Source: Jibli
Tag: wordpress
Blog That? Top 20 reflections on 2014.
Here’s my top 20 blogging reflections on 2014, an update from my 2013 list:
- Grateful for: The Community. (Simply the Best.) Friends. Followers, Likes, Comments, Engagement, Banter, Re-blogs. Thank you.
- Appreciate: Infrequent notes from silent followers. Always surprising and inspiring.
- Take any posts back: No. (But, I do grimace at a few.)
- Viral: Yes. One share titled: Gate A-4. 845,000 views. 487 likes. 15 Minutes of Fame can be frightening. Glad to be back to the Man-Cave.
- Blogging Challenges: Staying fresh. (Not good enough. This one feels tired. Who cares?)
- Secret Sauce for High Quality Content: (1) Read. (2) A silent partner(s). (Thank you.)
- Wish I Had More Time for: Reading and writing. (Especially Reading)
- Awards: Grateful for the fellow blogger recognition but haven’t been able to pay it forward. (Sorry.)
- Who do you call at 3am (when you need blogging help): Todd. Mimi. Lori. Beth. Carol. Ray. And continuing mention of the bloggers who brought me to the dance: Kurt @ Cultural Offering & Steve @ Anderson Layman’s Blog. (Thank you all.)
- Important: Attribution for shares. Regrets? 2012 post without owner’s consent. Apologies extended and post revised.
- Best writing aids/apps: For me (amateur): Save your time and money. Skip ’em.
- Best App in Supporting Role: Evernote. For clipping, storing, composing. No close 2nd place finisher.
- Most useful Utility Apps: 1password. TextExpander. Snagit. DropBox or iCloud. (sync/backup critical)
- Best Reading/Content Apps: Feedly. Pocket. Kindle. Tumblr.
- Best blogs to follow: Authentic. Have opinion. High quality writing and/or content. Succinct.
- Wish I knew how to: (1) Write well (or better?). (2) Photoshop images. (No time. Limited competency.)
- Mac vs. PC: Mac/iPad/iPhone wins hands down. Syncing and stability worth price premium.
- Chrome vs. Safari: (for Mac Users)? Toss Up. Safari for integration/syncing. Google for speed and widgets.
- Niggling Nuisances: Spam. Self-linking. Haters. (Few) Guest blogger requests unrelated to blog theme.
- Why Blog? Why not?
Notes:
- Related Posts: (1) 2013: Top 20 Reflections on 2013: A Blogger’s Retrospective. (2) 2012: Two Years and Counting
- Image Credits (modified text). Original Source: Miguel Fernandez @ gengen-den-strich.com via Tanya Khovanova’s Math Blog
Blog is a slog?
Excerpts from: When Blogging Becomes a Slog by Steven Kurutz, NYTimes.com:
The Petersiks’ trademark gung-ho enthusiasm seemed forced. And since the birth of their second child, Teddy, in April, they were increasingly voicing their difficulty in balancing work and family…the couple responded in a post titled “Feeeeeelings,” in which they confessed to “feeling off for a while” and missing the days when “we did this for the love.” Although they had scaled back outside projects to recommit to the blog, they were unable to shake the sense of “letting you guys down repeatedly.” They had decided to step away from Young House Love for an indeterminate period and explore other career options. The unexpected announcement has generated more than 4,000 comments so far.
Ms. Petersik responded in an email that “we really would like to clear our heads and refocus.” But they are not alone in their experience. Blogger burnout seems to be something that many of their colleagues in the world of home and D.I.Y. blogs, most of them in their 20s and early 30s, can relate to as well. Is the first generation of design bloggers aging out of the blogosphere? Or is this just a new twist on an old business story, updated for the Internet age?
…A tricky thing to avoid as a full-time blogger, considering that the Internet never sleeps, readers want fresh content daily and new social media platforms must be mastered and added to the already demanding workload.
…Pam Kueber…sees the Petersiks’ escalating stress levels and unhappiness simply as evidence of the latter: A passion turns into a hobby, which becomes a full-time career. “And in some predictable period of time, it consumes your life and sucks the joy out if it,” said Ms. Kueber, finishing the arc. “That last part of the Shakespearean tragedy is what you have to be mindful of not letting happen.”
Read full story @ When Blogging Becomes a Slog by Steven Kurutz, NYTimes.com
Image: Egozy
Like me. Like ME. LIKE ME DAMN IT.
Bruce Feiler: For the Love of Being ‘Liked’ – For Some Social-Media Users, an Anxiety From Approval Seeking:
Walking through an airport newsstand this year, I noticed a novelty…I quickly snapped a photo and sent out a tweet to my modest list of followers…Then I waited for the love. I checked the response before passing through security. Nothing. I glanced again while waiting for the plane. Still nothing. I looked again before we took off. Nobody cared. My little attempt to pass a lonely hour in an airport with some friendly interaction had turned into the opposite: a brutal cold shower of social isolation.
We are deep enough into the social-media era to begin to recognize certain patterns among its users. Foremost among them is a mass anxiety of approval seeking and popularity tracking that seems far more suited to a high school prom than a high-functioning society…
…it all begins to seem a bit, well, desperate.
…Time for a rewrite, Mr. Shakespeare. This above all: to thine others be true.
…“In a lot of ways, the addictive part is in the anticipation,”
…”I noticed I get in this puppet situation,” she said. “I get bored, and there’s something compelling about being able to put something online, and all of a sudden there’s instant gratification of ‘They like me!’
…Maybe Warhol needs a rewrite, too: Today, everybody can be famous for 15 retweets.
…A growing body of research indicates how deeply our brains are wired to seek social approval.
Read full (and excellent) article at For the Love of Being ‘Liked’
Notes:
- Image: The Keep Calm-O-Matic
- Title: Shakespeare said: “The above all: to thine own self be true.” What does it mean? See here Wiki.Answers.com.
Related Posts:
Top 20 reflections on 2013: A Blogger’s Retrospective
- 2013 Regrets? Zero.
- Take any 2013 posts back? No. (But I do grimace at a few.)
- 2014 Goals (Resolutions)? None. Marching forward headlong.
- Blogging Challenges? Staying fresh. (Not good enough. This one feels tired. Who cares?)
- Grateful for? Followers, Likes, Comments, Engagement, Community. Re-blogs.
- Secret for finding High Quality Content? (1) Read. (2) A silent partner(s). (Thank you.)
- Wish I Had More Time for? Reading and writing. (Especially Reading)
- Few words leaving deep tracks? “Lately, I’ve been leaning toward kindness.” (Gillian Flynn)
- Best blogging platform? WordPress. (Can it get any easier?)
- Request for WordPress? Make customizing blog design easier. Enhance Search Function.
- Best writing aids/apps? For me (an amateur): All a waste of time and money. Skip them.
- #1 Blogging App? Evernote. For clipping, storing, saving, composing, everything.
- Most useful Utility Apps? 1password. TextExpander. Snagit. Dropbox. Alfred.
- Most critical Reading/Content apps? Feedly. Mr. Reader. Tumblr. Pocket.
- Best blogs to follow? Authentic. High quality writing and/or content. Succinct.
- Wish I knew how to? Photoshop images. Understand Adobe. (No time. Zero competency.)
- Mac vs. PC? Mac/iPad/iPhone wins hands down. Syncing and stability worth price premium.
- Google Chrome vs. Safari (for Mac Users)? Moved to Safari for integration/syncing.
- Niggling Nuisances? Spam. Self-linking. Guest blogger requests unrelated to blog theme.
- Why Blog? Why not?
Related Posts: Two Years and Counting
Image Credit. Note: “Got Blog” is a spin-off from the “Got Milk” advertising campaign.