I had 2 attempts at writing blogs before this one final stuck (third time being the charm and all). Even once I began writing here there were many times when I wondered whether I was actually going to be able to keep it up. I now know that I can no matter what.
This brings us to the phases every new blogger must fight through if they are going to survive. This includes you- the person who has never blogged but has the tickle in the back of their head that they can do it.
- Excitement. You are on top of the world picking a name and choosing a topic. You’ve stepped up and written your first five posts.
- Confusion. You’re a couple of weeks in and you can no longer remember why you are doing this. Who are you writing to? What are you writing about? Was the last post good enough?
- Doubt. You know who you are writing for and what you are writing about. Suddenly you don’t think you are equal to the task. Why would anyone want to listen to you?
- Growing Optimism. This is beginning to make you feel better about yourself. You can do it and you can notice a difference in all the other phases of your life. Blogging as an outlet is great!
- Realization of your Audience. You have done this for a year but the only real readers you know about are the guy down the hall and your wife. You wonder whether it will ever pay off.
- Steady State. None of the rest matters. You like blogging for what it does for you. As long as it meets your needs you are going to keep at it. It’s nice knowing you don’t have to change the world with each post.
- Occassional Dread. a writer and their blog is a relationship. Sometimes it’s good and wonderful, other times it is a chore. You will always encounter moments where you have to give it some space but as long as you get back to Phase 6 everything will be fine.