Blogging is hard work, and it gets harder every day. There are millions of blogs on the internet, all trying to be the most clever, the most user friendly, the most fun, and the most informative. Yet, all can't be. Blogging is easy to get started doing, but hard to sustain. So many blogs start well, and then trail off as the owners run out of content, get disappointed with traffic numbers, or realize that it just takes too much time. I have to admit, I started to get discouraged about blogging today. I probably spend about 2 hours per day blogging, which includes writing and maintenance for 3 main blogs. Because blogging can be so difficult, tiresome, and completely boring sometimes - I want to share with you my 4 reasons not to start a blog.
1. It takes time to become successful. So, if you are a generally impatient type of person - Don't start a blog! My first two weeks blogging, I probably spent the equivalent of three full days blog leaping and building traffic. Even now, about a month and a half after my blog relaunch I still only have made it up to about 50 - 75 regular viewers every day. It is encouraging to see my traffic build at a slow and steady rate, but it is at times a drag. One of the keys to a good blog is persistence. Tough it out, keep posting good content and marketing yourself to others and you will gradually see results.
2. The spam factor. If you feel like you get enough spam on the internet in one day - Don't start a blog! Blogging will inevitably just bring you more spam in the form of comments. I probably kill about 5 spam comments per day. The amount of spam comments will only grow as the popularity of your blog grows. I know of some bloggers who kill over 100 spam comments per day - in addition to another 100 spam emails per day. We all get enough spam in a day - who really wants another source? Apparently I do...
3. You won't make money. At least, not at first. If you want to start a blog for the sole purpose of putting some cash in your pocket - Don't! You can let this be one motivating factor in your choice to start blogging, but it should not be the only reason you blog. Most bloggers who make a lot of cash blogging have put the hard work into marketing and gathering traffic for their blogs. Sure, there are the occasional one-hit wonders, but they are few and far between - and you most likely won't be one. It is easy to tell a "money" blogger from a genuine blogger. I can sniff 'em out in seconds... The biggest mistake a blogger makes when the want to make money blogging, is to blog about making money online. I blog here about how I make some cash online, albiet not much, but I feel like I have some experiences to talk about. My biggest advice here is - Do not blog about making money online if you have no relevant experience!
4. You will be wrong about something. If you are one of those people who is always right - Don't start a blog! I have been wrong numerous times. When you start a blog, you cannot think that you will be "the source" for the information. You will be wrong once in a while. I have misquoted statistics many times. I have been corrected on grammar many times. I have predicted things wrong many times. Thankfully, no one is 100% all of the time. Although, I wouldn't mind it...
Get out there kid, and DON'T blog today!
You can expect a follow-up with more discouraging tips later this month!
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