Learning how to blog is akin to learning how to build a business. Compared to the brick-and-mortar, a blog is considered a low barrier to entry venture, all that is needed is a computer, internet access, annual renewal fees for your domain, and web hosting fees.
This low entry barrier means that you do not have much to lose if the business does not work well. However, on the other side, the low entry barrier means that many other entrepreneurs will be working in the same niche as yours and it means more competition. In low-entry-barrier businesses, dedication, patience, and perseverance in the initial years are what will distinguish the long-term players from the nonserious ones.
As in business, various reasons could contribute to a blogger’s failure:
Reason 1: Perfectionism
When God created man, He never expect him to be perfect. You can never research enough and prepare enough to start a venture.
If you observe, most of the learning actually comes after you started a project. Mistakes will emerge. Glitches will show their ugly head. Only then are you able to tweak and brainstorm to find solutions to the problems?
So instead of troubling yourself with the nitty gritty technicalities, just start your blog. It’s the journey that matters.
Reason 2: Expect too much too soon
Well, I fall into this trap all the time. I remembered when I started eBay, I gave up the venture in the first month. Even now when I started blogging, I feel low when I don’t see the traffic. Fortunately, for me, I have a mentor and my family to cheer me on.
We must be prepared to set a longer time frame for our blogs to take off. If you can, forget about the time frame and just build it passionately. After all, we are not limited by issues like capital and funds when we build our blogs. Find yourself a small group of bloggers to exchange ideas and cheer yourself on.
Reason 3: Continue on with the employees’ mindset
Most of us started off as part-time bloggers. This could be either a blessing or a curse.
With a monthly stable salary, many would find themselves less motivated to continue building their blogs. After all, we are still quite well off and God knows when our blogs will take off.
You see, a businessman’s psychology differs vastly from those of the employees. The former strives on uncertainties whereas the latter lives on false ‘stability’. A business owner will take a calculated risk to look for new opportunities whereby a salaried man will look forward to the end month for his paycheck.
Reprogram your mindset. Better things await those who dare to take risks and who persevere in what they have started.
Reason 4: Ungrateful to those who lifted you
All religions and masters teach us to be grateful for our daily possession. Be grateful to those who have lifted us up in our hour of need.
Sadly, many people failed to observe this universal truth. Look at how many old people are abandoned by their children. You cannot just take things for granted and think that the world owes you a living. Everything works under the law of cause and effect. If you want to be successful, give a thought to those who have provided you with the necessary tools.
Reason 5: Envious of other people’s success
Imagine these scenarios. Your next-door neighbor will be moving into a high-end bungalow in a posh residential area tomorrow. Your cousin has just purchased a new Hummer. Your ex-college mate is now the boss of a conglomerate with 1000 employees.
The green-eyed monster in us will naturally feel envious and might even start to bad mouth these high achievers. Instead, those with a trained mind would look at the success stories and find a way to integrate other people’s achievements into their own agenda.
Bear in mind, the lessons in which you can learn from every successful person you know. Usually, these people are contributors and are just waiting to pass on their valuable skills to the right person with a willing mind to come their way.
Reason 6: Think about the war and forgot about winning the small battles.
Many people got overwhelmed when they gave too much thought about whether their blogs would be successful, how good their blogs as compared to the competitors and stuffs like blog marketing, SEO, domain registration, solving technical glitches, and more.
Life is about tackling and learning from every little battle. Break up the process, and let us do one thing at a time. You could register a domain today. Research for a web host tomorrow. Engage a web host in 3 days. Stop and relax if you are stressed. Continue with the installation of WordPress after you have rested.
You would be surprised at how keen you are at taking the next step after you have started the first. Usually, the momentum will get you going and before you know it, you are open for business.
Reason 7: Starting too many Blogs
From my experience, if you are blogging part-time and running a one-man show, chances are you could only limit yourself to managing two blogs.
Apart from putting content, there are a number of things you have to do in blog management. Most of these tasks are similar to the functional departments in running a major business; marketing, production of content, and SEO (logistic management).
Blog marketing takes up a big chunk of your time and resources in blog management, submitting articles, doing some Tweeting, and posting on Facebook. These are all necessary evils in exposing your little business to the World Wide Web.
Even if you plan to run two blogs, I would advise you to start the blogs at different duration. Bring one up, and start running it for maybe two months before you plunge your limited time resources into the second blog. If these two babies manage to churn in traffic, then monetize.
Like business, there are blogs that might fail. Either they fail to take off or they don’t generate enough income for you to resign from your day’s job. I am prepared for all these, are you?
