Yesterday, after a long day at work, I realized that on April 21, 2017, I started my journey as a blogger. I remember I was so scared before getting back to my abandoned blog again. I started a humble blog on Blogger years ago. But here I am today, blogging from my personal website! All thanks to a dear friend who made it happen. Writing is something I have always admired from a very young age. Especially when I was learning English as a second language. The way writers structure sentences is mind-blowing. It is often that we link art with painting, drawing, dancing or making music. When, in fact, writing is a form of art. It is important to remember that ”Everyone can write, but not everyone is a writer.”
On this occasion, I will always be grateful to my friend, Khadeja, who encouraged me to take this step. Looking back, it was one of the best steps I took in a long time. I am glad I got to embark on a journey in something I have always loved. In this article, I am sharing briefly 4 lessons I learned after 4 years of blogging.
First, I still believe that consistency is key
One of the most important things in blogging is to be consistent. Once you stop or pause for a short or long period, it can affect your work as a blogger. I remember in my first year of blogging, the rate of articles I published monthly was 2 to 3 articles. This means that I published one article per week. However, last year, I noticed that I managed to publish 5 to 8 articles per month while having a busy schedule. Trust me, it is all about management! You can draft your articles before hand and make final edits right before publishing. It can save you a lot of time especially if you have so much on your plate.
Don’t be afraid
I read something yesterday and I could highly resonate with. ”Feel the fear and do it anyway”. I believe one of the major obstacles we face is fear. It stops us from doing so many things only because of the endless excuses we come up with. Fear makes us overthink everything until we finally brush it off. I was afraid before starting my blog. I asked myself so many questions. For example, what if it doesn’t work? What if I am not good enough? What will I write about? But with the encouragement of my dear friend, I did it while I was afraid. No theme was identified for the blog nor the topics tackled. I just did it to express myself and share my knowledge and experiences with people.
Follow where the journey takes you
Frankly speaking, if you were to tell me that my blogging journey would turn out like this, I wouldn’t believe you. I started my blog with zero expectations and I finally did it for the sake of writing. I didn’t have weekly, monthly, or yearly plans. I found my passion through the journey itself. It gave me the chance to be creative and visit forgotten memories. I got the chance to ask questions and look for answers. But most importantly, it gave me the chance to make connections and find unique stories. I don’t think I will ever want it to be any different.
Finally, never forget why you started
No matter how tough it gets or how busy your life is; don’t forget how it all started. Everything starts small but with right care, it could grow so beautifully. As long as you have a purpose, you will have great stories to tell ahead.