When I first started blogging, I felt like I was living a divided life. There was “real life” – colleagues, friends and family – and then there was my “blogging life” – these great new people that I was connecting with all over the world.
Back then the “real life” people couldn’t understand my interest in my “pretend friends”. They could not understand the hours that I would spend on my computer. Of course, the real mis-understanding was that I was focused on the machine in the corner of my study – for in reality I was in deep relationship building with people on the other side of the world. The computer was almost invisible to me.
These days things have changed. Now I am often setting up blogs for friends and family – and watching them pick up, stumble and even sometimes power along with their online efforts.
With most businesses I recommend the development of a continuous digital strategy, and while the same approach can be applied at an individual level, most people aren’t ready for that kind of commitment. YET, almost everyone needs a framework within which they can understand what they are doing. They need something practical.
And for that, I always recommend connecting in with Darren Rowse. Australia’s very own ProBlogger knows his stuff – and his Guide to Your First Week of Blogging really helps you to get started. Of course, you could just trawl through the archives on Darren’s site, but most people are impatient to get started. So download the book and send me a link to your new site! What are you waiting for?