This essay originally appeared in My Word with Douglas E. Welch
A progression of days leads to a progression of weeks and a progression of months. Despite my feelings that it can’t possibly be March, the month has arrived all the same. It is bad enough when days fly by too quickly. To see entire months pass in the blink of an eye is mind-boggling.
So, what does March hold in store? I have another speaking engagement, this time on the hows and whys of blogging and content creation. People take notice of how much I create and how often I post and are intrigued by how they might do that themselves. The difficult part for them to learn, though, is they have to WANT to do it. They have to WANT to share “what they do and how well they do it.” They have to WANT to engage with others on the Internet and share what makes their life unique, even if is seems, at the beginning, that no one is really listening. Instead, many of the folks I talk with don’t believe. They are only interested in blogging because others have told them the SHOULD be interested. There is a huge gap between those positions. If you don’t believe in the reasons for blogging, you simply will not do it. You won’t find the time, the energy, the drive to keep going. We have all see it, of course. Someone starts a blog, makes one or two posts and then is never heard from again. They don’t BELIEVE and so they fail.
Writing this post in MarsEdit blogging software
For me, I am constantly seeking out the believers in any group. These are the people I want to engage with and energize to share their own unique stories with the world. I know that if I can get them started — if I can get the snowball rolling downhill — the momentum will build on its own and sustain them long into the future. If someone is blogging because someone told them they should, they will hate it. They will despise the amount of time it takes. They will see no value in the process and they will eventually, usually quickly, stop. Unfortunately, many of these same people will add an additional burden to their mind, though. They will feel guilty about not blogging. Even though they don’t want to do it, they will feel guilty because somewhere, in the back of their minds, buried deep, they know they should be doing it.
Don’t be one of those people. Either blog, or don’t. It is nothing to feel guiltily about. It isn’t designed to add an additional burden to your life. I think that there are great benefits to blogging, but there is nothing I can do to convince you to blog. That is a decision you have to make all on your own. If you don’t believe, you won’t blog.
Now, if you are one of those believers, what questions do you have? What can I offer you, what can I teach you, how can I support you in your efforts? Drop a question into the comments here and I will be glad to answer. Come to my speaking engagement. I’ll post all the information once it is finalized. Just drop me an email to talk, if that is what makes you most comfortable. I’m here to help, if you really want to blog. There are people out there who want to read what you have to say. Trust me on this!
Previously on End of the Day: