Aziz asked:
- Have you ever had a thought about quitting to blog?
- Did you put in more hours of work at the beginning of your blogging career or now?
- What changes do you expect in the blogosphere 5 years and 10 years down the line.
- What do you think about the future of podcasting? Can you give some useful tips for beginners?
- Do you plan to retire? If so, when?
Wow – lots of questions Aziz, this is a nice little interview with a few questions I’ve not been asked before. Ok, let me try answer these quickly in one batch.
1. Have you ever had a thought about quitting blogging?
Yes, many times but usually the thoughts of quitting are fleeting and the result of stressful days. Bloggers can at times be pretty spiteful, uncaring and unkind (sort of like all people) and when you’re on the end of that type of attitude and attack it can be tempting to run away or throw in the towel. However I’m learning to have a thicker skin, to let other people’s snark be their problem not mine and to mind my own business a little more.
2. Did you put in more hours of work at the beginning of your blogging career or now?
I think it’d be pretty similar. The focus has changed though. In the early days it was more focused upon actually blogging. These days I spend a lot of time managing other bloggers, networking, answering emails and working on blog related projects.
3. What changes do you expect in the blogosphere 5 years and 10 years down the line?
I think I’ve previously covered this in a few places – but perhaps you might like to read my previous post on The Future of Blogging? which has a few of my thoughts on the topic to save me rehashing too much here..
4. What do you think about the future of podcasting? Can you give some useful tips for beginners?
I’ve never really gotten into podcasting. Perhaps I’m more of a text based person but I find that listening to people on a podcast (or even in video) takes me a lot longer (it’s hard to scan a podcast) and takes my full attention for longer. I know some people can listen while they do other things but I’m more single focussed.
Having said that I think podcasting will continue to grow. I think video will be bigger though.
My tips for podcasters starting out would be similar to bloggers starting out and include picking a good niche, providing useful and unique content, being yourself, being interactive with listeners and having fun with it.
Perhaps some of my podcasting readers will have a little more to say on this?
5. Do you plan to retire? If so, when?
I can’t ever see myself fully retiring. I think I’ll always work in some way. Whether or not it is in online activities I’m not so sure but at least in the short to medium term I see myself working on blogging and online forms of new media. I have no plans to get out of blogging any time soon.
Thanks God! You are not going to quit very soon. I was also thinking about this topic. Do we write blog only for earning money?
If we become successful, Should we quit doing that?
Thanks
Joynal
Very encouraging words of wisdom, as usual. I have not come to my wits end yet. I”’ continue to blog as long as I see a need for my niche and content.
Very encouraging words of wisdom, as usual. I have not come to my wits end yet. I’ll continue to blog as long as I see a need for my niche and content.
i wonder when i’ll benefit from an interview with you Darren :( Are you listening? ;)
Interesting question re: retirement
Most people, like me, start blogging so we can retire from our 9 to 5 job. But, if you blog on your favourite topics it becomes a hobby as well as a job.
there’s always an opinion that when you’re rich you can retire, but from my observation… successful people are just hard worker, they can’t stop working. It’s just their passion
Retirement? I thought that was when you stopped working for someone else and started working for yourself. :)
Blogging should be a part time job. As we learn more we blog more . I don’t think so we should ever retire from blogging. Blogging is becoming a method of sharing knowledge and earn some bug’s from it . I am 21 . Learning more > blogging more. :)
Don’t let other people make you quit. Do what you think it right and stick to it. Remember that people are jeleous and disagreeable no matter what you do.
From a blogger and a marketer and a person whose interests are broad, a few comments.
I think podcasting will grow immensely (and perhaps be more effective than both text and video).
And that podcasts may well become essential to success in blogging, not as a substitute, but as an adjunct.
My guess is that a podcast is as likely to be listed in the engines as a blog article if not more so. Also to be spontaneously picked up by unsought but welcome podcast directories.
Next:
I do not agree with all the niche talk. While I believe that separate things should be in navigable areas — such as having linked blogs and linked podcasts in clear categories — I feel the niche talk encourages people to believe their success depends on hyper-limitation. To me the cart is dragging the horse on that issue.
I know from experience that when I lead someone via text to a podcast I am multiplying my effectiveness, whether it is idea podcasts or product podcasts I am pointing to.
Podcasts offer an entirely different and I feel more personal window on the person you are encountering.
I recommend Talkshoe as the ideal center for bloggers interested in podcasting. Free setup and super linkage to get your podcasts out there.
Cheers,
S
Glad to hear you’ll be around for a while! Keep the good information coming!
Well shoot, the one thing I wasn’t happy to hear was that over time, you’re spending less time proportionately on the actual blogging and more time on other stuff.
I just started blogging a couple months ago, and it seems like the majority of my time is spent scuttling all over the net trying to drum up new visitors. I spend much less time than I’d like writing actual posts.
I love finding new sites and commenting, but I had the fantasy that the networky aspects of blogging would get less demanding, not more.
Thanks for all the great advice!
Blogging’s one of the few professions I could see doing into my 70s or 80s.
Blogging can be done at any age I couldn’t imagine why anyone would want to retire lol.
Great interview and great little bits of wisdom! Yeah, bloggers can be a harsh bunch. Especially because they don’t actually see the people they’re attacking face-to-face – so it’s much easier for them to say things they otherwise wouldn’t say.
I’ve learned to just ignore personal attacks and not feed them any further. But if they’re attacking the content of what I’ve written, I try to address it as kindly as I can, realizing that other viewpoints are an essential part of blogging.
Taking things with a grain of salt is essential in this business!!!