Wednesday, 1 July 2015

How I am trying to get back my love of blogging

I will be honest and say that for the past two months my love of blogging has disappeared. I haven't been able to put as much love and work into this site as I should be. There are a few reasons why but I think a loss of confidence is the main culprit. I read a lot of blogs and the standard of writing lately just amazes me. With my life as it is now and my brain not as intelligent as it used to be, I keep telling myself that there is no way you will ever be able to compete with everyone else. Life has been getting in the way a lot too. I have been trying to date/failing at dating, spending my free afternoons in the gym, and attempting to improve my home which seems to be falling apart at the moment. Also I think I am just feeling a little uninspired lately and I guess with any hobby we all go through these stages of boredom. 
This week I have been working really hard to get my self back into the blogging world that I love so much and back into the community that continues to inspire and support me everyday. I know I must not be the only one who goes through stages like this so I thought I would share some of the ways I am trying to get back my love of blogging. This is kind of a part two to my previous post: 'How to stay motivated to blog' which you can see here. 
 

Avoid looking at Statistics and scores

It is easier said than done and I put my hands up and say that I became obsessed with checking my alexia rank, my klout score, and daily page views as well as the monthly Tots100 scores. I needed to know if they were dropping, steady or improving. I have recently stopped myself from checking because I felt like I needed to see that statistics are not what blogging is about, its how writing and sharing my life with others in similar situations makes me feel. Bad scores can be the top reason why many bloggers quit and quitting something has always been what I have done best but I am fighting to not be that person anymore. I keep telling myself the reason why I started this blog and that reason was not to have better statistics than everyone else. 

Take a short break

If you find yourself writing and publishing posts that you are not happy with because you felt rushed or stressed, then its probably time to step away for a little while. Do not feel pressure to publish a post every day because everyone else is doing it, you should feel proud of the content you are producing. If your non-internet life is getting too on top of you then I find it best to make sure that I get everything done first before sitting back down at my desk. It's so much easier to blog with a clear mind.
 

Don't waste time

When I can't think of anything to write, I find myself easily distracted and just generally not focused on why I turned my computer on in the first place. It is so easy to browse through peoples twitter conversations, click through peoples blogs for a nosey, watch the latest youtube videos and get sucked into a series on Netflix. As a working single mum, my time at the computer is precious and so I really should be using what little time I have finding inspiration, researching and writing. There is an app out there called Focus booster which blocks you from visiting time wasting sites for a certain period of time which I must start making use of.

Blog when everyone else is asleep

This is probably not for everyone but I have seen on twitter that a few fellow bloggers only blog at night time just like I do. You may have noticed that the majority of my posts get published at midnight and this is because I find it easier to write when the kids are asleep. It so difficult for me to blog during the day when there's so much going on and the children are screaming in my ear every five minutes. I'm much more relaxed and focused at night-time. I like the peace and quiet and I can fully focus on my blog.
 

Blogging somewhere new

I have recently discovered how productive I can be if I blog outside of my usual environment. There are so many distractions in my home and it can be really difficult to get any work done. Recently, I have started to take my laptop down to my local cafĂ© and I really wish I had done this a lot sooner. Sitting in a room with other people who are relaxing with a paper or also busy working away on their laptops really does help. You see them working hard and then you may feel pressure to do the same, it can also make you feel like you are at work therefore you wouldn't want to slack off.

 
So there are a few suggestions which will hopefully, if like me, help you to get back your love of blogging. I will leave you with an amazing quote I recently saw on twitter 'When you want to give up, remember all the people who want to see you fail' and that for me is aimed at the people who laugh/smirk/roll their eyes when I tell them about my blog. Blogging is tough and you should be proud to call yourself a blogger not embarrassed to tell the world what you do.

Gem
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4 comments

  1. Louise (Little Hearts, Big Love)1 July 2015 at 11:09

    Great tips Gemma and glad that they are helping you regain your love of blogging. I'm having a break from my blog at the moment to refocus and feel so much better for doing so. I've also forced myself not to look at my stats for a week which has helped me not get so hung up with them. I agree with you that sometimes a different location can also help - I've been sitting in the sunshine this week with a notebook and pen and I find that sometimes getting away from a computer screen can really help :-)

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  2. Blogger Mummy Lauren2 July 2015 at 22:51

    Great post Gemma. I've been on a bit of a break since attending Britmums. I struggle to take my mind off the blog most of the time, and it gets a little overwhelming sometimes, so it's nice to have a bit of time away. I hope you rekindle your love!x

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  3. Hannah Brooker3 July 2015 at 19:13

    I have totally just come through a similar phase there are so many blogs out there and a lot of new ones recently that wrote very well and seem to be getting pretty far pretty quick but I also know they are tied to their blogs and obsessed with their stats and I can't be bothered with that! Blogging for nearly five years is the first thing I've ever done this long without quitting so I really am determined to not quit! I hope you feel brighter soon and enjoy blogging again and listen to your great advice above :) x

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  4. I can really relate to this post. Been only blogging for approx three months but find that i am looking at stats to se what type of following I get as well as juggle blog between work and home. I like yourself do most of my work at night and am currently working now. Sometimes you think whats the point but I feel personally its because I haven't acquired a following like some other blogs which just disheartens you. If I leave the blog for a while, I feel like I have lost pace in trying to build it from the bottom up. I'm hanging on in there. Still love it. I think I just want them little seeds to grow a bit lol

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