Posts Tagged ‘blogging’

It’s happened already!  Somehow I thought it would take longer.  Blogging regularly has become, for the moment anyway, a chore.

It’s not that I don’t enjoy the hours spent trying to come up with fresh ideas and working to convey them in an interesting way, it just that sometime, like now, I am busy.

In my last post I whined about the onerous responsibilities of managing multiple sources of income.  In my mind I liken it to a variety act, the one where the performer spins plates on a pole, setting one after the other in motion until, the first plate begins to wobble as it loses the centrifugal force that keeps it balanced on top of the pole.  The performer then begins bounding from pole to pole exerting just enough pressure to start the plate spinning once again.

Sometimes, that is exactly what managing multiple sources of income is like.  It’s not that it’s not fun; it’s just that sometimes there are just too many plates. And when that happens … well blogging, (and renting, cleaning and repairing and organizing and communicating and relationship building, not to mention getting the oil changed), can begin to seem like a chore.

The good news is I am not alone.

Here a just a few bloggers who agree with me.

I can’t thank Penelope Trunk of Brazen Careerist enough for declaring with authority something I’ve believe since I first humiliated myself by begin the first to publically misspell a word in a spelling bee.  In Penelope’s blog post, “Writing Without Typo’s Is Totally Outdated.”, Trunk says “The focus has shifted toward taking risks with conversation and ideas, and away from hierarchical input (the editorial process) and perfection.”   

It is clear to me I’ve been ahead of my time.  I’ve been writing for substance over appearance since the fourth grade when I wrote my first travel essay about a family vacation. “It Started With a Dreem”.

Chris Brogan also supports me when he says, “Your Blog is Not Your Job”. His point: “spending hours chatting, doing things that take us away from our objectives can sometimes feel easy”. 

Sometimes?

Thanks Chris for reminding me and all small business owners that meaningful objectives are much larger than writing a post each day.  The primary objective of a committed business owner is to deliver a valuable product to as many happy, grateful people as possible.  Broken down into day-to-day intentions, this aim looks like executing strategies for more leads and more revenue, not more blog posts or Twitter tweets.

Well, okay, this one, How to Overcome Your Three Greatest Blogging Challenges by Sonia Simone, Senior Editor of Copyblogger isn’t quite so supportive.  “Get off your backside and do it” is pretty much a cliché when it comes to writing advice but clichés always emphasis a truth. 

But enough!  I realize now why I keep at this, and why, once I get started, it is not so bad, even enjoyable. The point is not to write every day but to write something interesting, useful or surprising; to formulate and then share, clearly, my expertise and insights in order to provide something of value to my clients, customer and followers.

My challenge is to embrace the hugely public potential of the blog. I am inclined to be shy.  Not drawing attention to myself. This is, I know, is nothing but my own fear of failure. If I never share my blog thoughts with the world, I will never have to defend my ideas, change my mind, or apologize for my mistakes.  I also will never have the impact I imagine when I sit down to write.

See? This post started as a chore and ended with an insight.  I see that I must make more of an effort to generate comments, readers, reaction to my blog.  It will require self promotion that is not comfortable; it will result in feedback that will challenge me but it will keep my blog fires burning because, when I have readers, I will have a community and my connection to that community will create a desire to provide to that community something of meaning and value.

If you are part of my community, or would like to be, please comment – but not about my typos.

Personally I think it is lame to repost blog posts by Seth Godin. Granted he is the king. Everyone agrees you can’t go wrong reading Godin’s marketing advice but it is HIS advice, you can read it at his site.  The Working Miracles Blog is, or should be, about my POV.

So – just so you know – I am cheating:  I know it and now you know it.

Here is My Excuse

When people ask me what I do I answer, “I am an entrepreneur”. Depending on the person, I might add some clarification.  I might tell them I have rental properties. I might say I have high quality, fully automatic cappuccino/espresso machines that I put into offices and public places. I often tell them I am a business coach.  Sometimes I will add,” I also have investments that I manage”.

Getting Things Done

I have “multiple sources of income”.  Usually is diversity is not only prudent but interesting. Wearing multiple hats keeps me actively using all my skills, talents and knowledge in a way that both challenges and engages me.  Sometimes however the management responsibilities of my three or four business ventures converge to create a mini version of the perfect storm.

This week is one of those perfect storm weeks. 

• It is a short week since I spent the Memorial Day weekend at the beach.
• The rental property is newly vacant. It needs cleaning and maintenance as well as arranging showings.
• For the first time in almost three years one of my cappuccino machines needs repair. The repair process requires shipping parts over international borders. (Don’t get me started on that story.)
• I have a great new book by John Jantsch of Duck Tape Marketing about setting up a referral system for your business. I want to not only read the book and review it for you, but to set up a smooth running referral system for Working Miracles Small Business Coaching.

Time Managment - That is Why…

So, that is why I am cheating and suggesting you read this blog post by Seth Godin instead of offering brilliant exposition from my own mind.  Go ahead.  Take a look and answer the questions about “What Do You Do?”  Especially number 16.  “What does busy look like?”

I’d love to hear your vision.  What did you learn about yourself and your business (or businesses) by reflecting on what you do?

Did anyone see the PBS special on Happiness that is on air three night this week? The gist of the latest thinking on happiness is that it takes other people – relationships- to make us happy. The news here is that it is not money that makes us happy though, admittedly, money helps.

So I am in the right place. I am working to create a community of small business owners who are supporting each other as we each build a business that will share our unique value, in the form of a product or service ,with the the world.

I am excited about the process but it is taking time from my composing of my long and perhaps rather dull posts. While I marshal along my web designer and work my way through a 12 week blogging course I will share with you what I am learning and invite you all to take a look at my new web site content as it is created and posted.

Today, I will use my first new blogging skill to share a video. The intention of this well done video is to offer a direct sales opportunity for a skin care product. I am NOT endorsing the product. I haven’t tried it. But for anyone considering starting a business to negotiate their way through this down economy or searching for a neiche market, this video offer both encouragement and some interesting data.

My apologies for the commerical in the beginning. It comes with the territory. Enjoy