about you?

The whole article is my experience and my ways to get ready for work. It’s your turn now. How do you get ready for work? Do you get excited before starting your work or is it just a routine? Or do you have any better ways to get motivated and happy? We all work so differently, I am sure you have ample of ideas.

No, I am not aggravated by all the finance blog post on the internet. I personally love them and honestly, I have benefited by many blog post. However, today I am talking about the bloggers who still haven’t understood the significance of personal finance blogging and how to write them.

Cluttered Blogs

While writing personal finance blogs, bloggers need to understand that readers seek a precise piece of information, an unambiguous direction, or a personal viewpoint on the subject. Many articles today are cluttered with junk information or repetition. Recently I read an article about managing finance during retirement and I found that every paragraph had the same message. It’s quite exasperating. Why don’t they write a shorter one rather that repeating the same message over and over again? Bloggers should remember that the people reading their post are the ones facing financial crises or searching ways to make optimum utilization of the available funds. They are already facing problems.

No responses to comments

If someone has taken up the responsibility to start a blog, he/she should be courteous enough to reply to the comments received to the posts.

Recently I came across a very though provoking personal finance blog post that dememded appreciation and a discussion. It was I of the few I sincerely like. So, with much dedication and concentration, I posted a long response and subscribed to the comments RSS feed to make sure I don’t miss the blogger’s response. Predictably, the response never came. Why do they do this? Such an irresponsible behavior makes the reader feel ignored. I, as a reader, promised never to comment on any posts because it’s quite infuriating not to receive a response.

The vagueness

Again, people reading personal finance blog posts are not seeking entertainment. They need guidance, accurate information and updates, acknowledgement, and some sincerity. Sometimes (actually many times), I start reading the post because the title is quite attractive. However, there are two things that I generally and sadly find under such titles. First, a long introduction before coming to the point which is not at all needed. Second, there is no information in the article. Some bloggers just talk around the topic and conclude.

Reading Complexity

Some bloggers find it quite exciting to decorate their posts with bright background and brighter font. What is it, some weird web designing contest? Readers are attracted to posts that provide quality information or at least a pleasurable read and not by attractive colors. It isn’t an advertisement banner, it is a blog post.

I understand it’s important to use financial terminologies while writing a personal finance blog post. However, it seems that some posts are written by a highly educated finance professor especially for his few students in a financially-coded language that should not be understood by other. Please try to keep it simple. Internet is a platform that avails the ease to share the information globally. You cannot know, by any means, who will be reading your posts. Avoid jargons and use simple English. Is it that difficult to manage?

Self-centeredness

Most of the bloggers today do not understand that a blog post is not a one-way propagation tool. It’s is okay to provide personal touches and personal experience occasionally. Some blogs a found were full of me, my, myself, and I. This will frustrate the reader. An effective way of blogging is addressing the reader. They wouldn’t be interest in reading a story that mentions how you spent a boring night in a local restaurant, unless you are a celebrity.

To avoid such irksome mistakes while writing a personal finance blog post or on any other topic, please read it twice or thrice before posting it.

If only people knew how hard I worked to get my mastery, it wouldn’t seem so wonderful at all. – Michelangelo

Truly, if only people knew. But how can they, with so many blog posts, books and tutorials promising to teach them mastering a skill in just 7 days, 2 days, and some even few hours? When I was in my teens, it used to be a ‘couple of months’. The number of days to master a skill seems to be dwindling every year.

The truth, sorry to say, is not so miraculous.

There is one approach to master a skill and virtually the only one:

• Learn:

  About it. Watch, read, listen, and ask about anything and everything that’s related to it. Learning and knowledge is the first step to achieve it.

• Do it:

  Do it again, and again, and again. Here, you start understanding it. Forget about the quality or the level of mastery, because at this stage, you are miserable. But remember, you are learning.

• Keep doing it:

  and after about a year or two you will be good at it. I said good, not a master. To achieve mastery, you need to…

• Do some more:

  By the time you reach this stage, you have made most of the common mistakes and more importantly, learned from it. You aren’t anxious about committing mistakes because of two reasons. First, you are used to it and secondly, you make very few now. This is the time ascend from ‘goodness’ to ‘greatness’.

Swallow the fact that it takes about 5 to 10 years to master a skill, purely depending on how much time you spend doing it. According to few experts, it takes about 10,000 hours to achieve mastery, but I seriously don’t believe it. It vastly varies from person to person, their skills, and many other aspects.

For instance, I have been trying to master the art of blogging. I wrote my first article about 5 years ago, but I am still

learning and I know I have much more to learn. You have to try it, commit mistakes, learn, do some more, learn some more. That’s when you understand it. Gradually, you become good and then comes a time, if you are still doing it, when you are great at it.

Ask any master, any professional about his journey of mastering his skill and he will gladly disclose the fact; the fact that it takes many years of hard work, consistency, passion and learning to become a master. It demands passion, it demands aspiration, it demands doing and more doing.

So the bottom-line is: do it and do it with fun. Don’t get disheartened, you are just a beginner. Enjoy it like we all did. Do it, learn it, like it, love it, and live it. That’s they only way to achieve mastery and I declare this openly, to the world.

Get the passion and start doing it without wasting time. And do not, I repeat, do not buy the book or subscribe the post that promises to teach you a skill in a day, or even a month. They are hoaxers with a hand in your wallet.

Keep doing it without thinking of giving up. You will succeed. Brain Tracy once said “Never consider the possibility of failure; as long as you persist, you will be successful.”