Bagan Myanmar
Anxiety plagues every blogger at one time or another.
Dealing with worries is par for the pro blogging course.
I recall going into analysis paralysis years ago. Worry crept into my mind regarding my blogging strategy.
Did I follow a successful path? Did my strategy work?
I followed guidance from pro bloggers. The system appeared to work for full-timers. But would it work for me?
I subsequently dealt with success anxiety. What if customers criticized my online course and eBooks? What if my premium offerings received negative reviews? What if loyal readers disagreed with me?
The worries built like a blogging tsunami of anxiety.
I had to figure out how to conquer worry or else failure would consume me.
Do you worry about your blog?
Minus the rare Alfred E. Neuman types out there, everyone worries here and there. Some worry a helluva lot more than that.
Follow these practical tips.
Put worrying in your rear view mirror.
1: Spend Time in Quiet
Lock yourself in a quiet room.
Sit with worry. Feel it. Mentally step into anxiety.
The fastest way to get rid of worry is to mindfully hug the emotion. Sitting in quiet brings up the contents of your mind. Observe the contents. Look past worries.
Admittedly, taking the step is difficult. The mind unconsciously keeps you busy. Everyone is doing something almost all the time. Slowing down to sit in quiet feels impossible.
But it is only a matter of willpower. Be willing to do it. Get your ass in a quiet space. Sit. Listen. Observe.
Allow your mind to become quiet by letting go of chaos within.
Sitting in quiet triggers your worries. Step directly into these emotions to move beyond your fears.
Worrying occurs in the mind not the world.
Sitting in quiet reveals this truth.
2: Simplify Your Strategy
Worry typically occurs in conjunction with complex strategies.
Whittle everything down to a simple strategy. Go bare bones. Create detailed content and connect with readers who appreciate your solutions.
Stop obsessing over your strategy. Stop taking unnecessary steps. Follow the basics. Create and connect.
Conquer blogging worries by following the old-fashioned fundamentals.
Fear dissolves as complex strategies leave the room.
Do a few things. Follow a few steps. Lessen your blogging workload. Stop adding. Start subtracting.
Going pro depends on doing a few simple things for a spectacular length of time NOT doing a bunch of spectacular things for a few weeks.
3: Do What Stats Tell You to Do
I checked my recent blog posts.
Posts with a similar title to the current one generated the most views and also the most comments.
I wrote this post based on statistics pointing me in that direction.
Never bury your head in the blogging sand. Check metrics. See what works. Do more of that.
More importantly, stop doing what doesn’t work. Look closely at strategies yielding meager returns. Ditch these poor tactics.
Stick to what works to conquer blogging worries.
Doing what works immediately calms your mind. Doing what drives organic traffic eases blogging anxieities.
Weekly Blogging Statistics
I checked my email a few moments ago.
Blogging From Paradise weekly page views rocketed from 8,000 to just under 13,000.
What strategy did I follow?
I:
- published one long form blog post daily
- optimized titles to increase clicks
- updated one old post every few days
- aggressively promoted old blog posts
- distributed new and old posts across a wide range of targeted blogging channels
As long as I keep following this simple strategy the numbers cumulative rise; week over week too, likely.
Observing my strategy and results feels good.
As everything expands the worries dissolve.
4: Follow Bold Bloggers
During my lean blogging years I followed bloggers afraid to step on toes.
Everyone was nice.
Few became highly successful.
I eventually followed kind but direct bloggers who didn’t mince words. Successful professionals speak in clear fashion. Some loving individuals come across as blunt. But that is only because they care about you enough to tell you the truth.
Follow those types to embody their attitude.
Be kind but direct.
Never beat around the blogging bush or else self-doubt will destroy your blog.
Readers sense your iffiness before running away from your blog.
Loyal readers flock to a bold blogger who speaks his or her mind.
5: Over Deliver
Do a highly detailed job.
Publish thorough content.
Doing a smash up job dissolves anxiety. No blogger worries after hitting the mark. Every blogger worries after doing a crap job.
Practical Blogging Tips
- publish 1200 plus words per blog post
- add practical tips to migrate readers from problem to solution
- distribute freely through targeted channels
Do a good job to remove worries that you did a bad job.
Service occupies a peaceful mind.
Worry pollutes the mind concerned only with its survival mode.
Be a helpful servant. Do a complete job. Take your time.
Thrive from a place of serenity.
6: Speak Your Worries
Anytime I worry about my blog I speak the words to myself.
Getting it off my mind into the world makes me feel better. Sometimes I instantly feel better. Other times my vibe improves after speaking my worries then taking positive action.
Never be afraid to face your fears.
Speak your worries out loud.
Dissolve anxiety by facing it head on.
Feel better.
Take inspired blogging action.
7: Beware Mindlessly Doing Something
New bloggers err by mindlessly charging forward to keep busy.
Bad idea.
Seasoned professionals sometimes tell you to do anything in order to get past your worries.
Never follow that advice.
Being worried means feeling afraid. Blogging from fear generates scary results.
Action is not the anecdote to fear but it is a way to suppress it. Failure follows.
Do specifically what you feel afraid to do. Never randomly move into wild action to conquer worries.
Blogging mindlessly keeps you stuck. Imagine spinning your wheels in the mud. Pressing on the accelerator makes no difference. Cursing the car matters not. Most times you need to get help. Ask someone – or two people – to push the car as you press on the gas pedal. Human help combined with momentum gets the job done.
Blogging is similar. Human assistance from:
- seasoned pros
- your blogging tribe
moves you in the right direction.
Being mindful puts the process into motion.
Strategically face fears.
But never take mindless action.
Conclusion
Defeating blogging-related worries is a nuanced skill.
No wise blogger conquers worrying with a sledgehammer.
Follow the practical tips above.
Succeed peacefully.
