Bath England
Lacking consistency put my blog back for years.
I did experience some success. Yet I blogged within strict, 24 hour windows with a heavy focus on short-term metrics; at least for some stretches.
I never thought much about blogging consistently for 5 or 10 years. I focused on daily time frames.
I struggled to drive consistent traffic because I thought – and blogged – with a short term bias. I lost momentum. Gaining momentum felt impossible because each day, week or month felt like a blogging roller coaster. Metrics swung wildly. My emotions trailed the metrics. It was a blogging poop show.
Setting long-term goals put me in the proper frame of mind. I relaxed. Relaxing stimulated my creativity. Being creative felt fun. Having fun goaded me to be consistent. Being consistent drove consistent traffic to my blog. I consistently helped targeted readers who consistently followed my blog.
Respect the domino effect I outlined above.
Study pro bloggers to appreciate the power of being consistent.
Observe Successful Bloggers
Pro bloggers consistently help readers for a long time.
I recall one future pro who published 2-3 long form posts daily for a few years.
I remember one other future pro who published one post daily for many years.
Do you need to set your clock? Look to a professional blogger; work off of their publishing schedule.
Struggling bloggers lack consistency. Being here today then gone tomorrow does not establish credibility. How can you trust someone who stops showing up to help you for vast stretches?
Pros publish hundreds to thousands of posts spanning years if not decades. Creativity plus time is the intelligent approach. Let the calendar work for you as you publish practical content consistently.
Double Down on Being Consistent
Be consistent.
Double down on publishing helpful content for a hefty length of time.
I recently decided to publish one blog post daily again but only because I set aside ample time to complete the job. Prioritizing blogging consistency made me pump the brakes on creating social media content.
I chose to create blog content for a long stretch of time. Admittedly, this felt like a change for me because I usually create a heavy volume of content for a short stretch of time before pulling back.
Double down on being consistent to remove pressure from yourself. Stop blogging for today. Be consistent for next year. Think like a marathon runner not a sprinter.
Think Long Term
Set long term blogging goals.
Think in terms of years.
Look beyond today.
Treat your blog like an asset not an ATM for paying bills.
Avoid burn out.
Be consistent.
Make time your ally not an enemy.
Time was my enemy for a bit because I tried to publish as much content in as little time as possible. But being prolific for years – not for as little time as possible – promotes exponential growth.
Frankly, I am still learning how to be consistently prolific for years from a slow, steady and measured approach. I feel better publishing one practical post daily without any tension than attempting to force one post daily and dozens of social media updates.
Even if I only published one weekly blog post it makes more sense to do this for 5 years compared to an ambitious strategy for 5 weeks or 5 months. Google assesses your full body of blogging work. People do the same.
No blogger goes pro over 5 weeks or 5 months.
Pros blog consistently for years before going full-time.
Consider Pulling Back if Necessary
I hate putting handcuffs on your creative nature but consider pulling back on content volume to increase consistency.
Let’s face it; does it seem sustainable to publish 50 social media posts daily for the next 10 years?
Driven bloggers can hit that mark. But why not publish 5-10 social media updates daily to all but guarantee military-like consistency for 5, 10, then 15 years and longer?
Inconsistent bloggers typically bite off more than they can chew (cue the joke for my last name). Being ambitious is cool. But chasing unrealistic goals always leads to ruin.
Multiply your daily consistency for years versus multiplying the volume of content you publish today.
Conclusion
Look closely at your blogging strategy.
Do you need to be more consistent?
Do you need to stretch out your time frames?
Doing simple things for a long period of time builds blogging success momentum.
