3 Ways To Achieve What The 10% Do
- Sep 20, 2021
- 5 min read
Updated: Sep 22, 2021
Yes, I purposefully added a zero to that percentage because I'm not referring to the 1% that society considers, upper class. I'm talking about joining the over 10% of people living in the U.S. that are bloggers. Just think, this number only accounts for 32 million blogs out of the over 600 million in the world! Thanks to Internet Live Stats, you can see that there are 1.8 billion websites (and counting) meaning that more than a third of these have blogs. Below, I have provided the 2019 report for number of blogs posted per country.
There are usually two different reactions that I get when people see these statistics.
America is known as the land of opportunity, so it's not a surprise that the U.S. is ranked #1.
It doesn't seem like a good idea to start a blog when there are so many others already doing it.
Now, I want you to understand that I didn't research all this data to scare you, (although I recognize why starting a new blog can be intimidating) I did it to show you the number of individuals that succeeded.
I think of myself as an optimist and sometimes that enables me to see how other people are feeling. With that in mind, I thought that I'd put together a list of my top recommendations that could help people when starting a blog.
#1: It's not perfect, but it's a start.
We've all heard the famed saying, "It's not about how you start, it's about how you finish." The thing is, most of us can't even start to begin with because we don't know where to start. I can relate to this since I literally had no idea what this post was going to be about and yet, here we are.
First, I researched popular topics and ideas that mattered to others so that I could appeal to the masses. I thought that creating a food blog, fashion blog, or music blog would be easy because I liked all these things; however, it definitely was not. The reason behind this was because the content I was trying to create was what other people enjoyed, not what I did.
So, I found this article by Elaine Rau that provides an exercise that teaches individuals about what their habits are, what motivates them, and where their strengths lie. This wasn't the easiest task to complete and I couldn't answer all of the questions, but it did help me learn more about myself. I will say that my biggest take away was when she talked about the difference between passion and purpose. She said that, "Your purpose is the foundation on which your passion should be built." In terms that I can comprehend, my passion is the "what" I chose to blog about and my purpose is the "why" I do it.
Food for thought: if passion is ever changing, but purpose is constant, isn't the most important step prior to starting, to figure out "why" in the first place?
One of my more favorable moments thus far have been building on my skills in the department of "why" thanks to Simon Sinek's TED talk. I have honestly watched this video more than 20 times and I always learn something new. If you don't have 18 minutes to spare, fast-forward to 10:54 "People don't buy what you do; they buy why you do it. If you talk about what you believe, you will attract those who believe what you believe."
I have also listed some of my favorite reads for those who still love a good book and are in need of more inspiration on getting started.
#2: Don't be a trail blazer (at least not yet).
Now that we've finally found the courage to get started, its full steam ahead, right?
Sure, if you're a train conductor that has railroad tracks already laid out to get from here to there. Throughout my journey as an entrepreneur, I was told over and over again that if I wanted to be successful, I needed to take the road less traveled. With two failed businesses, my best advice is to learn from those who came before. It's a good thing that there are over 7.5 million blogs being posted every day for us to take pointers from.
According to Hubspot, "Articles that are greater than 3,000 words get 3x more traffic, 4x more shares, and 3.5x more backlinks than shorter articles." There are mixed feelings about word count and many believe that shorter blogs get more traffic because the newer generations have a shorter attention span. I believe that sites with bulkier blogs have more content that provides me with the information that keeps my attention there, and not searching for more elsewhere. Opinions aside, I have found an amazing video that provides a step-by-step guide on how to utilize a keyword search to tell you how many words per topic you should have.
If you haven't noticed by now, writing is not my strong suit and I really struggle with structure. I have moments when these ideas come rushing in all at once and I have no clue what to do with it. I know I'm not the only one, so I want to share my secret with you... use templates! There are literally 100's out there, but I recommend using Backlink as a starting point. This site provides 7 templates that have been proven to grow blogs and examples of what each should look like. My goal is to go through and write something utilizing each of these, but my favorite at the moment is how to write "The Beginners Guide."
#3: Become a Master
People are always debating if whether or not a "jack of all trades" is positive or negative. For those of you who have no idea what that is, the phrase by William Shakespeare goes like this, "A jack of all trades is a master of none, but oftentimes better than a master of one." It is used to describe someone who is versatile and skilled in many areas, rather than a specialist in one.
If I had to pick a side, it would have to be neither. The household I grew up in was full of hippies who taught me that there is room for people to be both, a jack of all trades and a master. The only dictator of which should be time and place. Therefore, it should come as no surprise when I say that mastering certain elements of blogging is essential in achieve what the 10% does.
The reason for this, is to minimize burn out and ease feelings of being overwhelmed. Yes, there are websites out there that are using a lot of social media platforms such as Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, and many others. No, it doesn't mean that they stand out more than websites that use just one. Here is an awesome tool that I've used when deciding which of those platforms I wanted to master. I also encourage you to check out Kim Jimenez's "7 Content Creation Hacks" on YouTube. Mastery is her number one tip!
Lastly, I thought that it would be cool to share my favorite blog, The Pet Lifestyle Guru. It is hands down one of the best blogging websites I have come across, and it's not just because I love animals. The content is always well thought out and holds my attention. The way she uses hyperlinks, pictures, videos, and recommendations keeps me coming back for more. You can see the passion and purpose behind every topic. Rebecca Sanchez always makes me get those, "Ah-ah" moments.
From one beginner to another, I truly hope that my tips both encouraged and helped you on your journey. If nothing else, that you were able to take away at least one thing. I can't stress how vital your opinion is it me, so please don't be afraid to like this post and drop a comment.
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