So, I’ve blogged before. Here.
As a reflective practitioner, I’m trying to learn from my experience.
And, seeing as it’s pretty much just me reading this at the moment, I thought I’d write to me in the future, to stave off Blogger’s Block.
***
Hey, Andrew – not blogging, eh?
*Future Andrew nods. Sadly.*
Hmmm – have the Blogging Shoulds been getting you?
*Future Andrew looks interested but quizzical…*
You know – all those things you’re meant to do…
Like, you should:
- include a picture in each post from Flickr
- write a headline that captures attention and increases your SEO
- start a post with a question
- end it with a question to encourage comments
- make the post practical
- edit each post so that it’s short – people don’t read long articles on the internet, you know (*Future Andrew starts to say, ‘But Havi…* – No buts, Future Andrew…)
- stay on topic, saving other stuff for a different blog
- decide in advance on your service AND your niche and blog only for them
- make sure your blog design is ROCKIN’
- have three months’ posts in advance
- make your posts granular
- complete your links – links are the currency of the internet, after all…
- comment strategically on blogs in your niche
- Stumble regularly
- make sure your e-book is perfect
- balance tweets, retweets and @replies
- make sure your posts are useful to your niche (*Future Andrew gags a little bit at the word repeated use of the word ‘niche’*)
- have a publishing calendar and stick to it
- investigate guest-blogging
- not say ‘Fuck’ or ‘Bullshit’ even when you want to
And there’s the authentic blogging shoulds…
- make sure you’re writing in your voice
- make sure you’re really conversational
- say ‘Fuck’ and ‘Bullshit’ when it’s the natural thing to say
And then there’s the one’s you made up…
- write from your spiritual connection
- write so that Havi, Naomi, Michael, Ed, Karen, Samuel and Stuart all love it
- be totally fricking inspirational, all the time
- write so that your corporate clients don’t cancel (especially avoiding the use of words like ‘Fuck’ and ‘Bullshit’)
- write really comprehensive book reviews, bearing in mind that the authors are going to read them, so be nice…
- write several times a day, five days a week (or whatever you’ve decided is your un-meetable blogging schedule)
Hmmm… things beginning to get clear now?
*Future Andrew does that purse-the-lips-and-move-them-to-one-side thing, tilts his head sideways and nods*
How about, just for today, you write what’s in your head to write, and just click publish? Maybe next week or next month you can return to the Shoulds, but just for now…
And don’t forget, you can always Meta-blog…
Andrew?
Andrew…?
*sound of typing….*
***
Well, that’s the way it’s meant to go… See how…
(Er… and doesn’t The Blogging Shoulds sound like a great band…?)
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{ 11 comments… read them below or add one }
He hee. What a wonderful smarty pants you are! This post made me smile LOTS. Swearing for an authentic voice and not swearing to disengage those corporate clients. ..A voice from the future…Slightly and wonderfuly surreal.
I’m sure the ducky one would approve!
Nice stuff Andrew. Keep a-doing it.
Will visit again in future (promise).
Leila!
You may have to remind me of this post if I falter in the future, if Future Andrew becomes Present Andrew…!
okedokie – I will, no problemo!
Your blog’s inspiring me. Love your writing and honesty.
I need/want to get my butt in gear and write my own in spite of not being ready. Or is that another stuck-stuck I dunno?
Most def good practise to ask fellow supporters, friends what you need to sustain your work/you. So yep be you – humorous, witty, unsure, clear, complicated you. We need ya!
That word niche – urgh! Gives me the hebejeebees.
Your right people? Forgive me here comes a rant. Disgard all that’s irrelevant for you since you must be aware of this stuff already.
Right People?
Certainly people who want to work on their Stuff and share similar values around working with compassion and a desire to grow, not constantly get caught in circle of conflict? Nt sure if Naomi asks us all to imagine our perfect client in more detail but off the top of my head your right people don’t believe in sailing passively through life, they’re interested like you on working more deeply with their stuff, feelings, issues, blahdebla and like me maybe they are really fascinated and keen to ask questions about what it is to live in the world with differences, with conflict? How can we love, how can we learn to ‘tolerate’ sometimes painful conflict and differences around us without resorting to violence physical, emotional? Is that right – something like that? Again I love that you swear. Maybe thats your voice. You’re part airy fairy woo woo and part fuckthebastards. Liberating to be in the real world (as opposed to the top of a mountain) and express yourself where-you’re-at without an apology. Gives us all even more permission to be real and not hide behind the doftly spoken voice of hypnosis or therapy or whatever. Even if we umm love therapy or hypnosis or whatever.
eeek I’m ranting good and proper aint I?
So you want people who enjoy thinking about how they are in the world I guess and would like to feel better equipped to handle difficulties, conflict with their mate, work mates etc?
Havi talks about a velvet rope. Keeping your wrong people out. That’s always an interesting one too.
Right I’m off for now – keep being your somewhat surreal, glorious, acidic, funny and compassionate you! Wonderful stuff! Ummm most un pc or indeed NVC of me but ummm can Future Andrew just bugger off for a bit since we need Present Andrew ok?
Note to self.
love me love my typos and rubbish English ok Leila? doftly? doftly? ahhh that’l be softly as in softly spoeken. umm I mean spoken. woken. whatever.
darn it.
You Funny Lady.
umm. Yep. Uncontainable.
funny funny funny….true true true…
I will come back to this when I get into a snark about my own scribblings
Yeah – I’ve already had to refer to this a LOT – even just a few weeks in…
Sigh.
Hi, young new friend, not sure how I got here (I think someone tweeted a post of yours that went to 404 page) but I like your advise about standing back from things. I’ll subscribe. (Maybe you’ll consider making your main post font size a little bigger, so that people like me (over 50) can read it more easily? Not that it’s not worth the trouble…but might as well make it easy on folks, right?)
Write on, Andrew. It’s good.
Hey Sandy
Wow – I think the 404 might be – ak – something technical which I need to fix.
Glad you like the writing so far.
Will have a look at the font size thing – don’t want to exclude *anyone*…
Thanks for the comment and the subscribe – glad to have you!
Thanks for the type size change! Ahhh – I can read!