Friends....... friends of friends..... newbies.... oldies but goodies.......
How do you find the time? I really LOVE blogging, but man it sure sucks up my free time.
When I first started blogging, I had to make bloggie friends. I loved it. I would get excited when I had a new comment. EVERY single comment. I would jump for joy when I gained a new follower. Editing a photo took a millisecond, and I didn't know what html was.
Since then, I've learned sooooo much about coding and editing, that it's become something I can't help but want to work at and master. This takes time.......
I've also grown a community of followers, who I cherish and adore, and enjoy interacting with through comments and emails. This takes time.....
I've had some opportunities arise that I just couldn't pass up. FREE stuff! Hellz yea! This takes time too......
All of it adds up, and lately I've been finding myself having to sacrifice my favorite part of the entire thing- bloggie friend communication.
I know I probably shouldn't state this out loud, but I really don't spend all that much time on my posts. I should.... but I just don't. I am not much of a writer, and I know that, so I let a lot of photos speak for themselves. Also, when I say a lot of time, I mean I spend about 2 hours or so about twice a week editing photos and making posts. What's that you say??? That IS a lot of time!? I know.... it's true..... but I could spend more, a LOT more. The time that gets really carried away is my social media time. I LOVE reading blogs. And at this point I'm following hundreds of them.
So, the big question. How does one find the time to be friends with everyone??? My blog is still pretty tiny in the whole blogosphere, how do we keep connected and still have jobs and lives and stuff? I actually like to READ the blogs of my bloggie friends, not just skim and move on. Is this impossible as the bloggie grows?
Here are some tips I've been using lately to help:
1. Schedule posts ahead of time, and write more than one at a time. Schedule them out so they post in the future. I'm usually about a week ahead on my blog posts. There are the occasional spur of the moment ones that I sneak in, but for the most part they are written about a week before you read them. This really helps me, because I like to post regularly, and this way I don't have to worry if I get crazy busy one week.
2. Set a timer on yourself. When I'm blogging, or reading blogs, I always have a stopping time in mind. And I stick to it. I make myself go do something else and unplug for a while. I can get seriously carried away with this stuff...... whole days have passed. ha!
3. Try not to "do it all". It's really tough, but there are things I've had to say no to in the last couple of months. It's important to me to keep my blog enjoyable, and not make it a job or a chore. If it starts to stress me out, that's no good. Also, remind myself that it's ok if I don't respond to every comment although I really try to. If only I could duplicate myself......
Well....... any tips out there for me??? I'd love to hear your thoughts on this subject, as I'm sure all of you have experienced this too. Do you find it hard to find the time???
Trish
Agree. To every single word.
ReplyDeleteWhere should I start?
Yes, blogging does take a LOT of time, and blogging isn't just the posting, it's the planning, the reading, the commenting, the answering comments, the answering e-mails and the keeping the community happy. My problem is I want to do it all - because I love it all! Right now, as I'm only working part time, I can (barely, though) keep it up, but I also feel I'm sacrificing other parts of life. Realizing that I'm probably spending more time (in total) with bloggie friends than 'real' friends was a bit scary...
And just like you say, the community is what makes it worth all the hard work (although I blogged for four years without a single blog friend...!). And I want to read and comment genuinely.
Well. As long as blogging is only for fun, we can't do it all.
I:
- have become more careful about what blogs I actually follow. I unfollow if I'm not feeling connected to the blogger anymore or not inspired by the posts.
- also write posts in beforehand and keep a rough plan in my head.
- separate posting time from reading time and if I'm not feeling inspired I just skip it.
Oh, this became a rather lengthy comment. It's just that I've been thinking about this a lot recently...
I started scheduling posts a few months ago and I love it, but now I've actually caught up and don't have anything scheduled. I need to do a few again. I started unfollowing blogs when I realise I never even open their posts. I can't read everything, but I try to read a few and comment every day. I wish I got free stuff from blogging :D
ReplyDeleteI think the main thing to remember is that all bloggers have lives too, and no one {at least, no one worth knowing} is going to judge you if you skip a day here or there, or if things aren't perfect!
ReplyDeleteI'm lucky to just remember that I need to do things. Though that's not a good method for paying bills on time.
ReplyDeleteYou posted exactly what was whirling 'round my head this earlier today, honestly! The blogosphere is such a weird thing...I too blogged for years without any blog friends, and now that I'm networking more, engaging with other bloggers, etc, I'm finding it really overwhelming. It helps to put it in perspective...I work full-time at an office, whereas many of the bloggers I follow have jobs that allow them to work from home. It's something I dream of, too, eventually, but in the meantime, I'm fortunate to have a job that affords me the ability to blog regularly (and keep up with my online shop).
ReplyDeleteI really made an effort to pare down my social media so that I'm engaging via only a few platforms. I deleted my Facebook last summer, but had to create a placeholder one recently for an ecourse I'm doing - still, I don't add anything to my profile and keep it strictly for course dialogue. I don't bother with Twitter - it's too much for me! I picked Instagram instead. But no Vine...you get my gist.
I find that every month, I also do a look-through the bloggers I'm following and, as Natasha said, unfollow ones I find I'm not reading or engaging with - nothing personal against those bloggers, but it's just too hard to keep up with them all! I use one of my breaks at work to read blog posts, and I try to respond to e-mails right away. This all being said, I have a very, very modest following and, as much as I'd like to expand, find the thought of 300+ followers totally overwhelming! My thought is that it doesn't matter if you can't respond to every comment - you're genuineness and sincere kindness comes through your blog posts, anyhow, and people will continue to read for this reason. :)
I also keep notebooks around the house so if I have a blog-post-aha, I can jot it down for later. Half the time my "brilliant" ideas aren't worthy of a post, but I have written plenty of posts from these notes.
As I started to network more in the blogosphere, I pledged to myself to only blog if it's fulfilling me. It's so easy to get distracted by followers and networking, etc, but for me, it needs to be fulfilling. Once I start to have reservations or guilt or resentment, it's time to step back and take a breather. :)
Great post!!!
Megan
I feel the exact same way. How do I have time for everything? I love the connections with other bloggers that I've made. It's so awesome that I feel so close to people that are on the other side of the country/world.
ReplyDeleteIt's so exciting to see my blog grow and become something bigger and invite more people to stop and comment. At the same time though, I don't want followers just because I post a cool outfit. I like my blog to have content and feel real.
Someone above commented that they unfollow people if they feel disconnected. I do the same thing. It just gets to be too much after a while.
Good post. For me the biggest thing is being choosy about what blogs to follow and what to continue following. I'd love to follow hundreds because there are so many awesome ones, but I'm all about de-cluttering. Though I won't de-clutter you. :)
ReplyDeletehaha, the reason why I am commenting on this exactly a week late...I am taking ALL of today (seriously, I started when I woke up and it's 5pm now) to go through my 527 unread blogposts on Bloglovin'!!! How the hell did I let it get to this point?! I never ever schedule my posts, they are always posted as soon as I'm done making them, and usually I have no idea what I'm posting about until that moment :/ I really need to start thinking things through!
ReplyDeleteand more importantly, your personal experienceMindfully using our emotions as data about our inner state and knowing when it’s better to de-escalate by taking a time out are great tools. Appreciate you reading and sharing your story, since I can certainly relate and I think others can too
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