Triune Designs Blog: Web Design, Development, & Marketing

My wife and I just ran in Charlotte’s Thunder Road Marathon this past Saturday. It was a grueling battle between man and nature to see which one would be victorious… okay, not quite. It was a serious challenge and it was fun, but maybe not quite a grueling battle.

About a month ago as we were rounding out the last portion of our 18 mile training run I came up with this list that provides some useful tips on how to be a successful blogger (or marathoner).

Break things into manageable chunks
In a marathon, a runner has to travel 26.2 miles. There is no doubt that is a long distance, but what helps is to break the run apart into smaller-sized chunks. The obvious follow-up questions is how do you break up your specific individual behemoth? That depends on you. For the marathon, my wife and I set it upon ourselves to only focus on reaching the next mile marker. We did not let ourselves think about the remaining miles ahead. It worked for us.

Likewise, for this blog, I break the massive goal of writing countless blog posts into manageable chunks. One day is spent providing useful links, two days are spent on writing specifically about web marketing and blogging, and one day is spent trying to get feedback from this community. These mini-goals make it easier to focus on a small amount of posts instead of hundreds. It works for me. Try a few different techniques and find what works for you.

Your gait will improve over time with repetition
If you are not writing a blog, but are interested in starting then jump in. If you are new to blogging, but are worried about how it comes across or whether you are doing it right then do not worry. There are some successful ways of creating a good blog, but for now do not worry. Just start writing.

Blogging is very similar to running a marathon because of the repetition required. Our training for a marathon started months ago. Over that time we logged hundreds of miles of training runs. What I noticed was that my running gait changed over time. My body learned how to adjust to running longer distances. Likewise, over time your blogging will become better. With repetition you will find your blogging voice. You will become a more confident writer. Things will get easier for you because your mind will adjust to becoming a blogger. Believe in the power of repetition and practice, and just get out there and do it.

Find good bloggers and learn from them
Three things helped my training for a marathon: (1) my wife had run two prior marathons so she knew how to train and what to expect, (2) we read some marathon training books, and (3) we read some running magazines. These were essential to our preparation for the day of the race.

For a new blogger this advice is important: read other people’s blogs. Find good bloggers and learn from them. What do they do right? What do they do wrong? How do they engage their community? How does the community respond back to the blogger you are watching? You can learn a lot from participating in other people’s blogs. Additionally, find some web marketing or social media bloggers that provide advice on how to get better. They are on the front lines of web marketing so they should know a lot of great techniques for making your blog better.

Be prepared for the mental games
This key was probably the biggest shock for me: the strength of the mental games. Be prepared to put down the mental games. When running long distance my mind constantly wanted to tell me how far I had to go before finishing. Then my mind told me I might as well stop instead of trying to finish. I had to put the mental games to sleep.

In the beginning, blogging will be no different for you. With the exception of a few circumstances, your new blog will not attract a single person. In fact, you will probably have a hard time getting your own family to read your blog. Your posts will sound like you are at the end of a cave where you are only talking to a wall with the accompanying echoes. That is tough! The mental games will begin creeping up. “Why continue?” “You should stop writing; no one is reading.” “You have not gotten a single comment in weeks, is this worth the trouble.” “You are wasting your time.” You must put those mental games to sleep. A blog takes a lot of time to develop; a community takes time to develop. Some blogs may take months to gain momentum, some longer. Be patient, continue to write your posts, and engage with the online community (via blogs, Twitter, Facebook, etc.). Your own community will develop over time through perseverance.

Give credit when it is due
We have all had to do it in school: create a works cited page or bibliography. Therefore, I know you have a little practice in giving others credit when it is appropriate or necessary. Bloggers also need give credit to others, the method is just a little different. The best way to give others credit for ideas, quotes or just plain talking about them in a blog is to add a link to their website or blog. This is also a very simple way of engaging the online community. Adding links are so important to maintaining the health of your blog. Make sure you do not neglect them.

In training for a marathon there are multiple people a runner can thank for help along the way. For me specifically, I would like to thank Judy and Allen (Asher’s grandparents) for watching Ashe on countless Saturdays during our long training runs. I would also like to thank Michele for setting up the training schedule, keeping me motivated, and for basically dragging me across the finish line when I was way past the point of exhaustion. I never would have run or finished the marathon without her.

Your thoughts
So, what are your thoughts? For those of you who have blogged before, do these sound like things you have battled? For those of you who want to blog, but have not, what is holding you back? Do you have any other sports similes for blogs? Please leave your thoughts below. I look forward to reading them.