My top lessons from 5 years of blogging

    This blog, unbelievably, has been going for over 5 years. In all that time, whilst I have continually reflected on it and wondered how I can improve it, I’ve never shared what I’ve learned, or what I would have done differently if I were starting out again.

This is something I intend to correct with this post, written partly to help me in the future, and partly to help anyone else who may be thinking of starting a blog – I highly recommend it. So buckle up and prepare for the 5 lessons I’ve learned from this blog.

Lesson 1: Your blog holds you to account

I started this blog in my mid-twenties, not realising how much one’s view of the world is still in such significant development at that point in life – indeed, it always is to an extent that it’s hard to grasp without a history of things you’ve said to look back on, sometimes cringingly.

The fact is that I have not only thought things, but committed them to writing. Some of these things were profoundly stupid. Since writing for any significant length of time means that key themes and topics will crop up again, I will have to argue with myself and explain why I’ve changed my mind and why I got stuff wrong.

This is not, of course, a bad thing or something to fear. IT does, however, commit you to going through life with an open mind and a willingness to admit you are wrong, if only to get in there before others do.

Sometimes, that looking back will be amusing, and sometimes, it will cause feelings of guilt and shame. However, to remove uncomfortable content and edit your own historical record is a betrayal of the integrity that anyone who wants to do this kind of thing needs to possess. It’s searing honesty, or don’t bother!

Lesson 2: it’s all in the journey

The important thing about a blog is that you don’t present yourself as a finished product – a perfect, self-satisfied formulation inviting others to look and admire.

A good blog invites the reader on a journey, to share in the ups and downs and the imperfections of its author.

Parenting blogs are perhaps the best illustration of what I’m saying: it isn’t a superwoman with her perfect life and perfect kids that resonates; it’s the tired, stressed out mum juggling a million things at once with barely enough time to wash her hair who makes her readers feel like they’ve found a kindred spirit.

I don’t know how I’d describe the journey this blog takes you through, and that’s probably a mistake on my part. Perhaps it’s my way to think through the big questions of life, even if through current events. Whatever the case, I ought to be able to answer this much more clearly next time I look back on the previous 5 years.

Lesson 3: Be conscious of how you write

What is your style? Assuming others could probably say something very similar, what is it that’s going to make people want to read your presentation of it?

You do need to find your authentic written voice, but you need to be mindful of how that may turn people off as well as get them engaged.

My mistake was failing to appreciate what being a recovering academic had done to my written voice. Specifically, I didn’t appreciate what a turn-off the lack of brevity in many of my early posts was, and that I needed to work on the distinct art of writing opinion pieces, not analytical works in which you simply can’t have an opinion unless the opposing points are dissected in grimly tedious detail.

Bottom line: it’s a difficult job to find a balance between the things that make your work distinctly your own, and what your readers want.

Your style also connects your readers to your personality. It’s simply unavoidable that you become a brand – readers are buying into you, as much as what you say. This is true even if, like me, you choose not to attempt to gain financially from your blog.

Maybe you are funny, polemical, chatty, lofty, exaggerated, contrarian or direct. It doesn’t matter. The point is that your readers need to see who you are.

There is a specific point about style which, I think, matters so much that it’s a lesson in itself, so read on.

Lesson 4: Have a conversation with your readers

The biggest mistake I made was not thinking through what a conversation with my readers actually meant.

Blogging is all about having a dialogue with your readers – they can read the opinion section of a decent newspaper if they simply wish to read a considered, researched and well-presented opinion. A columnist is a columnist and a blogger is a blogger – I missed the unique art of blogging and, to start, served up the sincere efforts of a rather crap columnist.

With blogging, your post should not be the end but the start – the foundation that sparks ideas and contributions, whether as comments or, more likely, through social media.

IT has been the gradual acquisition of a social media following of a decent size that has made me realise that to do this kind of thing is to commit to an ongoing relationship – to put in practice the important lesson that loyalty must be earned.

Tell your stories as part of your posts; ask questions of your readers; incorporate the comments and feedback into your blog; be clear how your readers are shaping your blog; be willing to answer their questions and hear their experiences and ideas.

The partnership between blogger and reader is an absolutely crucial bond. The magic only works when they’re both brought together.

Lesson 5: Be regular and reliable

Up to now, I’ve published when the mood takes me. Many potential posts have been commenced and discarded. This is all great for authenticity, but it’s one luxury a successful blogger needs to forego. It’s one unforgivable failing of this blog.

Your readers, if they enjoy your work, will face much greater difficulties if they can’t rely on the ability to make basic predictions about your blog, including what kinds of posts to expect and when to expect them.

Your publishing schedule should, no matter what, be regular and reliable. If it isn’t, it’s like a relationship where one party has stopped talking for a long time – they can’t expect the other to dance to their tune when they decide to start again.

 

Further reading

Write Blog Posts Readers Love: a step-by-step guide, by Henri Junttila

I do recommend this book as it’s helpful and practical in its advice.