If there’s one thing I’ve learned over the course of my blogging career, it’s that good blogs take time.
If you’re run off your feet, and struggling to find space to do all the things your blog demands of you, that’s probably not what you wanted to hear.
But in my experience, it’s true.
There is no overnight success
Blogging superstars aren’t made overnight. Look at any of the heavy hitters in your niche, and I’ll guarantee they weren’t born yesterday. Even if they’ve only entered the blogosphere recently, if they’re already experiencing success, you can bet they’re leaning on a wealth of past experience with your niche, or a related niche, or with technology. Probably all three.
It takes time to get the kind of experience that gives you authority. It takes time to get to know your audience, and understand their needs. And it takes time to find the best way to meet that need with your skills.
There are tactics that you can apply to your blog to fast-track your progress. But it’s important to realize first, that these tactics take time in themselves, and second, that while they might advance your progress in some area—and that’s great!—they’re unlikely to rocket you to blogging superstardom, complete with mega-income.
There are many pieces in the blogging puzzle, not a magic bullet.
Experience pays
If that seems disheartening, you’ll be happy to hear that there is a bright side.
All the time you put into blogging will pay off.
When I say “blogging,” I’m not just talking about learning to use advertising or gain subscribers or write great posts. I’m talking about everything your blog inspires you to do, from holding events and meetups, to interviewing the leading lights in your niche, to creating products or selling services, to making new friends and contacts.
All of it pays off. I really do believe that blogging can enrich us as people if we let it, and a blogger with a broad perspective and a considered approach based on real-world know-how is in a great position to achieve things not just through their blog, but in their lives as a whole.
The thing is, getting that experience takes time. That’s what experience is: time invested in a particular task or set of tasks. If we see the work our blogs demand of us as an investment, rather than a simple expenditure of time we could spend elsewhere, that can help us channel our energies, but also give our blogging the energy—and time—it deserves.
Enjoy the journey
I’ve found that if I worry about the time I’m spending on various blogging tasks, all I feel is stressed!
If I let myself become immersed in those tasks, and really focus on what I’m doing rather than how long it’s taking, that’s when I get the chance to learn, ask questions, investigate, and practice. For me, that’s what makes what I do enjoyable. And that, in turn, is what’s let me get the experience I’ve gained over the last ten years or so. To me, that experience is invaluable.
What bloggers do really is part of a journey—there’s no end-point. It’s all part of our experience. So why rush it? Why try to push forward to an arbitrary “success metric” when we know that what matters is our experience, and experience takes time?
Are you trying to rush your blogging journey? Or are you prepared to give your blog and yourself the time it—and you—need?
You are right that great blog take time and so does greater success. It can’t be obtained by simply hard work or through lot of techniques. A good mix of proper plan, flawless implementation and continuous monitoring can make one become a successful blogger.
A very informative and motivating post, thanks Darren
So very true. People think that Keep the Tail Wagging was an overnight success. Nope. It was the result of nearly 3 years of blogging fails and successes that allowed me to hit the ground running with KTW and I still want more more more.
Patience, consistency and an open mind have been great tools for me; be willing to try something now and actually give your try the chance to be fruitful before abandoning it to do something new.
Kimberly
I write a blog just because I can’t stop myself from writing, and I might as well make it available to the public. The money and fame are just a nice extra.
Yep , you are right .. i do write articles not in the intention of making money overnight , but on a gradual .. Expecting my blog to reach a level something like Problogger … :)
Share some of your Tips with us newbiew as always.
From the moment I started my blog I have kept in mind that success will take a long time. I gave myself 2 years as a deadline to evaluate how it’s doing. It’s a 3 month old blog as of now and I have learned a lot in the process. Thanks for your advice, Darren,
Darren
this is one of the honest articles, I’m talking from experienced because I remember when i first started blogging to where I am now.
In the beginning I had not traction, wasnt getting much comments, or even getting any recognition. Now I have grown from that point to where people are recognizing me, appreciating my content.
I’m up to the point now where I ca get 30 to 100 comments per article.
so this tells me on climbing to the top to get to your point,, ill see you at the top of the mountain soon.
Very encouraging post, Darren. I’m definitely trying to rush my blog journey and worry about it way too much.
I’m learning that experience does indeed pay, and with that knowledge, I’ve begun reaching out to seasoned bloggers to glean from their experiences and wisdom.
The problem is (not just in the field of blogging) that we want the results of the experience less than we want experience itself. Smart or lucky, are those that can enjoy a slow ride to the success they expect.
Yes, I hear this over and over again, but how much time is “time”? No one wants to get more specific than that. Are we talking one year, five years, ten years to have a reasonable expectation of seeing things moving where they should be?
I am trying to use my blog to sell women’s accessories and I love your advice Darren, really! I have been blogging for a year and slowly gaining an audience but I don’t believe that I have generated any sales this way. I love doing it, so I will continue with weekly posts, but I think everyone is afraid to say how long it actually DOES take. Never mind the fact that I have yet to get one measly comment on any entry I have made other than spammers from viagra sites.
Helen, I feel your pain. I’m no DARREN, but I’d say a year is just the beginning. I’ve been writing for a small business blog, and the general consensus is that a business needs 3-5 years to determine if it’s viable. Most new businesses will only make a profit 3 out of those five years. Good luck! At least now you have one more woman (me) who knows your site is out there when I’m looking for accessories!
Helen, I completely understand! I’ve been writing my blog on contemporary craft, art & design for about 10 months now – and it’s just sloooow… but I’m gradually getting there, av about 80 hits/day and got a few sponsors. (and sometimes I would like other little blogs to mention their stats too – so we’ve got some kind of ball-park to compare to, even though I understand each type of blog will be very different)
I always figured it would be a long haul, so that’s OK.
Thanks so much Sarah for putting things in perspective too. It’s SO easy to set up a blog these days, that everyone’s doing it. Concentrate on quality, keep going, and you’ll get somewhere, I reckon.
I totally resonate with what you’re saying here Darren. In fact my personal blog has inspired me to do so many things which aren’t even related to my primary topic on my personal blog. Example – setting up blogs for other business from different niches.
When I initially started blogging, I was rushing at it.. making sure that I post at least 5-6 posts per week, but later on realised that it started to suffer in quality.
Now.. thanks to ProBlogger and some other amazing blogging communities online.. I’ve slowed down and learnt that nothing replaces great content. Thanks.
Darren,
I completely agree. My main blog is doing well but has kind of come to a halt in terms of its growth. I have a few new project ideas and I have the feeling they are going to take off! Experience here is key.
Excelent post – just what I’ve been needing to hear! I started my blogging journey understanding this concept, but I think I forgot it somewhere along the way. Thanks for reminding me that it’s the experience that matters, not how many blog hits or comments I have on any given day.
Yep, though it takes a long time to get hard work paying off but once you are successful, then there will be no stopping.
I am so guilty of wanting to rush my blogging career. I love the process and the journey, that’s why I decided to go for it full time. I love every aspect of it, even html, which I never thought I’d be in to. But I still want the validation of success.
This does ease my anxieties though, because it reminds me that even though I haven’t had the amount of success I dream of yet, it will probably come if I’m persistent. It’s been just over a year, and it’s been FUN.
My blog is in it’s infancy and this article is a reminder on how I will have to be patient.
Thanks for the thought-worthy post, Darren. I begin blogging as a way to keep in touch with my family’s back home. After a while, the perks are pretty nice and I am truly appreciative of being able to make money in something I love doing everyday :)
i so agree with this, there are no shortcut to be superstar blogger,..
keep success on your niche,
cheers
Completely agree as you now only need to build up an audience but you also need to build up content as well.
Spot on Darren, Blogging is a long term hourney and it’s a great way to express outselves. The potential extra income is by the way product and we should spend more time in generating a valuable content!
Cheers!
This is the post that every new blogger needs to hear, especially when SEO is involved.
I’ve found that by taking my time, working on great, unique content, I’ve done much better overall than chasing money and traffic schemes.
Very inspiring post Darren, thank you. I sometimes do rush up my blogging journey. And After I calmly read this post, I feel really good about blogging. I will definitely enjoy it and you as well need to enjoy your blogging journey, thank you.
Really inspiring and educating post! Your right and I agree with you Darren. A good blog is which time has been taken in it; was actually encouraged and I can’t wait to take your tips into consideration. Thank you!
This is true Darren. You have to take time in order to bring out a crucial and more appealing blogs to your traffic. Panicking comes in when we don’t take time to give out a nice content to the audience. Was really encouraged and a lot inspired. Thanks a lot!
Great post Darren.
The best part in this post is when u said u dont have to be worried on spending time on various blogging tasks. And only when u stop worrying u can learn, ask questions, investigate, and practice.
Keep up the good work.
I completely agree with your post Darren. We should always understand the fact that time is an important factor when it comes to blogging. The more time and concentration you give to your blog; the higher the quality of information. It is important to understand this concept and concur with the fact that, experience is gained through consistent blogging.
Thanks for the good write.
I remember one quote from a very successful person.
It went something like ” I am an overnight success, and it only took me 25 years to get here”!
There are countless other quotes, which also take a dig at the way ” Overnight success” is often thought to have “just happened ” without years of struggles through ups and downs…..
As far as a success time frame, this is like asking ” How long is a piece of string” ?
Though, unlike the piece of string(which we can control the length of) our level of success, and the time it takes to achieve it, are often the result of many factors both within and outside of our own control…..
Darren,
I agree with you but I wish it wasn’t taking me SO long. I barely have any time to invest into my blog (due to work, wife and kids) but I feel like I have so much to give.
I know eventually this will come full time (because I won’t give up) but I just wish it came sooner.
I agree with you Darren. Good blogs are not made overnight. They require constant editing and observation on how readers respond to them. Thanks for posting this, I enjoyed reading. Great article!
I’m glad you wrote this.
Sometimes we think it happens overnight, but it could take years. I’ve been trying to slow mine down a bit. Let myself build a following more slowly than throwing everything at it. My main aim is to keep the people that’s already there. I don’t care if it takes me years.
Patience Patience Patience thats the key. Blog is almost a full time job if you want to make money out of it?
http://www.allexamguide.com
Thanks, Darren. I often have to remind myself that it is all valuable experience and that I know so much more now than I did a few years ago. I think blogging is like many other things in life: the more you learn, the more you realise there is left to learn!
I guess it depends what each of us defines as a successful or superstar blog as being in order to know if we get there or not.
I have been blogging since 2008 and each year I have written less and less posts. In fact, I would say my blog was the most successful in 2009 when I could afford to put a lot of time into writing posts, reading other blogs and leaving lots of comments. I was posting daily in the early days. It does take a lot of effort but oh my, it can be loads of fun.
Since then, I have still posted but perhaps only a few posts per month. It is a hobby that I will never give away I don’t think.
I also have a lot of readers that have stayed with me since the start. They feel like family.
However, for some unknown reason I have the blogging bug back again. Maybe, just because I now have more time again.
To me, the greatest part of blogging is the network of wonderful people you come across that you never would have before. It has made the world a smaller place that is for sure. I just like to tell stories and the biggest reward to me is that someone thinks they are entertaining and leaves a comment to tell me so. Anything else that happens is icing on the cake. And come to think of it give I really do like icing I might just take my blog a bit more seriously again.
Thanks for a thought provoking article.
I definitely agree. Becoming a better blogger or learning just about anything takes time, patience, and persistence.
I think it’s also important for us not to compare ourselves with our blogging idols. I find that many of us (including myself) often fall into the trap of measuring ourselves alongside those we admire…which does wonders for killing self-esteem, haha.
While it’s great to look up to the popular bloggers, as you said, we need to remember to focus on our own journeys and deeply appreciate our own learning experiences.
Love, love, love this post. Many people write about how growing a good blog will take time but until now I hadn’t seen anyone talk about embracing that and really experiencing the joy of immersing yourself in the tasks. So important, so true, so smart!
When I first started blogging, I did it for all the wrong reasons and my focus wasn’t in the right place. I tried to rush my way to the top and as if to slap me in the face, my blog didn’t climb. Then after a while, like you said, I felt stressed by it.
Certain circumstances then required me to get a new domain and I chose that time to start over, decide exactly where I wanted my blog to go and the steps I was going to perform to take it there. I took my time, and actually learned and applied things I completely overlooked the first time.
Now, I interact more w/ other bloggers and I understand the importance of guest posting. A huge one that I completely overlooked before, is having a list people can subscribe to and making it easily accessible. There’s also the benefit of giving subscribers a free gift.
Just an example of some very important things I personally missed out on when rushing through the first blogging journey.